EBG Server Education

EBG Server Education
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface

(UEFI) Technology
March 2009
Study guide
XW5173
Release 1.00
This course is owned and published by
EBG Server Education.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Copyright 2014, Lenovo Corporation.

Lenovo
8001 Development Drive
Morrisville, North Carolina, 27560
Lenovo reserves the right to change product information and specifications at any time
without notice. This publication might include technical inaccuracies or typographical
errors. References herein to Lenovo products and services do not imply that Lenovo
intends to make them available in all countries. Lenovo provides this publication as is,
without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including the implied
warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Some jurisdictions do
not allow disclaimer of expressed or implied warranties. Therefore, this disclaimer may
not apply to you.
Data on competitive products is obtained from publicly obtained information and is
subject to change without notice. Contact the manufacturer for the most recent
information.
Lenovo and the Lenovo logo is a trademark or registered trademark of Lenovo
Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States, other countries, or both. Intel and
the Intel logo is a trademark or registered trademark of Intel Corporation or its
subsidiaries in the United States, other countries, or both. Other names and brands are
the property of their respective owners.
The following terms are trademarks, registered trademarks, or service marks of Lenovo:
Access Connections, Active Protection System, Automated Solutions, Easy Eject Utility,
Easy-Open Cover, IdeaCentre, IdeaPad, ImageUltra, Lenovo Care, MaxBright,
NetVista, New World. New Thinking, OneKey, PC As A Service, Rapid Restore, Remote
Deployment Manager, Rescue and Recovery, ScrollPoint, Secure Data Disposal,
Skylight, Software Delivery Center, System Information Gatherer, System Information
Reporter, System Migration Assistant, System x, Think Pad, ThinkAccessories,
ThinkCenter, ThinkCentre, ThinkDisk, ThinkDrive, ThinkLight, ThinkPad, ThinkPlus,
ThinkScribe, ThinkServer, ThinkStation, ThinkStore, ThinkVantage, ThinkVision,
ThinkWorld, TopSeller, TrackPoint, TransNote, UltraBase, UltraBay, UltraConnect,
UltraNav, VeriFace.
For more information, go to: http://www.lenovo.com/legal/copytrade.html.
The terms listed for the following partners are the property of their respective owners:
AMD
Intel
IBM
Microsoft
NVIDIA
March 2009
XW5173r100
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Table of contents
Table of contents
Table of contents........................................................................................................... 3
Objectives .................................................................................................................. 6
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology ......................................... 7
Overview .................................................................................................................... 7
What is UEFI? ...................................................................................................... 7
Why UEFI? ........................................................................................................... 8
UEFI and the industry ........................................................................................... 9
Look and feel ........................................................................................................ 9
User advantages of UEFI ......................................................................................... 10
Richer configurations .......................................................................................... 10
Improved setup configuration and update .......................................................... 10
Improved consistency and feature penetration across the portfolio .................... 11
Simplified error handling ..................................................................................... 11
Improved code quality and faster development .................................................. 12
Update and configuration on today's BIOS systems ................................................ 13
Update and configuration on UEFI based systems .................................................. 14
UEFI compatibility with BIOS ................................................................................... 15
Impact of UEFI on the market place ................................................................... 15
User interface........................................................................................................... 16
F1 setup goals and architecture ......................................................................... 16
Splash screen ..................................................................................................... 16
Setup screen ...................................................................................................... 17
System settings .................................................................................................. 18
Network device ................................................................................................... 19
Processor details ................................................................................................ 20
Architecture .............................................................................................................. 21
UEFI architecture and components .................................................................... 21
Components ....................................................................................................... 22
Firmware execution flow ..................................................................................... 23
Firmware events - Logs ........................................................................................... 25
Logging ............................................................................................................... 25
System event log ................................................................................................ 25
Firmware event ................................................................................................... 26
POST event viewer............................................................................................. 27
What are firmware diagnostic codes? ................................................................. 28
Firmware path..................................................................................................... 30
Beep codes......................................................................................................... 31
Early light path support ....................................................................................... 32
Summary ............................................................................................................ 34
Memory RAS features.............................................................................................. 35
March 2009
XW5173r100
Memory population rules .................................................................................... 35

Processors and memory architecture ................................................................. 35
Memory error handling ....................................................................................... 36
Correctable memory error PFA........................................................................... 37
CATERR (catastrophic errors) ............................................................................ 37
Memory initialization events ............................................................................... 38
Memory runtime events ...................................................................................... 39
System board DIMM details................................................................................ 40
DIMM population error ........................................................................................ 41
Example of population error ............................................................................... 42
System event log ................................................................................................ 43
Summary ............................................................................................................ 43
RAS features ........................................................................................................... 44
PCI event data .................................................................................................... 44
PCIe event example ........................................................................................... 44
Three boot failure ............................................................................................... 45
Automated BIOS Recovery (ABR) and watchdog............................................... 45
Legacy (BIOS) compatibility ..................................................................................... 47
Compatibility Support Module (CSM) overview .................................................. 47
CSM configuration options ................................................................................. 48
CSM configuration options ................................................................................. 49
Console redirection settings ............................................................................... 50
OS support ......................................................................................................... 51
UEFI and CSM interaction .................................................................................. 51
Native UEFI driver vs. Legacy Thunk driver ....................................................... 52
UEFI and CSM interaction .................................................................................. 53
Summary ............................................................................................................ 54
Boot operations ........................................................................................................ 55
Start options ....................................................................................................... 57
CD/DVD ROM .................................................................................................... 57
Floppy disk ......................................................................................................... 58
Hard disk 0 through hard disk 4 .......................................................................... 58
Hard disk 0 through hard disk 4 UEFI booting ................................................. 58
PXE network ....................................................................................................... 58
USB storage ....................................................................................................... 58
Diagnostics ......................................................................................................... 59
iSCSI and iSCSI critical ...................................................................................... 59
Legacy only ........................................................................................................ 59
Embedded hypervisor ......................................................................................... 59
Summary ............................................................................................................ 60
iFlash ....................................................................................................................... 61
What is iFlash ..................................................................................................... 61
Benefits of iFlash ................................................................................................ 61
IFlash usage using the update package ............................................................. 61
iFlash Use running CLI ....................................................................................... 63
March 2009
XW5173r100
iFlash highlights and options usage.................................................................... 63

How to determine the current firmware level? .................................................... 64
Overview of iFlash data flow ............................................................................... 65
Summary ............................................................................................................ 66
ASU ......................................................................................................................... 68
What is ASU? ..................................................................................................... 68
What does ASU do for customers? .................................................................... 68
ASU use case (batch command) ........................................................................ 69
ASU command set.............................................................................................. 69
ASU save, restore, and replicate features .......................................................... 70
ASU showvalues ................................................................................................ 70
ASU block diagram ............................................................................................. 71
ASU XML file intro .............................................................................................. 72
ASU IMM settings structure ................................................................................ 73
ASU supported subsystems ............................................................................... 74
ASU instances syntax ......................................................................................... 75
VPD settings (UUID and DMI) ............................................................................ 75
ASU .................................................................................................................... 76
ASU connectivity on-line/in-band ..................................................................... 77
ASU connectivity out-of-band (remote) ............................................................ 78
ASU boot order configuration ............................................................................. 78
ASU application consolidation ............................................................................ 79
ASU troubleshooting ........................................................................................... 79
Summary ...................................................................................................................... 81
March 2009
XW5173r100
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Objectives
Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to:
1. Explain what UEFI is and why it is now IBM's standard firmware interface.
2. Explain how to navigate within the UEFI interface.
3. Define the components that make up the UEFI components.
4. Define the firmware events and logging capabilities with a UEFI system.
5. Define how to interpret diagnostic codes.
6. Define the memory RAS features of UEFI.
7. Define other RAS features of UEFI.
8. Explain Legacy mode operations and CSM.
9. Define the boot operations and how to add a boot device.
10. Define how iFlash works.
11. Describe the principles of ASU.
March 2009
XW5173r100
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Overview
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface

(UEFI) technology
Overview
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI)
UEFI stands for "Unified Extensible Firmware Interface". The UEFI specification defines
a new model for the interface between personal-computer operating systems and
platform firmware. The interface consists of data tables that contain platform-related
information, plus boot and runtime service calls that are available to the operating
system and its loader.
Together, these provide a standard environment for booting an operating system and
running pre-boot applications.
What is UEFI?
EFI was developed in the mid 90s by Intel as a replacement for BIOS (Basic
Input/Output System).
Intel required the use of EFI on Itanium platforms, but the industry did not accept EFI
given its proprietary nature.
Intel opened the EFI 1.1 specification to the UEFI Forum and UEFI 2.1 Spec was born.
Figure 1: UEFI on computer
UEFI was designed to enable OSs to take full advantage of the hardware by:
Being architecture independent
March 2009
XW5173r100
Modular
Extensible
Why UEFI?
UEFI was developed as the next generation for BIOS.
BIOS was first released in 1981, with the IBM PC, and is still in use today on most x86
platforms. BIOS is very stable, but carries many of the limitations imposed by 1980s
hardware designs.
BIOS started as an 8K piece of code that initialized the chipset and provide simple
services. BIOS has grown to now include:
Enterprise RAS functionality
High end scalability
iSCSI
Blade Open Fabric Manager (BOFM)
Active energy manager
Figure 2: UEFI usage
March 2009
XW5173r100
UEFI and the industry

IBM will be the only manufacturer that will be embracing UEFI fully and using it as a
platform on all of its systems developed in 2009 and beyond.
11 Promoters
20+ Contributors
70+ Adapters
Look and feel

With the new splash screen, it becomes very apparent that there is now a new look and
feel to UEFI.
Figure 3: New splash screen
March 2009
XW5173r100
User advantages of UEFI

Richer configurations
BIOS
16-bit code architecture: Only 1MB of memory can be addressed.
Adapter Vendors must squeeze all option code into a shared 128K.
Limits the number of adapters that can be effectively installed.
Vendors are limited in the function they can provide in the option ROM.
Legacy OSs designed with these limitations in mind.
UEFI
64-bit code architecture: 16 TB of memory can be addressed.
Adapter Option ROMs can be loaded anywhere in memory with no size

restrictions.*
Eliminates Code Space Constraints Example: 1801 Resource Errors.
Adapter vendors are free to add function. For example, IPV6.
UEFI OSs can take advantage of the lifting of Legacy restrictions.
Improved setup configuration and update

BIOS
Cryptic ctrl key sequences required for configuring adapters.
Advanced Settings Utility (ASU) has partial coverage of F1 settings.
iSCSI configuration requires separate tool.
In-band only updates through DOS, wFlash, or iFlash.
UEFI
UEFI defines a human interface that is being extended to adapter vendors. Adapter
configuration can move into F1 setup.
Eliminates ctrl key sequences for configuring adapters.
Advanced Settings Utility (ASU) will now have 100% coverage of settings.
March 2009
10
XW5173r100
UEFI settings can be accessed out of band by ASU through the iMM Web interface.
iSCSI configuration is in F1 setup and consolidated in to ASU.
UEFI code updates can be performed in band through the customer operating
system, and out of band through the iMM Web interface.
Improved consistency and feature penetration across the portfolio

BIOS
Limited code space for function.
Multiple code bases specialized by segment.
Certain functions only available by segment.
UEFI
Unified code base for IBMs entire x86 portfolio.
Consistent user experience across the System x portfolio.
New features will be widely available. such as CRTM, AEM, and iSCSI
Simplified error handling

BIOS
Multiple beep codes for fundamental failures.
Numerous Legacy POST errors.
UEFI
Elimination of beep codes all errors covered by light path.
Architected front panel progress codes.
Reduction in number of error messages.
UEFI Event codes available out of band.
Human readable event logs in F1 setup.
March 2009
11
XW5173r100
Improved code quality and faster development

BIOS
Patchwork of standards.
Proprietary code.
Monolithic, not conducive to new functionality.
Primarily coded in assembly.
UEFI
Unifying standard - working to UEFI 2.1 specification.
Open source core with vendor plug-ins.
Modular and extensible to enable easy addition of new function.
Code is written in C.
Modern compilers, robust debug.
Self-certification test.
March 2009
12
XW5173r100
Update and configuration on today's BIOS systems
Figure 4: Update BIOS diagram
On the systems currently employing BIOS updates and configuration, changes are only
available from the OS or in a preboot state using DOS utilities.
March 2009
13
XW5173r100
Update and configuration on UEFI based systems
Figure 5: Update UEFI diagram
Firmware updates and configuration changes, ASU (Advanced Settings Utility), are now
available from the OS (inband) and remotely (out of band) by the IMM. In either case, all
updates and configurations are always processed by the IMM interface.
March 2009
14
XW5173r100
UEFI compatibility with BIOS
Pure UEFI does not support Legacy OSs.
Legacy compatibility is provided by the CSM (Compatibility Support Module)
The CSM provides all the required resources to boot a Legacy OS:
o
Legacy BIOS calls and interrupts
Memory maps and tables
Legacy boot mechanisms
To ensure the highest level of compatibility, IBMs CSM is based off of the IBM
BIOS we have been shipping for years.
To date, IBM has found no compatibility issues with Legacy OSs.
The CSM is integrated into the UEFI code and does not require any interaction by
the user to invoke.
Long term goal being to remove the CSM when the market bears.
Impact of UEFI on the market place
Only UEFI aware OSs can take advantage of Legacy free features.
UEFI OSs are just now becoming available:

o
First available OS is Microsoft Windows 2008 Server
Select Adapter Cards must include UEFI support:

o
All onboard adapters will have UEFI support
DOS is not supported. DOS utilities used today for setup and configuration will no
longer be supported. There is a Whitepaper available from the IBM support site and
also linked to from this course that describes in detail what is supported, what is not
supported, and what new utilities are available.
Deployment tools need to be validated.
March 2009
15
XW5173r100
User interface
F1 setup goals and architecture
The UEFI screens or F1 Setup uses a hybrid graphics/text mode where the graphics
border is drawn and designed to blend with the text mode window in the middle to give
the impression that the forms are graphically rendered.
Industry standard form browsers are UEFI HII compliant which ensures that add-in
devices and adapters from OEMs can present their configuration seamlessly along with
built in features.
Each screen in F1 setup is based on a HTML-like VFR form. Third party adapters can
contribute forms through HII access protocol.
Splash screen
Figure 6: Splash screen of UEFI
This bold new look now has four (4) message areas on the screen.
Backup bank indicator - This will only be seen if the original firmware page or bank
is found to be corrupt, then the system will load from the backup image.
Splash screen with brand logo.
Navigation bar with one new option F6 to view the POST event log.
March 2009
16
XW5173r100
Event /MSG status bar with both event ID and explanation of ID.
Note: Pressing F1 presents the setup screens.
Setup screen
Figure 7: Setup screen
The setup screen layout looks almost exactly like the BIOS setup screens from the
previous systems.
One new area is the firmware event status bar. Firmware events uses the UEFI-IMM
interface. Events map to:
Light path actions
Standard IPMI platform events
Generates firmware event record
Shown on splash screen status bar
F6 POST event viewer
March 2009
17
XW5173r100
System settings
Figure 8: System settings
Layout of system settings shows three areas.

The first of the three areas are the system board devices.
The second area is for the adapters that have UEFI drivers that are up to 2.0 level.
Driver configuration protocol (also known as Adapters and UEFI Drivers)

o
For older EFI1.10 and UEFI 2.0 complaint devices
Simple hook for launching their code (similar to option ROM banners,
within setup utility)
The third area is for adapters that are UEFI level of 2.1 or higher.
HII access protocol

o
UEFI 2.1 and up
Local management through setup Form (similar to Web page)
Future: HII 2.2

o
March 2009
Out of band management of third part device or adapters (potentially

through IMM, OS tools, and so on)
18
XW5173r100
Figure 9 shows an example of the network configuration settings for a Broadcom

adapter with a firmware of greater than 2.0.
Network device
Figure 9: Network device
This is a sample of an option device configuration page. The page that is being
displayed is from the option ROM of the device and not that of UEFI.
March 2009
19
XW5173r100
Processor details
Figure 10: Processor details
The processor details screen shows information for each socketed/installed physical
package.
F1 setup > system information > system summary > processor details
March 2009
20
XW5173r100
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Architecture
Architecture
UEFI architecture and components
Figure 11: UEFI architecture
UEFI is made up of many components. At the center is the core which is open source
code which IBM is using from Tiano.
Low level hardware drivers based on 64-bit code are included in the framework.
Above the low level drivers is the IBM value add components such as the setup utility,
IMM, BOFM, and CSM. The following topics goes into more detail on the value add
components.
March 2009
21
XW5173r100
Components
Figure 12: UEFI components
There are three basic categories of UEFI:
Post
Preboot
Runtime
The bottom light green area represents the hardware components of the IMM chipset.
Refer to the course on IMM (XW5180) for more detail on the chipset.
March 2009
22
XW5173r100
Firmware execution flow
Figure 13: Execution flow
Figure 13 shows another graphical view of the firmware execution phase. Video is first
seen after the DXE or driver execution environment is loaded.
Use the Data Capture function which is included with pDSA (preboot DSA) for
detailed failure investigation.
o
IPMI SEL aux log contains UEFI events along with failure data such as
PCI advanced error reporting registers, Memory SBE counters.
F6 system log viewer parses the IPMI SEL aux log. This log entry supplements IPMI
platform events with the UEFI diagnostic code and in PCI or memory failures and
contains extensive additional data.
Port 80 checkpoints can change between firmware build levels. They are basically
used as a measure of progress (they generally increase in value as the boot
progresses).
Video is only initialized after POST is complete on current system IMM or UEFI
platforms.
Power button is disabled until IMM has completely started (~2minutes):

o
March 2009
Quick blink (4 blinks per second) = power control not ready

23
XW5173r100

o
March 2009
Slow blink (1 blink per second) = power control ready
24
XW5173r100
Firmware events - Logs

Logging
During the start process of a system, the system will first go through its Power On Self
Tests (POST) and the newly architected Checkpoint Codes (CP) will be recorded in the
System Event Log (SEL), then displayed on the video monitor. After the checkpoints are
completed the Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) events monitored by
the Baseboard Management Controller (BMC) are all logged and recorded as well in the
IPMI SEL. During the firmware initialization, the newly defined firmware diagnostic
codes and the associated action steps are also recorded and displayed on the system
monitor.
System event log
Figure 14: System event log
This system event log is from:

March 2009
25
XW5173r100
F1 setup > system event logs > IMM system event log
The Standard events are BMC or IPMI events. The firmware event is from the firmware
diagnostic code.
IPMI SEL viewer system event log
Non-volatile log of events
Accessible in and out of band
Standard SEL entries that are generated by firmware events have UEFI auxiliary log
entries associated with them that contain the originating firmware diagnostic code +
service data
Firmware event
Figure 15: Firmware event
Viewed by:
F1 setup > system event logs > system event log > firmware event
March 2009
26
XW5173r100
POST event viewer
Figure 16: POST event viewer
This is a viewer, not a log. Only events from this boot are viewable here as a
convenience rather than having to dig through a long System Event Log for Firmware
Diag code events.
F1 setup > system event logs > POST event viewer (*not a log):
Volatile Log of events that occurred on the current boot
Standard event attributes only (Severity, Diag Code, MRI String, affected FRU)
methods of viewing firmware event logs:
F1 setup > system event logs > POST event viewer
<F1> setup -> system event logs -> system event log
o
All entries with -> E.DIAG_CODE are events that can be further
examined.
pDSA collect service data
DSA
IBM director
March 2009
27
XW5173r100
IMM collect service data (not available at first release)
UEFI shell firmware event log dump (not available at first release)
What are firmware diagnostic codes?
Figure 17: Firmware diagnostic codes
Not BIOS POST codes, no relationship/mapping
An upcoming Industry Standard driven by IBM UEFI team.
Tier 1 events for customer and service problem determination
Hierarchical
+Value-add software subclasses:
March 2009
28
XW5173r100
Energy management
iSCSI
CRTM
IMM
Scalability
Example of diagnostic code
Example: E.0058008 DIMM failed memory test

o
Class = 0 (computing unit)
SubClass = 5 (memory)
Operation = 8 (DIMM failed memory test)
E.[DiagCode]
o
E (Error Severity) = { I, S, W } where I = Informational, S=Severe, and W=

Warning.
DIAGCode is composed of Class, SubClass, and Operation fields
Figure 18: Example 1
March 2009
29
XW5173r100
Figure 19: Example 2
Firmware path
Firmware events are stored as auxiliary data associated with standard IPMI events.
Every firmware event is associated with a corresponding IPMI event.
Recommended to use the firmware event diagnostic code for problem determination
and action steps that are defined in the PDSG.
Firmware event listeners are:
Virtual-GPIO (a register bit) UEFI-IMM interface

o
Maps to light path actions.
Maps to standard IPMI platform events.
Also generates a firmware event record that can be associated with the
standard IPMI event.
Firmware splash-screen status bar
<F6> POST event viewer
WHEA records (posts to windows event logs)
March 2009
30
XW5173r100
Port80 checkpoints
Beep codes
Beep codes are not used by System x Firmware. Beep codes have been replaced
with new logged events and early light path support.
o
Rationale for removal blade-strategy (whos beeping at me?).
Server-environments (noisy air-handlers/fans).
Emergence of out-of-band management tools as the preferred mechanism

for interacting with server systems.
RAS error/system information functionality should exist in a common information

domain that is out-of-band accessible.
Replaced by early and enhanced light path and early initial IPMI events.
March 2009
31
XW5173r100
Early light path support
Figure 20: Early light path
Early communication with IMM allows UEFI to assert early initialization errors:
o
No memory
Memory Init failure
Chipset and CPU faults are monitored by IMM (ABR and watchdog being
outcomes)
No beep code support in UEFI-Complaint System x Servers:

o
March 2009
Redundant with light path
32
XW5173r100
Figure 21 shows examples of UEFI diagnostic codes

These are examples only. The PDSG will contain a complete listing.
Figure 21: UEFI diagnostic codes examples
March 2009
33
XW5173r100
Summary
The diagnostic codes, checkpoint codes, and IPMI events logs are all viewable from
many places:
In-band IMM
Out of band through IMM
pDSA
DSA
F1
Resources available are the IMM Users Guide and the PDSG for the system.
March 2009
34
XW5173r100
Memory RAS features

Memory population rules
First use the system PDSG for supported populations (optimal thermal,
performance and test-matrix/warranty).
UEFI memory population rules (required):

o
Channel ordering is not enforced (except in RAS modes).
DIMMs must be populated from the end of channel forward.
Example: For a three DIMM channel where DIMM 3 is the farthest

from the memory controller.
Must populate sequentially within the channel.
Figure 22: Population rules
Processors and memory architecture

Each processor has its own memory and memory controller. The loss of a processor
package or the memory controller disables all memory associated with that processor.
Memory is not installed in pairs. Use the User's Guide or the PDSG for memory
installation guidelines for the system.
March 2009
35
XW5173r100
Figure 23: Processors and memory structure
Memory error handling
Time zero faults:

o
POST memory test will flag and disable any DIMMs with correctable or
uncorrectable errors.
Runtime faults:
Correctable errors:
o
Systems Management Mode (SMM) keeps a running inventory of Single

Bit Errors (SBE) per DIMM. This is checked against the HW Design Guide
Predictive Failure Analysis (PFA) algorithm and any DIMMs exceeding
PFA limits will be called out.
Uncorrectable errors:
o
March 2009
Will result in Catastrophic Error (CATERR) which is captured by IMM into

a CATERR file that UEFI will parse on the next start and disable or callout
DIMMs as needed.
36
XW5173r100
Correctable memory error PFA
Implemented by SMM driver
Correctable memory errors are signaled through SMI (SMM Interrupts)
SMM PFA driver maintains RAS inventory of all DIMMs
PFA thresholds
16 (single bit errors) SBEs in the last 10 minutes of operation
256 SBEs in the last 24 hours of operation
PFA limitations are:

o
SBEs can only exceed PFA on one DIMM per CPU.
SMIs are disabled for that CPU to prevent SMIs from taking all cycles
from OS, making the system appear slow or halted.
CATERR (catastrophic errors)
IERR + MC8 (memory controller errors)
On CATERR latch all CPU packages will enter non-active state
IMM eecodes MSRs through Platform Environment Control Interface (PECI):
March 2009
If MC8 : Generate CATERR file for UEFI
Else Investigate possible CPU fault (IERR algorithm)
37
XW5173r100
Figure 24: CATERR
Memory initialization events
E.0051006 DIMM mismatch detected, DIMM

o
Populate DIMMs according to population order per PDSG
Ensure memory DIMMs are the same type and speed and FRU
E.0051009 no memory detected

o
Ensure memory is present in the system
Reseat DIMMs
Populate DIMMs According PDSG Population table (doc section ref)
E.005100A No usable memory detected

o
March 2009
Ensure memory is present in the system

38
XW5173r100
Reseat DIMMs
Clear CMOS to re-enable all Slots
POP DIMMs according to PDSG population table
E.0058008 DIMM failed memory test, DIMM
Reseat and attempt to POST again
Replace failed DIMM (indicate FRU failure light)
Ensure DIMM is same type and speed as others
E.00580A1 invalid DIMM population for mirroring mode
If there any DIMM LEDs asserted, resolve failure
Populate DIMMs according to population order per PDSG.
E. 00580A4 memory population changed, DIMM

o
Informational only, DIMM was added/remove/moved
E.0058007 unsupported DIMM population, DIMM

o
POP DIMMs according to population order per PDSG
Memory runtime events
E.0051003 Uncorrectable DIMM Error

o
If affected DIMM POST memory test, reseat
Replace all DIMMs with FRU fault light that is on.
Note: Your server offers single DIMM failure isolation, no need to replace DIMM
pairs unless both have fault led on
F1 setup and re-enable all disabled DIMMs , save settings
Run pDSA memory test
E.0058001 PFA threshold exceeded
Note: These action steps can be followed at the next maintenance interval and
the server will remain operational. The customer should be advised that the
likelihood of fatal memory event is increased when any DIMM has hit its
Correctable PFA limit.
March 2009
Update UEFI Firmware to current level
Reseat DIMMs and run pDSA memory test

39
XW5173r100

o
If problem persists, IBM recommends replacement of affected DIMM (can

be identified by DIMM fault LED)
P.00580A5 mirror failover complete

o
Loss of redundancy, check log for DIMM failure (uncorrectable, or PFA)

events and handle accordingly
Re-enable mirroring mode
System board DIMM details
Figure 25: System board DIMM details
To enable a DIMM after a RAS event:

F1 setup -> system settings -> memory -> system board DIMM details
If a DIMM is disabled due to an error or failure the user can enable. The user cannot
disable and enable DIMM.
March 2009
40
XW5173r100
DIMM population error

Example of DIMM details view with a population error view. Note the text in the right
column stating the corrective action plan.
Figure 26: DIMM population error example
March 2009
41
XW5173r100
Example of population error

Post error event log view
F1 setup -> system event logs -> POST event viewer
Figure 27: Population error example
March 2009
42
XW5173r100
System event log
Figure 28: System event log
Summary
Memory SBE PFA events will result in a Fault LED on affected DIMM (along with
SEL and aux Log entry).
Memory configuration errors are called out on a per-DIMM basis. Use this to determine
which DIMM is incorrectly populated.
March 2009
43
XW5173r100
RAS features
PCI event data
IPMI platform events for PCI are extremely limited. It is recommended to use:
pDSA to capture PCI failure data from UEFI aux log
F1 setup > system event logs > system event log > firmware event to view the
decoded firmware event extended service data.
PCIe event example

Investigate each event in detail in the SEL to see the root cause of the issue. Details of
each IPMI platform event are located in the systems PDSG.
<F1> setup -> system event logs -> system event log
Figure 29: PCIe event
March 2009
44
XW5173r100
Three boot failure
Provides detection and recovery of non-POST-able configurations:

o
Recovery mechanism involves hiding the NVRAM server configuration,

forcing code to use safe-boot values.
Figure 30: Recovery mechanism
Automated BIOS Recovery (ABR) and watchdog
ABR scenarios
o
ABR timer
UEFI does not fetch sufficient number of instructions to disable the ABR timer prior
to it expiring
UEFI detects that code that will be later executed is corrupt

o
Watchdog timer
Disabled by default, can be enabled from F1 setup->settings->IMM
Cleared on POST complete event
Recovery methods
March 2009
While booting backup, press F3 at firmware splash-screen to reset

server into primary Bank
Through IPMI command
Through IMM Web interface
If both banks are non-bootable
45
XW5173r100
If locked code is good (CRTM+PEI), you can use IMM to reflash

UEFI banks out of band
Clear Real Time Clock (RTC) and Complimentary Metal Oxide Semiconductor
(CMOS)
Clearing RTC or battery through the appropriate jumper, switch or by removing the
battery, results in the loss of configuration for first-generation IBM-UEFI servers just
as it does on Legacy systems.
IBM-UEFI restores the server configuration to default values if the RTC battery
status indicates loss of battery.
March 2009
46
XW5173r100
Legacy (BIOS) compatibility

Compatibility Support Module (CSM) overview
The CSM is one of UEFI's components (see architecture topic)
The CSM is not Legacy BIOS:

o
The CSM is a collection of UEFI drivers 16-bit assembly modules that

together provide Legacy compatibility to UEFI firmware.
While its goal is to produce an environment that is equivalent to what

BIOS produced in the past, it does so in a completely different manner.
The CSM has two main functions:

o
Provides UEFI support for devices that do not have a UEFI driver, but do
have a Legacy option ROM (PCI option ROM support):
Limited to video and PCI mass storage devices.
Provides support for Legacy operating system, installation / execution.
The CSM mirrors support provided on previous (BIOS) systems, with several
changes:
o
Support added for USB 2.0 (Legacy USB).
Support added for PCI FW 3.0 option Roms.
CSM includes the limitations of the Legacy environment.
Helps, but does not eliminate 1801 errors.
Software iSCSI (iBoot) is supported.
Requires UEFI driver for Ethernet devices.
Limitations exists relating to multiple targets and attempts.
Supports both native and compatibility mode IDE (no Advanced Host
Controller Interface (AHCI) support provided by the CSM).
CSM integration into UEFI firmware:
March 2009
Automatically invoked when needed, such as during the running of a

Legacy option ROM or OS boot.
Configuration options are integrated into setup, so there is no separate

setup utility or boot menu for Legacy support.
47
XW5173r100
CSM configuration options
Figure 31: Legacy support
To view
F1 setup > system settings > Legacy support
Note: The settings shown in the following screens cannot be default. Currently
Microsoft Windows 2008 Server needs to have the Legacy video on boot.
Force Legacy video on start:

o
Rehook Int 19h:

o
This setting controls the type of video support when the system starts.
This option should almost always be set to enable. Disabling this breaks
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 (UEFI mode).
This setting determines if we enable a Legacy option ROM to take over
the boot process (to run a configuration utility for example).
Legacy thunk support

o
March 2009
This setting determines if we enable UEFI to use a Legacy option ROM to

control a device for which there is no UEFI driver. This should be enabled
in most cases.
48
XW5173r100
CSM configuration options
Figure 32: Devices and I/O ports
F1 setup > system settings > devices and I/O ports
Configure SATA:
o
Configure IDE mode:

o
This setting determines the IDE mode of the system: compatibility or

native. This setting is mainly for systems that support booting from IDE /
SATA hard disks. Not all operating systems support native mode. If
unsure, set to compatibility mode (not all systems will have this entry.)
Enable or disable Legacy ROM execution:

o
The CSM only supports IDE. No other setting will be supported in Legacy
mode (not all systems will have this entry).
Allows for the individual selection of Legacy option ROMs to disable. This
is useful in the case where you are running out of ROM space, or want to
speed up post time by not running unnecessary ROMs.
Set option ROM execution order:

o
March 2009
Enables you to specify what order option ROMs will run. This is useful for
both space and Legacy boot device priority.
49
XW5173r100
Console redirection settings
Figure 33: Console redirection settings
Remote console enable:

o
This must be enabled for console redirection.
Legacy option ROM display:

o
This determines what serial port will be used for Legacy redirection.
Note: The CSM only supports output to a single remote console at a time. It is not
possible to have both a SOL and SP redirection session running concurrently under
the CSM.
Active after boot:

o
March 2009
This determines if redirection is terminated when we begin the OS boot

process.
50
XW5173r100
OS support
Today the CSM is required for all supported operating systems.
UEFI*:
o
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 x64 is not 100% UEFI compliant. It

requires Legacy video support through the Int 10h Interface.
Legacy:
o
The CSM supports ACPI / MPS aware operating systems, Windows

Server 2008, all flavors of Microsoft Windows Server 2003, RHEL 4.x /
5.x, SLES 10, and VMware 3.5. See system specifications for complete
list. DOS is not supported.
*Linux distributions are rapidly catching up and will support UEFI (x86_64) in the very
near future. It is expected that they will not have the Legacy video / CSM requirement.
UEFI and CSM interaction
Using a Legacy option ROM controlled device under UEFI:

o
Requires use of a Thunk driver. A Thunk driver maps UEFI protocol

methods to a Legacy Int XX device.
This allows a Legacy device to speak UEFI so the system can use
it.
We provide thunk drivers to support both Video through Int 10h and
PCI mass storage devices through Int 13.
There are some drawbacks to using Legacy option ROM devices under UEFI:
March 2009
A lot of overhead in processor mode switching for Legacy interrupts (this

is only seen during the boot process not in the runtime environment)
Multiple USB enumerations on option ROM initialization (for mass storage

devices)
51
XW5173r100
Native UEFI driver vs. Legacy Thunk driver
Figure 34: UEFI driver vs. Legacy thunk driver
Booting into a Legacy environment:

o
March 2009
After the system determines that we are trying to start into a Legacy
environment the following steps take place:
UEFI passes all of the necessary tables / structures / boot order to

the CSM.
UEFI disconnects all UEFI drivers from devices.
UEFI then runs any Legacy Option ROMs that are found in the
order defined by setup.
UEFI tells the CSM to update tables and start. This is the point of
no return, the CSM now owns the machine, and UEFI is essentially
gone.
At this point, the CSM ensures that everything is setup to look like
and behaves as a BIOS boot environment.
The CSM issues a Int 19h and attempts to boot from the device(s)
specified by UEFI.
52
XW5173r100
Figure 35: Simple block read
UEFI and CSM interaction
When Booting into a Legacy environment, there can be some pitfalls:

o
There are cases where we cannot be able to map UEFI devices to Legacy
drive numbers on a 1:1 basis. Depending upon the boot order, disk
arrangement, option ROM execution order, this can prevent booting.
If you know you are starting a Legacy OS, then it is suggested to move the
Legacy only boot option to the top of the boot order. PXE booting can
have a similar situation, under the CSM environment.
PXE boot order is controlled by the option ROM execution order.
Some things to watch for:
Installing a Legacy OS to a disk previously used for a UEFI OS (having a Global

Unique Identifier (GUID) Partition Table (GPT)) will fail.
o
March 2009
Legacy operating system does not know how to handle GPT disks and
this will cause install failures. The failures will not be obvious in most
cases. The install can appear to finish as normal, with the result being an
unbootable disk.
53
XW5173r100
Diskpart.efi (UEFI shell utility), or Diskpart.exe (from Microsoft

Windows PE) enable you to clean the disks so they are useable in
a Legacy environment.
Legacy tables cannot be present in low memory when starting to a UEFI OS.
o
When starting to a UEFI OS, as a general rule, Legacy tables that did
reside in the 0xE0000 -> 0xFFFFF memory region cannot be present.
Under UEFI, scanning low memory for tables is not the supported method.
Please see the UEFI specification / OS specific documentation for how to
obtain the required data.
Summary
The CSM provides support for Legacy devices used under UEFI through Thunk drivers.
The CSM provides install and boot support for Legacy operating systems which are
ACPI / MPS compliant. Today, all operating systems require the CSM.
March 2009
54
XW5173r100
Boot operations
Figure 36: Boot manager
Boot manager
F1 Setup > boot manager
From this screen you can add items to the boot menu or change the boot order.
March 2009
55
XW5173r100
Figure 37: File explorer
Some of the items you can see:
CD/DVD ROM
iSCSI critical
Floppy disk
Legacy only
Hard disk 0-4
Embedded hypervisor
PXE network
USB storage
Diagnostics
iSCSI
March 2009
56
XW5173r100
Start options
Figure 38: Start options
F1 setup > start options

The start osptions screen shows the current boot order.
CD/DVD ROM
Looks for first CD/DVD ROM drive with media
Examines boot catalog for bootable partitions

o
A CD/DVD can be marked as bootable. If so, it is also marked with a type.

There are two types of boot catalog entry recognized EFI and x86.
If EFI bootable partition exists, Boot EFI object
If a x86 bootable partition exists, Boot Legacy mode.
March 2009
57
XW5173r100
Floppy disk
Always bootable in x86 mode.
The default boot code on a diskette displays the message Non-system disk or disk
error when not a system disk.
Microsoft Windows XP zeros an extra two bytes. UEFI recognizes this and makes
Microsoft Windows XP formatted diskette appear as not bootable.
Hard disk 0 through hard disk 4
Can be either MBR (master boot record) or GPT (GUID (global unique identifier)
partition table):
o
MBR is the Legacy method of disk partitions.
Legacy OSs can only be installed on MBR disks.
EFI OSs can only be installed on GPT disks.
Disk is inspected for eligibility to boot, and if bootable, the proper mode is
attempted.
Hard disk 0 through hard disk 4 UEFI booting
Support for \EFI\BOOT\BOOTX64.EFI requires UEFI boot order entry lower in the
list to work. If the UEFI boot order entry is lost, load the defaults. UEFI OS must be
manually started to recreate the UEFI boot entry.
PXE network
Uses PXE configuration:

o
To determine UEFI or Legacy mode
For UEFI mode, determines which NIC to use
USB storage
First one detected is eligible for booting:

o
Embedded hypervisor key is excluded
If USB media contains \EFI\BOOT\BOOTX64.EFI, the USB key is started in UEFI

mode.
March 2009
58
XW5173r100
If not UEFI, or UEFI image returns failed, and USB Key has MBR formatted for x86
start, the USB key is started in Legacy mode.
Diagnostics
Boots to on board diagnostics:

o
Not expected to be in the boot order, but can be added if necessary.
Designed to always enter diagnostics when processed.
Targeted for use by F12 or IPMI SetBootOptions
iSCSI and iSCSI critical
Uses ISCSI Configuration

o
To determine UEFI or Legacy mode
To get parameters for accessing iSCSI initiator and setting iSCSI target
In UEFI mode, determines which NICs to use
iSCSI Critical means retry forever

o
External event required to restart the system if iSCSI fails
Legacy only
Used as an override, not a boot item

o
Processes the next four (4) generic options as potential Legacy boot
options
Forces the transition to Legacy mode
Primary use is to force an x86 boot of a dual boot CD/DVD ROM
Also can be used to attempt booting a device not known to the UEFI
environment (adapter without UEFI driver)
Embedded hypervisor
Used to boot an embedded hypervisor key
March 2009
Only boots the IBM embedded hypervisor key
Not limited to the internal USB port

59
XW5173r100
Summary
Legacy mode
o
UEFI mode to Legacy mode is a one way transaction.
F12
o
Cannot try Legacy mode then boot to UEFI. For example, a Legacy
bootable CD that displays Press Any Key to install cannot return to
the boot order to boot an UEFI OS.
Available during boot, activated by pressing F12
Presents a list of all bootable options
List includes all generic options
IPMI SetBootOptions (CLI mode)
March 2009
Standard options supported
PXE Default
HDD (Hard Disk 0)
CD/DVD floppy disk
Reserved value of 1100b is used for hypervisor
60
XW5173r100
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology iFlash
iFlash
What is iFlash
Integrated-Flash (iFlash) is an on-line platform independent system firmware update
utility. iFlash is shipped packaged together with each firmware update package (UXSP
Update Xpress system package). iFlash can be run from a command line interface or a
graphical user interface.
Benefits of iFlash
Single tool for all firmware updates for all new system platforms
o
Communicates with IMM Flash Manager
Update system firmware on IMM/UEFI systems:

o
IMM
UEFI
pDSA
Included as part of the firmware update packages
IFlash usage using the update package

The packages available to download from the support site are IMM, UEFI, and pDSA.
Example of a package name is ibm_fw_imm_yuoo19a_windows_32-64.exe.
CLI from either Microsoft Windows and Linux (most used option)
Syntax: ibm_fw_imm_yuoo19a_windows_32-64 <up_options> <flash_options>

o
<up_options>
-x : extract content
-s : run update silent and unattended
<flash_options>
--backup : secondary flash
--no-boot : restart control
--user / --pass : authentication
--silent : no output from iflash
Example ibm_fw_imm_yuoo19a_windows_32-64.exe x
March 2009
61
XW5173r100
From Microsoft Windows only (GUI option)

Running the Microsoft Windows executable brings up the following GUI. The two
options are:
Perform update
Extract to hard drive
Extract to hard drive allows scripting to occur.
Figure 39: Firmware update
March 2009
62
XW5173r100
iFlash Use running CLI
Figure 40: CLI
Extract package content (-x or GUI)
Tool is interactive (attended) by default
Syntax:
o
iflash --package <fw_update.upd> [<options>] [<connectivity_parms>]
iFlash highlights and options usage
iFlash does have platform checks to avoid incorrect cross machine UEFI flashing
Requires a running LAN connection

o
Auto installs and configures the IMM in-band interface
Options:
o
March 2009
--force:
Used by Update Package invocation
This option can force a downlevel code to be installed
unattended:
When used from CLI removes the prompt
Not required or used by Update Package invoke
63
XW5173r100

o
package:
Defines the FW package to use for the update
Not required by Update Package invoke since it is implicit (correct

FW is in the package)
--no-reboot:
IMM Flash Manager controls the restart (IMM only today)
Design to override the IMM Flash Manager directed IMM reboot
Use case: avoid losing remote presence control
How to determine the current firmware level?

The command used is:
iflash.exe --package imm_yuoo18a.upd
The result shows the automatic in-band connection to the IMM and current IMM VPD.
Figure 41: Result screen
March 2009
64
XW5173r100
Overview of iFlash data flow
iFlash has a control channel and a data channel
Control channel (LAN or KCS)
KCS is not authenticated (restricted users)
LAN requires authentication <connectivity_parms>
Uses IMM account default values when not specified
Default settings: USERID/PASSW0RD
Data channel - firmware transfer (LAN only)
March 2009
Acquired authentication through control channel
FTP data transfer
65
XW5173r100
Figure 42: iFlash data flow
Summary
The update express support packages available on the IBM support site will have a
Microsoft Windows version and a Linux version.
Support Update Packages are available for:
IMM
pDSA
UEFI
March 2009
66
XW5173r100
The packages can be installed out of band using the IMM interface or in-band directly
from the operating system. In either method, in-band or out of band, the data is staged
into the firmware. While the system is in a start state there are sections of firmware
memory space that are locked (write protected). Only on the next system restart, during
the initialization phase, can these memory locations can be updated.
March 2009
67
XW5173r100
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology ASU
ASU
What is ASU?
ASU is the Advanced Settings Utility an on-line platform independent system firmware
configuration utility. It has a command line interface that integrates and consolidates
other configuration applications. Also available for unattended mode is a scripting
capability that can be used in batch mode setting.
What does ASU do for customers?

ASU is a customer tool and has the following features:
Configure Legacy BIOS, BMC, RSA firmware settings
Configure IMM (SP and IPMI), uEFI, VPD and iSCSI
Supported in multiple OS (Microsoft Windows/Windows PE, Linux, VMware)
Uses Legacy configuration files (DEF) that define system and subsystem specific
settings
IMM settings support does not require a configuration file. The configuration file is
embedded in the IMM.
Additional converged applications / utilities
Available for free download on the Web as package:

o
www.ibm.com/systems/support/supportsite.wss/docdisplay?brandind=500
000 8&lndocid=MIGR-55021
Single command
o
Syntax: asu set setting value [-v] [-nx] [connectivity]
Perform a single setting: set IMM external IP
Command line:
Output:
March 2009
asu set IMM.HostIPAddress1 "192.168.70.125"

IMM.HostIPAddress1= "192.168.70.125"
68
XW5173r100
ASU use case (batch command)
Batch command (scripting support)

o
Syntax:
asu batch batch_filename
Sample for setting several settings
Command line:
asu batch CmdList.txt
batch_filename content:
set IMM.HostIPAddress1 "192.168.70.125"
set BootOrder.WolBootOrder=Network=Hard Disk 0
ASU command set
Rich inventory of commands
Use of the additional command set is as a deployment or provisioning tool
Syntax:
o
asu [application] <command> [<options>] [<connectivity_parms>]
Command set:
o
set ......................................................Set setting to a value
loaddefault .........................................Load Factory Defaults
show / showdefault / showvalues.........List Settings and Values
showgroups........................................Show groups of settings
batch..................................................Set multiple settings
save/restore/replicate........................Backup and System copies
Command set (Legacy only):

o
readraw/writeraw................................CMOS raw data handling
patch.................................................Add external config file
BMC/RSA specific (Legacy only)
March 2009
Import/Export/Generate.................... RSA certificate management
Reset............................................... Hardware reset
69
XW5173r100
ASU save, restore, and replicate features
Save or restore
o
Back up existing machine settings into a file
Simple format: simple manual re-configuration
Replicate
o
Use to clone machine settings (one-to-many)
Uses same format as save/restore (manual configuration)
Automatic IMM CM archived settings
Settings archived when migrating UEFI or IMM versions
Example:
asu save save.txt
save.txt content:
MM.HostName1=IMM-001A64E60694
IMM.HostIPAddress1=192.168.70.125
IMM.HostIPSubnet1=255.255.255.0
IMM.GatewayIPAddress1=0.0.0.0
ASU showvalues
Powerful command
Displays:
o
Per setting syntax
default setting <>
possible values = (single only)
settings min/max w/default setting
settings list == (allows multiple)
Example
March 2009
70
XW5173r100
asu showvalues
Sample output:
IMM.SNMPv3_AuthenticationProtocol.1=<HMAC-MD5>=HMAC-SHA
IMM.NTPFrequency= numeric min=0 max=3600 default=80
IMM.AuthorityLevel.1=<Supervisor>=ReadOnly=Custom
IMM.RemoteAlertRecipient_Status.1=<Enabled>=Disabled
IMM.SerialBaudRate=2400=4800=9600=19200=38400=57600=<115200>=230400
BootOrder.BootOrder==CD/DVD Rom=Floppy Disk=Hard Disk 0=Network=Hard
Disk 1=Hard Disk 2=Hard Disk 3=Hard Disk 4=USB
Storage=Diagnostics=iSCSI=iSCSI Critical=Legacy Only=Embedded Hypervisor
ASU block diagram
Same ASU for local or remote access
Local access
o
KCS or LAN connectivity
Remote access through LAN only
All required components are integrated and automated
March 2009
71
XW5173r100
Figure 43: ASU block diagram
ASU XML file intro
Settings defined in XML file

o
Transfers between ASU and IMM-CM (config manager)
Transferred as compressed file (performance)
End users do not see or use the XML file
March 2009
ASU provide a facility to dump file
Special tool required to decompress
72
XW5173r100
Figure 44: XML config doc
ASU IMM settings structure
Setting defined in groups

o
IMM
UEFI
SYSTEM_PROD_DATA
BootOrder
Settings Syntax
<group_id>.<setting_name>
March 2009
73
XW5173r100
Example:
o
IMM.HostIPAddress1=192.168.70.125
<group_id>.<setting_name>.<instance>
Example:
o
IMM.LoginId.1=USERID
Command short cuts (see demo)
asu showgroups
asu show uefi
asu show imm.hostipaddress1
asu show --setlist <set_name> <set_name>
Figure 45: ASU IMM settings
ASU supported subsystems
IMM
March 2009
SP (RSA replacement)
IPMI (small subset)

74
XW5173r100
Subset of Web GUI
Subset of F1 set up
Boot Order (lists special syntax)
UEFI
System Product Data (VPD)

o
Replaced xFLASH set of commands
Instances (replacement for Legacy utility)
iSCSI
ASU instances syntax
Special syntax for certain settings
Syntax:
o
<group_id>.<setting_name>.<instance>
Normally instances are a decimal sequential number

o
example: asu show imm.loginid.1 where the one is the decimal number
Figure 46: ASU instances syntax
VPD settings (UUID and DMI)
FRU configuration
How to configure when hardware is replaced?
March 2009
Special group of settings
Grouped in: SYSTEM_PROD_DATA
75
XW5173r100
Figure 47: VPD settings
Settings include:
SYSTEM_PROD_DATA.SysInfoProdName
SYSTEM_PROD_DATA.SysInfoSerialNum
SYSTEM_PROD_DATA.SysInfoUUID
SYSTEM_PROD_DATA.SysEncloseAssetTa
ASU
How to invoke ASU to connect to IMM?

o
Use the connectivity parameters
Syntax:
asu [application] <command> [<options>] [connectivity_parms]
Connectivity Parameters:
o
March 2009
--host <ip_address>
76
XW5173r100

o
--user <user_id>
--password <password>
Figure 48: ASU
ASU connectivity on-line/in-band
LAN/USB Access
o
Authentication is required
Host IP is optional
Microsoft Windows: INF/CAT
Linux: Config Script
Auto IMM Configuration

ASU integrates function to auto configured/set up OS for LAN
access
Example:
March 2009
Default setting used when not specified (ip_addr=169.254.95.118)
Additional components required (included in package)
Default settings used when not specified (user_id=USERID

password=PASSW0RD)
asu set IMM.HostIPAddress1 9.5.51.10 [--host <ip_addr> --user

77
XW5173r100
<user> --password <pwd>]
KCS
o
Restricted users (no authentication)
Fallback process to in-band LAN failures when LAN access when host is
not specified
Works as-is using Legacy command syntax:
asu set <setting_name> <setting_value>
Example:
asu set IMM.HostIPAddress1 192.168.70.125
ASU connectivity out-of-band (remote)
LAN access (external IMM port)
Invoke from any remote client (Microsoft Windows/Linux)
Requires the --host <ip_addr> parameter
Example:
o
asu set IMM.HostIPAddress1 192.168.70.125 --host <ip> [--user <user> -password <pwd>]
ASU boot order configuration
Special group: BootOrder
List style settings:

o
BootOrder.BootOrder=item1=item2=item-n
All items in the list or a subset can be specified
March 2009
78
XW5173r100
Figure 49: ASU boot order configuration
ASU application consolidation
ASU integrates the following applications:

o
Savestat
used by Microsoft Windows PE tool kit
See ASU help for details
iSCSI
Configure iSCSI settings using standard ASU command set
IMM Auto LAN Configuration
Auto configures the IMM LAN in Microsoft Windows and Linux
Requires usbutils rpm (Linux)
ASU application cmd syntax

o
asu [<application>] <command> [<options>] [<connect_parms>]
ASU troubleshooting
Messages related to potential user errors to note:

o
Unable to validate userid/password on IMM
Established KCS connection to the IMM
March 2009
When attempting LAN connection failed to authenticate

Connected through KCS. Is LAN configured? Other messages can
provide details.
79
XW5173r100

o
Failed to connect to local IMM
LAN-over-USB device not configured
Either LAN or KCS access is failing when running on-line

Auto config code failed to set up the IMM
LAN/USB Log Parameter:
March 2009
-l <number> where number 0,1, 2
0/1 are standard out/err (always on)
2> is debug aids
Logs all output to asu.log in current directory
80
XW5173r100
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Summary
Summary
This course enabled you to:
1. Explain what UEFI is and why it is now IBM's standard firmware interface.
2. Explain how to navigate within the UEFI interface.
3. Define the components that make up the UEFI components.
4. Define the firmware events and logging capabilities with a UEFI system.
5. Define how to interpret diagnostic codes.
6. Define the memory RAS features of UEFI.
7. Define other RAS features of UEFI.
8. Explain Legacy mode operations and CSM.
9. Define the boot operations and how to add a boot device.
10. Define how iFlash works.
11. Describe the principles of ASU.
UEFI is part of the next generation of servers moving away from the old BIOS systems
of yesterday. UEFI leaves in the past many of the legacy issues that have plagued the
servers such as 1801 errors. DOS tools and utilities are no longer supported allowing
the community to move ahead to more powerful tools in the support of this new platform
of systems.
This new generation of systems gives the service and support community more
powerful tools and logging capabilities. It provides a common/uniform tool platform and
methodology across the IBM System x and BladeCenter server environment.
March 2009
81
XW5173r100

EBG Server Education

Загружено:

Сведения о документе

Авторское право

Доступные форматы

Поделиться этим документом

Поделиться или встроить документ

Параметры публикации

Этот документ был вам полезен?

Это неприемлемый материал?

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

EBG Server Education

Загружено:

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

EBG Server Education

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface

Copyright 2014, Lenovo Corporation.

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Table of contents

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Table of contents

Memory population rules .................................................................................... 35

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Table of contents

iFlash highlights and options usage.................................................................... 63

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Objectives

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Overview

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface

Figure 1: UEFI on computer

Being architecture independent

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Overview

Enterprise RAS functionality

High end scalability

Blade Open Fabric Manager (BOFM)

Active energy manager

Figure 2: UEFI usage

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Overview

UEFI and the industry

Look and feel

Figure 3: New splash screen

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Overview

User advantages of UEFI

16-bit code architecture: Only 1MB of memory can be addressed.

Limits the number of adapters that can be effectively installed.

Legacy OSs designed with these limitations in mind.

64-bit code architecture: 16 TB of memory can be addressed.

Adapter Option ROMs can be loaded anywhere in memory with no size

Eliminates Code Space Constraints Example: 1801 Resource Errors.

Adapter vendors are free to add function. For example, IPV6.

UEFI OSs can take advantage of the lifting of Legacy restrictions.

Improved setup configuration and update

Cryptic ctrl key sequences required for configuring adapters.

Advanced Settings Utility (ASU) has partial coverage of F1 settings.

iSCSI configuration requires separate tool.

In-band only updates through DOS, wFlash, or iFlash.

Eliminates ctrl key sequences for configuring adapters.

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Overview

iSCSI configuration is in F1 setup and consolidated in to ASU.

Improved consistency and feature penetration across the portfolio

Limited code space for function.

Multiple code bases specialized by segment.

Certain functions only available by segment.

Unified code base for IBMs entire x86 portfolio.

Consistent user experience across the System x portfolio.

Simplified error handling

Multiple beep codes for fundamental failures.

Numerous Legacy POST errors.

Elimination of beep codes all errors covered by light path.

Architected front panel progress codes.

Reduction in number of error messages.

UEFI Event codes available out of band.

Human readable event logs in F1 setup.

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Overview

Improved code quality and faster development

Monolithic, not conducive to new functionality.

Primarily coded in assembly.

Unifying standard - working to UEFI 2.1 specification.

Open source core with vendor plug-ins.

Modular and extensible to enable easy addition of new function.

Modern compilers, robust debug.

Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) technology Overview