BladeCenter packaging, power, and cooling

This paper addresses the packaging, power, and cooling of the IBM eServerTM BladeCenter® compact server infrastructure consisting of 14 servers in a 7U (1U = 44.45 mm) vertical space for installation in an industry-standard rack. A typical rack is 42U tall. Therefore, six BladeCenter systems will fit in a rack, for a total of 84 servers. The density of a BladeCenter system (servers/ U) is double that of previous 1U rack-optimized servers. To build such a dense server system required overcoming a multitude of challenges in packaging, power, and cooling design. Our approach to these challenges is described, but in the broader context of not only increasing the density, but setting a new server standard for a highly available redundant infrastructure with integrated systems management and network switching that uses less power and is simple to maintain on site or remotely, even by nonspecialized personnel. Server processors, memory, storage, and input/output devices were combined in a single compact server unit called a processor blade, while the support infrastructure, such as systems management, network connectivity, optical media, power, and cooling, was consolidated in a single structure and shared among many servers. The result is a package architecture that lends itself well to standardization. Custom server blades and input/output devices may be designed in accordance with BladeCenter base specifications and be effectively integrated into the blade server system.