Technology implementation in HP ProLiant G7 servers

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HP Smart Array Advanced Pack
The Smart Array Advanced Pack (SAAP) adds software features that further enhance Smart Array
Controller performance and reliability. You can activate these features at any time with an HP
software key:
RAID 6 protects against the simultaneous failure of two drives in an array without downtime or data
loss.
RAID 60 (RAID 6+0) uses RAID 0 block-level striping across multiple RAID 6 arrays with dual
distributed parity, which splits the RAID storage across multiple external boxes.
Advanced Capacity Expansion (ACE) lets you perform two new operations to remove drives from
an existing array or transfer contents from one array to another array.
Drive Erase securely erases the contents of hard drives or logical units without running a ―shredder‖
utility on the host computer. This is useful when decommissioning, redeploying, or returning hard
drives.
Mirror Splitting and Recombining in Offline Mode breaks a RAID 1 configuration into two RAID 0
configurations. This is similar to a scaled-down rollback functionality that requires two disk drives.
Video on Demand (VOD) enhancements improve performance while streaming video.
Although SAAP functionality is optional on most of the Smart Array controllers, it is standard with the
HP Smart Array P812 controller.
Power and thermal technologies
We developed a robust set of power and thermal technologies within the ProLiant G7servers:
Thermal sensors and fan control
HP Common Slot Power Supplies
HP Intelligent Power Discovery
HP Insight Control power management software
HP Dynamic Power Capping
HP Enclosure Dynamic Power Capping
HP Power Regulator for ProLiant
Power meter for c-Class server blades
Thermal sensors and fan control
ProLiant ML, DL, and BL G7 servers include a Sea of Sensors located throughout the server and on
other components such as DDR3 DIMMs and hard drives. The actual number of thermal sensors varies
by server platform. The server uses the sensors to construct an accurate view of the thermal profile.
The iLO 3 management controller uses a sophisticated control algorithm to set the speed for each fan
based on the sensor measurements. The fans will consume less power and produce less noise.
HP Common Slot Power Supplies
ProLiant G7 servers have common power supply slots that accommodate a variety of power supply
wattages. In general, to maximize efficiency, you will select the power supply wattage that matches
the power use in the server. Table 1 shows the maximum power supply efficiency at 50% load. You
can use the HP Power Advisor utility to select the right power supply for each server’s configuration.
Since all DL G7 servers, as well as the BladeSystem c3000 Enclosure, support HP Common Slot
Power Supplies, this will reduce the number of spares kept in inventory.