HP IO Accelerator ESXi/ESX user guide

Maintenance 23
Command line
utility
Purpose
fio-format (on page
32)
Used to perform a low-level format of an IO Accelerator
fio-pci-check (ESX
only)
Checks for errors on the PCI bus tree, specifically for PCIe
IO Accelerator devices. This utility is only supported on
ESX.
fio-status (on page
34)
Displays information about the device
fio-update-iodrive
(on page 36)
Updates the IO Accelerator firmware
For more information on command-line utilities, see "Utilities (on page 29)."
Enabling PCIe power override
For PCIe IO Accelerators, if you have installed any dual IO Accelerator devices, such as the HP ioDrive2
Duo, then the device might require additional power than the minimum 25 W provided by PCIe Gen2 slots
to properly function. Even if additional power is not required for your device, all dual IO Accelerator devices
that receive additional power might benefit with improved performance.
HP ioDrive2 Duo devices must have additional power to properly function. For more information on which
devices require additional power, see the HP PCIe IO Accelerator for ProLiant Servers Installation Guide.
Additional power can be provided in two ways:
• External power cable—This cable ships with all dual ioMemory devices. For information on installing
this cable, see the HP PCIe IO Accelerator for ProLiant Servers Installation Guide.
NOTE: When a power cable is used, all of the power is drawn from the cable and no power is
drawn from the PCIe slot.
• Enabling full slot power draw—Some PCIe slots provide additional power (often up to 75 W of power).
If your PCIe slot is rated to provide at least 55 W, then you can allow the device to draw full power from
the PCIe slot by setting a VSL module parameter. For more information on enabling this override
parameter, see "Enabling the override parameter."
CAUTION: If the PCIe slot is not capable of providing the needed amount of power, then
enabling full power draw from the PCIe slot might result in malfunction or even damage to server
hardware. The user is responsible for any damage to equipment due to improper use of the
override parameter. HP expressly disclaims any liability for damage arising from improper use of
the override parameter. To confirm the power limits and capabilities of each slot, as well as the
entire system, contact the server manufacturer. For information about using the override
parameter, contact HP Customer Support.
NOTE: The override parameter overrides the setting that prevents devices from drawing more
than 25 W from the PCIe slot. The parameter is enabled by device using the device serial
numbers. Once the setting is overridden, each device might draw up to the full 55 W needed for
peak performance.
Before you enable the override parameter, ensure that each PCIe slot is rated to provide enough power
for all slots, devices, and server accessories. To determine the power slot limits, consult the server
documentation, BIOS interface, setup utility, or use the fio-pci-check command.