IBM Power Systems S822LC Server Firmware
Applies to: S822LC (8335-GTB)
This document provides information about the installation of Licensed Machine or Licensed Internal Code, which is sometimes referred to generically as microcode or firmware.
This package provides firmware for Power Systems LC S822LC (8335-GTB) server only.
The firmware level in this package is:
OP8_v1.11_2.1 with BMC 02.13.00053/ OP820.00
This section specifies the "Minimum ipmitool Code Level" required by the System Firmware to perform firmware installations and managing the system. Open Power requires ipmitool level v1.8.17 to execute correctly on the OP820 firmware, specifically for the ipmitool code update function.
Although the recommended level of ipmitool is 1.8.17 (for out of band and in-band firmware updates), the level of ipmitool in the supported Linux distributions will be less than this level and these have been tested and no problems found. At the user's discretion, ipmitool at these levels may be used. However, if ipmitool problems are encountered, the first step of debug will be to load the minimum supported level of ipmitool.
The following are the supported distribution levels and their associated ipmitool levels:
Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS
ipmitool: 1.8.16-3ubuntu0.1
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 7.2 (Maipo)
ipmitool: ipmitool-1.8.15-3.el7.ppc64le
Verify your ipmitool level on your linux workstation using the following command:
bash-4.1$ ipmitool -V
ipmitool version 1.8.17
If you are need to update or add ipmiitool to your Linux workstation , you can compile ipmitools (current level 1.8.17) for Linux as follows from the Sourceforge:
1.1.1 Download impitool tar from http://sourceforge.net/projects/ipmitool/ to your linux system
1.1.2 Extract tarball on linux system
1.1.3 cd to top-level directory
1.1.4 ./configure
1.1.5 make
1.1.6 ipmitool will be under src/ipmitool
You may also get the ipmitool package directly from your workstation linux packages such as Ubuntu 16.04 (which will be less than the recommended minimum level):
sudo apt-get install ipmitool
The BMC ASM is a web-based application that works within a browser. Supported browser levels are shown below with Chrome being the preferred browser:
•Google Chrome Version 46.0.2490.71 m
•Mozilla Firefox version 41.0.3
For specific fix level information on key components of IBM Power Systems LC and Linux operating systems, please refer to the documentation in the IBM Knowledge Center for the S822LC (8335-GTB):
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/P8DEA/p8hdx/8335_gtb_landing.htm
For the 8335-GTB, PowerKVM is not supported. Linux Ubuntu or Red Hat Enterprise distributions may be installed on OPAL Bare Metal (EC16).
The NVMe flash adapter card with Feature Code #EC54 or #EC56 is supported on the 8335-GTB.
Booting from the NVMe flash adapter is not supported on the 8335-GTB.
For information about service tools for a PCIe3 1.6 TB NVMe Flash adapter, see PCIe3 1.6 TB NVMe Flash Adapter (FC EC54; CCIN 58CB):
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER8/p8hcd/fcec55.htm
For information about service tools for a PCIe3 3.2 TB NVMe Flash adapter, see PCIe3 3.2 TB NVMe Flash Adapter (FC EC56; CCIN 58CC):
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER8/p8hcd/fcec57.htm
Downgrading firmware from any given release level to an earlier release level is not recommended.
If you feel that it is necessary to downgrade the firmware on your system to an earlier release level, please contact your next level of support.
Concurrent Firmware Updates not available for LC servers.
Concurrent system firmware update is not supported on LC servers.
Use the following examples as a reference to determine whether your installation will be concurrent or disruptive.
For the LC server systems, the installation of system firmware is always disruptive.
The update.hpm file updates the primary side of the PNOR and the primary side of the BMC only, leaving the golden sides unchanged.
8335GTB_820.1634.20160917a_update.hpm
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Filename | Size |
Checksum |
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8335GTB_820.1634.20160917a_update.hpm |
67109473 |
1cb695b80b679b66eaefe3e62bcaff93 |
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Note: The Checksum can be found by running the Linux/Unix/AIX md5sum command against the Hardware Platform Management (hpm) file (all 32 characters of the checksum are listed), ie: md5sum <filename>
After an successful update to the firmware level 8335GTB_820.1634 , the PNOR components and BMC should be at the following levels. The ipmitool "fru" command can be used to display FRU ID 47: "ipmitool -H bmc_ip_ipaddress -I lanplus -U ipmi_user -P ipmi_password fru print 47".
And the BMC command line command "cat" can be used to display the BMC level file: "cat /proc/ractrends/Helper/FwInf".
Note: FRU information for the PNOR level does not show the updated levels via the fru command until the system has been booted once at the updated level.
PNOR firmware level: driver content
display pnor FW level using this ipmitool cmd ipmitool -H bmc_ip_ipaddress -I lan -U ipmi_user -P ipmi_password fru print 47
System Firmware:
Product Name : OpenPOWER Firmware
Product Version : IBM-garrison-ibm-OP8_v1.11_2.1
Product Extra : op-build-da02863
Product Extra : buildroot-81b8d98
Product Extra : skiboot-5.3.6
Product Extra : hostboot-1f6784d-3408af7
Product Extra : linux-4.4.16-openpower1-bc83f92
Product Extra : petitboot-v1.2.4-de6cda2
Product Extra : garrison-xml-3db7b6e
Product Extra : occ-69fb587
Product Extra : hostboot-binar
BMC firmware level : driver content
display BMC FW level via ssh session on the BMC , using this cmd # cat /proc/ractrends/Helper/FwInfo
FW_VERSION=2.13.00053
FW_DATE=Sep 2 2016
FW_BUILDTIME=11:14:57 CDT
FW_DESC=8335-GTB de281ec gar.820.160902a
FW_PRODUCTID=1
FW_RELEASEID=RR9
FW_CODEBASEVERSION=2.X
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OP820.00 | |
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8335GTB_820.1634 / OP820.00 |
Impact: New Severity: New New features and functions for MTM 8335-GTB: GA Level This firmware release only supports OPAL firmware. It does not support running the PowerVM hypervisor.
System firmware changes that affect all systems
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IBM Power LC servers supports Linux which provides a UNIX like implementation across many computer architectures. Linux supports almost all of the Power System I/O and the configurator verifies support on order. For more information about the software that is available on IBM Power Systems, see the Linux on IBM Power Systems website:
http://www.ibm.com/systems/power/software/linux/index.html
The Linux operating system is an open source, cross-platform OS. It is supported on every Power Systems server IBM sells. Linux on Power Systems is the only Linux infrastructure that offers both scale-out and scale-up choices. The supported version of Linux on the 8335-GTB server is Ubuntu Server 16.04 TLS for IBM POWER8. For more information about Ubuntu Server for Ubuntu for POWER8 see the following website:
http://www.ubuntu.com/download/server/power8
Another supported version of Linux on the 8335-GTB server is the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.2 and later releases, in LE modes. For additional questions about the availability of this release and supported Power servers, consult the Red Hat Hardware Catalog:
For information about the PowerLinux Community, see the following website:
https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/group/tpl
For information about the features and external devices that are supported by Linux, see this website:
http://www.ibm.com/systems/power/software/linux/index.html
Use one of the following commands at the Linux command prompt to determine the current Linux version:
•cat /proc/version
•uname -a
The output string from the command will provide the Linux version level.
The opal-prd package on the Linux system collects the OPAL Processor Recovery Diagnostics messages to log file syslog. It is recommended that this package be installed if it is not already present as it will help with maintaining the system processors by alerting the users to processor maintenance when needed.
On Ubuntu Linux, perform command dpkg -l "opal-prd". The output shows whether the package is installed on your system by marking it with ii (installed) and un (not installed).
This package provides a daemon to load and run the OpenPower firmware's Processor Recovery Diagnostics binary. This is responsible for run-time maintenance of Power hardware.
If the package is not installed on your system, the following command can be run on Ubuntu to install it:
sudo apt-get install opal-prd
On Red Hat Linux, perform command "rpm -qa | grep -i opal-prd ". The command output indicates the package is installed on your system if the rpm for opal-prd is found and displayed.
This package provides a daemon to load and run the OpenPower firmware's Processor Recovery Diagnostics binary. This is responsible for run-time maintenance of Power hardware.
If the package is not installed on your system, the following command can be run on Red Hat to install it:
sudo yum update opal-prd
Use the ipmtool "fru" command or the BMC Advanced System Management (ASM) FRU option to look at product details of FRU 47.
ipmitool -I lanplus -H <bmc host IP address> -P admin -U ADMIN fru print 47
Follow the instructions on Fix Central. You must read and agree to the license agreement to obtain the firmware packages.
The updating and upgrading of system firmware depends on several factors, such as the current firmware that is installed, and what operating systems is running on the system.
These scenarios and the associated installation instructions are comprehensively outlined in the firmware section of Fix Central, found at the following website:
http://www.ibm.com/support/fixcentral/
Any hardware failures should be resolved before proceeding with the firmware updates to help insure the system will not be running degraded after the updates.
Run this command "hpm check" before starting an update to understand what is going to be updated:
ipmitool -H <BMC IP> -U ADMIN -I lanplus -P admin hpm check <xxxxx.hpm> where xxxx.hpm is the firmware update file name.
Firmware update steps for the LC servers can be managed via the command line with ipmitool command.
Note: You can find the latest steps for this procedure at the IBM Knowledge Center:
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER8/p8ei8/p8ei8_update_firmware_ipmi.htm
1) Power off the machine - install code from Standby Power state:
– ipmitool -H <hostname> -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin chassis power off
2a) Issue bmc reset to establish a stable starting point:
– ipmitool -H <BMC IP> -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin mc reset cold
2b) Wait for 2 to 3 minutes after the "mc reset cold" and check for BMC ready before continuing with step 3. Check BMC ready state and look for a response of 00h (booting complete or aka BMC ready state). If response is C0h, BMC is still booting. Wait for the 00h response before continuing with step 3:
– ipmitool -H <BMC IP> -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin raw 0x3a 0x0a
3) Run the following commands to flash the BMC and firmware (command protects BMC memory content, avoid losing network settings) :
– ipmitool -H <BMC IP> -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin raw 0x32 0xba 0x18 0x00
– ipmitool -H <BMC IP> -U ADMIN -I lanplus -P admin -z 15000 hpm upgrade <xxxxx.hpm> force
4) If the BMC is using STATIC IP network settings and these get lost it is possible to restore them with the following command line steps (DHCP settings should auto-recover):
a) Get serial connect to the BMC
b) Login and execute the following commands to setup the network:
– /usr/local/bin/ipmitool -H 127.0.0.1 -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin lan set 1 ipsrc static
– /usr/local/bin/ipmitool -H 127.0.0.1 -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin lan set 1 ipaddr x.x.x.x
– /usr/local/bin/ipmitool -H 127.0.0.1 -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin lan set 1 netmask 255.255.x.x
– /usr/local/bin/ipmitool -H 127.0.0.1 -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin lan set 1 defgw ipaddr x.x.x.x
5) Power on and IPL the machine:
– ipmitool -H <hostname> -I lanplus -U ADMIN -P admin chassis power on
The "hpm upgrade" returns a "0" return code on success and a "-1" return code for any type of failure. To get more error information, the user must go to the /var/log/notice.log on the system where the ipmitool was run and there will be an error message that corresponds to the "-1" returned in the ipmitool. Below are possible error messages that can be generated for a failure in the command:
HpmfwupgValidateImageIntegrity: Validate Image failure = "Invalid MD5 signature" or "Invalid image signature" or "Unrecognized image version" or " Invalid header checksum".
HpmfwupgPreparationStage: Performing Preparation Stage = "Invalid image file for manufacturer", Invalid image file for product , Invalid device ID
Version not compatible for upgrade ="Version: Major x1, Minor: y1 Not compatible with Version: Major: x2 Minor: y2"
HpmfwupgPreUpgradeCheck: Pre-upgrade check
HpmfwupgUpgradeStage: Upgrade Stage - Activation = "Self test failed: Result1 = xx, Result2 = yy"
Open Power requires Source Forge ipmitool level v1.8.17 to execute on the OP820 firmware. But the level of ipmitool shipped with Ubuntu 16.04 is lower than this and no problems were found testing it. This lower level may be used at the user's discretion, knowing that v1.8.17 is the supported level. The next step shows how to install ipmitool from an Ubuntu distribution:
sudo apt-get install ipmitool
One method to update the System Firmware on the LC server is to use the Advanced System Management browser GUI. The Chrome browser must be used for this method as there are problems in this release with using Firefox or IE where the firmware update will fail.
Note: You can find the latest steps for this procedure at the IBM Knowledge Center:
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER8/p8ei8/p8ei8_update_firmware_bmc.htm
1.First you have to connect to the BMC Service Processor Interface. Use your browser and access the BMC service processor with it's configured IP address.
2.After the successful login, the "Advanced System Management Dashboard" will be displayed. This is the common screen for multiple activities that can be performed such as configuration, FRU information and firmware updates. General information regarding the current power consumption, sensor monitoring, event logs is displayed.
3.The next step is to select the Firmware Update Menu.
4.Then select the correct firmware update image type. Please select the HPM type for firmware updates. This is the only type that will be provided by the IBM Fix Central site which would have been downloaded to your workstation earlier.
5.Now select the firmware update file from where it was stored when down loaded to the web browser.
6.When the correct firmware image is selected, the GUI will show a list of components that will be updated. By default all the components will be selected. When the Proceed button is pressed, the firmware update will finally be performed
7.After the firmware is completed, the System will perform a reboot.
Use the IBM Knowledge Center to learn how to obtain and apply I/O adapter firmware fixes:
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER8/p8ei8/p8ei8_update_io_kick.htm
Use the IBM Knowledge Center to learn how to troubleshoot LC server problems:
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER8/p8hdx/p8_troubleshootingsystem_8335_gtb.htm
Use the IBM Knowledge Center as a starting point for analyzing problems:
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER8/p8ei3/p8ei3_kickoff.htm
Use the IBM Knowledge Center to supplement your problem analysis skills with resources that help you identify, diagnose, and report system issues:
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER8/p8ei8/p8ei8_diags_kickoff.htm
The service processor, or baseboard management controller (BMC), provides a operating system-independent layer that uses the robust error detection and self-healing functions that are built into the POWER8 processor and memory buffer modules. Open Power Abstraction Layer (OPAL) is the system firmware that provides this service in the stack of POWER8 processor-based Linux-only servers.
The service processor, or baseboard management controller (BMC), is the primary control for autonomous sensor monitoring and event logging features on the 8335-GTB server. The BMC supports the Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) for system monitoring and management. The BMC monitors the operation of the firmware during the boot process and also monitors OPAL for termination. The firmware code update is supported through the BMC and Intelligent Platform Monitoring Interface (IPMI) and the Advanced System Management (ASM) console. The ASM console is accessed using a web browser with a "http:" connection to port. See section 1.2 for the supported browsers that can be used with ASM. For more information on using the BMC ASM, see the IBM Redbook PDF file for the IBM Power System S822LC Technical Overview and Introduction - section 2.3 “Reliability, availability, and serviceability":,
http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/redpieces/pdfs/redp5405.pdf.
The Open Power Abstraction Layer (OPAL) provides hardware abstraction and run time services to the running host Operating System.
For the 8335-GTB, Ubuntu or Redhat Linux may be installed to run on OPAL Bare Metal (F/C #EC16).
Find out more about OPAL skiboot here:
https://github.com/open-power/skiboot
The Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) is an open standard for monitoring, logging, recovery, inventory, and control of hardware that is implemented independent of the main CPU, BIOS, and OS. It is the default console to use. The 8335-GTB provides one 10M/100M baseT IPMI port.
The ipmitool is a utility for managing and configuring devices that support IPMI. It provides a simple command-line interface to the service processor. You can install the ipmitool from the Linux distribution packages in your workstation, sourceforge.net, or another server (preferably on the same network as the installed server). For example, in Ubuntu, use this command:
$ sudo apt-get install ipmitool
For installing ipmitool from sourceforge, please see section 1.1 "Minimum ipmitool Code Level".
For more information about ipmitool, there are several good references for ipmitool commands:
1.The man page
2.The built-in command line help provides a list of IPMItool commands:
# ipmitool help
3.You can also get help for many specific IPMItool commands by adding the word help after the command:
# ipmitool channel help
For a list of common ipmitool commands and help on each, you may use the following link:
https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/linuxonibm/liabp/liabpcommonipmi.htm
To connect to your host system with IPMI, you need to know the IP address of the server and have
a valid password. To power on the server with the ipmitool, follow these steps:
1.Open a terminal program.
2.Power on your server with the ipmitool:
ipmitool -I lanplus -H fsp_ip_address -P ipmi_password power on
3.Activate your IPMI console:
ipmitool -I lanplus -H fsp_ip_address -P ipmi_password sol activate
For more help with configuring Linux on Power Systems server see the following:
https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/linuxonibm/liabp/liabpusingipmi.htm
Petitboot is a kexec based bootloader used by IBM POWER8 systems using the OPAL firmware.
After the POWER8 system powers on, the petitboot bootloader scans local boot devices and network interfaces to find boot options that are available to the system. Petitboot returns a list of boot options that are available to the system. If you are using a static IP or if you did not provide boot arguments in your network boot server, you must provide the details to petitboot. You can configure petitboot to find your boot with the following instructions:
https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/linuxonibm/liabp/liabppetitbootadvanced.htm
You can edit petitboot configuration options, change the amount of time before Petitboot automatically boots, etc. with these instructions:
https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/linuxonibm/liabp/liabppetitbootconfig.htm
You can read more about the petitboot bootloader program here:
https://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/people/geoff/petitboot/petitboot.html
This guide helps you install Ubuntu on a Linux on Power Systems server.
Overview
Use the information found in http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/linuxonibm/liabw/liabwkickoff.htm to install Linux, in this case Ubuntu, on a non-virtualized or bare metal IBM Power LC server. The Ubuntu installer is available for download for specific Linux on Power Systems. For information about which systems support Ubuntu, see Supported Linux distributions for POWER8 Linux on Power systems:
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/linuxonibm/liaam/liaamdistros.htm
Date | Description |
09/26/2016 | New for LC server 8335-GTB for OP820.00 release |
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