VM930
For Impact, Severity and other Firmware definitions, Please
refer to the below 'Glossary of firmware terms' url:
http://www14.software.ibm.com/webapp/set2/sas/f/power5cm/home.html#termdefs
The
complete Firmware Fix History for
this
Release Level can be
reviewed at the following url:
http://download.boulder.ibm.com/ibmdl/pub/software/server/firmware/VM-Firmware-Hist.html
|
VM930_145_035 / FW930.50
9/17/21 |
Impact: Data
Severity: HIPER
New features and functions
- Support was changed
to disable Service Location Protocol (SLP) by default for newly shipped
systems or systems that are reset to manufacturing defaults. This
change has been made to reduce memory usage on the service processor by
disabling a service that is not needed for normal system
operations. This change can be made manually for existing
customers by changing it in ASMI with the options "ASMI -> System
Configuration -> Security -> External Services Management" to
disable the service.
System firmware changes that affect all systems
- HIPER: A
problem was fixed which may occur on a target system following a Live
Partition Mobility (LPM) migration of an AIX partition utilizing Active
Memory Expansion (AME) with 64 KB page size enabled using the vmo
tunable: "vmo -ro ame_mpsize_support=1". The problem may result
in AIX termination, file system corruption, application segmentation
faults, or undetected data corruption.
Note: If you are doing an LPM migration of an AIX partition
utilizing AME and 64 KB page size enabled involving a POWER8 or POWER9
system, ensure you have a Service Pack including this change for the
appropriate firmware level on both the source and target systems.
- A problem was fixed for a missing hardware callout and
guard for a processor chip failure with SRC BC8AE540 and signature
"ex(n0p0c5) (L3FIR[28]) L3 LRU array parity error".
- A problem was fixed for a missing hardware callout and
guard for a processor chip failure with Predictive Error (PE) SRC
BC70E540 and signature "ex(n1p2c6) (L2FIR[19]) Rc or NCU Pb data CE
error". The PE error occurs after the number of CE errors reaches
a threshold of 32 errors per day.
- A problem was fixed for a rare failure for an SPCN I2C
command sent to a PCIe I/O expansion drawer that can occur when service
data is manually collected with hypervisor macros "xmsvc -dumpCCData
and xmsvc -logCCErrBuffer". If the hypervisor macro "xmsvc
"is run to gather service data and a CMC Alert occurs at the same time
that requires an SPCN command to clear the alert, then the I2C commands
may be improperly serialized, resulting in an SPCN I2C command
failure. To prevent this problem, avoid using xmsvc -dumpCCData
and xmsvc -logCCErrBuffer to collect service data until this fix is
applied.
- A problem was fixed for a system hang or terminate with SRC
B700F105 logged during a Dynamic Platform Optimization (DPO) that is
running with a partition in a failed state but that is not shut
down. If DPO attempts to relocate a dedicated processor from the
failed partition, the problem may occur. This problem can be
avoided by doing a shutdown of any failed partitions before initiating
DPO.
- A problem was fixed for a system crash with HMC message
HSCL025D and SRC B700F103 logged on a Live Partition Mobility (LPM)
inactive migration attempt that fails. The trigger for this
problem is inactive migration that fails a compatibility check between
the source and target systems.
- A problem was fixed for time-out issues in Power Enterprise
Pools 1.0 (PEP 1.0) that can affect performance by having non-optimal
assignments of processors and memory to the server logical partitions
in the pool. For this problem to happen, the server must be in a
PEP 1.0 pool and the HMC must take longer than 2 minutes to provide the
PowerVM hypervisor with the information about pool resources owned by
this server. The problem can be avoided by running the HMC optmem
command before activating the partitions.
- A problem was fixed for a Live Partition Mobility (LPM)
migration that failed with the error "HSCL3659 The partition migration
has been stopped because orchestrator detected an error" on the
HMC. This problem is intermittent and rare that is triggered by
the HMC being overrun with unneeded LPM message requests from the
hypervisor that can cause a timeout in HMC queries that result in the
LPM operation being aborted. The workaround is to retry the LPM
migration which will normally succeed.
- A problem was fixed for a system becoming unresponsive when
a processor goes into a tight loop condition with an SRC B17BE434,
indicating that the service processor has lost communication with the
hypervisor. This problem is triggered by an SR-IOV shared mode
adapter going through a recovery VF reset for an error condition,
without releasing a critical lock. If a later reset is then
needed for the VF, the problem can occur. The problem is
infrequent because a combination of errors needs to occur in a specific
sequence for the adapter.
- A problem was fixed for a misleading SRC B7006A20
(Unsupported Hardware Configuration) that can occur for some error
cases for PCIe #EMX0 expansion drawers that are connected with copper
cables. For cable unplug errors, the SRC B7006A88 (Drawer
TrainError) should be shown instead of the B7006A20. If a
B7006A20 is logged against copper cables with the signature "Prc
UnsupportedCableswithFewerChannels" and the message "NOT A 12CHANNEL
CABLE", this error should instead follow the service actions for a
B7006A88 SRC.
- A problem was fixed where the Floating Point Unit
Computational Test, which should be set to "staggered" by default, has
been changed in some circumstances to be disabled. If you wish to
re-enable this option, this fix is required. After applying this
service pack, do the following steps:
1) Sign in to the Advanced System Management Interface (ASMI).
2) Select Floating Point Computational Unit under the System
Configuration heading and change it from disabled to what is needed:
staggered (run once per core each day) or periodic (a specified time).
3) Click "Save Settings".
- A problem was fixed for a system termination with SRC
B700F107 following a time facility processor failure with SRC
B700F10B. With the fix, the transparent replacement of the failed
processor will occur for the B700F10B if there is a free core, with no
impact to the system.
- A problem was fixed for an incorrect "Power Good fault" SRC
logged for an #EMX0 PCIe3 expansion drawer on the lower CXP cable of
B7006A85 (AOCABLE, PCICARD). The correct SRC is B7006A86
(PCICARD, AOCABLE).
- A problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters that can
have B400FF02 SRCs logged with LPA dumps during a vNIC remove
operation. In most cases, the operations should
recover and complete. This fix updates the adapter firmware to
XX.29.2003 for the following Feature Codes and CCINs: #EC2R/EC2S with
CCIN 58FA; #EC2T/EC2U with CCIN 58FB; #EC3L/EC3M with CCIN 2CE; and
#EC66/EC67 with CCIN 2CF3.
Update instructions: https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_updating_sriov_firmware.htm.
- A problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters not being
able to create the maximum number of VLANs that are supported for a
physical port. The SR-IOV adapters
affected have the following Feature Codes and CCINs: #EC66/#EC67
with CCIN 2CF3.
Update instructions: https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_updating_sriov_firmware.htm.
- A problem was fixed for an SR-IOV adapter in shared mode
configured as Virtual Ethernet Port Aggregator (VEPA) where unmatched
unicast packets were not forwarded to the promiscuous mode VF.
This is an updated and corrected version of a similar fix delivered in
the FW940.40 service pack that had side effects of network issues such
as ping failure or inability to establish TCP connections.
Update instructions: https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_updating_sriov_firmware.htm.
- The following problems were fixed for certain SR-IOV
adapters:
1) An error was fixed that occurs during a VNIC failover where the VNIC
backing device has a physical port down due to an adapter internal
error with an SRC B400FF02 logged. This is an improved version of
the fix delivered in earlier service pack FW930.40 for adapter
firmware 11.4.415.36 and it significantly reduces the frequency of the
error being fixed.
2) A problem was fixed for an adapter in SR-IOV shared mode which
may cause a network interruption and SRCs B400FF02 and B400FF04
logged. The problem occurs infrequently during normal network
traffic.
The fixes update the adapter firmware to 11.4.415.38 for the following
Feature Codes and CCINs: #EN15/#EN16 with CCIN 2CE3, #EN17/#EN18 with
CCIN 2CE4, #EN0H/#EN0J with CCIN 2B93, #EN0M/#EN0N with CCIN 2CC0, and
#EN0K/#EN0L with CCIN 2CC1.
Update instructions: https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_updating_sriov_firmware.htm.
- A problem was fixed for the Device Description in a System
Plan related to Crypto Coprocessors and NVMe cards that were only
showing the PCI vendor and device ID of the cards. This is not
enough information to verify which card is installed without looking up
the PCI IDs first. With the fix, more specific/useful information
is displayed and this additional information does not have any adverse
impact on sysplan operations. The problem is seen every time a
System Plan is created for an installed Crypto Coprocessor or NVMe
card.
- A problem was fixed for possible partition errors following
a concurrent firmware update from FW910 or later. A precondition for
this problem is that DLPAR operations of either physical or virtual I/O
devices must have occurred prior to the firmware update. The
error can take the form of a partition crash at some point following
the update. The frequency of this problem is low. If the problem
occurs, the OS will likely report a DSI (Data Storage Interrupt)
error. For example, AIX produces a DSI_PROC log entry. If
the partition does not crash, it is also possible that some subsequent
I/O DLPAR operations will fail.
- A problem was fixed for some serviceable events specific to
the reporting of EEH errors not being displayed on the HMC. The
sending of an associated call home event, however, was not
affected. This problem is intermittent and infrequent.
System firmware changes that
affect certain systems
- For a system with a partition running AIX 7.3, a problem
was fixed for running Live Update or Live Partition Mobility
(LPM). AIX 7.3 supports Virtual Persistent Memory (PMEM) but it
cannot be used with these operations, but the problem was making it
appear that PMEM was configured when it was not. The Live Update
and LPM operations always fail when attempted on AIX 7.3. Here is
the failure output from a Live Update Preview:
"1430-296 FAILED: not all devices are virtual devices.
nvmem0
1430-129 FAILED: The following loaded kernel extensions are not known
to be safe for Live Update:
nvmemdd
...
1430-218 The live update preview failed.
0503-125 geninstall: The lvupdate call failed.
Please see /var/adm/ras/liveupdate/logs/lvupdlog for details."
- On systems with only Integrated Facility for Linux ( IFL)
processors and AIX partitions, a problem was fixed for performance
issues for IFL VMs (Linux and VIOS). This problem occurs if AIX
partitions are active on a system with IPL only cores. As a
workaround, AIX partitions should not be activated on an IFL only
system. With the fix, the activation of AIX partitions is blocked
on an IFL only system. If this fix is installed concurrently with
AIX partitions running, these partitions will be allowed to continue to
run until they are powered off. Once powered off, the AIX
partitions will not be allowed to be activated again on the IFL-only
system.
|
VM930_139_035 / FW930.41
5/25/21 |
Impact: Availability
Severity: HIPER
System firmware changes that affect all systems
- HIPER/Pervasive:
A problem was fixed to be able to detect a failed PFET sensing circuit
in a core at runtime, and prevent a system fail with an incomplete
state when a core fails to wake up. The failed core is detected
on the subsequent IPL. With the fix. a core is called out with
the PFET failure with SRC BC13090F and hardware description "CME
detected malfunctioning of PFET headers." to isolate the error better
with a correct callout.
- HIPER/Pervasive:
A problem was fixed for a checkstop due to an internal Bus transport
parity error or a data timeout on the Bus. This is a very rare
problem that requires a particular SMP transport link traffic pattern
and timing. Both the traffic pattern and timing are very
difficult to achieve with customer application workloads. The fix will
have no measurable effect on most customer workloads although highly
intensive OLAP-like workloads may see up to 2.5% impact.
|
VM930_134_035 / FW930.40
3/10/21 |
Impact: Availability
Severity: SPE
New features and functions
- Added
support in ASMI for a new panel to do Self -Boot Engine (SBE)
SEEPROM validation. This validation can only be run at the
service processor standby state.
If the validation
detects a problem, IBM recommends the system not be used and that IBM
service be called.
System firmware changes that affect all systems
- DEFERRED: A
problem was fixed for a rare Voltage Regulator Module (VRM) power fault
with an SRC 11002700 logged for the VRM failure followed by an SRC
11002610 system crash. The trigger for this problem is intense
workloads that cause what appear to be input over-current
conditions. A re-IPL of the system is needed to activate this fix.
- A problem was fixed for the On-Chip Controller (OCC) going
into safe mode (causes loss of processor performance) with SRC BC702616
logged. This problem can be triggered by the loss of a power supply (an
oversubscription event). The problem can be circumvented by
fixing the issue with the power supply.
- A problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters that have a
rare, intermittent error with B400FF02 and B400FF04 logged, causing a
reboot of the VF. The error is handled and recovered without any
user intervention needed. The SR-IOV adapters affected have the
following Feature Codes and CCINs: #EC2R/#EC2S with CCIN 58FA;
#EC2T/#EC2U with CCIN 58FB; #EC3L/#EC3M with CCIN 2CE; and #EC66/#EC67
with CCIN 2CF3.
- A problem was fixed for not logging SRCs for certain cable
pulls from the #EMXO PCIe expansion drawer. With the fix, the
previously undetected cable pulls are now detected and logged with SRC
B7006A8B and B7006A88 errors.
- A problem was fixed for a rare system hang with SRC
BC70E540 logged that may occur when adding processors through licensing
or the system throttle state changing (becoming throttled or
unthrottled) on an Enterprise Pool system. The trigger for the
problem is a very small timing window in the hardware as the processor
loads are changing.
- A problem was fixed for the Systems Management Services (
SMS) menu "Device IO Information" option being incorrect when
displaying the capacity for an NVMe or Fibre Channel (FC) NVMe
disk. This problem occurs every time the data is displayed.
- A problem was fixed for an unrecoverable UE SRC B181BE12
being logged if a service processor message acknowledgment is sent to a
Hostboot instance that has already shutdown. This is a harmless
error log and it should have been marked as an informational log.
- A problem was fixed for Time of Day (TOD) being lost for
the real-time clock (RTC) when the system initializes from AC power off
to service processor standby state with an SRC B15A3303 logged.
This is a very rare problem that involves a timing problem in the
service processor kernel that can be recovered by setting the system
time with ASMI.
- A problem was fixed for intermittent failures for a reset
of a Virtual Function (VF) for SR-IOV adapters during Enhanced Error
Handling (EEH) error recovery. This is triggered by EEH events at
a VF level only, not at the adapter level. The error recovery
fails if a data packet is received by the VF while the EEH recovery is
in progress. A VF that has failed can be recovered by a partition
reboot or a DLPAR remove and add of the VF.
- A problem was fixed for performance degradation of a
partition due to task dispatching delays. This may happen when a
processor chip has all of its shared processors removed and converted
to dedicated processors. This could be driven by DLPAR remove of
processors or Dynamic Platform Optimization (DPO).
- The following problems were fixed for certain SR-IOV
adapters:
1) An error was fixed that occurs during VNIC failover where the VNIC
backing device has a physical port down with an SRC B400FF02 logged.
2) A problem was fixed for adding a new logical port that has a PVID
assigned that is causing traffic on that VLAN to be dropped by other
interfaces on the same physical port which uses OS VLAN tagging for
that same VLAN ID. This problem occurs each time a logical port
with a non-zero PVID that is the same as an existing VLAN is
dynamically added to a partition or is activated as part of a partition
activation, the traffic flow stops for other partitions with OS
configured VLAN devices with the same VLAN ID. This problem can
be recovered by configuring an IP address on the logical port with the
non-zero PVID and initiating traffic flow on this logical port.
This problem can be avoided by not configuring logical ports with a
PVID if other logical ports on the same physical port are configured
with OS VLAN devices.
This fix updates the adapter firmware to 11.4.415.36 for the following
Feature Codes and CCINs: #EN15/#EN16 with CCIN 2CE3, #EN17/#EN18 with
CCIN 2CE4, #EN0H/#EN0J with CCIN 2B93, #EN0M/#EN0N with CCIN 2CC0, and
#EN0K/#EN0L with CCIN 2CC1.
The SR-IOV adapter firmware level update for the shared-mode adapters
happens under user control to prevent unexpected temporary outages on
the adapters. A system reboot will update all SR-IOV shared-mode
adapters with the new firmware level. In addition, when an
adapter is first set to SR-IOV shared mode, the adapter firmware is
updated to the latest level available with the system firmware (and it
is also updated automatically during maintenance operations, such as
when the adapter is stopped or replaced). And lastly, selective
manual updates of the SR-IOV adapters can be performed using the
Hardware Management Console (HMC). To selectively update the
adapter firmware, follow the steps given at the IBM Knowledge Center
for using HMC to make the updates: https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_updating_sriov_firmware.htm.
Note: Adapters that are capable of running in SR-IOV mode, but are
currently running in dedicated mode and assigned to a partition, can be
updated concurrently either by the OS that owns the adapter or the
managing HMC (if OS is AIX or VIOS and RMC is running).
- A problem was fixed for incomplete periodic data gathered
by IBM Service for #EMXO PCIe expansion drawer predictive error
analysis. The service data is missing the PLX (PCIe switch) data
that is needed for the debug of certain errors.
- A problem was fixed for a partition hang in shutdown with
SRC B200F00F logged. The trigger for the problem is an asynchronous NX
accelerator job (such as gzip or NX842 compression) in the partition
that fails to clean up successfully. This is intermittent and
does not cause a problem until a shutdown of the partition is
attempted. The hung partition can be recovered by performing an LPAR
dump on the hung partition. When the dump has been completed, the
partition will be properly shut down and can then be restarted without
any errors.
|
VM930_116_035 / FW930.30
10/21/20 |
Impact: Data
Severity: HIPER
New features and functions
- DEFERRED: Host
firmware support for anti-rollback protection. This feature
implements firmware anti-rollback protection as described in NIST SP
800-147B "BIOS Protection Guidelines for Servers". Firmware is
signed with a "secure version". Support added for a new menu in
ASMI called "Host firmware security policy" to update this secure
version level at the processor hardware. Using this menu, the
system administrator can enable the "Host firmware secure version
lock-in" policy, which will cause the host firmware to update the
"minimum secure version" to match the currently running firmware. Use
the "Firmware Update Policy" menu in ASMI to show the current "minimum
secure version" in the processor hardware along with the "Minimum code
level supported" information. The secure boot verification process will
block installing any firmware secure version that is less than the
"minimum secure version" maintained in the processor hardware.
Prior to enabling the "lock-in" policy, it is recommended to accept the
current firmware level.
WARNING: Once lock-in is enabled and the system is booted, the "minimum
secure version" is updated and there is no way to roll it back to allow
installing firmware releases with a lesser secure version.
- Enable periodic logging of internal component operational
data for the PCIe3 expansion drawer paths. The logging of this
data does not impact the normal use of the system.
System firmware changes that affect all systems
- HIPER/Pervasive: A
problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters for a condition that may
result from frequent resets of adapter Virtual Functions (VFs), or
transmission stalls and could lead to potential undetected data
corruption.
The following additional fixes are also included:
1) The VNIC backing device goes to a powered off state during a VNIC
failover or Live Partition Mobility (LPM) migration. This failure
is intermittent and very infrequent.
2) Adapter time-outs with SRC B400FF01 or B400FF02 logged.
3) Adapter time-outs related to adapter commands becoming blocked with
SRC B400FF01 or B400FF02 logged
4) VF function resets occasionally not completing quickly enough
resulting in SRC B400FF02 logged.
This fix updates the adapter firmware to 11.4.415.33 for the following
Feature Codes and CCINs: #EN15/#EN16 with CCIN 2CE3, #EN17/#EN18 with
CCIN 2CE4, #EN0H/#EN0J with CCIN 2B93, #EN0M/#EN0N with CCIN 2CC0, and
#EN0K/#EN0L with CCIN 2CC1.
The SR-IOV adapter firmware level update for the shared-mode adapters
happens under user control to prevent unexpected temporary outages on
the adapters. A system reboot will update all SR-IOV shared-mode
adapters with the new firmware level. In addition, when an
adapter is first set to SR-IOV shared mode, the adapter firmware is
updated to the latest level available with the system firmware (and it
is also updated automatically during maintenance operations, such as
when the adapter is stopped or replaced). And lastly, selective
manual updates of the SR-IOV adapters can be performed using the
Hardware Management Console (HMC). To selectively update the
adapter firmware, follow the steps given at the IBM Knowledge Center
for using HMC to make the updates: https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_updating_sriov_firmware.htm.
Note: Adapters that are capable of running in SR-IOV mode, but are
currently running in dedicated mode and assigned to a partition, can be
updated concurrently either by the OS that owns the adapter or the
managing HMC (if OS is AIX or VIOS and RMC is running).
- DEFERRED: A
problem was fixed for a slow down in PCIe adapter performance or loss
of adapter function caused by a reduction in interrupts available to
service the adapter. This problem can be triggered over time by
partition activations or DLPAR adds of PCIe adapters to a
partition. This fix must be applied and the system re-IPLed for
existing adapter performance problems to be resolved.
- A rare problem was fixed for a checkstop during an IPL that
fails to isolate and guard the problem core. An SRC is logged with
B1xxE5xx and an extended hex word 8 xxxxDD90. With the fix, the
suspected failing hardware is guarded.
- A problem was fixed to allow quicker recovery of PCIe links
for the #EMXO PCIe expansion drawer for a run-time fault with B7006A22
logged. The time for recovery attempts can exceed six minutes on
rare occasions which may cause I/O adapter failures and failed
nodes. With the fix, the PCIe links will recover or fail faster
(in the order of seconds) so that redundancy in a cluster configuration
can be used with failure detection and failover processing by other
hosts, if available, in the case where the PCIe links fail to recover.
- A problem was fixed for system memory not returned after
create and delete of partitions, resulting in slightly less memory
available after configuration changes in the systems. With the fix, an
IPL of the system will recover any of the memory that was orphaned by
the issue.
- A problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters that do not
support the "Disable Logical Port" option from the HMC but the HMC was
allowing the user to select this, causing incorrect operation.
The invalid state of the logical port causes an "Enable Logical Port"
to fail in a subsequent operation. With the fix, the HMC provides
the message that the "Disable Logical Port" is not supported for the
adapter. This affects the adapters with the following Feature
Codes and CCINs: #EN15/#EN16 with CCIN 2CE3, #EN17/#EN18 with
CCIN 2CE4, #EN0H/#EN0J with CCIN 2B93, #EN0M/#EN0N with CCIN 2CC0, and
#EN0K/#EN0L with CCIN 2CC1.
- A problem was fixed for SR-IOV adapters having an SRC
B400FF04 logged when a VF is reset. This is an infrequent issue and can
occur for a Live Partition Mobility migration of a partition or during
vNIC (Virtual Network Interface Controller) failovers where many resets
of VFs are occurring. This error is recovered automatically with
no impact on the system.
- A problem was fixed to remove unneeded resets of a Virtual
Function (VF) for SR-IOV adapters, providing for improved performance
of the startup or recovery time of the VF. This performance difference
may be noticed during a Live Partition Mobility migration of a
partition or during vNIC (Virtual Network Interface Controller)
failovers where many resets of VFs are occurring.
- A problem was fixed for TPM hardware failures not causing
SRCs to logged with a call out if the system is configured in ASMI to
not require TPM for the IPL. If this error occurs, the user would not
find out about it until they needed to run with TPM on the IPL. With
the fix, the error logs and notifications will occur regardless of how
the TPM is configured.
- A problem was fixed for PCIe resources under a deconfigured
PCIe Host Bridge (PHB) being shown on the OS host as available
resources when they should be shown as deconfigured. While this fix can
be applied concurrently, a re-IPL of the system is needed to correct
the state of the PCIe resources if a PHB had already been deconfigured.
- A problem was fixed for the REST/Redfish interface to
change the success return code for object creation from "200" to
"201". The "200" status code means that the request was received
and understood and is being processed. A "201" status code
indicates that a request was successful and, as a result, a resource
has been created. The Redfish Ruby Client, "redfish_client" may
fail a transaction if a "200" status code is returned when "201" is
expected.
- A problem was fixed for a concurrent maintenance "Repair
and Verify" (R&V) operation for a #EMX0 fanout module that fails
with an "Unable to isolate the resource" error message. This
should occur only infrequently for cases where a physical hardware
failure has occurred which prevents access to slot power
controls. This problem can be worked around by bringing up the
"PCIe Hardware Topology" screen from either ASMI or the HMC after the
hardware failure but before the concurrent repair is attempted.
This will avoid the problem with the PCIe slot isolation
These steps can also be used to recover from the error to allow the
R&V repair to be attempted again.
- A problem was fixed for certain large I/O adapter
configurations having the PCI link information truncated on the PCI-E
topology display shown with ASMI and the HMC. Because of the
truncation, individual adapters may be missing on the PCI-E topology
screens.
- A problem was fixed for a rare system hang that can occur
when a page of memory is being migrated. Page migration (memory
relocation) can occur for a variety of reasons, including predictive
memory failure, DLPAR of memory, and normal operations related to
managing the page pool resources.
- A problem was fixed for utilization statistics for commands
such as HMC lslparutil and third-party lpar2rrd that do not accurately
represent CPU utilization. The values are incorrect every time
for a partition that is migrated with Live Partition Mobility
(LPM). Power Enterprise Pools 2.0 is not affected by this
problem. If this problem has occurred, here are three possible
recovery options:
1) Re-IPL the target system of the migration.
2) Or delete and recreate the partition on the target system.
3) Or perform an inactive migration of the partition. The cycle
values get zeroed in this case.
- A problem was fixed for running PCM on a system with SR-IOV
adapters in shared mode that results in an "Incomplete" system state
with certain hypervisor tasks deadlocked. This problem is rare
and is triggered when using SR-IOV adapters in shared mode and
gathering performance statistics with PCM (Performance Collection and
Monitoring) and also having a low level error on an adapter. The
only way to recover from this condition is to re-IPL the system.
- A problem was fixed for an enhanced PCIe expansion drawer
FPGA reset causing EEH events from the fanout module or cable cards
that disrupt the PCIe lanes for the PCIe adapters. This problem affects
systems with the PCIe expansion drawer enhanced fanout module (#EMXH)
and the enhanced cable card ( #EJ20).
The error is associated with the following SRCs being logged:
B7006A8D with PRC 37414123 (XmPrc::XmCCErrMgrBearPawPrime |
XmPrc::LocalFpgaHwReset)
B7006A8E with PRC 3741412A (XmPrc::XmCCErrMgrBearPawPrime |
XmPrc::RemoteFpgaHwReset)
If the EEH errors occur, the OS device drivers automatically recover
but with a reset of affected PCIe adapters that would cause a brief
interruption in the I/O communications.
- A problem was fixed for the FRU callout lists for SRCs
B7006A2A and B7006A2B possibly not including the FRU containing the
PCIe switch as the second FRU in the callout list. The
card/drive in the slot is the first callout and the FRU containing the
PCIe switch should be the second FRU in the callout list. This
problem occurs when the PCIe slot is on a different planar that the
PCIe switch backing the slot. This impacts the NVMe backplanes
(P2 with slots C1-C4) hosting the PCIe backed SSD NVMe U.2 modules that
have feature codes #EC5J and #EC5K. As a workaround for B7006A2A
and B7006A2B errors where the callout FRU list is processed and the
problem is not resolved, consider replacing the backplane (which
includes the PCIe switch) if this was omitted in the FRU callout list.
- A problem was fixed for a PCIe3 expansion drawer cable that
has hidden error logs for a single lane failure. This happens whenever
a single lane error occurs. Subsequent lane failures are not
hidden and have visible error logs. Without the fix, the hidden or
informational logs would need to be examined to gather more information
for the failing hardware.
- A problem was fixed for mixing modes on the ports of SR-IOV
adapters that causes SRCs B200A161, B200F011, B2009014 and B400F104 to
be logged on boot of the failed adapter. This error happens when
one port of the adapter is changed to option 1 with a second port set
at either option 0 or option 2. The error can be cleared by
taking the adapter out of SR-IOV shared mode. The SR-IOV adapters
affected have the following Feature Codes and CCINs: #EC2R/#EC2S with
CCIN 58FA; #EC2T/#EC2U with CCIN 58FB; #EC3L/#EC3M with CCIN
2CE; and #EC66/#EC67 with CCIN 2CF3.
- A problem was fixed for a partition configured with a large
number (approximately 64) of Virtual Persistent Memory (PMEM) LUNs
hanging during the partition activation with a CA00E134 checkpoint SRC
posted. Partitions configured with approximately 64 PMEM LUNs
will likely hang and the greater the number of LUNs, the greater the
possibility of the hang. The circumventionf or this problem is to
reduce the number of PMEM LUNs to 64 or less in order to boot
successfully. The PMEM LUNs are also known as persistent memory
volumes and can be managed using the HMC. For more information on
this topic, refer to https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_lpar_pmem_settings.htm.
- A problem was fixed for non-optimal On-Chip Controller
(OCC) processor frequency adjustments when system power limits or user
power caps are exceeded. When a workload causes power limits or
caps to be exceeded, there can be large frequency swings for the
processors and a processor chip can get stuck at minimum
frequency. With the fix, the OCC now waits for new power readings
when changing the processor frequency and uses a master power capping
frequency to keep all processors at the same frequency. As a
workaround for this problem, do not set a power cap or run a workload
that would exceed the system power limit.
- A problem was fixed for mixing memory DIMMs with different
timings (different vendors) under the same memory controller that fail
with an SRC BC20E504 error and DIMMs deconfigured. This is an
"MCBIST_BRODCAST_OUT_OF_SYNC" error. The loss of memory DIMMs can
result in a IPL failure. This problem can happen if the memory
DIMMs have a certain level of timing differences. If the timings
are not compatible, the failure will occur on the IPL during the memory
training. To circumvent this problem, each memory controller should
have only memory DIMMs from the same vendor plugged.
- A problem was fixed for the Self Boot Engine (SBE) going to
termination with an SRC B150BA8D logged when booting on a bad core.
Once this happens, this error will persist as the bad core is not
deconfigured. To recover from this error and be able to IPL, the bad
core must be manually deconfigured. With the fix, the failing core is
deconfigured and the SBE is reconfigured to use another core so the
system is able to IPL.
- A problem was fixed for guard clearing where a specific
unguard action may cause other unrelated predictive and manual guards
to also be cleared.
- A problem was fixed for an infrequent issue after a Live
Partition Mobility (LPM) operation from a POWER9 system to a POWER8 or
POWER7 system. The issue may cause unexpected OS behavior, which
may include loss of interrupts, device time-outs, or delays in
dispatching. Rebooting the affected target partition will resolve
the problem.
- A problem was fixed for a partition crash or hang following
a partition activation or a DLPAR add of a virtual processor. For
partition activation, this issue is only possible for a system with a
single partition owning all resources. For DLPAR add, the issue is
extremely rare.
- A problem was fixed for a DLPAR remove of memory from a
partition that fails if the partition contains 65535 or more LMBs. With
16MB LMBs, this error threshold is 1 TB of memory. With 256 MB LMBs, it
is 16 TB of memory. A reboot of the partition after the DLPAR
will remove the memory from the partition.
- A problem was fixed for incorrect run-time deconfiguration
of a processor core with SRC B700F10B. This problem can be circumvented
by a reconfiguration of the processor core but this should only be done
with the guidance of IBM Support to ensure the core is good.
- A problem was fixed for Live Partition Mobility (LPM) being
shown as enabled at the OS when it has been disabled by the ASMI
command line using the server processor command of "cfcuod -LPM
OFF". LPM is actually disabled and the status shows correctly on
the HMC. The status on the OS can be ignored (for example as
shown by the AIX command "lparstat -L") as LPM will not be
allowed to run when it is disabled.
- A problem was fixed for a VIOS, AIX, or Linux partition
hang during an activation at SRC CA000040. This will occur on a system
that has been running more than 814 days when the boot of the partition
is attempted if the partitions are in POWER9_base or POWER9 processor
compatibility mode.
A workaround to this problem is to re-IPL the system or to change the
failing partition to POWER8 compatibility mode.
- A problem was fixed for performance tools perfpmr, tprof
and pex that may not be able to collect data for the event-based
options.
This can occur any time an OS thread becomes idle. When the
processor cores are assigned to the next active process, the
performance registers may be disabled.
- A problem was fixed for a system hang and HMC "Incomplete"
state that may occur when a partition hangs in shutdown with SRC
B200F00F logged. The trigger for the problem is an asynchronous
NX accelerator job (such as gzip) in the partition that fails to clean
up successfully. This is intermittent and does not cause a
problem until a shutdown of the partition is attempted.
- A problem was fixed for an SRC B7006A99 informational log
now posted as a Predictive with a call out of the CXP cable FRU,
This fix improves FRU isolation for cases where a CXP cable alert
causes a B7006A99 that occurs prior to a B7006A22 or B7006A8B.
Without the fix, the SRC B7006A99 is informational and the latter SRCs
cause a larger hardware replacement even though the earlier event
identified a probable cause for the cable FRU.
- A problem was
fixed for a security vulnerability for the Self Boot Engine
(SBE). The SBE can be compromised from the service processor to
allow injection of malicious code. An attacker that gains root access
to the service processor could compromise the integrity of the host
firmware and bypass the host firmware signature verification process.
This compromised state can not be detected through TPM
attestation. This is Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures issue
number CVE-2021-20487.
System firmware changes that
affect certain systems
- On systems with AIX and Linux partitions, a problem was
fixed for AIX and Linux partitions that crash or hang when reporting
any of the following Partition Firmware RTAS ASSERT rare conditions:
1) SRC BA33xxxx errors - Memory allocation and management errors.
2) SRC BA29xxxx errors - Partition Firmware internal stack errors.
3) SRC BA00E8xx errors - Partition Firmware initialization errors
during concurrent firmware update or Live Partition Mobility (LPM)
operations.
This problem should be very rare. If the problem does occur, a
partition reboot is needed to recover from the error.
|
VM930_101_035 / FW930.20
02/27/20 |
Impact:
Availability Severity: HIPER
New features and functions
- Support was added
for real-time data capture for PCIe3 expansion drawer (#EMX0) cable
card connection data via resource dump selector on the HMC or in ASMI
on the service processor. Using the resource selector string of
"xmfr -dumpccdata" will non-disruptively generate an RSCDUMP type of
dump file that has the current cable card data, including data from
cables and the retimers.
System firmware changes that affect all systems
- HIPER/Pervasive:
A problem was fixed for a possible system crash and HMC "Incomplete"
state when a logical partition (LPAR) power off after a dynamic LPAR
(DLPAR) operation fails for a PCIe adapter. This scenario is
likely to occur during concurrent maintenance of PCIe adapters or for
#EMX0 components such as PCIe3 Cable adapters, Active Optical or copper
cables, fanout modules, chassis management cards, or midplanes.
The DLPAR fail can leave page table mappings active for the adapter,
causing the problems on the power down of the LPAR. If the system
does not crash, the DLPAR will fail if it is retried until a platform
IPL is performed.
- HIPER/Pervasive:
A problem was fixed for an HMC "Incomplete" state for a system after
the HMC user password is changed with ASMI on the service
processor. This problem can occur if the HMC password is changed
on the service processor but not also on the HMC, and a reset of the
service processor happens. With the fix, the HMC will get the
needed "failed authentication" error so that the user knows to update
the old password on the HMC.
- DEFERRED: A
problem was fixed
for a processor core failure with SRCs B150BA3C and BC8A090F logged
that deconfigures the entire processor for the current IPL. A
re-IPL
of the system will recover the lost processor with only the bad core
guarded.
- A problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters that can
have an adapter reset after a mailbox command timeout error.
This fix updates the adapter firmware to 11.2.211.39 for the
following Feature Codes and CCINs: #EN15/EN16 with CCIN 2CE3,
#EN17/EN18 with CCIN 2CE4, #EN0H/EN0J with CCIN 2B93, #EN0M/EN0N with
CCIN 2CC0, and #EN0K/EN0L with CCIN 2CC1.
The SR-IOV adapter firmware level update for the shared-mode adapters
happens under user control to prevent unexpected temporary outages on
the adapters. A system reboot will update all SR-IOV shared-mode
adapters with the new firmware level. In addition, when an
adapter is first set to SR-IOV shared mode, the adapter firmware is
updated to the latest level available with the system firmware (and it
is also updated automatically during maintenance operations, such as
when the adapter is stopped or replaced). And lastly, selective
manual updates of the SR-IOV adapters can be performed using the
Hardware Management Console (HMC). To selectively update the
adapter firmware, follow the steps given at the IBM Knowledge Center
for using HMC to make the updates: https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_updating_sriov_firmware.htm.
Note: Adapters that are capable of running in SR-IOV mode, but are
currently running in dedicated mode and assigned to a partition, can be
updated concurrently either by the OS that owns the adapter or the
managing HMC (if OS is AIX or VIOS and RMC is running).
- A problem was fixed for an SR-IOV adapter failure with
B400FFxx errors logged when moving the adapter to shared mode.
This is an infrequent race condition where the adapter is not yet ready
for commands and it can also occur during EEH error recovery for the
adapter. This affects the SR-IOV adapters with the following
feature codes and CCINs: #EC2R/EC2S with CCIN 58FA;
#EC2T/EC2U with CCIN 58FB; #EC3L/EC3M with CCIN 2CEC; and #EC66/EC67
with CCIN 2CF3.
- A problem was fixed for an IPL failure with the following
possible SRCs logged: 11007611, 110076x1, 1100D00C, and
110015xx. The service processor may reset/reload for this
intermittent error and end up in the termination state.
- A problem was fixed for delayed interrupts on a Power9
system following a Live Partition Mobility operation from a Power7 or
Power8 system. The delayed interrupts could cause device
time-outs, program dispatching delays, or other device problems on the
target Power9 system.
- A problem was fixed for processor cores not being able to
be used by dedicated processor partitions if they were DLPAR removed
from a dedicated processor partition. This error can occur if
there was a firmware assisted dump or a Live Partition Mobility (LPM)
operation after the DLPAR of the processor. A re-IPL of the
system will recover the processor cores.
- A problem was fixed for a B7006A96 fanout module FPGA
corruption error that can occur in unsupported PCIe3 expansion
drawer(#EMX0) configurations that mix an enhanced PCIe3 fanout module
(#EMXH) in the same drawer with legacy PCIe3 fanout modules (#EMXF,
#EMXG, #ELMF, or #ELMG). This causes the FPGA on the enhanced
#EMXH to be updated with the legacy firmware and it becomes a
non-working and unusable fanout module. With the fix, the
unsupported #EMX0 configurations are detected and handled gracefully
without harm to the FPGA on the enhanced fanout modules.
- A problem was fixed for lost interrupts that could cause
device time-outs or delays in dispatching a program process. This
can occur during memory operations that require a memory relocation for
any partition such as mirrored memory defragmentation done by the HMC
optmem command, or memory guarding that happens as part of memory error
recovery during normal operations of the system.
- A problem was fixed for extraneous informational logging of
SRC B7006A10 ("Insufficient SR-IOV resources available") with a 1306
PRC. This SRC is logged whenever an SR-IOV adapter is moved from
dedicated mode to shared mode. This SRC with the 1306 PRC should
be ignored as no action is needed and there is no issue with SR-IOV
resources.
- A problem was fixed for a hypervisor error during system
shutdown where a B7000602 SRC is logged and the system may also briefly
go "Incomplete" on the HMC but the shutdown is successful. The
system will power back on with no problems so the SRC can be ignored if
it occurred during a shutdown.
- A problem was fixed for possible dispatching delays for
partitions running in POWER8, POWER9_base or POWER9 processor
compatibility mode.
- A problem was fixed for extraneous B400FF01 and B400FF02
SRCs logged when moving cables on SR-IOV adapters. This is an
infrequent error that can occur if the HMC performance monitor is
running at the same time the cables are moved. These SRCs can be
ignored when accompanied by cable movement.
|
VM930_093_035 / FW930.11
12/11/19 |
Impact:
Availability Severity: SPE
System
firmware changes that
affect all systems
- DEFERRED:
PARTITION_DEFERRED: A
problem was fixed for vHMC having no useable local graphics console
when installed on FW930.00 and later partitions.
- A problem was fixed for an IPMI
core dump and SRC B181720D logged, causing the service processor to
reset due to a low memory condition. The memory loss is triggered
by
frequently using the ipmitool to read the network configuration.
The
service processor recovers from this error but if three of these errors
occur within a 15 minute time span, the service processor will go to a
failed hung state with SRC B1817212 logged. Should a service
processor
hang occur, OS workloads will continue to run but it will not be
possible for the HMC to interact with the partitions. This
service
processor hung state can be recovered by doing a re-IPL of the system
with a scheduled outage.
- A problem was fixed for the
Advanced
System Management Interface (ASMI) menu for "PCIe Hardware
Topology/Reset link" showing the wrong value. This value is
always
wrong without the fix.
- A problem was fixed for PLL unlock
error
with SRC B124E504 causing a secondary error of PRD Internal
Firmware
Software Fault with SRC B181E580 and incorrect FRU call outs.
- A problem was fixed for an
initialization
failure of certain SR-IOV adapter ports during its boot, causing a
B400FF02 SRC to be logged. This is a rare problem and it recovers
automatically by the reboot of the adapter on the error. This
problem
affects the SR-IOV adapters with the following feature codes and CCINs:
#EC2R/EC2S with CCIN 58FA; #EC2T/EC2U with CCIN 58FB;
#EC3L/EC3M with
CCIN 2CEC; and #EC66/EC67 with CCIN 2CF3.
- A problem was fixed for the SR-IOV
Virtual
Functions (VFs) when the multi-cast promiscuous flag has been turned on
for the VF. Without the fix, the VF device driver sometimes
may
erroneously fault when it senses that the multi-cast promiscuous mode
had not been achieved although it had been requested.
- A problem was fixed for SR-IOV adapters to
provide a consistent Informational message level for cable plugging
issues. For transceivers not plugged on certain SR-IOV adapters,
an
unrecoverable error (UE) SRC B400FF03 was changed to an Informational
message logged. This affects the SR-IOV adapters with the
following
feature codes and CCINs: #EC2R/EC2S with CCIN 58FA; #EC2T/EC2U
with
CCIN 58FB; #EC3L/EC3M with CCIN 2CEC; and #EC66/EC67 with
CCIN 2CF3.
For copper cables unplugged on certain SR-IOV adapters, a missing
message was replaced with an Informational message logged. This
affects the SR-IOV adapters with the following feature codes and CCINs:
#EN17/EN18 with CCIN 2CE4, and #EN0K/EN0L with CCIN 2CC1.
- A problem was fixed for
incorrect DIMM callouts
for DIMM over-temperature errors. The error log for the DIMM over
temperature will have incorrect FRU callouts, either calling out the
wrong DIMM or the wrong DIMM controller memory buffer.
- A problem was fixed
for an
Operations Panel hang after using it set LAN Console as the console
type for several iterations. After several iterations, the
operations
panel may hang with "Function 41" displayed on the operations
panel. A
hot unplug and plug of the operations panel can be used to recover it
from the hang.
- A problem was fixed for shared
processor
pools where uncapped shared processor partitions placed in a pool may
not be able to consume all available processor cycles. The
problem may
occur when the sum of the allocated processing units for the pool
member partitions equals the maximum processing units of the pool.
- A problem was fixed for
Novalink failing to activate partitions that have names with character
lengths near the maximum allowed character length. This problem
can be
circumvented by changing the partition name to have 32 characters or
less.
- A problem was fixed where a Linux or AIX partition type was
incorrectly reported as unknown. Symptoms include: IBM Cloud
Management Console (CMC) not being able to determine the RPA partition
type (Linux/AIX) for partitions that are not active; and HMC attempts
to dynamically add CPU to Linux partitions may fail with a HSCL1528
error message stating that there are not enough Integrated Facility for
Linux ( IFL) cores for the operation.
- A problem was fixed for a hypervisor
hang
that can occur on the target side when doing a Live Partition Mobility
(LPM) migration from a system that does not support encryption and
compression of LPM data. If the hang occurs, the HMC will go to
an
"Incomplete" state for the target system. The problem is rare
because
the data from the source partition must be in a very specific pattern
to cause the failure. When the failure occurs, a B182951C will be
logged on the target (destination) system and the HMC for the source
partition will issue the following message: "HSCLA318 The
migration
command issued to the destination management console failed with the
following error: HSCLA228 The requested operation cannot be performed
because the managed system <system identifier> is not in the
Standby or Operating state.". To recover, the target system must
be
re-IPLed.
- A problem was fixed for performance
collection tools not collecting data for event-based options.
This fix
pertains to perfpmr and tprof on AIX, and Performance Explorer (PEX) on
IBM i.
- A problem was fixed a Live
Partition
Mobility (LPM) migration of a large memory partition to a target system
that causes the target system to crash and for the HMC to go to the
"Incomplete" state. For servers with the default LMB size
(256MB), if
the partition is >=16TB and if the desired memory is different than
the maximum memory, LPM may fail on the target system. Servers
with
LMB sizes less than the default could hit this problem with smaller
memory partition sizes. A circumvention to the problem is to set
the
desired and maximum memory to the same value for the large memory
partition that is to be migrated.
- A problem was fixed for certain
SR-IOV adapters with the following issues:
1) If the SR-IOV logical port's VLAN ID (PVID) is modified while the
logical port is configured, the adapter will use an incorrect PVID for
the Virtual Function (VF). This problem is rare because most
users do
not change the PVID once the logical port is configured, so they will
not have the problem.
2) Adapters with an SRC of B400FF02 logged.
This fix updates the adapter firmware to 11.2.211.38 for the
following
Feature Codes and CCINs: #EN15/EN16 with CCIN 2CE3, #EN17/EN18
with
CCIN 2CE4, #EN0H/EN0J with CCIN 2B93, #EN0M/EN0N with CCIN 2CC0,
and #EN0K/EN0L with CCIN 2CC1.
The SR-IOV adapter firmware level update for the shared-mode adapters
happens under user control to prevent unexpected temporary outages on
the adapters. A system reboot will update all SR-IOV shared-mode
adapters with the new firmware level. In addition, when an
adapter is
first set to SR-IOV shared mode, the adapter firmware is updated to the
latest level available with the system firmware (and it is also updated
automatically during maintenance operations, such as when the adapter
is stopped or replaced). And lastly, selective manual updates of
the
SR-IOV adapters can be performed using the Hardware Management Console
(HMC). To selectively update the adapter firmware, follow the
steps
given at the IBM Knowledge Center for using HMC to make the
updates: https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/POWER9/p9efd/p9efd_updating_sriov_firmware.htm.
Note: Adapters that are capable of running in SR-IOV mode, but are
currently running in dedicated mode and assigned to a partition, can be
updated concurrently either by the OS that owns the adapter or the
managing HMC (if OS is AIX or VIOS and RMC is running).
- A problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters where after
some error conditions the adapter may hang with no messages or error
recovery. This is a rare problem for certain severe adapter
errors. This problem affects the SR-IOV adapters with the following
feature codes: #EC66/EC67 with CCIN 2CF3. This
problem can be recovered by removing the adapter from SR-IOV mode and
putting it back in SR-IOV mode, or the system can be re-IPLed.
- A problem was fixed for an
initialization
failure of certain SR-IOV adapters when changed into SR-IOV mode.
This
is an infrequent problem that most likely can occur following a
concurrent firmware update when the adapter also needs to be updated.
This problem affects the SR-IOV adapter with the following feature
codes and CCINs: #EC2R/EC2S with CCIN 58FA; #EC2T/EC2U with CCIN
58FB; #EC3L/EC3M with CCIN 2CEC; and #EC66/EC67 with CCIN
2CF3. This
problem can be recovered by removing the adapter from SR-IOV mode and
putting it back in SR-IOV mode, or the system can be re-IPLed.
- A problem was fixed for a rare
IPL failure
with SRCs BC8A090F and BC702214 logged caused by an overflow of VPD
repair data for the processor cores. A re-IPL of the system
should
recover from this problem.
- A problem was fixed for a false
memory
error that can be logged during the IPL with SRC BC70E540 with the
description "mcb(n0p0c1) (MCBISTFIR[12]) WAT_DEBUG_ATTN" but with no
hardware call outs. This error log can be ignored.
- A problem was fixed for an IPL
failure
after installing DIMMs of different sizes, causing memory access
errors. Without the fix, the memory configuration should be
restored
to only use DIMMs of the same size.
- A problem was fixed for a memory
DIMM
plugging rule violation that causes the IPL to terminate with an error
log with RC_GET_MEM_VPD_UNSUPPORTED_CONFIG IPL that calls out the
memory port but has no DIMM call outs and no DIMM deconfigurations are
done. With the fix, the DIMMs that violate the plugging rules
will be
deconfigured and the IPL will complete. Without the fix, the
memory
configuration should be restored to the prior working configuration to
allow the IPL to be successful.
- A problem was fixed for a B7006A22 Recoverable Error for
the enhanced PCIe3 expansion drawer (#EMX0) I/O drawer with fanout PCIe
Six Slot Fan Out modules (#EMXH) installed. This can occur up to two
hours after an IPL from power off. This can be a frequent
occurrence on an IPL for systems that have the PCIe Six Slot Fan Out
module (#EMXH). The error is automatically recovered at the
hypervisor level. If an LPAR fails to start after this error, a
restart of the LPAR is needed.
- A problem was fixed for degraded memory
bandwidth on systems with memory that had been dynamically repaired
with symbols to mark the bad bits.
- A problem was fixed for
an
intermittent IPMI core dump on the service processor. This occurs
only
rarely when multiple IPMI sessions are starting and cleaning up at the
same time. A new IPMI session can fail initialization when one of
its
session objects is inadvertently cleaned up. The circumvention is
to
retry the IPMI command that failed.
- A problem was fixed for
an
intermittent IPL failure with SRC B181E540 logged with fault signature
" ex(n2p1c0) (L2FIR[13]) NCU Powerbus data timeout". No FRU is
called
out. The error may be ignored since the automatic re-IPL is
successful. The error occurs very infrequently. This is the
second
iteration of the fix that has been released. Expedient routing of
the
Powerbus interrupts did not occur in all cases in the prior fix, so the
timeout problem was still occurring.
System firmware changes that
affect certain systems
- On systems with PCIe3
expansion
drawers(feature code #EMX0), a problem was fixed for a concurrent
exchange of a PCIe expansion drawer cable card, although successful,
leaves the fault LED turned on.
- On systems with 16TB or more of
memory, a
problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters not being able to start a
Virtual Function (VF) if "I/O Adapter Enlarged Capacity" is
enabled
and VF option 0 has been selected for the number of supported VFs
.
This problem affects the SR-IOV adapters with the following feature
codes and CCINs: #EC2R/EC2S with CCIN 58FA; #EC2T/EC2U with CCIN
58FB; #EC3L/EC3M with CCIN 2CEC; and #EC66/EC67 with CCIN
2CF3. This
problem can be circumvented by the following action: change away
from
VF option 0. VF option 1 is the default option and it will work.
- On systems with 16GB huge-pages, a
problem was fixed for certain SR-IOV adapters with all or nearly all
memory assigned to them preventing a system IPL. This affects the
SR-IOV adapters with the following feature codes and CCINs: #EC2R/EC2S
with CCIN 58FA; #EC2T/EC2U with CCIN 58FB; #EC3L/EC3M with
CCIN
2CEC; and #EC66/EC67 with CCIN 2CF3. The problem can be
circumvented
by powering off the system and turning off all the huge-page
allocations.
|
VM930_068_035 / FW930.03
08/22/19 |
Impact:
Data
Severity: HIPER
System firmware changes that affect all systems
- HIPER/Pervasive:
A change was made to fix an intermittent
processor anomaly that may result in issues such as operating system or
hypervisor termination, application segmentation fault, hang, or
undetected data corruption. The only issues observed to date have
been operating system or hypervisor terminations.
- A problem was fixed for a very intermittent partition error
when using Live Partition Mobility (LPM) or concurrent firmware
update. For a mobility operation, the issue can result in a
partition crash if the mobility target system is FW930.00, FW930.01 or
FW930.02. For a code update operation, the partition may
hang. The recovery is to reboot the partition after the crash or
hang.
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VM930_048_035 / FW930.02
06/28/19 |
Impact:
Availability Severity: SPE
System firmware changes that
affect all systems
- A problem was fixed for a bad link for the PCIe3 expansion
drawer (#EMX0) I/O drawer with the clock enhancement causing a system
failure with B700F103. This error could occur during an IPL or a
concurrent add of the link hardware.
- A problem was fixed for On-Chip Controller (OCC) power
capping operation time-outs with SRC B1112AD3 that caused the system to
enter safe mode, resulting in reduced performance. The problem
only occurred when the system was running with high power consumption,
requiring the need for OCC power capping.
- A problem was fixed for the "PCIe Topology " option to get
cable information in the HMC or ASMI that was returning the wrong cable
part numbers if the PCIe3 expansion drawer (#EMX0) I/O drawer
clock enhancement was configured. If cables with the incorrect
part numbers are used for an enhanced PCIe3 expansion drawer
configuration, the hypervisor will log a B7006A20 with PRC 4152
indicating an invalid configuration - https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/9080-M9S/p9eai/B7006A20.htm.
- A problem was fixed for a drift in the system time (time
lags and the clock runs slower than the true value of time) that occurs
when the system is powered off to the service processor standby
state. To recover from this problem, the system time must be
manually corrected using the Advanced System Management Interface
(ASMI) before powering on the system. The time lag increases in
proportion to the duration of time that the system is powered off.
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VM930_035_035 / FW930.00
05/17/19 |
Impact:
New
Severity: New
All features and fixes from the FW920.30 service pack (and below)
are included in this release.
New Features and Functions
- Support was added to allow the FPGA soft error checking on
the PCIe I/O expansion drawer (#EMX0) to be disabled with the help of
IBM support using the hypervisor "xmsvc" macro. This new setting
will persist until it it is changed by the user or IBM support.
The effect of disabling FPGA soft error checking is to eliminate the
FPGA soft error recovery which causes a recoverable PCIe adapter
outage. Some of the soft errors will be hidden by this change but
others may have unpredictable results, so this should be done only
under guidance of IBM support.
- Support for the PCIe3 expansion drawer (#EMX0) I/O
drawer clock enhancement so that a reset of the drawer does not
affect the reference clock to the adapters so the PCIe lanes for the
PCIe adapters can keep running through an I/O drawer FPGA reset.
To use this support, new cable cards, fanout modules, and optical
cables are needed after this support is installed: PCIe Six Slot Fan
out module(#EMXH) - only allowed to be connected to converter adapter
cable card; PCIe X16 to CXP Optical or CU converter adapter for
the expansion drawer (#EJ20); and new AOC cables with feature/part
number of #ECCR/78P6567, #ECCX/78P6568, #ECCY/78P6569, and
#ECCZ/78P6570. These parts cannot be install concurrently, so a
scheduled outage is needed to complete the migration.
- Support added for RDMA Over Converged Ethernet (RoCE) for
SR-IOV adapters.
- Support added for SMS menu to enhance the I/O
information option to have "vscsi" and "network" options. The
information shown for "vscsi" devices is similar to that provided for
SAS and Fibre Channel devices. The "network" option provides
connectivity information for the adapter ports and shows which can be
used for network boots and installs.
- Support added to monitor the thermal sensors on the NVMe
SSD drives (feature codes #EC5J, #EC5K, #EC5L) and use that information
to adjust the speed of the system fans for improved cooling of the SSD
drives.
- Support added to allow integrated USB ports to be
disabled. This is available via an Advanced System Management
Interface (ASMI) menu option: "System Configuration ->
Security -> USB Policy". The USB disable policy, if selected,
does not apply to pluggable USB adapters plugged into PCIe slots such
as the 4-Port USB adapter (#EC45/#EC46), which are always enabled.
System firmware changes that
affect all systems
- A problem was fixed for a system IPLing with an invalid
time set on the service processor that causes partitions to be reset to
the Epoch date of 01/01/1970. With the fix, on the IPL, the
hypervisor logs a B700120x when the service processor real time clock
is found to be invalid and halts the IPL to allow the time and date to
be corrected by the user. The Advanced System Management
Interface (ASMI) can be used to correct the time and date on the
service processor. On the next IPL, if the time and date have not
been corrected, the hypervisor will log a SRC B7001224 (indicating the
user was warned on the last IPL) but allow the partitions to start, but
the time and date will be set to the Epoch value.
- A problem was fixed for a possible boot failure from a
ISO/IEC 13346 formatted image, also known as Universal Disk Format
(UDF).
UDF is a profile of the specification known as ISO/IEC 13346 and is an
open vendor-neutral file system for computer data storage for a broad
range of media such as DVDs and newer optical disc formats. The
failure is infrequent and depends on the image. In rare cases,
the boot code erroneously fails to find a file in the current
directory. If the boot fails on a specific image, the boot of
that image will always fail without the fix.
- A problem was fixed for broadcast bootp installs or boots
that fail with a UDP checksum error.
- A problem was fixed for failing to boot from an AIX mksysb
backup on a USB RDX drive with SRCs logged of BA210012, AA06000D, and
BA090010. The boot error does not occur if a serial console is
used to navigate the SMS menus.
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