Lenovo ThinkStation P7 User manual

Storage Configurator
Lenovo ThinkStation P7

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Table of Contents
Overview.................................................................................................................3
Section 1 –P7 Storage Summary...........................................................................4
Section 2 –P7 M.2 SSD Details..............................................................................5
Section 3 –P7 SATA Hard Drive Details...............................................................36
Section 4 –Appendix ............................................................................................47
Revision History....................................................................................................49

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Overview
ThinkStation P7 is a single processor, 39L tower added to the Lenovo workstation
portfolio in the spring of 2023. P7 offers multiple different storage options for M.2
and 3.5” SATA drives. This document describes the P7 storage subsystem and
provides configuration guidelines to help you set up the optimal storage solution
for your needs.

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Section 1 –P7 Storage Summary
The tables below give a quick snapshot of the type, capacity, and quantity of
storage devices supported on P7.
Table 1 –P7 Storage Types
Drive Type and Speed
P7 Supported Capacity
M.2 PCIe SSD Gen4 x4
Up to 4TB
3.5” SATA Gen3 Hard Disk Drive
Up to 2TB
3.5” SATA Gen3 Enterprise HDD
Up to 12TB
Table 2 –Quantity and Capacity by Drive Type
Drive Type
Number of Drives
Available
Total Storage
3.5” SATA Drives
3
Up to 36TB
M.2 PCIe Drive
9
Up to 28TB
Table 3 - Storage Summary
Storage Location
Drive Type Supported
Internal onboard M.2 slots
Standard
2 x M.2 SSD Gen5
Optional
1 x M.2 SSD Gen4
Front access FLEX bay
*Note: Not configurable with internal
bays CPU-based NVMe storage
1 x M.2 SSD Gen4 (CPU)
Internal bays 1 and 2
One of 2 x 3.5” SATA Gen3 (Chipset)
2 x M.2 SSD Gen4 (CPU)
Internal bay 3
1 x 3.5” SATA Gen3 (Chipset)
PCIe Slot expansion
4 x M.2 SSD Gen3 (by adapter)

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Section 2 –P7 M.2 SSD Details
The P7 platform supports a variety of different M.2 SSD storage options. The two
tables below give details on the features, compatibility, and required parts for M.2
SSDs. Installation location and information for each of the M.2 SSD options can be
found in the subsequent pages.
Table 4 –M.2 features
Feature
Onboard
M.2 slots
Third
onboard M.2
kit
FLEX bay
M.2 kit
Internal
bays M.2 kit
Quad M.2
PCIe Card
Gen3
Drive Count (System max = 10)
2
1
1
2
4
Maximum PCIe speed
Gen5
Gen4
Gen4
Gen4
Gen3
Availability
Standard
Optional
Optional
Optional
Optional
Location
Motherboard
Carrier off
motherboard
Front access
FLEX bay
Internal 3.5”
bays
PCIe slot
Controller
CPU
CPU
CPU
CPU
CPU
Supported M.2 dimensions (mm)
2280 /
22110
2280
2280
2280
2242, 2260,
2280, 22110
Double side support
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Maximum power per drive
8W
8W
8W
8W
8W
Front accessible
No
No
Yes
No
No
Toolless
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Hot swappable
No
No
Yes
No
No
Individual activity/status LEDs
No
No
Activity only*
No
No
Combined in system activity LED
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
*Refer to the photo below for the location of the front panel storage activity LED

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Table 5 –M.2 compatibility and required parts
Location
Compatibility
Requirements and parts
Onboard (OB)
•M.2 Carrier and Heatsink kit standard on
motherboard
Third onboard
M.2 kit
•Limits PCIe slot 7 to half length
•Not compatible with double-wide GFX
adapter in slot 5
•M.2 Vertical holders for OB 3rd M.2 SSD
FLEX bay M.2
kit
•Not compatible with internal 3.5” bays
M.2 kit
•Front storage tray
•M.2 storage access box for front storage
bay
•FLEX bay fan
Internal 3.5”
bays M.2 kit
•Not compatible with
FLEX bay M.2 kit
Internal 3.5” bays standard SATA
•HDD bay for NVMe SSD kit (includes
backplane and cable)
•Internal tray for M.2 SSD
•Internal HDD bay fan
Quad M.2 PCIe
card Gen3
•Requires available x16 slot
•Quad M.2 PCIe adapter

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Onboard M.2 SSD installation
The location of the two standard onboard M.2 SSDs can be seen in this picture:
Each M.2 module consists of the M.2 carrier, heatsink, and the drive itself.

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1. Open the side cover of the P7 and remove any PCIe adapters that may
interfere with accessing the onboard M.2 slots.
2. Rotate the red latch counterclockwise to release the M.2 carrier.
3. Tilt the front side of the M.2 carrier up slightly and pull to the right to
remove it from the socket.
Caution: Tilting the carrier to an angle greater than about 20° can damage
the socket.

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4. Lay the M.2 carrier flat on a desk and carefully separate the heat sink from
the carrier by gently pushing two of the tabs on one side away from the heat
sink.
5. Remove the plastic insert as well as the thermal pad plastic film.
6. Insert the M.2 drive carefully in the M.2 carrier as shown below.

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7. Reinstall the heatsink on top of the M.2 drive within the carrier by inserting
the feet on one side of the heat sink into the openings of two of the tabs on
one side of the carrier. Then press down on the other side of the heat sink
until the feet engage the tabs on the heatsink.
8. Insert the M.2 carrier back into the onboard M.2 slot at a slight angle and
press the end down into the slot.
Caution: Be careful not to use excessive force as this risks breaking the M.2
slot.
9. Rotate the red latch clockwise to the locked position, securing the M.2
carrier into the system.

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Third onboard M.2 kit installation
The third onboard M.2 kit is an optional kit that will need to be purchased
separately if it was not ordered when the original system was built. The kit is
mounted on the rear of the internal 3.5” drive bays, as seen in the following
pictures.
From above:

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…and from the other side:

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The third onboard M.2 kit consists of the vertical holder w/ interposer card and the
M.2 carrier, as seen in the following photos.
1. The M.2 carrier itself is identical to the one used for the onboard M.2 drives,
so please follow the installation instructions from the previous section to
install the M.2 drive and heatsink into the carrier and then the carrier into the
vertical holder.
2. On the rear of the vertical holder, you will find a couple of mounting tabs:

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Then, when looking at the inner side of the SATA drive bay, you will also
find two mounting channels on the chassis and a card connector socket
directly beneath on the motherboard:
In order to mount the M.2 holder, insert the mounting tabs into the channels, align
the interposer card edge connector with the socket as shown below, and press the
whole assembly straight down until you feel it lock into place.

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FLEX bay M.2 kit installation
The front access FLEX bay is located on the front of the P7, as shown here:
The FLEX bay can hold a single M.2 drive, which can be installed as long as the
internal 3.5” bay M.2 drive kits are not in use. The M.2 drive is mounted into a
FLEX bay carrier, which is then inserted into the FLEX bay slot.
FLEX Bay Carrier
FLEX Bay Slot

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1. Install the FLEX bay into the FLEX bay frame through the bezel. Push the
bay until the retention tab locks the bay into place in the frame.
2. To install the M.2 SSD into the FLEX Bay M.2 carrier, remove the screws
from each side of the carrier.
3. Lift up on the lid on the end of the carrier slightly (1) and slide the lid out
from under the tabs on the front of the carrier base (2).
4. Peel back and remove the protective film from the heat sink pads on the lid
and base.

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5. Remove the M.2 retention screw from the carrier base.
6. Insert the M.2 SSD into the M.2 slot in the carrier base at a slight 15-degree
angle (1). Gently lower the M.2 into place with the round notch lining up with
the screw hole in the carrier base (2). Reinstall the screw to secure the M.2
drive in the carrier.
Caution: Be careful not to use excessive force as this risks breaking the M.2
slot or drive.
7. Holding the lid at a slight angle, slide the lid under the tabs on the front of
the carrier base (1) and lower the lid into place (2) with the holes on the lids
aligning with the screw holes on the base. Reinstall the screws to secure
the carrier lid in place.

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8. Insert the M.2 carrier into the FLEX bay through the front opening. Push
firmly until the carrier latches into place in the FLEX bay.
9. After installing the M.2 carrier, you need to install the FLEX bay fan on the
inside of the system. Note that the fan has two tabs on one side of the
shroud:

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10.Align the tabs with the notches in the chassis directly above the FLEX bay:
11.Press down on the tab on the other side of the fan until you feel it latch into
place.

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12.Plug the fan power cable into the matching connector on the motherboard.
13.To remove the carrier, press the eject button on the side of the FLEX bay.