IBM continues to introduce new and advanced RAS functions in the IBM Power™ Systems to improve the overall system availability. The IBM Power 595 and 570 servers now feature advanced concurrent maintenance functions for the Central Electronics Complex (CEC), the heart of the computer system, in order to continue to provide higher availability and reduce system outages.
With advance planning, the new CEC concurrent add and upgrade function allows the expansion of the system processor, memory, and I/O hub capability concurrently with system operation (i.e. with no system down time). These new functions, with the proper planning, also allow the repair of the system processor, memory, I/O hub, and other CEC hardware concurrently with system operation.
This paper provides a technical overview and description of these new CEC concurrent maintenance functions. It also includes planning guides to help the system administrator obtain the maximum system availability benefits from these new functions.