Lenovo x3550 M4 Installation and maintenance instructions

Lenovo System x3550 M4
Installation and Service Guide
Machine Type: 7914

Note
Before usin this information and the product it supports, read the eneral information in Appendix D
“Gettin help and technical assistance” on pa e 873, Appendix E “Notices” on pa e 877, the Warranty
Information document, and the Safety Information and Environmental Notices and User Guide documents on
the Documentation CD.
Twenty-third Edition (September 2016)
© Copyri ht Lenovo 2012, 2016.
LIMITED AND RESTRICTED RIGHTS NOTICE: If data or software is delivered pursuant to a General Services
Administration “GSA” contract, use, reproduction, or disclosure is subject to restrictions set forth in Contract No. GS-
35F-05925.

Contents
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
Guidelines for trained service technicians. . . . . . vi
Inspectin for unsafe conditions . . . . . . . vi
Guidelines for servicin electrical equipment. . . vii
Safety statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viii
Chapter 1. The Lenovo System
x3550 M4 server . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
The Documentation CD. . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Hardware and software requirements . . . . . 3
Usin the Documentation Browser . . . . . . 3
Related documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Notices and statements in this document. . . . . . 5
Server features and specifications . . . . . . . . 5
What your server offers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Reliability, availability, and serviceability . . . . . 12
Systems Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Server controls, LEDs, and power. . . . . . . . 14
Front view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Operator information panel . . . . . . . . 16
Li ht path dia nostics panel . . . . . . . . 17
Rear view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Server power features . . . . . . . . . . 21
Chapter 2. Installin optional
devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Instructions for Business Partners. . . . . . . . 23
How to send DSA data . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Server components . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
System-board internal connectors. . . . . . 26
System-board external connectors . . . . . 26
System-board switches, jumpers, and
buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
System-board LEDs . . . . . . . . . . . 29
System-board optional-device connectors . . 30
Installation uidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
System reliability uidelines . . . . . . . . 32
Workin inside the server with the power on . . 33
Handlin static-sensitive devices . . . . . . 33
Removin the cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Removin the air baffle . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Installin drives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Drive IDs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Installin hot-swap hard disk drives . . . . . 37
Installin simple-swap hard disk drives . . . . 38
Installin an optional DVD drive . . . . . . . 39
Installin an optional DVD drive cable . . . . 43
Installin a memory module . . . . . . . . . . 45
DIMM installation sequence . . . . . . . . 48
Memory mirrored channel . . . . . . . . . 48
Memory rank sparin . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Installin a memory module . . . . . . . . 50
Installin an adapter . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Installin a ServeRAID SAS/SATA controller. . . . 55
Installin the ServeRAID adapter memory
module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Installin a RAID adapter battery or flash power
module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Installin the dual-port network adapter . . . . . 61
Installin a power supply . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Installin a hot-swap ac power supply . . . . 65
Installin a hot-swap dc power supply . . . . 68
Installin a hot-swap fan . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Installin a USB embedded hypervisor flash
device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Installin an additional microprocessor and heat
sink . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Thermal rease . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Installin a SAS/SATA 4 Pac HDD option . . . . . 83
Installin the operator information panel
assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Completin the installation . . . . . . . . . . 86
Replacin the air baffle . . . . . . . . . . 86
Replacin the cover . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Connectin the cables . . . . . . . . . . 88
Updatin the server confi uration . . . . . . 89
Chapter 3. Confi urin . . . . . . . . 91
Updatin the firmware . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Confi urin the server . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Usin the ServerGuide Setup and Installation
CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Usin the Setup utility . . . . . . . . . . 95
Usin the Boot Mana er . . . . . . . . . 101
Startin the backup server firmware . . . . . 102
The UpdateXpress System Pack Installer . . . 102
Usin the inte rated mana ement module . . 102
Usin the remote presence and blue-screen
capture features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Usin the embedded hypervisor . . . . . . 105
Confi urin the Ethernet controller . . . . . 106
Enablin Features on Demand Ethernet
software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Enablin Features on Demand RAID
software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
© Copyri ht Lenovo 2012, 2016 i

Confi urin RAID arrays. . . . . . . . . . 106
Advanced Settin s Utility pro ram. . . . . . 107
Usin Lenovo XClarity Administrator . . . . . 107
Updatin Systems Director . . . . . . . . 108
Updatin the Universal Unique Identifier
(UUID). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Updatin the DMI/SMBIOS data . . . . . . 111
Chapter 4. Troubleshootin . . . . . . 115
Start here . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Dia nosin a problem . . . . . . . . . . 115
Undocumented problems . . . . . . . . . 117
Service bulletins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Checkout procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
About the checkout procedure . . . . . . . 118
Performin the checkout procedure . . . . . 118
Dia nostic tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Li ht path dia nostics . . . . . . . . . . 121
Event lo s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
POST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Dynamic System Analysis . . . . . . . . . 136
Automated service request (call home) . . . . . . 138
Electronic Service A ent . . . . . . . . . 139
Error messa es . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Troubleshootin by symptom . . . . . . . . . 139
CD/DVD drive problems. . . . . . . . . . 139
General problems . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Hard disk drive problems . . . . . . . . . 141
Hypervisor problems . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Intermittent problems. . . . . . . . . . . 144
Keyboard, mouse, or USB-device
problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Memory problems . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Microprocessor problems . . . . . . . . . 147
Monitor and video problems . . . . . . . . 147
Network connection problems . . . . . . . 150
Optional-device problems . . . . . . . . . 150
Power problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Serial-device problems . . . . . . . . . . 157
ServerGuide problems . . . . . . . . . . 158
Software problems. . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Universal Serial Bus (USB) port problems . . . 159
Video problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Solvin power problems . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Solvin Ethernet controller problems . . . . . . 161
Solvin undetermined problems . . . . . . . . 162
Problem determination tips . . . . . . . . . . 163
Recoverin the server firmware (UEFI update
failure) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
In-band manual recovery method . . . . . . 164
In-band automated boot recovery method . . 166
Out-of-band method . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Automated boot recovery (ABR) . . . . . . . . 166
Nx-boot failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Chapter 5. Parts listin , Lenovo
System x3550 M4 Type 7914 . . . . . . 169
Replaceable server components . . . . . . . . 169
Structural parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Power cords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Chapter 6. Removin and replacin
components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Returnin a device or component . . . . . . . . 185
Internal cable routin and connectors . . . . . . 185
Cablin SAS/SATA ServeRAID Controller . . . 185
Cablin backplane . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Cablin RAID adapter battery or flash power
module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Cablin SPECpower . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Cablin DVD drive . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Cablin operator information panel . . . . . 192
Cablin front USB and video connector. . . . 193
Removin and replacin server components . . . 194
Removin and replacin structural parts . . . 194
Removin and replacin Tier 1 CRUs . . . . 203
Removin and replacin Tier 2 CRUs . . . . 283
Appendix A. Inte rated mana ement
module II (IMM2) error messa es . . . 305
IMM Events that automatically notify Support . . . 306
List of IMM events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
Appendix B. UEFI/POST dia nostic
codes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 715
List of UEFI events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 715
Appendix C. DSA dia nostic test
results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 735
DSA Broadcom network test results . . . . . . . 735
Test results for the DSA Broadcom network
test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 735
DSA Brocade test results . . . . . . . . . . . 744
Test results for the DSA Brocade test . . . . 744
DSA checkpoint panel test results . . . . . . . 752
Test results for the DSA checkpoint panel
test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752
DSA CPU stress test results . . . . . . . . . . 753
Test results for the DSA CPU stress test . . . 753
DSA Emulex adapter test results . . . . . . . . 756
Test results for the DSA Emulex adapter
test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 756
DSA EXA port pin test results . . . . . . . . . 759
ii Lenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide

Test results for the DSA EXA port pin test . . 759
DSA hard drive test results . . . . . . . . . . 761
Test results for the DSA hard drive test . . . . 761
DSA Intel network test results . . . . . . . . . 763
Test results for the DSA Intel network test . . . 763
DSA LSI hard drive test results . . . . . . . . . 768
Test results for the DSA LSI hard drive test . . 769
DSA Mellanox adapter test results . . . . . . . 770
Test results for the DSA Mellanox adapter
test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 770
DSA memory isolation test results. . . . . . . . 772
Test results for the DSA memory isolation
test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 772
DSA memory stress test results . . . . . . . . 841
Test results for the DSA memory stress
test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 841
DSA Nvidia GPU test results . . . . . . . . . . 843
Test results for the DSA Nvidia GPU test . . . 843
DSA optical drive test results . . . . . . . . . 849
Test results for the DSA optical drive test . . . 849
DSA system mana ement test results . . . . . . 853
Test results for the DSA system mana ement
test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 854
DSA tape drive test results . . . . . . . . . . 866
Test results for the DSA tape drive test . . . . 866
Appendix D. Gettin help and
technical assistance . . . . . . . . . . 873
Before you call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 873
Usin the documentation . . . . . . . . . . . 874
Gettin help and information from the World Wide
Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 874
How to send DSA data . . . . . . . . . . . . 874
Creatin a personalized support web pa e . . . . 874
Software service and support . . . . . . . . . 875
Hardware service and support . . . . . . . . . 875
Taiwan product service . . . . . . . . . . . . 875
Appendix E. Notices . . . . . . . . . . 877
Trademarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 878
Important notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 878
Recyclin information . . . . . . . . . . . . 878
Particulate contamination . . . . . . . . . . . 879
Telecommunication re ulatory statement. . . . . 879
Electronic emission notices . . . . . . . . . . 879
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 880
Industry Canada Class A emission compliance
statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 880
Avis de conformité à la ré lementation
d'Industrie Canada. . . . . . . . . . . . 880
Australia and New Zealand Class A
statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 880
European Union EMC Directive conformance
statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 880
Germany Class A statement . . . . . . . . 880
Japanese electroma netic compatibility
statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 881
Korea Communications Commission (KCC)
statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 882
Russia Electroma netic Interference (EMI)
Class A statement . . . . . . . . . . . . 882
People's Republic of China Class A electronic
emission statement . . . . . . . . . . . 883
Taiwan Class A compliance statement . . . . 883
Taiwan BSMI RoHS declaration . . . . . . . 884
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 885
© Copyri ht Lenovo 2012, 2016 iii

iv Lenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide

Safety
Before installin this product, read the Safety Information.
Antes de instalar este produto, leia as Informações de Se urança.
Læs sikkerhedsforskrifterne, før du installerer dette produkt.
Lees voordat u dit product installeert eerst de veili heidsvoorschriften.
Ennen kuin asennat tämän tuotteen, lue turvaohjeet kohdasta Safety Information.
Avant d'installer ce produit, lisez les consi nes de sécurité.
Vor der Installation dieses Produkts die Sicherheitshinweise lesen.
Prima di installare questo prodotto, le ere le Informazioni sulla Sicurezza.
Les sikkerhetsinformasjonen (Safety Information) før du installerer dette produktet.
Antes de instalar este produto, leia as Informações sobre Se urança.
© Copyri ht Lenovo 2012, 2016 v

Antes de instalar este producto, lea la información de se uridad.
Läs säkerhetsinformationen innan du installerar den här produkten.
Guidelines for trained service technicians
This section contains information for trained service technicians.
Inspectin for unsafe conditions
Use this information to help you identify potential unsafe conditions in a device that you are workin on.
Each device, as it was desi ned and manufactured, has required safety items to protect users and service
technicians from injury. The information in this section addresses only those items. Use ood jud ment to
identify potential unsafe conditions that mi ht be caused by unsupported alterations or attachment of
unsupported features or optional devices that are not addressed in this section. If you identify an unsafe
condition, you must determine how serious the hazard is and whether you must correct the problem before
you work on the product.
Consider the followin conditions and the safety hazards that they present:
• Electrical hazards, especially primary power. Primary volta e on the frame can cause serious or fatal
electrical shock.
• Explosive hazards, such as a dama ed CRT face or a bul in capacitor.
• Mechanical hazards, such as loose or missin hardware.
To inspect the product for potential unsafe conditions, complete the followin steps:
1. Make sure that the power is off and the power cords are disconnected.
2. Make sure that the exterior cover is not dama ed, loose, or broken, and observe any sharp ed es.
3. Check the power cords:
• Make sure that the third-wire round connector is in ood condition. Use a meter to measure third-
wire round continuity for 0.1 ohm or less between the external round pin and the frame round.
• Make sure that the power cords are the correct type.
• Make sure that the insulation is not frayed or worn.
vi Lenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide

4. Remove the cover.
5. Check for any obvious unsupported alterations. Use ood jud ment as to the safety of any unsupported
alterations.
6. Check inside the system for any obvious unsafe conditions, such as metal filin s, contamination, water
or other liquid, or si ns of fire or smoke dama e.
7. Check for worn, frayed, or pinched cables.
8. Make sure that the power-supply cover fasteners (screws or rivets) have not been removed or tampered
with.
Guidelines for servicin electrical equipment
Observe these uidelines when you service electrical equipment.
• Check the area for electrical hazards such as moist floors, non rounded power extension cords, and
missin safety rounds.
• Use only approved tools and test equipment. Some hand tools have handles that are covered with a soft
material that does not provide insulation from live electrical current.
• Re ularly inspect and maintain your electrical hand tools for safe operational condition. Do not use worn
or broken tools or testers.
• Do not touch the reflective surface of a dental mirror to a live electrical circuit. The surface is conductive
and can cause personal injury or equipment dama e if it touches a live electrical circuit.
• Some rubber floor mats contain small conductive fibers to decrease electrostatic dischar e. Do not use
this type of mat to protect yourself from electrical shock.
• Do not work alone under hazardous conditions or near equipment that has hazardous volta es.
• Locate the emer ency power-off (EPO) switch, disconnectin switch, or electrical outlet so that you can
turn off the power quickly in the event of an electrical accident.
• Disconnect all power before you perform a mechanical inspection, work near power supplies, or remove
or install main units.
• Before you work on the equipment, disconnect the power cord. If you cannot disconnect the power cord,
have the customer power-off the wall box that supplies power to the equipment and lock the wall box in
the off position.
• Never assume that power has been disconnected from a circuit. Check it to make sure that it has been
disconnected.
• If you have to work on equipment that has exposed electrical circuits, observe the followin precautions:
– Make sure that another person who is familiar with the power-off controls is near you and is available to
turn off the power if necessary.
– When you work with powered-on electrical equipment, use only one hand. Keep the other hand in your
pocket or behind your back to avoid creatin a complete circuit that could cause an electrical shock.
– When you use a tester, set the controls correctly and use the approved probe leads and accessories for
that tester.
– Stand on a suitable rubber mat to insulate you from rounds such as metal floor strips and equipment
frames.
• Use extreme care when you measure hi h volta es.
• To ensure proper roundin of components such as power supplies, pumps, blowers, fans, and motor
enerators, do not service these components outside of their normal operatin locations.
• If an electrical accident occurs, use caution, turn off the power, and send another person to et medical
aid.
© Copyri ht Lenovo 2012, 2016 vii

Safety statements
These statements provide the caution and dan er information that is used in this documentation.
Important: Each caution and dan er statement in this documentation is labeled with a number. This number
is used to cross reference an En lish-lan ua e caution or dan er statement with translated versions of the
caution or dan er statement in the Safety Information document.
For example, if a caution statement is labeled Statement 1, translations for that caution statement are in the
Safety Information document under Statement 1.
Be sure to read all caution and dan er statements in this documentation before you perform the procedures.
Read any additional safety information that comes with your system or optional device before you install the
device.
Statement 1
DANGER
Electrical current from power, telephone, and communication cables is hazardous.
To avoid a shock hazard:
• Do not connect or disconnect any cables or perform installation, maintenance, or reconfi uration
of this product durin an electrical storm.
• Connect all power cords to a properly wired and rounded electrical outlet.
• Connect to properly wired outlets any equipment that will be attached to this product.
• When possible, use one hand only to connect or disconnect si nal cables.
• Never turn on any equipment when there is evidence of fire, water, or structural dama e.
• Disconnect the attached power cords, telecommunications systems, networks, and modems
before you open the device covers, unless instructed otherwise in the installation and
confi uration procedures.
• Connect and disconnect cables as described in the followin table when installin , movin , or
openin covers on this product or attached devices.
To Connect: To Disconnect:
1. Turn everythin OFF.
2. First, attach all cables to devices.
3. Attach si nal cables to connectors.
4. Attach power cords to outlet.
5. Turn device ON.
1. Turn everythin OFF.
2. First, remove power cords from outlet.
3. Remove si nal cables from connectors.
4. Remove all cables from devices.
viii Lenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide

Statement 2
CAUTION:
When replacin the lithium battery, use only Part Number 33F8354 or an equivalent type battery
recommended by the manufacturer. If your system has a module containin a lithium battery, replace
it only with the same module type made by the same manufacturer. The battery contains lithium and
can explode if not properly used, handled, or disposed of.
Do not:
• Throw or immerse into water
• Heat to more than 100°C (212°F)
• Repair or disassemble
Dispose of the battery as required by local ordinances or re ulations.
Statement 3
CAUTION:
When laser products (such as CD-ROMs, DVD drives, fiber optic devices, or transmitters) are
installed, note the followin :
• Do not remove the covers. Removin the covers of the laser product could result in exposure to
hazardous laser radiation. There are no serviceable parts inside the device.
• Use of controls or adjustments or performance of procedures other than those specified herein
mi ht result in hazardous radiation exposure.
DANGER
Some laser products contain an embedded Class 3A or Class 3B laser diode. Note the followin .
Laser radiation when open. Do not stare into the beam, do not view directly with optical
instruments, and avoid direct exposure to the beam.
© Copyri ht Lenovo 2012, 2016 ix

Statement 4
CAUTION: Use safe practices when liftin .
≥ 18 k (39.7 lb) ≥ 32 k (70.5 lb) ≥ 55 k (121.2 lb)
Statement 5
CAUTION:
The power control button on the device and the power switch on the power supply do not turn off the
electrical current supplied to the device. The device also mi ht have more than one power cord. To
remove all electrical current from the device, ensure that all power cords are disconnected from the
power source.
1
2
Statement 6
CAUTION:
If you install a strain-relief bracket option over the end of the power cord that is connected to the
device, you must connect the other end of the power cord to an easily accessible power source.
xLenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide

Statement 8
CAUTION:
Never remove the cover on a power supply or any part that has the followin label attached.
Hazardous volta e, current, and ener y levels are present inside any component that has this label
attached. There are no serviceable parts inside these components. If you suspect a problem with one
of these parts, contact a service technician.
Statement 12
CAUTION:
The followin label indicates a hot surface nearby.
Statement 26
CAUTION:
Do not place any object on top of rack-mounted devices.
Statement 27
© Copyri ht Lenovo 2012, 2016 xi

CAUTION:
Hazardous movin parts are nearby.
Rack Safety Information, Statement 2
DANGER
• Always lower the levelin pads on the rack cabinet.
• Always install stabilizer brackets on the rack cabinet.
• Always install servers and optional devices startin from the bottom of the rack cabinet.
• Always install the heaviest devices in the bottom of the rack cabinet.
xii Lenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide

Chapter 1. The Lenovo System x3550 M4 server
This publication contains information and instructions for settin up your Lenovo System x3550 M4 server,
instructions for installin some optional devices, cablin and confi urin the server, removin and replacin
devices, and dia nostics and troubleshootin information.
In addition to the instructions in Chapter 2 “Installin optional devices” on pa e 23 for installin optional
hardware devices, updatin firmware and device drivers, and completin the installation, Business Partners
must also complete the steps in “Instructions for Business Partners” on pa e 23.
The Lenovo System x3550 M4 server is a 1-U-hi h1rack model server for hi h-volume network transaction
processin . This hi h-performance, multicore server is ideally suited for networkin environments that
require superior microprocessor performance, input/output (I/O) flexibility, and hi h mana eability.
Performance, ease of use, reliability, and expansion capabilities were key considerations in the desi n of the
server. These desi n features make it possible for you to customize the system hardware to meet your needs
today and provide flexible expansion capabilities for the future.
The server comes with a limited warranty. For information about the terms of the warranty, see the Warranty
Information document that comes with the server.
The server contains Lenovo X-Architecture technolo ies, which help increase performance and reliability. For
more information, see “What your server offers” on pa e 9 and “Reliability, availability, and serviceability” on
pa e 12.
You can obtain up-to-date information about the server and other server products at http://shop.lenovo.com/
us/ en/systems/. At http://www.ibm.com/support/mysupport/, you can create a personalized support pa e by
identifyin products that are of interest to you. From this personalized pa e, you can subscribe to weekly
email notifications about new technical documents, search for information and downloads, and access
various administrative services.
If you participate in the client reference pro ram, you can share information about your use of technolo y,
best practices, and innovative solutions; build a professional network; and ain visibility for your business.
For more information about the client reference pro ram, see http://www.ibm.com/ibm/clientreference/.
The hot-swap server models support up to ei ht 2.5-inch hot-swap hard disk drives or three 3.5-inch hot-
swap hard disk drives. The simple-swap server models support up to three 3.5-inch simple-swap hard disk
drives. It supports 2.5-inch hot-swap Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) or SATA hard disk drives, 3.5-inch hot-
swap Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) or SATA hard disk drives, or 3.5-inch simple-swap SATA hard disk drives.
Note: The illustrations in this document mi ht differ sli htly from your model.
The followin illustration shows the 2.5-inch hot-swap server models with an optional optical drive bay.
© Copyri ht Lenovo 2012, 2016 1
1. Racks are marked in vertical increments of 1.75 inches each. Each increment is referred to as a unit, or a U. A 1-U-
hi h device is approximately 1.75 inches tall.

Figure 1 Front view: 2 5-inch model
The followin illustration shows the 3.5-inch hot-swap or simple-swap server models. The servers support up
to three 3.5-inch hot-swap SAS/SATA or simple-swap SATA hard disk drives.
Figure 2 Front view: 3 5-inch model
If firmware and documentation updates are available, you can download them from the website. The server
mi ht have features that are not described in the documentation that comes with the server, and the
documentation mi ht be updated occasionally to include information about those features, or technical
updates mi ht be available to provide additional information that is not included in the server documentation.
To check for updates, o to http://www.lenovo.com/support.
Record information about the server in the followin table.
Product name Lenovo System x3550 M4 server
Machine type 7914
Model number _____________________________________________
Serial number _____________________________________________
The model number and serial number are on the ID label on the front of the server, as shown in the followin
illustration.
Note: The illustrations in this document mi ht differ sli htly from your hardware.
2Lenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide

Figure 3 ID label
In addition, the system service label, which is on the cover of the server, provides a QR code for mobile
access to service information. You can scan the QR code usin a QR code reader and scanner with a mobile
device and et quick access to the Service Information website. The Service Information website provides
additional information for parts installation and replacement videos, and error codes for server support.
The followin illustration shows the QR code (http://ibm.co/114FFrw):
Figure 4 QR code
You can download an ServerGuide Setup and Installation CD to help you confi ure the hardware, install
device drivers, and install the operatin system.
For a list of supported optional devices for the server, see http://www.lenovo.com/ serverproven/.
The Documentation CD
The Documentation CD contains documentation for the server in Portable Document Format (PDF) and
includes the Documentation Browser to help you find information quickly.
Hardware and software requirements
The Documentation CD requires the followin minimum hardware and software:
• Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 2000, or Red Hat Linux
• 100 MHz microprocessor
• 32 MB of RAM
• Adobe Acrobat Reader 3.0 (or later) or xpdf, which comes with Linux operatin systems
Usin the Documentation Browser
Use the Documentation Browser to browse the contents of the CD, read brief descriptions of the documents,
and view documents, usin Adobe Acrobat Reader or xpdf.
The Documentation Browser automatically detects the re ional settin s in use in your server and displays the
documents in the lan ua e for that re ion (if available). If a document is not available in the lan ua e for that
re ion, the En lish-lan ua e version is displayed.
Chapter 1.The Lenovo System x3550 M4 server 3

Use one of the followin procedures to start the Documentation Browser:
• If Autostart is enabled, insert the CD into the CD or DVD drive. The Documentation Browser starts
automatically.
• If Autostart is disabled or is not enabled for all users, use one of the followin procedures:
– If you are usin a Windows operatin system, insert the CD into the CD or DVD drive and click Start ➙
Run. In the Open field, type
e:\win32.bat
where e is the drive letter of the CD or DVD drive, and click OK.
– If you are usin Red Hat Linux, insert the CD into the CD or DVD drive; then, run the followin
command from the /mnt/cdrom directory:
sh runlinux.sh
Select the server from the Product menu. The Available Topics list displays all the documents for the
server. Some documents mi ht be in folders. A plus si n (+) indicates each folder or document that has
additional documents under it. Click the plus si n to display the additional documents.
When you select a document, a description of the document is displayed under Topic Description. To select
more than one document, press and hold the Ctrl key while you select the documents. Click View to view the
selected document or documents in Acrobat Reader or xpdf. If you selected more than one document, all the
selected documents are opened in Acrobat Reader or xpdf.
To search all the documents, type a word or word strin in the Search field and click Search. The
documents in which the word or word strin appears are listed in order of the most occurrences. Click a
document to view it, and press Crtl+F to use the Acrobat search function, or press Alt+F to use the xpdf
search function within the document.
Click Help for detailed information about usin the Documentation Browser.
Related documentation
This Installation and Service Guide contains eneral information about the server includin how to set up and
cable the server, how to install supported optional devices, how to confi ure the server, and information to
help you solve problems yourself and information for service technicians. The followin documentation also
comes with the server:
• Environmental Notices and User Guide
This document is in PDF format on the Documentation CD. It contains translated environmental notices.
• License Agreement for Machine Code
This document is in PDF format on the Documentation CD. It provides translated versions of the License
Agreement for Machine Code for your product.
• Important Notices
This document is in printed format and comes with the server. It contains information about the safety,
environmental, and electronic emission notices for your Lenovo product.
• Licenses and Attributions Documents
This document is in PDF format on the Documentation CD. It provides the open source notices.
• Rack Installation Instructions
This printed document contains instructions for installin the server in a rack and comes with the rack kit.
• Rack Safety Information
4Lenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide

This multilin ual document provides translated versions of the caution and dan er statements that appear
in the rack documentation. Each caution and dan er statement has an assi ned number, which you can
use to locate the correspondin statement in your native lan ua e.
• Safety Information
This document is in PDF format on the Documentation CD. It contains translated caution and dan er
statements. Each caution and dan er statement that appears in the documentation has a number that you
can use to locate the correspondin statement in your lan ua e in the Safety Information document.
• Safety Information Labels
This document provides the Simplified Chinese, Mon olian, Tibetan, Uy ur, and Zhuan translated
versions of the product safety labels.
• Warranty Information
This document is in printed format and comes with the server. It contains warranty terms and a pointer to
the Lenovo Statement of Limited Warranty on the website.
Dependin on the server model, additional documentation mi ht be included on the Documentation CD.
The ToolsCenter for System x and BladeCenter is an online information center that contains information
about tools for updatin , mana in , and deployin firmware, device drivers, and operatin systems. The
ToolsCenter for System x and BladeCenter is at http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/toolsctr/v1r0/.
The server mi ht have features that are not described in the documentation that you received with the server.
The documentation mi ht be updated occasionally to include information about those features, or technical
updates mi ht be available to provide additional information that is not included in the server documentation.
These updates are available from the website. To check for updates, o to http://www.lenovo.com/support.
Notices and statements in this document
The caution and dan er statements in this document are also in the multilin ual Safety Information
document, which is on the System x Documentation CD. Each statement is numbered for reference to the
correspondin statement in your lan ua e in the Safety Information document.
The followin notices and statements are used in this document:
• Note: These notices provide important tips, uidance, or advice.
• Important: These notices provide information or advice that mi ht help you avoid inconvenient or
problem situations.
• Attention: These notices indicate potential dama e to pro rams, devices, or data. An attention notice is
placed just before the instruction or situation in which dama e mi ht occur.
• Caution: These statements indicate situations that can be potentially hazardous to you. A caution
statement is placed just before the description of a potentially hazardous procedure step or situation.
• Dan er: These statements indicate situations that can be potentially lethal or extremely hazardous to you.
A dan er statement is placed just before the description of a potentially lethal or extremely hazardous
procedure step or situation.
Server features and specifications
The followin information is a summary of the features and specifications of the server.
Dependin on the model, some features mi ht not be available, or some specifications mi ht not apply.
Chapter 1.The Lenovo System x3550 M4 server 5

Table 1 Server features and specifications
Microprocessor (dependin on the
model):
• Supports up to two multi-core
microprocessors (one installed)
• Level-3 cache
• Two QuickPath Interconnect (QPI)
links speed up to 8.0 GT per
second
Notes:
• Use the Setup utility pro ram to
determine the type and speed of
the microprocessors.
• For a list of supported
microprocessors, see http://
www.lenovo.com/ serverproven/.
Memory (dependin on the model):
• Minimum: 2 GB
• Maximum: 768 GB
– 64 GB usin unbuffered DIMMs
(UDIMMs)
– 384 GB usin re istered DIMMs
(RDIMMs)
– 768 GB usin load reduction
DIMMs (LRDIMMs)
• Type:
– PC3-8500 (DDR3-1066), PC3-
10600 (DDR3-1333), PC3-
12800 (DDR3-1600), or PC3-
14900 (DDR3-1866)
– Sin le-rank, dual-rank, or quad-
rank
– Re istered DIMM (RDIMM),
unbuffered DIMM (UDIMM), or
load reduced DIMM (LRDIMM)
• Slots: 24 dual inline
• Supports (dependin on the
model):
– 4 GB UDIMM
– 2 GB, 4 GB, 8 GB, and 16 GB
RDIMMs
– 32 GB LRDIMM
SATA optical drives (optional for
2.5-inch models):
• DVD-ROM
• Multi-burner
Hard disk drive expansion bays
(dependin on the model):
• 2.5-inch models: Up to ei ht 2.5-
inch hot-swap SAS/SATA hard
disk drive bays (with an optional
optical drive bay)
• 3.5-inch models: Up to three 3.5-
inch hot-swap SAS/SATA or
simple-swap SATA hard disk drive
bays
Attention:
• As a eneral consideration, do not
mix standard 512-byte and
advanced 4-KB format drives in
the same RAID array because it
may lead to potential performance
issues.
PCI expansion slots:
Supports two PCI riser slots:
• Slot 1 supports low-profile cards.
– PCI Express 3.0 x16
• Slot 2 supports half-len th, full-
hei ht cards.
– PCI Express 3.0 x8
– PCI Express 3.0 x16 (two
microprocessors installed)
– PCI-X 64-bit/133 MHz
Video controller (inte rated into
IMM2):
• Matrox G200eR2
Note: The maximum video
resolution is 1600 x 1200 at 75 Hz.
– SVGA compatible video
controller
– DDR3 528 MHz SDRAM video
memory controller
– Avocent Di ital Video
Compression
– 16 MB of video memory (not
expandable)
Hot-swap fans:
• One microprocessor: 4 dual-motor
hot-swap fans.
• Two microprocessors: 6 dual-
motor hot-swap fans.
Inte rated functions:
• Inte rated Mana ement Module II
(IMM2), which consolidates
multiple mana ement functions in
a sin le chip.
• Intel I350AM4 Quad Port Gi abit
Ethernet controller with Wake on
LAN support
• Ei ht Universal Serial Bus (USB)
ports for 3.5-inch models. Seven
Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports
for 2.5-inch models. One port is for
optional USB flash device with
embedded hypervisor software is
installed.
• Six network ports (four 1 Gb
Ethernet ports on the system
board and two additional ports
when the optional Dual-Port 10 Gb
Network Adapter is installed)
• One System Mana ement 1 Gb
Ethernet port on the rear
RAID controllers (dependin on the
model):
• A ServeRAID H1110 SAS/SATA
adapter that provides RAID 0, 1,
and 10.
• A ServeRAID M1115 SAS/SATA
adapter that provides RAID 0, 1,
and 10 with optional FoD RAID 5/
50 and SED (Self Encryptin Drive)
up rade.
• A ServeRAID M5110 SAS/SATA
adapter that provides RAID 0, 1,
and 10. Optional up rade:
– RAID 5/50 (512 MB Cache) with
optional FoD RAID 6/60 and
SED up rade
– RAID 5/50 (512 MB Flash) with
optional FoD RAID 6/60 and
SED up rade
6Lenovo System x3550 M4 Installation and Service Guide