Managing Superdome Complexes: A Guide for HP-UX System Administrators

Planning Superdome Configurations
Rules and Guidelines for Configuring a Complex
Appendix A 333
Partitions, Cells and I/O Chassis
Before you go on, read:
• “What is a Cell?” on page 303:
- “Cell I/O” on page 308.
- “Core Cell” on page 309.
• “What is an I/O Chassis?” on page 317:
- “Core I/O” on page 318
• “What is an I/O Expansion Cabinet?” on page 320.
• “What is a Partition?” on page 298.
Other terms and concepts:
• 16-, 32-way, 64-way-capable system; CPU cabinet:
see “What is a CPU Cabinet?” on page 299.
• Complex: see “What Is a Complex?” on page 292.
• GSP: see “What is the Guardian Service Processor?” on page 296.
• System Bus Adapter: see “Cell I/O” on page 308.
Points To Note
• In a partition containing more than one cell, all I/O is accessible
from all the cells.
For example, in a four-cell partition in which two cells are attached to
IO chassis, code being run by a processor in one of the cells that is
not attached to an I/O chassis will have the same access to disks and
other I/O devices as the cells to which the I/O chassis are physically
attached.
Each partition must have I/O, meaning that at least one cell in each
partition must be attached to an I/O chassis, but this does not mean
every cell in every partition needs to be attached to an I/O chassis (in
fact, that is not possible without an IO expansion cabinet.)
NOTE I/O expansion cabinets are not available with early shipments of
Superdome. Contact your HP Sales Representative for up-to-date
information.
• A cell must be active in a partition before the partition can use an I/O
chassis attached to that cell.