Techdocs Library > FAQs > Does the System p 9117-MMA provide for a 'split backplane' concept which will allow a single p570 building block to support boot disk for two partitions? Frequently Asked Question

Document Author:	Tenley Jackson		Document ID:	FQ120700
Doc. Organization:	Techline Americas		Document Revised:	07/08/2009
Product(s) covered:	POWER6 570

FAQ: Does the System p 9117-MMA provide for a 'split backplane' concept which will allow a single p570 building block to support boot disk for two partitions?

Answer to this FAQ:

Yes. Feature codes 3650 and 3679 provide the ability to connect half of the internal drives in a single p570 building block to a SAS controller. The SAS controller, fc=5900 requires a PCI-x adapter slot. This allows three disk bays to be assigned to one partition while the other three bays can be assigned to a second partition. Refer to the schematic below: 6/2/08 Update: 1) fc = 5900 has been withdrawn from marketing and replaced with fc = 5912 2) IBM announced a second option to split the backplane in a 9117-MMA building block. The option shown above requires two PCI slots: one for the 3650 and one for the SAS controller (5900 or 5912). The new option combines the SAS controller and the 3650 into a single feature, 5909, requiring a single PCI-e slot (P1-C3). 5909 comes with two ports. fc = 3679 is still required - it is used to connect the two ports on the 5909. 7/6/09 Update: Feature 5909 has been withdrawn from marketing and replaced with feature 5911.

Classification:	Hardware	Category:	Planning and Design
Platform(s):	IBM System p Family
:		Keywords:	9117-MMA, MMA, 9117, p570, 570, p6-570, split-backplane, 3650, 3679