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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Information and processes to help you size an IBM solution Considerations for hardware and software selection Offerings from IBM for systems and storage

Anuj Joshi Piotr Pietrzak Yankel Schwartz Gereon Vey David Watts

ibm.com/redbooks

Redpaper

International Technical Support Organization The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter September 2007

Note: Before using this information and the product it supports, read the information in Notices on page v.

First Edition (September 2007) This edition applies to products from SAP that run on IBM System x and BladeCenter servers.
Copyright International Business Machines Corporation 2007. All rights reserved. Note to U.S. Government Users Restricted Rights -- Use, duplication or disclosure restricted by GSA ADP Schedule Contract with IBM Corp.

Contents
Notices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .v Trademarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii The team that wrote this Redpaper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii Become a published author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viii Comments welcome. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix Chapter 1. Introduction to SAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1.1 The client-server concept . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1.2 A brief introduction to SAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1.3 SAP Portfolio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 1.3.1 SAP Environment Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 1.4 SAP products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 1.4.1 Enterprise applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 1.4.2 SAP business solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 1.4.3 Small and midsize enterprise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 1.4.4 Platforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 1.5 SAP and IBM System x a key relationship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Chapter 2. Sizing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1 Sizing methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.1 The SAP Quick Sizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.2 IBM sizing and planning questionnaire for SAP solutions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.3 SAP Application Benchmark Performance Standard (SAPS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 Sizing the IBM solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.1 Target CPU utilization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.2 Resource categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.3 Steps in the sizing process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter 3. Hardware and software considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1 SAP Business Suite hardware implementation strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2 Solution architecture considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.1 Scaling up or scaling out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.2 High availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3 Choosing the right hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.1 32-bit versus 64-bit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.2 Servers supported by SAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4 Hardware solution samples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.1 Configuration for 50 users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.2 Configuration for 250 users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.3 Configuration for 500 users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.4 Configuration clustered with MSCS for 500 users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.5 Configuration for 1000 users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.6 Configuration for 2500 users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 18 18 18 19 20 20 20 21 21 23 24 24 24 25 26 27 27 31 31 32 33 34 36 40

Chapter 4. IBM System x, BladeCenter, and storage offerings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 4.1 IBM X-Architecture: An initiative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

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4.2 IBM System x and BladeCenter offerings for SAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.1 High-performance scalable servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.2 Rack-mount servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.3 Tower servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.4 IBM BladeCenter solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.5 High availability options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3 IBM System Storage solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.1 SAP customer requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.2 IBM System Storage DS family. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.3 IBM System Storage N series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.4 IBM System Storage SAN Volume Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.5 Value added options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter 5. The IBM advantage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1 SAP International Competence Centers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 The IBM SAP International Competence Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3 IBM Global Business Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4 Insight from IBM - optimal utilization of resources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5 SAP NetWeaver BI Accelerator and the IBM solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6 Scalability - multi-node capabilities on x3950 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.7 Snoop Filter - sheer performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.8 IBM Pass Thru Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.9 Active Memory - protection against memory failures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.10 PowerExecutive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.11 SAP with Tivoli integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.12 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

47 48 51 55 57 62 63 63 64 66 67 67 69 70 70 73 73 74 76 77 78 78 80 81 82

Abbreviations and acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Related publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IBM Redbooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Online resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . How to get IBM Redbooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Help from IBM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 85 85 86 86

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Notices
This information was developed for products and services offered in the U.S.A. IBM may not offer the products, services, or features discussed in this document in other countries. Consult your local IBM representative for information on the products and services currently available in your area. Any reference to an IBM product, program, or service is not intended to state or imply that only that IBM product, program, or service may be used. Any functionally equivalent product, program, or service that does not infringe any IBM intellectual property right may be used instead. However, it is the user's responsibility to evaluate and verify the operation of any non-IBM product, program, or service. IBM may have patents or pending patent applications covering subject matter described in this document. The furnishing of this document does not give you any license to these patents. You can send license inquiries, in writing, to: IBM Director of Licensing, IBM Corporation, North Castle Drive, Armonk, NY 10504-1785 U.S.A. The following paragraph does not apply to the United Kingdom or any other country where such provisions are inconsistent with local law: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION PROVIDES THIS PUBLICATION "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF NON-INFRINGEMENT, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. Some states do not allow disclaimer of express or implied warranties in certain transactions, therefore, this statement may not apply to you. This information could include technical inaccuracies or typographical errors. Changes are periodically made to the information herein; these changes will be incorporated in new editions of the publication. IBM may make improvements and/or changes in the product(s) and/or the program(s) described in this publication at any time without notice. Any references in this information to non-IBM Web sites are provided for convenience only and do not in any manner serve as an endorsement of those Web sites. The materials at those Web sites are not part of the materials for this IBM product and use of those Web sites is at your own risk. IBM may use or distribute any of the information you supply in any way it believes appropriate without incurring any obligation to you. Information concerning non-IBM products was obtained from the suppliers of those products, their published announcements or other publicly available sources. IBM has not tested those products and cannot confirm the accuracy of performance, compatibility or any other claims related to non-IBM products. Questions on the capabilities of non-IBM products should be addressed to the suppliers of those products. This information contains examples of data and reports used in daily business operations. To illustrate them as completely as possible, the examples include the names of individuals, companies, brands, and products. All of these names are fictitious and any similarity to the names and addresses used by an actual business enterprise is entirely coincidental. COPYRIGHT LICENSE: This information contains sample application programs in source language, which illustrate programming techniques on various operating platforms. You may copy, modify, and distribute these sample programs in any form without payment to IBM, for the purposes of developing, using, marketing or distributing application programs conforming to the application programming interface for the operating platform for which the sample programs are written. These examples have not been thoroughly tested under all conditions. IBM, therefore, cannot guarantee or imply reliability, serviceability, or function of these programs.

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

Trademarks
The following terms are trademarks of the International Business Machines Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both:
eServer eXtended I/O iSeries xSeries Active Memory AIX BladeCenter Calibrated Vectored Cooling Chipkill Cool Blue DB2 Universal Database DB2 DS4000 DS6000 DS8000 ESCON FlashCopy FICON IBM Lotus Notes Lotus Notes PowerExecutive PowerPC Predictive Failure Analysis Redbooks Redbooks (logo) ServeRAID System i System p System x System z System Storage System Storage DS System Storage Proven Tivoli WebSphere X-Architecture Xcelerated Memory Technology InfiniBand

The following terms are trademarks of other companies: ABAP, SAP xApps, SAP NetWeaver, SAP R/3, SAP, and SAP logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries. Oracle, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft, Siebel, and TopLink are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. RAID-DP, and the Network Appliance logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Network Appliance, Inc. in the U.S. and other countries. InfiniBand, and the InfiniBand design marks are trademarks and/or service marks of the InfiniBand Trade Association. Java, J2EE, Sun, Sun Java, and all Java-based trademarks are trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States, other countries, or both. Microsoft, Windows Server, Windows, and the Windows logo are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both. Celeron, Intel, Pentium, Xeon, Intel logo, Intel Inside logo, and Intel Centrino logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States, other countries, or both. UNIX is a registered trademark of The Open Group in the United States and other countries. Linux is a trademark of Linus Torvalds in the United States, other countries, or both. Other company, product, or service names may be trademarks or service marks of others.

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Preface
SAP is the maker of one of the worlds most popular inter-enterprise software suites. It provides collaborative business solutions for all types of industries. The companys flagship offering is the SAP Business Suite which includes solutions for enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), product lifecycle management (PLM) and supply chain management (SCM). This IBM Redpaper describes the benefits of running SAP on the IBM System x and IBM BladeCenter platforms. We first introduce the SAP offerings, then we explain the processes involved in correctly sizing an SAP platform and the tools and resources available to make the best decisions. We also review the hardware offerings from IBM both for systems and for storage and networking. and describe suitable hardware solutions. Finally, we discuss the advantages of using IBM high-performance platforms for running SAP solutions. This paper is for SAP Administrators and Technical Solution Architects. It is also for business partners and IBM employees that want to know more about SAP offerings and available IBM solutions for SAP customers.

The team that wrote this Redpaper

This Redpaper was produced by a team of specialists from around the world working at the International Technical Support Organization, Raleigh Center. Anuj Joshi is a System x IT Specialist with QuantM Net Technologies in New Delhi, India, and he has 16 years of experience in the IT industry. His areas of expertise include IBM BladeCenter, System x servers, and IBM System Storage subsystems. He works on customer requirements and recommends solutions that are centered around IBM products. His responsibilities include assisting customers with new proof of concepts and design solutions to help them meet their IT objectives. He is an IBM Certified xSeries Sales Specialist and IBM Certified Sales Specialist Enterprise x Architecture, BladeCenter, and Clustering. Piotr Pietrzak is a Systems Architect at the IBM Systems Group in Poland. He has more than 10 years of experience in network operating systems, databases, and software development. His areas of expertise include servers, operating systems, directory and cluster services, as well as building the solutions to solve complex problems within large enterprise environments. Piotr holds an bachelors degree of Engineering, specializing in computer operating systems, and has many industry certifications, including MCSE, MCDBA, and MCSA. Yankel Schwartz is a Technical Solution Architect at IBM in Brazil and has been working with SAP since 1998, as an SAP Basis Support Specialist. He has more than 20 years of experience in Information Technology. Yankel's expertise is in a wide range of areas including infrastructure, network, ERP systems and operating systems. He graduated as a System Analyst in 1992 and is Cisco CCNA certified.

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

vii

Gereon Vey is a member of the IBM System x Team at the IBM SAP International Competence Center (ISICC) in Walldorf, Germany, for the past four years. His activities include the maintenance of sizing guidelines and capacity data for System x servers as well as pre-sales support for IBM worldwide. He answers InfoService requests for System x and BladeCenter. Prior to working at the ISICC, Gereon worked on behalf of IBM with SAP to port SAP to System i. He has worked in the IT industry since 1992 and graduated in Computer Science from the University of Applied Sciences in Worms, Germany, in 1999. David Watts is a Consulting IT Specialist at the IBM ITSO Center in Raleigh. He manages residencies and produces IBM Redbooks publications on hardware and software topics related to IBM System x and BladeCenter servers and associated client platforms. He has authored over 80 books, papers, and technotes. He holds a bachelors degree of Engineering from the University of Queensland (Australia) and has worked for IBM for over 15 years. He is an IBM Certified IT Specialist. Thanks to the following people for their contributions to this project: From the International Technical Support Organization Carolyn Briscoe Linda Robinson Gabrielle Velez Erica Wazewski From IBM Jay Bretzmann Paul Henter Stephen Hudson Timo Krisch Petra Peters Tag Robertson Gert Ruland Michael Siegert From SAP Elise Sivilay

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Comments welcome
Your comments are important to us! We want our papers to be as helpful as possible. Send us your comments about this Redpaper or other Redbooks in one of the following ways: Use the online Contact us review Redbooks form found at: ibm.com/redbooks Send your comments in an email to: [email protected] Mail your comments to: IBM Corporation, International Technical Support Organization Dept. HYTD Mail Station P099 2455 South Road Poughkeepsie, NY 12601-5400

Preface

ix

The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Chapter 1.

Introduction to SAP
This chapter describes SAP as an organization, its core business offerings, and its areas of strength. The topics covered in this chapter are: 1.1, The client-server concept on page 2 1.2, A brief introduction to SAP on page 2 1.3, SAP Portfolio on page 3 1.4, SAP products on page 7 Tip: All URLs starting with service.sap.com need an S-User ID for access. If you do not have this kind of user account, you should request one from the following: https://websmp105.sap-ag.de/~sapidp/002006825000100141192000E/ SAP notes can be accessed using the URL format, where number is the SAP note number you want to access: https://service.sap.com/sap/support/notes/number For example, to access SAP note 171356, use URL: https://service.sap.com/sap/support/notes/171356

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

1.1 The client-server concept

The concept of the client-server model has several uses but all are based around using a client system to access a centralized server in order to use a service. When a network application is described as being client-server, we mean that the application runs a service on a server and a client version of the application is used to access the service. The term client-server network is one where a centralized server provides network services to other clients in the network. Such a network is described as a domain in Linux, Macintosh, Unix, and Windows operating systems. Sometimes a server is used to centralize resources that are shared by a number of different users. For instance, file servers centralize file storage, database servers centralize data storage, and Web servers centralize the distribution of Web content.

1.2 A brief introduction to SAP

SAP was started in 1972 by five former IBM employees in Mannheim, Germany. They launched SAP AG, in order to turn the real business processing vision into reality. SAP AG is one of the world's largest inter-enterprise software organization and a leading independent software supplier. SAP stands for Systeme, Anwendungen, Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung which, translated to English, means Systems, Applications, Products in Data Processing. The first software produced by SAP AG was named R/1 system; "R" stands for real time data processing. At the end of this decade, this was replaced by R/2 a mainframe based software designed to handle different languages and currencies, and this product was successful especially in multinational European companies. In the 1990s, SAP R/3 started to have success in the market, using the client-server concept, uniform appearance of graphical interfaces, consistent use of relational databases and the ability to run on systems from different vendors. The client-server based application starts to use a new technology, the processing of an application could be split between the server and workstations - the server handled the centralized functionality, while the client workstation was maximized for users. The data management was separate from the server. In 1992, SAP AG introduced the R/3, a client server ERP software that runs in multiple platforms including Unix and Microsoft Windows. SAP has helped customers structure their business operations by integrating their business processes. They have achieved this using an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software offering. The ERP system allows exchange of data and information between various business units such as finance, human resources, and logistics of an organization. SAP is an integrated tool to replace an obsolete and inefficient IT Infrastructure. Initially companies had departmental IT infrastructures to meet their automation requirements. Each department had its own policies, interfaces, and related IT infrastructure. Over a period of years and experience, a consolidated approach to link up all interfaces was developed. An integrated approach to such interfaces was SAP.

The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

SAP enables business process change through its foundation of process best practices. It drives the organization towards process orientation to achieve higher productivity standards and cut down on production and labor costs. SAP offers the following characteristics, which makes it one of the leading ERP applications across the globe: Platform independent Integrates and supports wide range of business solutions Supports multiple clients Flexibility of customizing to meet customer requirements Scalability to grow to unlimited users Resources to extend best practices to entire value chain Offers IT investment protection with programs, such as Safe Passage for customers running other ERP solutions.

1.3 SAP Portfolio

SAP offers a complete range of enterprise software applications and business solutions to drive businesses ranging from enterprise to small. It offers these business applications and solutions to handle every aspect of the business. The Windows and Linux markets are important to SAP, and System x is an ideal platform to run SAP solutions on. The SAP NetWeaver solution map highlights various IT processes supported by solutions from SAP and its partners. See Figure 1-1.

Figure 1-1 SAP NetWeaver solution map

SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

Chapter 1. Introduction to SAP

The SAP IT practices are identified by SAP as ways to map business requirements to specific IT projects as a means of bringing order to your existing infrastructure. This is described in Table 1-1.
Table 1-1 IT Practices with SAP NetWeaver Activity User productivity enablement Data unification Business information management Business event management End-to-end process integration Custom development Unified life-cycle management Application governance and security management Consolidation Enterprise SOA design and deployment Benefit Help users and groups improve their productivity through enhanced collaboration, optimized knowledge management, and personalized access to critical applications and data. Consolidate, rationalize, synchronize, and manage master data for improved business processes. Increase the viability, reach, and usefulness of structured and unstructured enterprise data. Ensure that business events from multiple systems are distributed to the appropriate decision makers in the context of relevant business processes. Make disparate applications and systems work together consistently to perform business processes. Rapidly create new enterprise-scale applications that drive your companys differential advantage. Automate application management and processes to optimize an applications life cycle. Maintain an appropriate level of security and quality in your intellectual property and information assets. Deploy a consolidated technology platform with the ability to allocate computing power according to changing business needs. Consolidate and standardize your basic processes and leverage existing investments to compose new distinctive business processes.

1.3.1 SAP Environment Architecture

An SAP system consists of SAP instances. An SAP instance is a group of processes that are started and stopped at the same time. These instances are as follows: Central instance - Each SAP system has at least one Central List that have the following components: Usage type AS ABAP Dispatcher Work processes (dialog, batch, spool, or update) Gateway Internet Communication Manager (ICM) Internet Graphics Service (IGS) Java dispatcher Server processes Software Deployment Manager (SDM) Internet Graphics Service (IGS)

Usage type AS Java

The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

Central services instance - In this instance, we have the Java central services instance (SCS) or ABAP central services instance (ASCS), these instances forms the basis of communication and synchronization for the Java or ABAP clusters, and also this instance consists of the message server and the enqueue server. Database instance - This instance is a mandatory installation component for the installation of an SAP system Dialog instance - This optional instance is used to add more resources in an SAP System and must be installed in an additional server. (This concept is explained in detail in Chapter 2, Sizing on page 17.) In an SAP environment, we could use a 2-tier (central instance) or a 3-tier landscape (central Instance with one or more dialog instances). Most SAP customers implement a two-tier client-server architecture: The presentation layer provides an interface to the user The application and database layer operates and hosts the business process As mentioned earlier, the Internet capability of SAP allows it to be structured as a multi-tier architecture as shown in Figure 1-2.
Layer 2-tier 3-tier Multi-tier

Presentation
(Java or Windows)

Web Browser

Internet

Application & Integration

Database

Figure 1-2 Various software layers of SAP ERP ( SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.)

These layers can be classified as: Presentation layer This layer provides the user with an SAP Graphical User Interface, commonly referred to as SAPGUI. Because SAP offers an Internet based interface as well, it is important to understand that it is able to achieve minimum bandwidth consumption by using TCP/IP protocol. Application layer The application layer processes the user transactions and performs other function, such as application interface, print server, and database access.

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Internet layer In case of a multi-tier architecture, this layer provides the user, a Web interface for browser access to business applications. Database layer The database layer is used for storing the SAP data generated by businesses and the SAP application programs which are used by the database from the SAP application servers at runtime. An organization has the flexibility to choose the database of its choice; some of these are SQL, Oracle, DB2, etc. As shown in Figure 1-2, the two-tier architecture may have a presentation layer and a consolidated hardware server for application and database. A typical three-tier architecture will consist of a presentation hardware, single or multiple application servers for load sharing and scalability, and usually a single database or production server. The multi-tier architecture will deploy a Web-based presentation layer, an Internet server, multiple application servers and a centralized database server. An SAP implementation project is implemented in a phased manner. It requires different type of systems during different phases to execute the project. It typically requires training the users and understanding the customers business process, customizing their SAP application, testing the customized application and then, porting to the production server. The following servers are generally required to execute a project: Development server This server is required to customize the application to meet the business process requirements of the customer. Because the workload on such servers is minimal, a low end hardware server meets the requirement. Test and Quality Assurance (QA) server SAP applications, customized on the development server, are usually tested on this server before moving them to the production environment. A sample database from the prospective customer is used to test the performance of SAP in a production environment. The testing and QA involves the upgrades related to the operating system, database software, hardware or firmware updates, and SAP patches, etc. Because the systems require testing, the sample database is in a real time environment, the hardware requirement is slightly higher than that of a development server. Training server This server is used to provide training to the customers users and is used for testing any customer specific requirements. Because the server is only used to provide training to the users without any load factor, the hardware requirements are generally not large. Application server All programs related to the SAP application are hosted on the SAP application servers. Depending on the workload and scalability factor, there can be multiple application servers or a single application server. Because the application server typically provides a program files access to the users, its hardware requirement can be fulfilled using a moderate configuration. Database or production server The live production database of the customer is handled by the production server. This server handles the highest load factor in a production environment, the requirement is of a high configuration which can be scaled further. Because they are most critical to any business, these servers need to be regularly backed up and have a high level of built-in

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redundancy. In case of a large enterprise, it is ideal to have a scalable external storage appliance to store the data to meet the ever growing database requirements. SAP Solution Manager This additional product provides facilities in technical support for distributed systems with functionality that covers all key aspects of solution deployment, operation, and continuous improvement. Different organizations have different requirements. Therefore, considering these requirements, they may plan the architecture that suits them best. SAP sizing tools, described in Chapter 2, Sizing on page 17, help an organization to decide on the architecture they plan to implement. An ideal scenario is to have either a multi-tier infrastructure or at least a three-tier architecture. However, different combinations can be selected that consider various factors, such as future growth, workload factor, and budget. It is quite common to find a single server used for development and testing. Similarly, quite a few environments use a common server for application and database, thereby making it a two-tier environment.

1.4 SAP products

In this section, we present the products available in the SAP portfolio.

1.4.1 Enterprise applications

Here is a range of SAP enterprise solutions that apply to different sizes of businesses.

SAP Business Suite

SAP Business Suite offers organizations a choice of integrating their business units using the complete business suite or using various modules separately. SAP Business Suite supplements the SAP R/3 with enhanced features and offerings. Targeted for enterprise businesses with more than 1000 employees Offers comprehensive modules for complete integration of business units Unlimited scalability factor ensures protected investment Easy collaboration over the Internet provides electronic handling of business processes. Flexibility to use separate modules or completely integrated business suite.

SAP CRM (Customer Relationship Management)

In an environment where many companies have lost sight of the real meaning of customer relationship management (CRM), it is critical to remember what CRM is about. It is about acquiring and retaining customers, improving customer loyalty, gaining customer insight, and implementing customer-focused strategies.

SAP ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning)

Addresses the core business software requirements of the most demanding midsize and large organizations - in all industries and sectors. The SAP ERP solution, built on R/3, is an ERP solution that offers complete integration for the core business applications of midsize and large organizations. It is an analytical tool that helps customers with business decisions. It provides the capability to manage financial databases, assets, cost accounting, production operations, and corporate services of an
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organization. The SAP ERP solution runs on a number of platforms including Windows servers and databases which we cover in Chapter 3, Hardware and software considerations on page 23. SAP ERP uses the client-server model and provides the ability to store, retrieve, analyze, and process corporate data in many ways for financial analysis, production operation, human resource management, and most other business processes. SAP ERP makes it possible to access the ERP database and applications through Internet access and Web browsers. A sales representative can initiate the workflow for a sales order by filling out an electronic form on a mobile computer (laptop) that will be translated into input for the R/3 system. Other interfaces such as Lotus Notes can also be used. The Web implementation adheres to the Workflow Client API standard of the Workflow Management Coalition (WfMC). SAP ERP is delivered to a customer with selected standard processes turned on, and many other optional processes and features turned off. At the heart of SAP ERP are thousands of tables which control the way the processes are executed. This way it allows an organization to upgrade to any of the full range of SAP solutions thus integrating with customer relationship management, product life cycle management, supply chain management, and supplier chain management. SAP ERP offers four solutions that support the key functional areas of any organization: SAP ERP Financials This application provides a complete financial management solution for a broad range of industries. It integrates accounting, financial reporting, performance management, and corporate governance requirements of an organization. SAP ERP Operations It helps organizations achieve operational excellence in key areas of procurement and logistics execution, product development and manufacturing, sales, and services. SAP ERP Human Capital Management This solution delivers leading edge human management capabilities to an organization that enables it to maximize workforce potential. It automates talent management, workforce process management, and workforce deployment; therefore increasing the efficiency of the human resources available to them. SAP ERP Corporate Services It allows organizations to manage real estate, enterprise assets, project portfolios, corporate travel, environment, health, and global trade services more effectively.

SAP PLM (Product Lifecycle Management)

This is a software solution for collaborative engineering, product development, and management of projects, product structures, documents, and quality. SAP PLM software provides an information backbone to help access relevant information anywhere, anytime.

SAP SCM (Supply Chain Management)

This enables adaptive supply chain networks by providing not only planning and execution capabilities to manage enterprise operations, but also visibility, collaboration, and radio frequency identification (RFID) technology to streamline and extend those operations beyond corporate boundaries.

SAP SRM (Supplier Relationship Management)

This integrates strategic practices for supplier qualification, negotiation, and contract management more tightly and cost-effectively with other enterprise functions and their

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suppliers' processes through a single analytical framework and support for multichannel supplier enablement.

Duet
Duet software enables seamless access to SAP business processes and data via Microsoft Office that interacts with enterprise applications. Duet is the result of a collaboration between SAP and Microsoft, and it is the first joint product created and supported by these two companies.

SAP xApps
The SAP xApps family of composite applications enables business innovation, provides the flexibility to respond quickly and profitably to business change, and maximizes the return on your strategic assets: employees, knowledge, products, business relationships, and IT.

SAP xApps Analytics

This is accomplished by consuming the application services in the context of enterprise service-oriented architecture (enterprise SOA), with only selective development of new functionality where needed to fill gaps.

SAP xApps composite applications for governance, risk, and compliance

SAP xApps for governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) delivers information to control costs, manage risk, and meet compliance deadlines.

SAP xApps composite applications for mobile business

These ready-made applications provide your mobile workers from salespeople to service technicians with access to critical data and processes anytime, anywhere, and on a variety of mobile devices.

1.4.2 SAP business solutions

SAP provides a comprehensive range of enterprise software applications and business solutions to empower every aspect of your business.

SAP Solutions for Governance, Risk and Compliance

SAP GRC Access Control delivers a comprehensive, cross-enterprise set of Access Control that enables all corporate compliance stakeholders, including business managers, auditors, and IT security managers to collaboratively define and oversee proper segregation of duties (SoD) enforcement, enterprise role management, compliant provisioning, and superuser privilege management. Bundling all of the functionality formerly provided by the Virsa Access Control products, SAP GRC Access Control addresses a complete range of control over risks. SAP solutions for GRC use a common technology foundation that automates and embeds end-to-end GRC business processes into operations across the extended enterprise and across SAP and SAP partner solutions. To further support the GRC common technology, the SAP NetWeaver platform extends the general GRC framework across SAP processes. Governance SAP GRC Repository Centrally manages all GRC content, based on internal corporate policies as well as best practices from the GRC ecosystem, to address GRC initiatives across the extended enterprise.

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 SAP GRC Corporate Sustainability Management Promotes the profile and brand of your enterprise by analyzing and disclosing corporate initiatives to improve global economic, social, and environmental conditions. Risk SAP GRC Risk Management Identifies risk and conducts a risk analysis, response, monitoring, and reporting within a best practice framework. Balances business opportunities with financial, legal, and operational exposure to minimize the market penalties from high-impact events. Compliance SAP GRC Access Control Identifies and prevents access and authorization risks in cross-enterprise IT systems to prevent fraud and reduce the cost of continuous compliance and control. SAP GRC Process Control Optimizes business operations and ensures compliance by centrally monitoring key controls for business processes and cross-enterprise IT systems. SAP GRC Global Trade Services Manages all foreign trade processes with a comprehensive platform to ensure trade compliance, expedited cross-border transactions, and optimum utilization of trade agreements. SAP applications for environmental compliance Aligns business processes with environmental, occupational, and product safety regulations, and with corporate policies to ensure proactive compliance. GRC composite applications by SAP and Cisco Extends control and proactively addresses risk event issues across the extended enterprise network.

Industry specific business solutions

SAP solutions for Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) enable compliance with regulations across industries, increasing business performance, and driving competitive advantage that support the following markets with requirements to predict and prevent financial and environmental risks: Automotive Banking Chemicals Consumer Products Technology Life Sciences Oil and Gas Utilities

Manufacturing
This is a solution for managing manufacturing operations that use Lean and Six Sigma1. This solution integrates manufacturing with other operations, and makes new changes on demand according to customer requirements.

Information workers
This solution is a portfolio of applications, helping people to use unstructured and structured processes, delivering personalized business context through familiar user environments, including Microsoft Office, mobile devices, and the Internet.
1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lean_Six_Sigma

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Service and asset management

This is a solution to manage service and maintenance from end to end. You can handle service sales and marketing, manage service-level agreements, oversee service call centers, track warranties and claims, and provide customer self-service over the Internet. You can also perform field service, in-house maintenance and repair, depot repair, and service parts management.

Solution extensions
This is cross-solution and cross-industry functionality that complements SAP solution capabilities.

1.4.3 Small and midsize enterprise

SAP and its partners deliver prepackaged solutions and services (based on SAP All-In-One) incorporating industry-specific best practices and functionalities that can be implemented quickly and easily for midsize businesses.

SAP Business One solution

To help the new businesses stay profitable and remain competitive day after day, SAP offers the SAP Business One solution. It helps emerging and dynamic businesses manage their operations, efficiently and cost-effectively, while overcoming the unique challenges they face. It is an affordable business tool specifically developed for small and mid-sized businesses. For companies or subsidiaries of 10 to several hundred employees, typically found in distribution, service, small manufacturing, and retail Simple to use and learn Powerful report generators Easy data navigation Implementation in a few days or weeks Offered for Windows and Linux Adaptable by implementation partners to customer or industry specific requirements industry adaptations available by partners Perfect solution for branches or subsidiaries of SAP accounts Data can be exchanged with SAP using SAP NetWeaver Exchange Infrastructure (XI)

SAP All-in-One Partner solutions

SAP All-in-One solutions are designed for the small and mid-size enterprises. These solutions are pre-configured to meet the requirements of this industry segment. SAP All-in-One solutions are targeted for industries with 100-2500 employees. Designed for ease of use. Offers the power of SAPs world class business solutions. The solution is pre-configured and can be deployed in short time. It provides an easy to grow path and can be implemented in a phased approach. SAP All-in-One solutions are available on all platforms that run SAP NetWeaver, including Windows and Linux. SAP NetWeaver allows integration with non-SAP applications.

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1.4.4 Platforms
SAP provides a comprehensive range of enterprise software applications and business solutions to empower every aspect of your business operations.

SAP Enterprise Service-Oriented Architecture

SAP Enterprise Service-Oriented Architecture (enterprise SOA) is a blueprint for an adaptable, flexible, and open IT architecture for developing services-based, enterprise-scale business solutions. With SAP NetWeaver as a technical foundation, enterprise SOA moves IT architectures to higher levels of adaptability - and moves companies closer to the vision of real-time enterprises by elevating Web services to an enterprise level.

SAP NetWeaver
This platform incorporates business functionality, exposed as ready-to-use enterprise services and process components, through its enterprise services repository. It also provides an integrated platform of composition technologies for business processes, composing applications, and deploying solutions. SAP NetWeaver is an open technology platform that unifies technology components in a single platform, reducing the need for custom integration and ensuring that mission-critical business processes are reliable, secure, and scalable. SAP introduced NetWeaver to enable organizations to integrate their SAP and non-SAP solutions. Because NetWeaver supports both present and future SAP and non-SAP solutions, the platform is the center of a growing ecosystem of applications and services. The objective of describing this tool in this paper is to highlight the importance of this tool in building up the SAP environment. SAP is evolving its solutions into service-oriented business applications based on NetWeaver, allowing SAP applications to integrate with non-SAP applications. For the first time, SAP is offering its platform for third-party development. Many independent software vendors are already building their applications on SAP NetWeaver. Initially launched as an integration and application platform, SAP NetWeaver has evolved to become a composition platform, allowing model-based development to enhance open enterprise services that are delivered by SAP Business Suite applications. In 2006, SAP NetWeaver will be enhanced to extend its use as a business process platform. SAP NetWeaver reduces TCO across an organizations IT landscape, freeing up the resources and enabling a customer to refocus on growth. Its components are integrated in a single platform and come pre configured with applications, thus eliminating the need for many integration projects, reducing complexity, and speeding up implementation. The platform supports IT standardization and consolidation, so that companies can leverage all their existing IT investments, including both SAP and non-SAP systems. NetWeaver is a Web-based, cross-application platform that can be used to develop not only SAP applications but others as well. NetWeaver allows a developer to integrate information and processes from geographically dispersed locations using diverse technologies, including Microsoft .NET, IBM WebSphere and Sun Java technologies. NetWeaver has been tagged as a product that could help spur industry adoption of Web services. Although Web services are often seen as the development model of the future, the implementation rate has not been high, often because of competition and incompatibility among enabling products.

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How can NetWeaver be used to extend existing SAP solutions with custom components? There are several ways: If you are starting from scratch, the Composite Application Framework can support the development of components that are specifically designed to run in the NetWeaver environment. If the custom components have already been deployed in a .NET, J2EE, or WebSphere environment, NetWeaver is designed to support their migration to run in the Web Applications Server.

Components
SAP NetWeaver Application Server - Supports platform-independent Web services, business applications, and standards-based development that enable you to leverage existing technology assets for Web services oriented solutions. SAP NetWeaver Business Intelligence - Enables you to integrate data from across the enterprise and transform it into practical, timely business information to drive sound decision-making. SAP NetWeaver Exchange Infrastructure - Delivers open integration technologies that support process-centric collaboration across the extended value chain. SAP NetWeaver Master Data Management - Ensures cross-system data consistency and helps integrate business processes across the extended value chain. SAP NetWeaver Mobile - Provides a future-proof mobile run-time environment based on open and flexible technology standards and a powerful development environment for building integrated mobile solutions with native or browser-based user interfaces. SAP NetWeaver Portal - Unifies critical information and applications to give users role-based views that span the enterprise, enabling you to take full advantage of your information resources. SAP Auto-ID Infrastructure - Gives you all the capabilities you need to integrate all automated sensing devices - including RFID readers and printers, Blue tooth devices, embedded systems, and bar-code devices.

Tools
Adaptive Computing Controller - Provides a central point of control for assigning computing resources and optimizing their use. SAP Composite Application Framework - Provides a robust environment for the design and use of composite applications that comply with enterprise service-oriented architecture. SAP NetWeaver Developer Studio - Offers a convenient user interface and rich functionality for developing J2EE applications. SAP NetWeaver Visual Composer - Simplifies the creation of portal content and analytic applications, enabling business analysts to build or customize applications using a visual user interface rather than manual coding. SAP Solution Manager - Facilitates technical support for distributed systems with functionality that covers all key aspects of solution deployment, operation, and continuous improvement.

Ecosystem
Members of SAP's highly interactive ecosystem of customers and partners collaborate through a variety of communities and programs, including SAP Developer Network (SDN), Enterprise Services Community, industry value networks (IVNs), and partner solutions

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1.5 SAP and IBM System x a key relationship

SAP and IBM have worked closely on many levels, from joint product development to end-customer support, to providing turnkey solutions to customers. The IBM X-Architecture family of products is specifically designed to meet the growing computing demands of SAP system landscape with unequalled 64-bit price/performance. Powered by the XA-64e chipset, IBM X3 Architecture is Enterprise X-Architecture to the extreme, integrating industry-leading systems manageability with true hardware-based monitoring and security ensures increased reliability and faster, simplified deployment. The simplification of deployment and maintenance allows SAP customers to focus on their implementation and better manage their infrastructure costs. These are critical considerations when deploying any complex software solution especially SAP. X-Architecture family is a powerful, easy-to-use, and cost-effective, industry standard IT system for SAP solutions. It is an ideal platform for SAP customers that are looking for reliability, manageability, and scalability with the flexibility to run Windows or Linux. The XArchitecture family is the foundation of a cost-effective SAP solution landscape. This family of products provides a low cost, scalable platform with superior performance and unmatched reliability. This offering delivers important value to IBM and SAP customers: IBM X3 Architecture family built on Intel 64 Technology provides unmatched reliability, manageability, and scalability in cost-effective 64-bit systems. Customers will need considerably fewer servers compared to Intel-processor based platforms. Choice of Linux or Windows operating systems and the ability to run 32-bit and 64-bit applications. Exceptional, cost-effective scalability for future growth. Cost-effective, architecturally compatible 64-bit landscapes (development, test, QA, all on 64-bit Intel Xeon or AMD Opteron processors). Systems to meet the SAP landscape needs with "pay-as-you-grow" capabilities. The IBM X-Architecture family of products based on 64-bit Intel Xeon or AMD Opteron processors will attract the following customers. Any customer evaluating SAP solutions. Existing customers who have reached the limit of their current server capacity and need more power for their SAP application. Customers who are running back level SAP releases and need to upgrade to avoid the end-of-maintenance trap. Customers that are limited by the memory capacity of older 32-bit Intel processor-based systems. Some customers who have existing 32-bit applications that they will continue to use. Those who are looking for new levels of reliability, manageability, and scalability in a cost-effective 64-bit platform. Any existing SAP customer considering the addition of SAP components. Existing SAP customers that are considering consolidation and simplification of their application server layer.

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For more information about SAP applications that run on IBM System x and BladeCenter systems, see: http://www.ibm.com/systems/x/solutions/infrastructure/erpcrm/sap.html

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Chapter 2.

Sizing
Sizing is the process by which the performance requirements of the system (for example, response time and throughput) determine the right hardware configuration. In this context, right means able to deliver the expected performance at a minimum cost. This chapter describes: 2.1, Sizing methodology on page 18 2.2, Sizing the IBM solution on page 20

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

17

2.1 Sizing methodology

The IBM and SAP sizing methodology is based on SAP benchmarks, information from SAP, and actual customer experiences. IBM uses sizing tools and customer input to approximate the system resource requirements; however, actual customer results may vary. Prior to ordering the final hardware configuration, all customers should consult with a trained SAP Basis specialist to develop a detailed plan for the SAP product implementation. If you have any questions after reviewing this information, please contact IBM. This section explains the IBM and SAP sizing methodology, terminology, and basic information that will help you to understand the sizing process and sizing estimate results.

2.1.1 The SAP Quick Sizer

SAP provides all partners and customers with a Web based sizing tool called the Quick Sizer. Customers may provide input directly through this tool or provide IBM with sufficient information to enable a sizing to be undertaken on their behalf. The SAP Quick Sizer guides the user through a structured sizing questionnaire. The Quick Sizer gathers information about an organization's business requirements and translates this data into generic system requirements, that is, platform independent specifications for processor, memory, and disk. The Quick Sizer offers two different sizing models: User-based Sizings and Quantity-Structure-based Sizings.

User-based sizings
The user-based model asks the user to count the number of active users by SAP functional module. SAP considers this model to be limited in its ability to estimate the SAP resource requirements because it does not consider important sizing factors, such as user behavior, peak versus average workload, the amount of batch processing, reporting, and user customization. SAP recommends the user-based sizing model for small businesses only.

Quantity-structure-based sizings
The quantity-structure-based model is more thorough than the user-based model because it considers actual or expected SAP workload throughput. Besides the number of SAP users, this model gathers detailed information about the business processes and objects used, including the number of dialog transactions, workload profiles, peak usage times, retention periods for business objects, and background and reporting processes. SAP recommends the quantity-structure-based model for medium and large businesses. Customers may complete the user-based sizing questions, quantity-structure-based sizing questions, or both. When both models are used, the Quick Sizer provides SAP workload estimates for both models; however, the IBM sizing specialist will develop the IBM hardware recommendation from the two workload-estimates, in concurrence with the customer.

2.1.2 IBM sizing and planning questionnaire for SAP solutions

The sizing questionnaire is used to gather the requirements that are used to estimate the hardware resources to run SAP Business Suite on IBM servers. The questionnaire was designed so that it can be answered without detailed knowledge of SAP solutions. IBM has established the Techline Solutions Sizing team to provide assistance to queries and help to size and configure a target SAP solution. These have been established on a geographical

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

basis to address them locally. The IBM Sizing and Planning Questionnaire for SAP Solutions can be obtained from the following URL: http://www.ibm.com/erp/sizing The purpose of this questionnaire is to collect information that will be used to estimate the IBM hardware resources required to run the SAP application suite on IBM Systems platforms including System z, System i, System p, System x or mixed environments. The sizing estimate results will include recommendations for CPU, memory, and disk for the server infrastructure. In addition, information from the sizing questionnaire may be used by an IBM sales representative or Business Partner to develop an IBM infrastructure proposal including additional hardware and software, for example, for systems management to support the SAP applications. A sizing estimate is an approximation of the hardware resources required to support an SAP solution or component implementation. It is a pre-sales effort based on information available at a point in time, providing an entry into understanding the customers hardware requirements. Customers actual experiences will vary from the sizing estimate for many reasons, including batch and reporting workloads and custom code. The degree of variability can range from small to very significant. Sizing the hardware requirements for each customers SAP implementation is an iterative process, which may be refined and repeated a number of times. We recommend to check the sizing input data and estimations during the implementation project. It is important to understand that the sizing estimate is a pre-installation effort mainly based on standard assumptions and benchmark performance data; it cannot replace capacity planning for installed systems.

2.1.3 SAP Application Benchmark Performance Standard (SAPS)

The basic SAP workload unit is SAPS. SAPS are a definition of throughput coined by SAP capacity planning and performance testing personnel. 100 SAPS are defined as 2,000 fully business processed order line items per hour in the standard SAP SD application benchmark. This is equivalent to 2400 SAP transactions per hour with SAP R/3. The capability of processors is measured during the standard SD benchmark test - certified by SAP - which rates the processor on its capability to process work at 100% CPU loading. The SAP Quick Sizer calculates the workload (in SAPS) and then adjusts it to allow for a suitable processor utilization. So, for example, if a workload of 4,800 SAP SD benchmark transactions per hour was required, the Quick Sizer would calculate this as 200 SAPS, but, allowing for a target processor load of 33%, adjust this to find a processor capable of 600 SAPS @ 100% (=200 at 33%). In an SAP environment, there are three different workloads that a processor might be asked to perform: A Database Server Function An Application Server Function A Central (two tier) Function IBM rates each of its processors on its ability to perform each of these functions. These calculations are based on SAP certified benchmarks. IBM uses its judgement to calculate combinations not benchmarked. SAP certified benchmarks are performed for database servers and central servers only, so application server numbers are calculated on the results

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of considerable field experience expressed as the number of application servers per database server. As the vast majority of customers run database servers with central instance functions (messaging, lock management and spooling) on the database server and the SAP benchmarks are run with these functions offloaded. SAPS ratings relate to an absolute business related workload. So the changing complexity of SAP applications causes the ratings to vary from one release of SAP to the next.

2.2 Sizing the IBM solution

IBM uses information from both the SAP Quick Sizer and the Questionnaire as input to the hardware mapping process. The Quick Sizer provides processor, memory, and disk requirements. This section explains how we use information from the Quick Sizer tool to develop the IBM hardware recommendation.

2.2.1 Target CPU utilization

Based on the sizing inputs, the Quick Sizer approximates processor, memory, and disk consumption. For user-based sizings, SAP's sizing results are calculated to meet an average CPU utilization of 65% for the online interactive workload, including a buffer for unspecified workloads, such as batch jobs, reporting, printing, backup, software interfaces, and so on, and for and peak periods. The Quick Sizer quantity-structure-based model also uses a target CPU utilization of 65%. Different target CPU utilizations can be calculated with the mutual concurrence and responsibility of both the IBM sales team and the customer.

2.2.2 Resource categories

For processor and disk, the Quick Sizer results are expressed as resource categories, which are SAP's hardware independent resource specifications. For CPU sizing, each resource category represents a range of SAPS and disk space. The table below shows an example of the CPU and disk resource categories and the SAPS and disk space requirements.
Table 2-1 CPU and disk sizing resource categories Category XS S M L XL XXL up to ... SAPS 1 600 6 400 12 800 20 000 30 000 up to ... MB disk 70 000 210 000 420 000 700 000 1 000 000 up to ... I/Os per sec. 630 2 500 5 000 8 000 12 000

contact IBM or SAP for detailed sizing

If your CPU sizing exceeds 30000 SAPS or your disk sizing exceeds 1 TB or the I/O value is more than 12000 I/Os per second, please contact IBM or SAP for a detailed sizing. Figure 2-1 shows SAP Quick Sizer referring to these resource categories.

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Figure 2-1 Resource categories in SAP Quick Sizer

For a memory recommendation we use IBM hardware and SAP software configuration dependent factors specified in the internal IBM SAP Sizing Guidelines on the following IBM intranet Web page (accessible to IBM personnel only): http://w3-03.ibm.com/sales/support/ShowDoc.wss?docid=KTOS-5PHLFD&infotype=SK&infos ubtype=W0&node=clientset,IA

2.2.3 Steps in the sizing process

IBM performs the following steps for every Quick Sizer sizing request: 1. Determine the customer's potential SAP workload requirements. The SAP Quick Sizer analyzes the customer input and calculates a generic sizing result. The Quick Sizer provides the memory requirement and resource categories for CPU and disk. Note: If the customer completed both the user and quantity-structure-based sizings with reasonable inputs, we strongly recommend discussing the two workloads with the customer to determine the IBM hardware requirements. This can vary subject to the analysis of the two results. 2. Select either a two-tier or three-tier hardware configuration. Based on the potential customer workload, we select either a two-tier or three-tier hardware configuration. In a two-tier configuration, one server provides both the database and application server functions. In a three-tier configuration, there is one database server and one or more separate application servers. If one server can handle both the database and application server workloads, we select the two-tier configuration; this is typically appropriate for customers with smaller SAP workloads. If the customer workload will not fit in a single server, we recommend a three-tier configuration. Special system landscape considerations should be taken into account. 3. Determine the IBM server requirements. Based on the SAPS capacity rating for each IBM processor, we find database or central servers that can support at least the number of SAPS indicated by the Quick Sizer. For Application servers, the work may be split across a numbers of servers whose joint capability must exceed the target SAPS number.

2.3 Summary
The IBM and SAP sizing methodology is continually reviewed and revised to provide the best possible estimate of the IBM hardware resources required to run SAP. Guidelines for sizing SAP solutions come from a number of sources, including SAP, SAP benchmarks, and customer feedback. Based on this information and your completed sizing questionnaire, IBM will analyze your requirements and recommend an IBM hardware configuration.

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Chapter 2. Sizing

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Chapter 3.

Hardware and software considerations

This chapter describes major factors of software and hardware for future SAP based solution installations. These topics are covered: 3.1, SAP Business Suite hardware implementation strategy on page 24 3.2, Solution architecture considerations on page 24 3.3, Choosing the right hardware on page 26 3.4, Hardware solution samples on page 31

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

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3.1 SAP Business Suite hardware implementation strategy

During production operation, most customers maintain separate non-production and production systems running on separate IBM servers. This strategy has several advantages: New releases and system modifications can be tested without affecting the end users. Customers can minimize their initial hardware investment by installing the hardware in phases. During the application development phase, customers typically install one or more non-production systems for development and testing of the SAP system. In many cases, each non-production system is a two-tier configuration running on its own server. In addition to the development and quality assurance systems, customers will install additional servers for other non-production systems, for example, training system, sandbox system, etc. When the SAP system is ready to run in production, customers install the production system hardware. For three-tier configurations, as new users are added to the production system, additional application servers can be installed and the database server upgraded, as needed. For two-tier configurations, as users are added to the system, the central database/application server can be upgraded to handle the additional workload. Also, if a two-tier installation grows beyond the capability of a single-server, it can be configured as a three-tier configuration with the addition of application servers.

3.2 Solution architecture considerations

The implementation of SAP systems is a complex and expensive effort with a major impact on company life. Because the introduction of an ERP system always entails the re-engineering of internal business processes, the introduction of SAP does not only concern the IT department. Indeed, whole company departments, and sometimes the entire company, are usually asked to take part in the definition of new optimized SAP controlled business processes. Besides dedicating employees to the support of SAP customizing and ABAP (Advanced Business Application Programming) or Java development, the company should also invest in IT resources to guarantee the achievement of system operational requirements, particularly performance, availability, and serviceability. With the focus on functional requirements for a solution, in most cases and also with regard to non-functional requirements like performance, reliability requirements, or the ability of an SAP installation to handle increasing loads, there are a few things to consider when designing the SAP solution. The next sections will give a short overview of your options.

3.2.1 Scaling up or scaling out

Scalability is key to the successful implementation of an ERP software. Your business will grow, and you also expect this ability to grow from your SAP system. The SAP software is designed for scalability, with the ability to: Scale up (also known as vertical scaling) with a 2-tier system, or Scale out (also known as horizontal scaling) with a 3-tier system.

Two-tier system
This type of topology presents a configuration where all components reside on the same machine. It is easy to install and maintain and is therefore appropriate for first-time installations when you want to test and familiarize yourself with the functions of the application 24
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server. At this stage, it is easy to determine what kind of topology is needed and to plan the system landscape. Although this topology is easily and cheaply configurable, it has some drawbacks that you must consider. Because all components are located on a single machine, they compete for resources, which affects the performance processes. This configuration can also be enhanced with horizontal scaling. Some of the key advantages of a 2-tier system configuration are: Leverages the power of 64-bit and scalability. Best performance (no overhead for connection to DB, no network traffic, no shadow processes) Easiest to administrate The 2-tier approach is suited for small installations or installations with performance demands not being very dynamic. Large installation (for example, using the System x3950) can leverage the additional performance you can get from this type of installation.

Three-tier system
In contrast to the 2-tier system this topology the application servers run separated from the database server on different machines. By separating the servers onto separate machines, the capacity of a single machine in terms of performance may be lower than in a 2-tier environment. Some of the key advantages of a 3-tier system configuration are: Lower TCA (total cost of acquisition) with big configurations Scales flexibly (scale out) Affordable and flexible high availability concepts Hybrid landscapes possible, for example, System x Blades as Application servers for a rack-optimized System p Database Server Application dependent, some SAP applications require a 3-tier configuration, for example, APO Cover short time load peaks easily by adding application servers temporarily In general, the 3-tier approach is the more flexible, and often the only viable one, especially for large installations.

3.2.2 High availability

As more and more customers deploy SAP systems in SAP Business Suites for their global operations to support mission-critical business functions, such as sales and order-entry and continuous manufacturing, the need for maximized system availability becomes more crucial. Many companies now require 24 x 7 reliability for their SAP systems, that is, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Clustering is the use of multiple computers connected to act as a single entity in order to run common tasks. If one computer fails, the others pick up the workload automatically. By adding more computers, you can increase the power and, hence, the design can support more users. Switchover clusters guarantee high availability of the SAP system by switching critical services, representing a single point of failure (SPOF), across multiple hosts in the cluster. When a primary node fails or is taken down for maintenance, switchover software automatically switches the failed software unit to another hardware node in the cluster.
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Applications or users accessing the failed service experience a short delay but resume normal processing after the switchover. Figure 3-1 shows an example of a switchover setup for SAP.

Switchover cluster for SPOF services

System Central Services Java SCS ABAP SCS Java SCS ABAP SCS Database instance Dialog instance 1 ABAP Schema Java Schema File File system system

Web Dispatcher

All nonSPOF services:

Web Dispatcher

Database instance Dialog n All instance nonSPOF All nonservices: SPOF services: Multiple dialog instances (application servers), without SPOF services ABAP Schema Java Schema

Transparent load balancing

Switchover units

Switchover clusters for database and file system

Figure 3-1 Example of a switchover setup for SAP ( SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.)

You can find more information about high availability with SAP in the paper Technical Infrastructure Guide - SAP NetWeaver 7.0, available from: https://service.sap.com/installNW70 There also is a central SAP note for NetWeaver High Availability capabilities (SAP note 803018).

3.3 Choosing the right hardware

Choosing the right hardware for a complex solution like SAP is not an easy task. There are many things to consider and we cover some of these in the next sections. For a closer look about which hardware or combinations of hardware is supported by SAP, the following site is a good place to start. http://service.sap.com/platforms

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3.3.1 32-bit versus 64-bit

32-bit servers are increasingly problematic to operate. Without fine-tuned configurations they cannot fulfill the latest requirements for main memory. SAP introduced 64-bit capabilities into its architecture as early as 1998 for optimal performance and ease of use. Experiences gained clearly prove the benefits of 64-bit environments for SAP software. SAP support for 64-bit is available as early as SAP R/3 4.6C1. Over the past years 64-bit support has become a standard in the world of AMD/Intel based servers. All IBM System x Servers currently available support 64-bit operation. Taking all this into account, using a 32-bit server for a new SAP installation is no longer desirable nor viable.

3.3.2 Servers supported by SAP

SAP supports a variety of platforms for their software: Windows as well as Unix, and also IBM System i and System z. SAP requires a special SAP certification for hardware platforms that run SAP applications, with a few exceptions such as SAP Business One. In order to be supported by SAP, every SAP software component, except the presentation tier, must run on SAP certified platforms. For Unix based servers (for example, AIX on System p), the operating system is subject to certification, and availability can be checked via the SAP product availability matrix2. For Windows and Linux the hardware has to be certified. In this section we describe the rules and how to determine which servers are supported. The purpose and intentions of an SAP platform certification are: To allow SAP to reference a list of reliable and standardized platforms when a customer requests that information To offer a service to SAP customers: Greater market transparency and a way to compare offers To deliver a performance indicator that can be publicly available and quotable To ensure that the SAP certified hardware platform is stable and scalable when implementing SAP solutions Once certified, an SAP certified hardware platform is subsequently supported for all SAP releases that are available for the Linux or Windows on an Intel/AMD platform combination, including all SAP approved databases.

Definitions
For the formal SAP hardware certification process, we define some terms: Processors, cores and threads are defined as specified by the TPC CPU working group. The definitions can be found at: http://www.tpc.org Under the CPU working group report from 15.08.2005 as follows: Processor A component that contains one or more cores. The number of processors claimed by the test sponsor must be consistent with the way the product is represented in the test
1 2

For Windows, please consult the SAP product availability matrix at http://service.sap.com/pam. For Linux, please consult SAP note 816097 and SAP notes referenced therein. See https://service.sap.com/pam

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sponsor's marketing collateral, including that which is not related to TPC benchmark results. The reported number of processors must be the number of processors that are enabled for the benchmark. Core Execution unit that is capable of running one or more processor threads. If a hardware unit can run more than one concurrent processor thread without requiring the processor threads to share execution resources, it is more than one core. It may rely on other "assist" units, such as cache, hardware accelerators, and the like - some or all of which may be shared by multiple cores. The reported number of cores must be the number of cores that are enabled for the benchmark. Execution Unit The electronic circuits necessary to implement the semantics of all possible instructions in computer architecture. Processor Thread The hardware necessary to maintain the state of a Software Thread. The reported number of processor threads must be the number of concurrent processor threads that are enabled for the benchmark. Software Thread An instruction sequence that performs operations within an address space and is scheduled by software. A hardware platform is defined: a. By the processor family - determined by the processor manufacturer, for example, Intel, AMD, the instruction set. Mere differences in processor speed or cache size is being considered as the same family. b. By the Chipset or the on-chip controller architecture which includes all components that enable the data transfer between processor, memory and I/O. External I/O such as the storage adaptor or equivalent (Fibre Channel, RAID controller, etc.) and network access are not part of the platform definition. Examples for hardware platforms are: Intel Xeon 7100 series with IBM XA64e chipset Intel Xeon 5300 series with Intel 5000X chipset AMD Opteron 2000/8000 series with Serverworks HS2000 chipset A server family is formed by those servers that share the same hardware platform as defined above. They are considered as one platform and do not depend on the type of physical construction (Blades, Towers, etc.) nor on the number of processors.

Server certification for SAP on Windows

All Technology Partners of SAP that have a Partner and Support contract with SAP or technology partners that are accepted by any SAP regional or country branch may certify platforms for running SAP solutions on Microsoft Windows.

Server certification rules

The rules are: The certified hardware must be listed within the Microsoft Hardware Compatibility List (HCL) for all Windows versions that will be supported with this platform. SAP will allow only 64-bit processors to be certified. I/O controllers supported by the hardware vendor for SAP solutions need to be declared within the certification. No separate certification is required for I/O Adapters, Storage, and 28
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other hardware components; therefore the vendor vouches for functionality and support of these components. Recommendations from Hardware vendors are to be observed. The certification is valid for all Enterprise Linux versions and releases from the mentioned Linux distributors as long as supported by SAP and the Hardware vendor. SAP requires that the hardware vendors certify at least one system per server family. The certification of a server family must be completed on the largest system; the size of the system is defined by the largest number of processors, cores and threads that are possible in the system. A certification includes all smaller systems. If questions arise then it must be clarified through the Hardware Certification workgroup. One benchmark must be completed to certify a server family. Once the certification exists, new larger family members may be added to the certification without publishing a benchmark immediately. A new benchmark must be completed for the new or larger family member within 6 months of the date the new member was added. When no benchmark is completed for the announced members of the server family then the certification is revoked for all servers larger than the family member with a published benchmark. Note: There are special rules for generic certifications for OEM hardware resellers (for example, reselling Intel white boxes), which we do not include here because they are not applicable for IBM servers. The certification includes a performance indicator for the certified platform. The following must be completed successfully: The tests consist of an SAP SD two-tier, SD three-tier or SD Parallel Standard Application Benchmark. The general SAP Standard Application Benchmark3 rules apply. Specifically, any Windows operating system and any database system that is released for the above SAP release, or will be released in the next 180 days, can be used. Minimum requirement for the 2-tier benchmark is 80% average processor utilization in the high load phase. On a 3-tier benchmark only the database server is certified.

How to determine which servers are supported

After successful certification the certified systems will be listed on the SAPonWin.com Web site hosted by AddOn. You can look up certified IBM System x and BladeCenter systems at: http://saponwin.com/pub/hardware.asp?l=vendor&sl=12&la=en Or, simply go to http://www.SAPonWin.com and select Vendor of Certified Hardware IBM. The corresponding SD benchmark used for the certification will be published on SAPs Web site at http://www.sap.com/benchmark.

Server validation for SAP on Linux

Note: IBM offers Linux not only on System x, but also on System p, System i and System z. However, we want to limit the scope of this section to Linux on IBM System x. It is essential that the vendors of the operating systems have a Partner and Support Contract with SAP or at least have a Support Agreement with SAP. For Linux SAP supported vendors are Red Hat and SUSE/Novell. Also there is a special arrangement for China with RedFlag Linux, which is, however, handled under the SAP contract/agreement with Red Hat.
3

See http://www.sap.com/benchmark

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Server certification rules

These are the rules: The certified hardware must be listed within the Red Hat and SUSE/Novell Hardware Compatibility List for all Red Hat Enterprise Linux, respectively, and all SUSE Linux Enterprise Server versions that will be supported with this platform as well as in the NOS Compatibility List at the vendor site. For IBM, they must be listed as supported for RHEL/SLES in the IBM Server Proven List. I/O controllers supported by the hardware vendor for SAP solutions need to be declared within the certification. No separate certification is required for I/O Adapters, Storage, and other hardware components; therefore the vendor vouches for functionality and support of these components. Recommendations from hardware vendors are to be observed. The certification is valid for all Enterprise Linux versions and releases from the mentioned Linux distributors as long as that are supported by SAP and the hardware vendor. SAP requires that the hardware vendors certify at least one system per server family. The certification of a server family must be completed on a representative system; the size of the system is defined by a reasonable number of processors (at least 4-way unless only 2-way is available by the vendor), and cores and threads that are possible in the system. If questions arise, they must be clarified through the Hardware Certification workgroup. The vendor is fully responsible for providing support in case of any doubts related to the hardware. The certification consists of proof and verification concerning stability for the certified platform. The following must be completed successfully: At least the tests consist of functional tests representing an SAP implementation on-site at the customer location. The recommended tests consist of an SAP SD two-tier, SD three-tier or SD Parallel Standard Application Benchmark. The general SAP Standard Application Benchmark (http://www.sap.com/benchmark) rules apply. This benchmark does not have to be published. The best tests include one of the tests mentioned in the previous points plus additional tests, such as I/O tests, ABAP sample reports and transactions, memory tests, etc. For an easier and faster certification process, SAP has developed the "SAP Test Suite for Linux" that also was tested by the hardware partners. Specifically, the vendor can use a Linux operating system and any database system that is currently released and certified for the use with SAP. The minimum requirement for the 2-tier benchmark is 80% average processor utilization in the high load phase.

How to determine which servers are supported

IBM Systems x servers certified for SAP on Linux are listed in SAP note 171380 (available at https://service.sap.com/sap/support/notes/171380) and on the SAP Linux Web site: Go to http://www.sap.com/linux/ and select Supported Platforms Supported Hardware IBM IBM System x.

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3.4 Hardware solution samples

This section gives you a few examples of a possible hardware solution with IBM System x systems. We cover some of the choices discussed in 3.3, Choosing the right hardware on page 26: 2-tier or 3-tier High availability or no HA Blades, rack mount or tower servers The configurations presented here should be considered as examples and not as the only valid solutions. Please note that the maximum capacity delivered by the machines is not limited to the number of users addressed, especially for the smaller configurations. For practical reasons and to avoid possible performance bottlenecks we typically recommend 2-way, and higher, servers even for small configurations. The configurations comprise the following functional components: SAP Production System SAP Development System (for own development and SAP customizing) SAP QA System, also known as Test System (for mass test changes made in development) Disk storage (internal or external attached for all systems above) Backup devices (for example, tape device, to backup and restore vital SAP data and systems) FC SAN Switches (for larger, clustered setups) Where applicable, that is, without negative functional impact, components have been physically consolidated. The following assumptions have been made with respect to sizing: All users are active users implementing the SD module. All users are medium users implementing a 30 second think-time. 220 working days in a year. Estimated workload includes 32% for batch tasks (inclusive printing and reporting tasks). Storage calculations based on Microsoft Windows Server 2003 and each user creates 1.5MB of data per day. A 12 month data retention period. Calculations are based on SAP Quicksizer output (SAP ECC 6.0). Note: All the configurations are current at the time of writing of this paper. IBM personnel and IBM Business Partners can get current standard configurations from the IBM SAP International Competence Center. IBM customers can contact their IBM sales representative for current configurations.

3.4.1 Configuration for 50 users

The configuration described in Table 3-1 is based on System x tower servers, suitable for very small installations with up to approximately 50 users.

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Table 3-1 Configuration sample suitable for approximately 50 users. Function Production Server Description System x3500, 2way x3500, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz, Tower 4 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file, sap-, db exe) 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) 3 x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) 1 x IBM 73 GB (spare) Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3500, 2way x3500, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz, Tower 2 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file, sap-, db exe) 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) 2 x IBM 146 GB (RAID1 sap data) Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3500, 2way x3500, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz, Tower 2 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file, sap-, db exe) 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) 2 x IBM 146 GB (RAID1 sap data) IBM Ultra320 SCSI Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling None (storage included in server systems) LTO Gen3 400/800GB SCSI Tape Drive None

QA Server

Development Server

Storage Subsystem Backup Device Rack

3.4.2 Configuration for 250 users

The configuration described in Table 3-2 is based on System x rack-optimized servers, suitable for small installations with up to approximately 250 users.
Table 3-2 Configuration sample suitable for approximately 250 users Function Production Server Description System x3650, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 12 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller IBM SAS HBA Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling

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Function QA Server

Description System x3650, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 3 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) IBM SAS HBA Controller IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3650, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 2 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file, sap-, db exe) 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) 2 x IBM 300 GB (RAID1 sap data) IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller IBM Ultra320 SCSI Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling IBM System Storage DS3200 + EXP 3000 PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) PROD 4 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) PROD 6 x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) QA 5 x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) 1 x IBM 73 GB (online-spare) Storage for development system included in development server.

Development Server

Storage Subsystem

Backup Device Rack

IBM 2U Universal Tape Autoloader (LTO 3 Drive) IBM S2 42U Standard Rack Cabinet, PDUs, console switch, keyboard, monitor

3.4.3 Configuration for 500 users

The configuration described in Table 3-3 is based on System x rack-optimized servers, suitable for installations with up to approximately 500 users, implementing a Storage Area Network (SAN) as the storage subsystem.
Table 3-3 Configuration sample suitable for approximately 500 users Function Production Server Description System x3850, 4way x3850, Intel Xeon DC 3.0GHz/667 MHz 28 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) IBM ServeRAID 8i Controller IBM DS4000 4Gbps HBA Contr (for redundancy) Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling

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Function QA Server

Description System x3650, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 8 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) QLogic 4Gb FC HBA Contr. (for redundancy) IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3650*, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 4 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) QLogic 4Gb FC HBA Contr. (for redundancy) IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling 2x 8 port SAN Switch IBM System Storage DS4700+2x DS4000 EXP810 PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) PROD 16 x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) PROD 1 x IBM 73 GB (online-spare) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) QA 4 x IBM 146 GB (RAID5 sap data) QA 1 x IBM 146 GB (online-spare) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) DEV 3 x IBM 146 GB (RAID5 sap data) DEV 1 x IBM 146 GB (online-spare)

Development Server

Storage Subsystem

Backup System Rack

IBM System Storage TS3200 Tape Library Ultrium 3 Fibre Tape Drive IBM S2 42U Standard Rack Cabinet, PDUs, console switch, keyboard, monitor

3.4.4 Configuration clustered with MSCS for 500 users

The configuration described in Table 3-4 on page 35 is based on System x rack-optimized servers, suitable for installations with up to approximately 500 users, implementing a production server cluster and a SAN for high availability.

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Table 3-4 Configuration sample suitable for approximately 50 users with clustered production server Function Production Server Cluster Description 2x System x3850, 4way x3850, Intel Xeon DC 3.0GHz/667 MHz 28 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) IBM ServeRAID 8i Controller IBM DS4000 4Gbps HBA Contr (for redundancy) Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3650, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 8 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) QLogic 4Gb FC HBA Contr. (for redundancy) IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3650, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 4 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) QLogic 4Gb FC HBA Contr. (for redundancy) IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling 2x 8 port SAN switch IBM System Storage DS4700+2x DS4000 EXP810 PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) PROD 16 x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 Quorum) PROD 1 x IBM 73 GB (online-spare) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) QA 4 x IBM 146 GB (RAID5 sap data) QA 1 x IBM 146 GB (online-spare) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) DEV 3 x IBM 146 GB (RAID5 sap data) DEV 1 x IBM 146 GB (online-spare) Backup System Rack IBM System Storage TS3200 Tape Library Ultrium 3 Fibre Tape Drive IBM S2 42U Standard Rack Cabinet, PDUs, console switch, keyboard, monitor

QA Server

Development Server

Storage Subsystem

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3.4.5 Configuration for 1000 users

We chose the configuration for 1000 users to show some of the approaches that are possible with respect to clustering and form factor: Unclustered 2-tier with rack-mount servers Clustered 2-tier with rack-mount servers Unclustered 3-tier with blade servers Clustered 3-tier with blade servers You can see how the 2-tier and 3-tier approaches differ with respect to the size of the individual server systems, which is taken to its extreme with the clustered configuration variants.

Unclustered 2-tier with rack-mount servers

The configuration described in Table 3-5 is based on System x rack-optimized servers, suitable for installations with up to approximately 1000 users in a 2-tier environment.
Table 3-5 Configuration sample suitable for approx. 1000 users, implemented as unclustered 2-tier Function Production Server Description System x3950, 8way x3950, Intel Xeon DC 2.5GHz/667 MHz 64 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) IBM ServeRAID 8i Controller IBM DS4000 4Gbps HBA Contr (for redundancy) Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3850, 4way x3850, Intel Xeon DC 3.0GHz/667MHz 16 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) QLogic 4Gb FC HBA Contr. (for redundancy) IBM ServeRAID 8i Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3650, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 4 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) QLogic 4Gb FC HBA Contr. (for redundancy) IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling

QA Server

Development Server

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Function Storage Subsystem

Description 2x 16 port SAN switch IBM System Storage DS4700 Mod 72 + 4 x DS4000 EXP810 PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) PROD 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) PROD 27 x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) PROD 1 x IBM 73 GB (online-spare) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) QA 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) QA 12 x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) QA 1 x IBM 73 GB (online-spare) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) DEV 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) DEV 10 x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) DEV 1 x IBM 73 GB (online-spare)

Backup System Rack

IBM System Storage TS3200 Tape Library Ultrium 3 Fibre Tape Drive IBM S2 42U Standard Rack Cabinet, PDUs, console switch, keyboard, monitor

Clustered 2-tier with rack-mount servers

The configuration described in Table 3-6 is based on System x rack-optimized servers, suitable for installations with up to approximately 1000 users, implementing a production server cluster and a SAN for high availability.
Table 3-6 Configuration sample suitable for approx. 1000 users, implemented as clustered 2-tier Function Production Server Cluster Description 2x System x3950, 8way x3950, Intel Xeon DC 2.5GHz/667 MHz 64 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) IBM ServeRAID 8i Controller IBM DS4000 4Gbps HBA Contr (for redundancy) Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling System x3850, 4way x3850, Intel Xeon DC 3.0GHz/667MHz 16 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) QLogic 4Gb FC HBA Contr. (for redundancy) IBM ServeRAID 8i Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling

QA Server

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Function Development Server

Description System x3650, 2way x3650, Intel Xeon QC 1.6GHz/1066MHz 4 GB Main Memory 2 x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 OS, page file) QLogic 4Gb FC HBA Contr. (for redundancy) IBM ServeRAID 8k Controller Remote Supervisor Adapter Redundant Power and Cooling 2x 16 port SAN switch IBM System Storage DS4700 Mod 72 + 4 x DS4000 EXP810 PROD 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) PROD 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) PROD 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) PROD 27x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) PROD 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 Quorum) PROD 1x IBM 73 GB (online-spare) QA 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) QA 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) QA 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) QA 12x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) QA 1x IBM 73 GB (online-spare) DEV 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 sap-, db exe) DEV 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 txs logs) DEV 2x IBM 73 GB (RAID1 temp db) DEV 10x IBM 73 GB (RAID5 sap data) DEV 1x IBM 73 GB (online-spare)

Storage Subsystem

Backup System Rack

IBM System Storage TS3200 Tape Library Ultrium 3 Fibre Tape Drive IBM S2 42U Standard Rack Cabinet, PDUs, console switch, keyboard, monitor

Unclustered 3-tier with blade servers

The configuration described in Table 3-7 is based on blade servers in an IBM BladeCenter E chassis only 7U high, suitable for installations with up to approximately 1000 users.
Table 3-7 Configuration sample suitable for approx. 1000 users, implemented as unclustered 3-tier Function Production Servers Description Database Server: LS41, 4way LS41 AMD Opteron DC 2, 4 GHz/1GHz, 1 MBL2 16 x 2 GB memory 2x IBM 73.4 GB 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card Application Servers: LS21, 2way 2x LS21AMDOpteronDC2, 0 GHz/1GHz, 1 MBL2 16x 2 GB memory 4 x IBM 73.4 GB 2 x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

Function QA Server

Description LS41, 2way LS41 AMD Opteron DC 2, 4 GHz/1GHz, 1MBL2 12x 2 GB memory 2x IBM 73.4 GB 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card LS21, 2way LS21 AMD Opteron 2, 0 GHz/1GHz, 1MB L2 2 x 512 MB memory 8 x 2 GB memory 2 x IBM 73.4 GB 1 x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card IBM BladeCenter E 1x BladeCenter E Chassis with 2x2000W Power Supplies 2x Nortel Layer 2/3 Copper GbE Switch 2x Brocade 10-port 4 Gb SAN Switch DS4700 Model 72, 70 x 73GB 15k HDD 3573 Ultrium FC Tape Library IBM S2 42U Standard Rack Cabinet, PDUs, console switch, keyboard, monitor

Development Server

BladeCenter Chassis

Storage Subsystem Backup System Rack

Clustered 3-tier with blade servers

The configuration described in Table 3-8 is based on blade servers in an IBM BladeCenter E chassis only 7U high, suitable for installations with up to approximately 1000 users, implementing a production server cluster and a SAN for high availability. Note that, compared to the rack-mount servers based configuration in Clustered 2-tier with rack-mount servers on page 37, there is no need for external SAN switches consuming additional rack space.
Table 3-8 Configuration sample suitable for approximately 1000 users, implemented as clustered 3-tier Function Production Servers Description LS41 SAP PROD, 4way (Cluster Node A) LS41 AMD Opteron DC 2.4 GHz/1GHz, 1MB L2 16x 2 GB memory 2x IBM 73.4 GB 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card LS41 SAP PROD, 4way (Cluster Node B) LS41 AMD Opteron DC 2.4 GHz/1GHz, 1MB L2 16x 2 GB memory 2x IBM 73.4 GB 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card Application servers: LS21, 2way 2x LS21 AMD Opteron DC 2.0GHz/1GHz, 1MB L2 16x 2 GB memory 4x IBM 73.4 GB 2x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card QA Server LS41, 2way LS41 AMD Opteron DC 2.4 GHz/1GHz, 1MB L2 12x 2 GB memory 2x IBM 73.4 GB 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card

SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

Chapter 3. Hardware and software considerations

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Function Development Server

Description LS21, 2way LS21 AMD Opteron 2, 0 GHz/1GHz, 1MB L2 2x 512 MB memory 8x 2 GB memory 2x IBM 73.4 GB 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card IBM BladeCenter E 1x Chassis with 2x 2000W Power Supplies 2x Nortel Layer 2/3 Copper GbE Switch 2x Brocade 10-port 4 Gb SAN Switch DS4700 Model 72, 70x 73GB 15k HDD 3573 Ultrium FC Tape Library IBM S2 42U Standard Rack Cabinet, PDUs, console switch, keyboard, monitor

BladeCenter Chassis

Storage Subsystem Backup System Rack

3.4.6 Configuration for 2500 users

The configuration described in Table 3-9 is based on System x rack-optimized servers, suitable for installations with up to approximately 2500 users, implementing 3-tier approach with blade servers as application servers.
Table 3-9 Configuration sample suitable for approximately 2500 users Function Production Servers Description Database Server (Cluster node A): System x3950, 8way x3950 DC 2.5GHz/667MHz,2MB L2 4x1GB, 30x 2GB memory 4x 73.4 GB 10K 2.5-inch SAS HDD 1x ServeRAID 8i 2x DS4000 1-pt PCI-X 4Gbps HBA 1x additional 1Gb Ethernet Database Server (Cluster node B): System x3950, 8way 3950 DC 2.5GHz/667MHz,2MB L2 4x 1GB, 30x 2GB memory 4x 73.4 GB 10K 2.5-inch SAS HDD 1x ServeRAID 8i 2x DS4000 1-pt PCI-X 4Gbps HBA 1x additional 1Gb Ethernet Application Servers: LS21, 2way 4x LS21 AMD Opteron DC 2,0GHz/1GHz,1MB L2 32x 2GB memory 8x IBM 73.4GB HDD 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card QA Server LS21, 2way LS21 AMD Opteron DC 2, 0 GHz/1GHz, 1MB L2 8x 2 GB memory 2x IBM 73.4 GB HDD 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

Function Development Server

Description LS21, 2way LS21 AMD Opteron DC 2, 0 GHz/1GHz, 1MB L2 8x 2GB memory 2x IBM 73.4GB HDD 1x 4Gb SFF Fibre Channel Expansion card IBM BladeCenter E 1x BladeCenter E Chassis with 2x2000W Power Supplies 2x Nortel Layer 2/3 Copper GbE Switch 2x Brocade 10-port 4 Gb SAN Switch Express DS4700, Model 72; 80x 73GB 15k HDD 3573 Ultrium FC Tape Library IBM S2 42U Standard Rack Cabinet, PDUs, console switch, keyboard, monitor

BladeCenter Chassis

Storage Subsystem Backup System Rack

SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

Chapter 3. Hardware and software considerations

41

42

The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter SAP AG 2007. All rights reserved.

Chapter 4.

IBM System x, BladeCenter, and storage offerings

The IBM System x and BladeCenter portfolio for Windows and Linux is a valuable platform for implementing SAP applications. This chapter details the server offerings from IBM for SAP implementation. It also provides a brief review of the IBM System Storage platform which is an integral solution offered along with the IBM servers. This chapter covers the following topics: 4.1, IBM X-Architecture: An initiative on page 44 4.2, IBM System x and BladeCenter offerings for SAP on page 47 4.3, IBM System Storage solutions on page 63

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

43

4.1 IBM X-Architecture: An initiative

In 2001, IBM introduced the X-Architecture for IBM servers, which took the IBM eServer xSeries range to a new level of performance. The IBM X-Architecture blueprint is a comprehensive approach to solving customer challenges today, and it embraces an evolving design approach to address tomorrows challenges. As a blueprint, the fundamental premise of X-Architecture technology will not change over time. The X-Architecture design targets five key areas: Adaptive performance Integrated Infrastructure Modular Optimization Efficient Power and Cooling Proactive Management

Adaptive performance
IBM designed scale-up x86 servers with the custom X3 Architecture XA-64e chipset. Introduced in 2005, X3 Architecture leverages technology exclusive to IBM and raises the bar for scalable, high-performance application servers with the introduction of IBM X3 Architecture XA-64e chipset. Incorporating this new chipset, the IBM System x3950, x3850, and x3800 have demonstrated unprecedented levels of performance and availability. X3 Architectures performance advantage over the competition, given various typical application server functions, has been demonstrated by recently published record-setting benchmark results, listed in: http://www.ibm.com/servers/eserver/xseries/benchmarks Given a variety of typical application server functions, X3 Architecture offers great improvements in overall system performance through the use of features that are not available on competitors systems. An integrated snoop filter minimizes front-side bus (FSB) congestion and maximizes CPU performance, a key ingredient for higher performance on the new dual front-side bus architecture. The integrated snoop filtering speeds cache coherency and reduces FSB contention. X3 Architecture ensures performance gains due to an overall reduction in FSB traffic with the use of the integrated snoop filter. This reduction results in lower transaction latencies and increases in overall CPU throughput. Lowering FSB traffic becomes critical to overall performance with dual-core 64-bit Intel Xeon processors, because there are now twice as many processors initiating traffic on the FSB. The integrated snoop-filter significantly minimizes this traffic, reduces queuing and overall transaction latencies, and effectively provides greater head-room for dual-core systems. The X3 Architecture snoop filter uses intelligent caching to dramatically reduce system latencies to improve performance. IBM has XceL4v Dynamic Server Cache that provides up to 2 GB of virtual L4 cache in a four-CPU configuration. This is critical for applications, such as SAP, which have high instances of cache hits.

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

CPU 1

CPU 2

CPU 3

CPU 4

DDR2 DDR2 DDR2 DDR2

SMI2 SMI2 SMI2 SMI2

Each: 667 MHz 5.33 GBps

667 MHz 5.33 GBps

667 MHz 5.33 GBps

IBM XA-64e core chipset Scalability ports Each: 6.4 GBps (x460 and MXE-460 only)

Memory controller ("Hurricane")

6 GBps

6 GBps

Calgary

PCI-X bridge 33 66 266 266 MHz

6 GBps

PCI-X bridge 266 MHz

Video RSA SL 1 USB 2.0 South bridge EIDE K/M Serial ServeRAID Adaptec SAS Gigabit Ethernet HDD backplane Six PCI-X 2.0 slots: 64-bit 266 MHz 2 3 4 5 6

Figure 4-1 Block diagram of X3 Architecture (IBM System x3950)

These industry standard 64-bit Intel Xeon systems provide break through performance and mission critical availability with unparalleled, XpandOnDemand scalability. Light path diagnostics ensures immediate problem identification and isolation. The X3 Architecture family of products use mainframe inspired innovations designed into the IBM XA-64e chipset with XceL4v Server Accelerator Cache. These industry standard 64-bit Intel Xeon systems provide: Significantly improved performance, that is, 35-50% improvement versus previous System x generation Mission critical availability with unparalleled, XpandOnDemand scalability. Investment protection with easy migration path to 64-bit computing. 2-way to 32-way scalability. X3 Architecture provides sophisticated error recovery, with features such as Memory ProteXion. With X3 Architecture being used for Intel based servers, there are also unique features used in the AMD Opteron based IBM System x servers, such as the x3755, that speed up memory access. Due to the way the Opteron processor is designed, when more than four DIMM slots are populated per processor, the speed of all system memory drops from 667 MHz to only 533 MHz. With Xcelerated Memory Technology, all 64 GB of RAM in the x3755 runs at the full 667 MHz, using inexpensive industry-standard DIMMs.

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Another feature to speed up memory access is the IBM Pass Thru Card. Using this feature it is possible to use configurations with an odd number of Opteron CPUs, without performance degradation, enabling you to size your system to meet your needs.

Integrated infrastructure
IBM BladeCenter integrates servers, storage and networking to help you reduce complexity, simplify IT management and reduce costs, through a flexible and highly scalable design. Everything needed for the solution can be housed in a single unit and managed from a single point of control. With the network switches are all housed inside the chassis, every blade, every switch, every management module, every power supply and every fan can be easily managed from one central source and cabling is minimized. IBM has held the leading full-year market share in the blade segment for the years 2003-2006.1 There are four key reasons why customers are selecting IBM over the competition: More efficient power and cooling All devices share common, redundant power supplies and fans optimized for efficiency and reliability Faster I/O throughput and more available ports With the BladeCenter Virtual Fabric Architecture you get the intelligent I/O needed to unleash the power in your processors. Full 10 Gb Ethernet supported by IBM BladeCenter H gives your Applications the bandwidth they need. When using the IBM Multi-Switch Interconnect Module (MSIM) you can have up to 8 or 12 Gigabit Ethernet or Fibre Channel ports per blade, depending on the blade. More flexible virtualization Use the BladeCenter H and Cisco VFrame Solution to provide scalable, policy-based server provisioning to help increasing automation and flexibility in the data center. IBM BladeCenter Address Manager allows for the I/O virtualization of Ethernet and Fibre Channel connections within a system by providing users the option to assign Ethernet and Fibre Channel port addresses used by their server blades via software as an alternative to the addresses that are burned in to the hardware during manufacturing. Better flexibility and investment protection BladeCenter sports the largest ecosystem of any blade vendor, which allows us to offer the widest array of IBM and OEM options to our customers. Because of our compatibility across all BladeCenter chassis, weve delivered a durable infrastructure that protects your investment and gets your new technologies up and running faster.

Modular optimization
IBM X-Architecture system design uses standard parts and then adds practical innovation to create outstanding solutions: Additional DIMM slots give you the flexibility to use lower-capacity/lower-cost DIMMs for many configurations in System x3650. Xcelerated Memory Technology for AMD Opteron based servers. Light path diagnostics, a yet unmatched feature IBM introduced in 1998, is a pop-out/drop-down panel with an LED for each major componentprocessor, memory, HDDs, adapter slots, etc. IBM Xtended I/O technology give you flexibility with a choice of additional I/O slots.
1

IDC Q306 Server Tracker

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

IBM Advanced Cabling Technology (ACT) is the solution for reducing behind-the-rack KVM cabling.

Efficient power and cooling

The IBM Cool Blue portfolio of tools demonstrates leadership thinking. IBM offers a number of technologies common to both System x and BladeCenter to help improve your server and data center power management: PowerExecutive, a powerful software tool, designed to take advantage of new processor features to lower energy consumption. Calibrated Vectored Cooling, used in System x and BladeCenter servers, provides extremely efficient cooling. IBM Rear Door Heat eXchanger, a water-cooled door that attaches to the back of an IBM 42U Enterprise Rack. Energy-efficient power supplies. Low-voltage processors. IBM System x and BladeCenter Power Configurator helps you plan for data center power needs.

Proactive management
IBM offers a number of tools to help you tame the complexity of systems management and administration, while managing costs: IBM Director for advanced workgroup management is included with all BladeCenter and most System x servers. IBM Remote Deployment Manager (RDM) supports the deployment, update and retirement of servers, personal computers, workstations and point-of-sale terminals across the computing environment. Predictive Failure Analysis (PFA) support provides up to 48 hours warning that a component is about to fail. It illuminates the appropriate light path diagnostics indicator and optionally can send a message to the system administrator.

4.2 IBM System x and BladeCenter offerings for SAP

IBM brings the comprehensive capabilities of SAP solutions to the System x and BladeCenter product line. System x servers bring unprecedented mainframe-inspired performance and availability to cost-effective Intel processor-based servers. IBM System x servers and BladeCenter take full advantage of the latest dual core AMD and quad-core Intel processors to deliver new levels of performance and scalability for SAP solutions. The availability of 64-bit computing enables the customer to accommodate very large SAP solutions that have been enabled for 64-bit on cost-effective System x servers. IBM has an extensive range of servers, ranging from two-way processor to four-way processor capable and beyond, using AMD or Intel platforms to implement an SAP solution. These servers are certified to run SAP solutions and offer industry leading benchmarks on SAP. Figure 4-2 on page 48 shows the complete range of IBM System x servers that are certified to run an SAP solution.

Chapter 4. IBM System x, BladeCenter, and storage offerings

47

4-way and above

Scale Up

x3950
XA-64e-based Dual Core Xeon 7100

4-way

x3800
XA-64e-based Dual Core Xeon 7100

x3850
XA-64e-based Dual Core Xeon 7100

x3755
AMD Opteron 8000 based Dual Core

LS41 Blade
AMD Opteron Dual Core server

2-way

x3400 / x3500 / x3550

Intel Xeon 5300-based Quad Core

x3455

x3650

x3655

LS21/HS21 XM Blade

AMD Opteron 2000 Intel Xeon 5300 AMD Opteron 2000 Quad Core or Dual Core based Dual Core based Quad Core based Dual core Intel/AMD based Servers

1-way

x3200 / x3250
Intel Xeon 3200-based Quad Core
) when available

Scale Out
Figure 4-2 System x and BladeCenter offerings for SAP

4.2.1 High-performance scalable servers

The high-performance scalable servers, all based on the X3 Architecture, are the x3950, x3850, and x3800. They have a common set of technical specifications and features:

IBM System x3950

The IBM system x3950, delivers industry-leading x86 performance, XpandOnDemand scalability up to 32 processors, partitioning up to 8 chassis, and the investment protection of 64-bit extensions and dual core CPU capability. X3 Architecture drives the x3950 to deliver the performance, availability, expendability, and manageability required for the next generation of industry standard servers and an ideal platform for high performance and large workload virtualization. System x3950 is the flagship server from IBM with the following features: Four-way capable server expandable up to 32-way by adding additional chassis. Comes in a rack-dense 3U form factor. Based on IBM X3 Architecture, the XA-64e third-generation chipset. Two standard dual core Intel Xeon MP processors upgradable to four-way. These processors support 64-bit addressing with the Intel 64 Technology (EM64T) architecture. 2 GB or 4 GB memory standard expandable to 64 GB (with 4 GB DIMMs), using high-performance PC2-3200 ECC DDR2 DIMMs.

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Active Memory with Memory ProteXion, memory mirroring, memory hot-swap and hot-add, and ChipKill. Six full-length 64-bit 266 MHz PCI-X 2.0 Active PCI slots. Supports additional chassis x3950 E modular expansion enclosure to form a complex of 32-way processors with 512GB of memory, and 48 PCI-X slots. Integrated Adaptec AIC-9410 serial-attached SCSI (SAS) controller. Support for internal RAID arrays using an optional ServeRAID-8i adapter. ServeRAID-6M is also supported for external SCSI storage, with the EXP400 enclosure. Six internal hot-swap drive bays for internal storage. Integrated Dual-port Broadcom 5704 PCI-X Gigabit Ethernet. Baseboard Management Controller and Remote Supervisor Adapter II SlimLine adapter. Hot-swap fans and power supply. Light path diagnostics to identify any failed components. Supports the IBM Integrated xSeries Adapter for iSeries (IXA) for a direct high-speed link to an iSeries server. Three-year warranty, on-site, nine hours per day, five days per week, with a next business day response. The x3950 is targeted at ERP, large database, e-mail, and e-commerce applications.

IBM System x3850

Delivering an industry-leading, 64-bit framework for mid-tier application development, the IBM System x3850 delivers the performance, availability, and manageability required for the next generation of industry -standard servers. Four-socket performance and 64-bit memory address ability provide an optimized platform for the application-serving tier. System x3850 is a high-performance four-way server with following characteristics: Four-way capable server in a rack-dense 3U form factor. IBM X3 Architecture, the XA-64e third-generation chipset. Models with one dual core Intel Xeon MP processor, which can be upgraded to four-way. Processors support 64-bit addressing with the Intel 64 Technology (EM64T) architecture. Memory: 2 GB or 4 GB standard expandable to 64 GB (with 4 GB DIMMs), using high-performance PC2-3200 ECC DDR2 DIMMs. Active Memory with Memory ProteXion, memory mirroring, memory hot-swap and hot-add, and ChipKill. Either six full-length 64-bit 266 MHz PCI-X 2.0 Active PCI slots or a combination of two 64-bit 266 MHz PCI-X 2.0 Active PCI slots and four 64-bit Active PCI Express x8 slots. Integrated Adaptec AIC-9410 serial-attached SCSI (SAS) controller. Support for internal. RAID arrays using a ServeRAID-8i adapter (optional on some models). ServeRAID-6M is also supported for external SCSI storage, with the EXP400 enclosure. Six internal hot-swap drive bays for internal storage. Integrated Dual-port Broadcom 5704 PCI-X Gigabit Ethernet.

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Baseboard Management Controller with Remote Supervisor Adapter II SlimLine adapter standard (RSA II SL optional on some models). Hot-swap fans and power supply. Light path diagnostics to identify any failed components. Supports the IBM Integrated xSeries Adapter for iSeries (IXA) for a direct high-speed link to an iSeries server. Three-year warranty, on-site, nine hours per day, five days per week, with a next business day response. The x3850 is targeted at Enterprise Resource Planning applications like SAP, database, e-mail, and e-commerce applications.

IBM System x3800

The System x3800 also belongs to the family of IBM X3 architecture servers. It supports 4-way processing with 64GB of maximum memory. It delivers industry leading performance using the IBM X3 architecture features. IBM system x3800 has the following features: Four-way capable server in a tower form factor. IBM X3 Architecture, the XA-64e third-generation chipset. Models with one Dual Core Intel Xeon MP processor, which can be upgraded to four-way. Processors support 64-bit addressing with the Intel 64 Technology (EM64T) architecture. Memory: 2 GB or 4 GB standard expandable to 64 GB (with 4 GB DIMMs), using high-performance PC2-3200 ECC DDR2 DIMMs. Active Memory with Memory ProteXion, memory mirroring, memory hot-swap and hot-add, and ChipKill. Either six full-length 64-bit 266 MHz PCI-X 2.0 Active PCI slots or a combination of two 64-bit 266 MHz PCI-X 2.0 Active PCI slots and four 64-bit Active PCI Express x8 slots. Integrated Adaptec AIC-9410 serial-attached SCSI (SAS) controller. Support for internal. RAID arrays using a ServeRAID-8i adapter (optional on some models). ServeRAID-6M is also supported for external SCSI storage, with the EXP400 enclosure. Six internal hot-swap drive bays standard for internal storage, can be extended to a total of twelve using a converged tray for six additional bays. Integrated Dual-port Broadcom 5704 PCI-X Gigabit Ethernet. Baseboard Management Controller with Remote Supervisor Adapter II SlimLine adapter standard (RSA II SL optional on some models). Hot-swap fans and power supply. Light path diagnostics to identify any failed components. Three-year warranty, on-site, nine hours per day, five days per week, with a next business day response. The x3800 is targeted at ERP, database, e-mail, and e-commerce applications with large internal disk capacity. The key features that differ between the three servers are shown in Table 4-1 on page 51.

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Table 4-1 Key feature differences of the X3 Architecture Servers System x3950 Processors Installed / max processors Memory standard / max Largest configuration Rack height Tower-to-rack conversion Power supplies Remote Supervisor Adapter II SlimLine Hot-swap disk drive bays Optical media Diskette drive Tape drive bay Intel Xeon 7100 Tulsa series dual-core processors 2/4 2 or 4 / 64 GB per node Eight nodes (32-way) 3U No 2x 1300W supplies, both standard Standard Six (2.5 bays, SAS) 8x DVD-ROM Optional (external USB) No System x3850 Intel Xeon 7100 Tulsa series dual-core processors 1 or 2 / 4 2 or 4 / 64 GB One node (4-way) 3U No 1300W supplies, one to two standard, two maximum Standard (optional on some models) Six (2.5 bays, SAS) 8x DVD-ROM Optional (external USB) No System x3800 Intel Xeon 7100 Tulsa series dual-core processors 1 or 2 / 4 2 or 4 / 64 GB One node (4-way) 7U Yes 775W supplies, two or three standard, three maximum Standard (optional on some models) Six standard, additional six optional (3.5 bays) 16x DVD-ROM Standard (internal) Two half-high 5.25 bays, can be used as a single full-height bay

Note: IBM System x3950 can expand to 32 processor sockets using 8 chassis. IBM System x3800 and x3850 cannot expand beyond the single chassis. Only the x3950 and x3950E support multi-node configurations.

4.2.2 Rack-mount servers

IBM has an entire range of certified rack servers to be deployed for implementing an SAP solution in an organization. IBM System x rack-optimized servers are excellent for both SAP application and database servers. The entire range includes the following servers:

IBM System x3755

This new 4-way processor capable server is designed on the AMD platform and provides extremely high memory scalability and has the following features: Available in a rack optimized 4U chassis. Dual core AMD Opteron 8000 series processors; one or two processor standard, with up to four processors supported.

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1 or 4 GB standard memory standard expandable to 128GB (with 4 GB DIMMs), using high-performance PC2-5300 ECC DDR2 DIMMs. Xcelerated Memory Technology, online hot-spare memory, and ChipKill memory support. Four PCI Express and 2 PCI-X slots. Integrated Adaptec AIC-9580W serial-attached SCSI (SAS) controller and support for internal RAID arrays 0, 1 and 10 using the standard ServeRAID 8k-l. Four internal hot-swap drive bays standard for internal storage using 3.5 disk drives. Integrated Dual-port Broadcom 5708C Gigabit Ethernet. Baseboard Management Controller standard, and option for Remote Management Adapter II slimline. Option for hot-swap fans and power supply. Light path diagnostics to identify any failed components. Three-year warranty, on-site, nine hours per day, five days per week, with a next business day response. Targeted at two-way and four-way high performance commercial computing, such as database, e-mail, and e-commerce applications.

IBM System x3655

The x3655 is a new server offering from IBM designed using the AMD processor. This server offers compelling performance for enterprise applications while minimizing deployment time and costs. The Systems x3655 server supports the following characteristics: A two-way capable server in a 2U rack optimized form factor. One dual-core AMD Opteron 2000 series processor, with up to 2 processors supported. 1 GB standard memory expandable to 48 GB (with 4 GB DIMMs), using high-performance PC2-5300 ECC DDR2 DIMMs. Xcelerated Memory Technology, online hot-spare memory, and ChipKill memory support. Four PCI Express slots. Integrated Adaptec AIC-9580W serial-attached SCSI (SAS) controller and support for internal RAID arrays 0, 1 and 10. Six or eight internal hot-swap drive bays standard for internal storage using 2.5 or 3.5 disk drives respectively (model dependent). Integrated Dual-port Broadcom 5706 PCI-X Gigabit Ethernet. Baseboard Management Controller standard. Option for hot-swap fans and power supply. Light path diagnostics to identify any failed components. Three-year warranty, on-site, nine hours per day, five days per week, with a next business day response. It is an ideal two-way configurations for running NetWeaver based application for medium 3-tier implementations or used as a production server for smaller size enterprises.

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

IBM System x3650

The x3650 is a new quad-core server featuring one or two Xeon 5300 Series quad-core processors. It is a rack dense 2U server with up to 48GB of RAM and up to 1.8 TB of internal SAS-based storage. A two-way capable server in a 2U rack optimized form factor. Models with dual-core Intel Xeon 5100 Series processors or quad-core Intel Xeon 5300 Series processors. 12 DIMM sockets supporting up to 48 GB of memory using 4 GB DIMMs. Memory is fully-buffered DIMMs (FB DIMMs) using ECC DDR2 DRAMs. Supports Chipkill memory protection. Onboard SAS/SATA controller and ServeRAID 8k-l RAID controller support RAID-0, RAID-1 and RAID-10. Optional ServeRAID 8k controller supports RAID-5 plus other levels. Up to six hot-swap SAS or SATA drives (model dependent). Integrated Dual-port Broadcom 5706 PCI-X Gigabit Ethernet. Baseboard Management Controller standard. Temperature-controlled fans with Calibrated Vectored Cooling. Light path diagnostics to identify any failed components. Three-year warranty. It is an ideal two-way configurations for running NetWeaver based application for medium 3-tier implementations or used as production server for smaller size enterprises.

IBM System x3550

IBM System x3550 is an Intel Xeon processor based server offering from IBM. It provides superior performance in a 1U package for compute-intensive environments at an affordable price. The x3550 supports the following features: 2-way capable server in a rack-dense 1U form factor. One dual-core Intel Xeon 5100 series processor, which can be upgraded to two-way processors. Memory: 1 GB standard expandable to 32 GB per dual CPU system using high-performance PC2-5300 667MHz DDR2 FB-DIMMs. Memory mirroring, online hot-spare memory, and ChipKill memory support. Two PCI Express slots (or one PCI Express slot and one PCI-X slot). Models with a ServeRAID 8k-l SAS/SATA controller and hot-swap drive bays or a ServeRAID 8e SATA controller and simple-swap drives. Optional ServeRAID 8k-l controller for additional RAID functions. Models with either four hot-swap 2.5 drive bays (SAS/SATA models) or two 3.5 drive bays (hot-swap for SAS/SATA models or simple swap for SATA-only models). Integrated Dual-port Broadcom 5708 Gigabit Ethernet.

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Baseboard Management Controller standard. Three-year warranty, on-site, nine hours per day, five days per week, with a next business day response. It is an ideal two-way configurations as a web interface server or as a training server.

IBM System x3455

IIBM System x3455 delivers robust performance in a small package at an affordable price. For scientific, technical and financial applications, the x3455 provides the latest AMD Opteron dual-core or quad-core2 processorshelping process data more quickly. The x3455 also provides outstanding memory performance with power-efficient DDR II memory and AMD DirectConnect architecture. And high-performance, highly reliable 3.5" SAS hard disk drives deliver blazing access to data compared to SCSI drives. 1U slim rack-mount packaging. Up to two AMD Dual-Core Opteron 2000 Series Processors (up to 3.0 GHz). Up to 48 GB maximum DDR II memory 667 MHz using 12 DIMM slots. Choice of two high-performance SAS or price/performance SATA hard disk drives. Optional RAID-0, -1 for internal drives using the IBM HBA Controller. PCI-Express (1) x16 standard; optional (1) x8 or (1) HTx. Space-saving design helps save valuable real estate for large and small cluster deployments. Increased performance per-watt efficiency with dual-core processing. Integrated memory controller helps reduce traditional x86 front-side bus bottlenecks. Integrated BMC features Serial over LAN (IPMI 2.0-compliant), Cluster Systems Management, IBM Director. Xcelerated Memory Technology means faster access to memory for large memory configurations. Built-in expansion flexibility for high-bandwidth cluster networking with IBM eXtended I/O technology. Server partitioning virtualization software available for server consolidation.

IBM System x3250

IIBM System x3250 is a single-socket server that is easy to deploy, manage and service. It provides outstanding performance and reliability at an entry-level price. Designed for high-performance, quad-core and dual-core 64-bit processors, the x3250 can optimize performance of your Web and network infrastructure. 22" depth, 1U form factor.

When available

54

The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Choice of processorIntel Xeon (quad-core and dual-core), Intel Pentium D (dual-core) or Intel Celeron. Up to 8GB maximum memory 667 MHz via 4 DIMM slots. Flexible storage optionssimple-swap or hot-swap, SATA or SAS hard disk drives, 2.5" or 3.5" (SAS). Flexible hard disk drive choices to optimize for capacity or performance. Integrated base management controller with easy upgrade to more robust systems management via the Remote Supervisor Adapter II SlimLine. Integrated RAID support for enhanced data protection (model dependent). Small depth and Calibrated Vectored Cooling help keep internal components cool and maintain system health.

4.2.3 Tower servers

IBM also has an entire range of certified tower servers to be deployed for implementing an SAP solution in an organization. IBM System x tower servers are excellent centralized SAP installations. The entire range includes the following servers:

IBM System x3500

IBM System x3500 is a 2-way Intel Xeon processor based server in a tower based form factor with high-availability features such as redundant components, advanced memory protection, integrated systems management and large storage capacity. The x3500 supports the following features: Tower with 5U rack capability via optional rackmount kit. Up to two Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processors 5160 up to 3.0 GHz and up to 1333 MHz front-side bus or Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processors X5355 up to 2.66 GHz and up to 1333 MHz front-side bus. Up to 48GB new-generation, high-performance memory 667 MHz via 12 DIMM slots. 6 I/O slots including PCI-X, Active PCI and high-performance PCI-Express. Up to 8 hot-swappable SAS or SATA HDDs support large capacity storage. Eight-core computing power at lower power per core. Integrated RAID-5 standard offers versatility without taking up a PCI slot. Tested and certified for virtualized environments. Troubleshoot more easily with light path diagnostics to help reduce service time and costs.

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IBM System x3400

IIBM System x3400 provides the ultimate balance of flexibility, performance and configuration capabilities, priced right for small to mid-sized businesses and branch offices. Flexible configuration options meet todays business needs while allowing for future growth. Optional redundant features help protect business-critical data with minimal IT support. Tower with 5U rack capability via optional rack-mount kit. Up to two Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processors 5130 up to 2.0 GHz and up to 1333 MHz front-side bus speed or up to two Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processors E5320 up to 1.86 GHz. Up to 32GB of new-generation, high-performance memory 667 MHz via 8 DIMM slots. 6 I/O slots including PCI-X, Active PCI and high-performance PCI-Express. Models with up to 8 SAS/SATA hard disk drives via 4-pack option. Flexibility to use either high-performance SAS or low-cost SATA hard disk drives. Dual-socket computing power optimized for up to eight cores at lower power usage per core. Provides high availability with optional hot-swap redundant cooling, power and hard disk drives. Get more robust systems management with the Integrated Systems Management Processor. Calibrated Vectored Cooling helps prolong system life by helping keep internal components cool.

IBM System x3200

IBM System x3200 is a single processor tower server which offers superior value through a combination of management, performance, and availability features. The system is targeted to small to medium businesses or large distributed enterprises, to support file/print, network infrastructure, e-mail and collaboration, or remote office business applications. Tower form factor. Choice of processor3Intel Xeon (quad-core or dual-core), Intel Pentium D (dual-core) or Intel Pentium 4. Up to 1GB standard memory/8GB DDR II 667 MHz memory maximum. Up to 1.2TB maximum capacity via four SAS HDDs, or up to 3.0TB maximum capacity via four Serial ATA HDDs. Choice of flexible storage optionssimple-swap or hot-swap Serial ATA, 2.5" or 3.5" hot-swap SAS or near-line SATA. Hot-swap redundant power supplies. Support for new and existing I/O slots provides high performance. Save systems management time and money with IBM Director, Alert Standard Format 2.0, Remote Deployment Manager and optional Remote Supervisor Adapter II.
3

Currently only quad-core Intel Xeon supported for SAP applications on Windows

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Integrated RAID support for enhanced data protection (model dependent). Industry-standard hardware systems management with IPMI 1.5-compliant mini BMC. Support for new and existing I/O slots provides high performance. Save systems management time and money with IBM Director, Alert Standard Format 2.0, Remote Deployment Manager and optional Remote Supervisor Adapter II. Integrated RAID support for enhanced data protection (model dependent). Industry-standard hardware systems management with IPMI 1.5-compliant mini BMC.

4.2.4 IBM BladeCenter solutions

IBM BladeCenter is designed on IBM Enterprise X-Architecture Technology. It plays an integral role in your SAP environment and can integrate SAP applications and database servers, storage, and networking to help you reduce complexity, simplify IT management and reduce costs through a flexible and highly scalable design. IBM BladeCenter is the ideal platform to consolidate the typical multi-server landscape of an SAP environment. The BladeCenter chassis is a high-density, high-performance, rack-mounted server system designed for enterprise growing applications. A BladeCenter can typically accommodate 14 two-way blade servers. It provides common resources such as power supply, management modules, network interfaces, cooling and I/O resources such as diskette drive, CD-ROM, keyboard, mouse, USB ports, video ports, etc. These resources are shared by the blade servers installed in the chassis. This ensures that BladeCenter is the ideal solution for deployment in environments that require a large number of servers to be installed in a small space with minimal cabling. IBM BladeCenter supports a wide selection of processor technologies and operating systems to allow customers to run their choice of applications. The IBM BladeCenter Solution is designed around different industries having different design requirements. There are four chassis in the BladeCenter family: BladeCenter E and BladeCenter H, described here, are suited for most customers; and BladeCenter T and BladeCenter HT for customers in the telecommunications industry and those that need a rugged solution.

IBM BladeCenter E Chassis

The IBM BladeCenter E chassis offers high density at the lowest cost. It is extremely power efficient with consolidated management features. The BladeCenter E chassis is ideal for Web hosting, and web serving, colloboration, financial and retail environments. The IBM BladeCenter E has the following specification: 7U rack optimized mechanical housing to accommodate up to 14 two-way blade servers, thus allowing you to have 84 blade servers in an industry standard 42-U rack. Up to 4 hot-swap and redundant Gigabit Ethernet or Fibre Channel switch modules can be integrated. The BladeCenter E chassis can accommodate up to four hot-swap 2000W power supply modules. The high availability backplane ensures maximum uptime and provides investment protection for future technologies. The chassis can accomodate up to two management modules with KVM in redundant mode.

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IBM BladeCenter H Chassis

IBM BladeCenter H delivers increased performance and many new capabilities to the BladeCenter family while maintaining compatibility with the BladeCenter family of options. BladeCenter H offers added performance capabilities of the 4x InfiniBand-capable fabrics, large power supplies, and a more robust thermal solution. It is an ideal platform to run the next generation high-performance business-critical applications such as technical clusters and virtualized enterprise solutions. It offers the following capabilities: It has a 9 U rack mount chassis to accomodate 14 two-way capable blade servers. Can be populated with 4 hot-swappable Gigabit Ethernet or two Gigabit Ethernet and two Fibre Channel switches. It additionally can accomodate up to 4 high-speed modules and up to 4 bridge modules. It accommodates up to four hot-swap 2900W power supply modules which supports load balancing and fail-over features. IBM BladeCenter H is designed to provide bridge support for high speed InfiniBand switch. The high availability backplane with high speed fabric enabled, ensures maximum uptime and provides investment protection for future technologies. The chassis can accomodate up to two management modules in a redundant mode. The chassis additionally has provision for serial connection to each blade server installed in the chassis for those serial port enabled application support. Note: The Serial connection available in BladeCenter H works only with the newer series of blade servers supporting serial wiring connection.

Blade Servers
All IBM BladeCenter chassis allows you to choose from different 2-processor and 4-processor offerings featuring high performance Intel Xeon Processors or AMD Opteron processors. The blade server family includes the following servers.

AMD Opteron LS41 for IBM BladeCenter

The LS41 is a quad-processor capable server designed on the AMD 8000 series processor. With two processor sockets, the LS41 occupies one blade bay in the BladeCenter chassis. With four processor sockets, the LS41 includes a expansion unit and occupies two blade bays. It is a unique solution available from IBM on a quad-processor capable blade server and supports the following architecture: Up to four AMD 8000 series dual-core Opteron processors. Up to 64 GB DDR2 memory using 4GB DIMMs on a quad-socket blade server. Two internal non-hot-swap SAS disk drives, plus support for up to 3 additional hot-swap SAS drives with an optional storage and I/O daughter blade. Support RAID-0 and 1 through the integrated SAS controller on the blade server, and RAID-5 with an optional SIO Blade. Up to four Gigabit Ethernet ports integrated on the blade. Integrated systems management processor for enhanced management capabilities.

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Can accomodate a Fibre Channel, Myrinet, and InfiniBand card for various connectivity solutions. The LS41 is a high computing server suitable for compute-intensive database server and mail applications in an enterprise.

IBM BladeCenter HS21 XM

The HS21 XM (extended memory) blade server features high performance Intel Xeon quad-core processors and up to 32 GB of RAM in 8 DIMM slots. It supports the following specifications: Up to two high performance Intel dual-core or quad-core processors. Its scales up from 1 GB to 32 GB fully buffered DIMM memory per blade server. One optional 2.5 SAS disk drive installed on each blade, and one optional 4GB modular flash drive, plus support for up to 3 hot-swap SAS drives with the optional Storage and I/O (SIO) expansion blade. Dual Gigabit Ethernet ports integrated on the blade. Integrated systems management processor for enhanced management capabilities. Accommodates a Fibre Channel, Myrinet and InfiniBand card for various connectivity solutions. With significant processor and memory capacity, the HS21 XM is an ideal solution for SAP Application server, SAP portal server or SAP test system. It has a strong presence in the collaboration, Linux cluster, citrix and compute centric application environment.

AMD Opteron LS21 for IBM BladeCenter

The IBM LS21 blade server is a high-density modular blade server designed on the AMD 2000 series processor. It is easy to deploy and maintain and supports the following architecture: Up to 2 AMD 2000 series dual-core Opteron processors. Up to 32 GB DDR2 memory using 4 GB DIMMs. Support for one non-hot-swap Small Form Factor (SFF) SAS Hard Disks on each blade, plus support for up to 3 hot-swap SAS drives with optional storage and I/O blade. Support RAID-1 and 5 with the optional SIO expansion blade. IBM LS21 Blade Server has dual Gigabit Ethernet ports integrated on the blade. Integrated systems management processor for enhanced management capabilities. Can accomodate a Fibre Channel, Myrinet and InfiniBand card for various connectivity solutions. The LS21 is an ideal solutions for SAP application and SAP portal server.

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IBM BladeCenter JS21

The IBM BladeCenter JS21 is a PowerPC based blade server designed for 64-bit UNIX, HPC Linux clusters and server consolidation. It supports IBM AIX, Linux, Advanced Power Virtualization and AltiVec SIMD accleration and is based on the following architecture: Supports up to two dual-core or quad-core 64-bit PowerPC 970MP processors with integrated AltiVec SIMD acclerator. Up to 16 GB DDR2 memory using 4 GB DIMMs. Up to 2 non-hot-swap Small Form Factor (SFF) SAS Hard Disks on each blade. Supports RAID-0 and 10 through the integrated SAS controller on the blade server. Dual Gigabit Ethernet ports integrated on the blade and, can scale up to four ports using a optional dual gigabit Ethernet card. Integrated systems management processor for enhanced management capabilities. Support for high speed daughter cards using the special PCI Express connector, and another integrated connector for small or standard form factor cards to accomodate a 4 GB Fibre Channel, 1x or 4x InfiniBand and Myrinet card for various connectivity solutions. The JS21 is a high computing server suitable for compute-intensive floating point and data intensive scientific applications in a heterogeneous environment.

IBM BladeCenter Switch Modules

IBM BladeCenter offers a wide choice of networking options to be integrated with the Blade Servers into the IBM BladeCenter chassis. The various switching options are discussed below briefly:

Ethernet Modules
IBM BladeCenter supports high availability products to ensure round the clock availability of the mission critical servers through a choice of networking products. It offers varied choices of Ethernet switches to meet your local area networking environment requirements: Cisco Intelligent GIgabit Ethernet Switch Module This is a 4-port copper switch and supports high availability networks through support of advanced STP protocols and trunk failover functionality. It is capable of delivering high throughput with support of multicast protocols such as IGMP snooping. Cisco IOS, CiscoWorks, and cluster management systems ensure easy management of the network. This switch supports network security through RADIUS, TACACS+ 802.1x and similar protocols. Cisco Fiber Intelligent Gigabit Switch Module This switch has SFP based ports for fiber connectivity to your network. It supports similar features as supported by the Cisco Systems Intelligent Gigabit Ethernet switch defined above. Nortel 10 Gigabit Uplink Ethernet Switch Module The Nortel Switch provides three 10G uplink connections at line speed to ensure maximum bandwidth to the network. It supports industry standard security protocols such as ACLs, advanced traffic management, dynamic routing with RIP, OSPF, BGP and VRRP networking protocols.

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Nortel Layer 2/3 Copper Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module The Nortel Layer 2/3 switch featured here offers six copper based Ethernet ports and delivers complete layer 2 and 3 functionality. It supports routing, filtering and traffic queuing and provides upgrade patch to full layer 4-7 services. Nortel Layer 2/3 Fiber Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module This Nortel Layer 2/3 switch offers six fiber uplinking protocols and supports the same features as the Nortel Layer 2/3 Copper Gigabit Ethernet Switch featured above. Nortel Layer 2-7 Copper Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module This switch from Nortel supports Layer 2-7 switching thereby offering high performance and availability. It is well suited for processing the high demands of bandwidth intensive applications and offers high level of network security and application and server load balancing. Server Connectivity Module This low cost module is designed to meet the needs of the small and medium customers that are looking at easy of installation, configuration and management. It is ideally suited for environments where a separation is desired between the server and networking domains.

Fibre Channel Modules

IBM BladeCenter offers a host of storage and Fibre Channel options to simplify infrastructure complexity and manageability while lowering the cost of ownership. It has the following options to offer: Brocade 10/20 port SAN Switch Module This switch offers 10 and 20 port fiber ports for connectivity at 1, 2 or 4 Gbps depending on your SAN solution requirement. The switch comes with 10-ports enabled and can be further upgraded to 20 ports. It is fully backward compatible and interoperable with Silkworm and IBM System Storage SAN switches. QLogic 10/20 Port Fiber Switch Module This switch from QLogic also offers 10 and 20 port fiber ports for connectivity at 1, 2 or 4 Gbps depending on your SAN solution requirement. It comes standard with 10-ports enabled and can be further upgraded to 20 ports. It is fully backward compatible and interoperable with Silkworm and IBM System Storage SAN switches. McDATA 10/20 Port Fiber Switch Module The McDATA switch offers 10 ports which can be upgraded to 20 ports using software upgrades. It provides McDATA HotCAT functionality to allow for nondisruptive code load activation and supports optional McDATA SANtegrity security software for protecting and managing data access. QLogic Enterprises 6 Port Fiber Switch Module It is an enterprise Fibre Channel switch at an affordable price offering SAN switching using the integrated QLogic SANBox 5200 technology. It integrates senselessly with the IBM System Storage products and supports NEBS compliant Fibre Channel units.

InfiniBand Modules
InfiniBand is a high performance, switched fabric interconnect standard for servers. The technology is deployed worldwide in server clusters ranging from 2 nodes to thousands of nodes. InfiniBand implementations are prominent in server clusters where high-bandwidth and low latency are key requirements. In addition to Server clusters, InfiniBand unifies the

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compute, communication and storage fabric in a data center. IBM offers InfiniBand capabilities on the IBM BladeCenter H. It has the following modules to support InfiniBand: Cisco 4x Infiniband switch It provides 14 ports of 10 Gbps server connectivity to blade servers installed in the blade chassis and provides 8-ports from the Blade Center chassis. The Cisco switch delivers high performance, low latency switching required to enable BladeCenter server systems to form high-performance clusters. It supports interfaces such as MPI, IPoIB, and SDP. The switch integrates with Ciscos server fabric virtualization software - Vframe. Cisco InfiniBand Switch This switch allows scale-out-data centers by interconnecting blade servers and chassis together, with InfiniBand as the interconnect between these. It enables the consolidation of LAN and SAN connectivity for an entire data cluster to a centralized location. It ensures virtualization and sharing of I/O and storage resources across an entire BladeCenter or pool of BladeCenters for cost savings and high availability. Note: InfiniBand switching modules are supported only on the BladeCenter H. IBM BladeCenter E and BladeCenter T do not support InfiniBand solutions.

4.2.5 High availability options

There are a number of high availability solutions available to complement any IBM System x or BladeCenter configuration. Some of these are defined below:

High Availability with Tivoli System Automation software

IBM Tivoli System Automation (TSA) for Multiplatforms is a high-availability cluster solution which provides several monitoring mechanisms to detect system failures and a set of rules to initiate the correct action without any user intervention. The set of rules is called a policy, which describes the relationships between applications or resources. TSA for Multiplatforms features predetermined policies for the complete SAP stack: DB2, DB2 HADR, Oracle, SAP Enqueue, including Application Server, SAP Router, NFS, etc. It manages availability of business applications, running in single AIX or Linux systems or clusters. IBM provides a free two-node license of Tivoli SA MP for the IBM DB2 database server, so that the only licenses to set up the SAP central instance for HA are required. More information about TSA for Multiplatforms is available from: http://www.ibm.com/software/tivoli/products/sys-auto-multi/ Tivoli Storage Manager (TSM), helping you to manage and automate your backup and recovery needs, is designed to work in a clustered environment. The Redbooks publication IBM Tivoli Storage Manager in a Clustered Environment, SG24-6679, is an easy-to-follow guide which describes how to implement IBM Tivoli Storage Manager products in highly available clustered environments. See also Tivoli storage management software on page 67 for more information about TSM.

High Availability with Veritas software

Veritas Storage Foundation HA for Windows brings advanced volume management technology to Windows Server 2003 and Windows 2000 environments. With the dynamic storage capability of Storage Foundation HA for Windows, combined with the advanced features of Veritas Cluster Server software, it is possible to automate cluster monitoring and, in the case of a detected failure, graceful take-over of both the application and its associated resources on an available server. 62
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A whitepaper on how to implement a highly available environment using Symantecs Veritas Storage Foundation HA with Veritas Cluster Server software, published by the IBM SAP International Competence Center (ISICC), is available through IBM TechDocs at the following URL: http://www.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/WP100970

High Availability with Microsoft Cluster Server

Microsoft Cluster Server (MSCS) provides the capability for a servers resources to failover from one machine to another. MSCS is part of the operating system in Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition and Datacenter Edition. This service provides high availability and scalability for mission-critical applications such as databases, messaging systems, file and print services and can be used to implement a highly available SAP system. The whitepaper MSCS Configuration and Support Information for SAP NetWeaver '04 and 7.0, available at the SAP Community Network, provides you with general information about MSCS, and typical SAP MSCS configurations and support information. It is available from: https://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/sdn/windows

4.3 IBM System Storage solutions

IBMs comprehensive approach, to SAP system storage needs, addresses the requirements for high performance, scalability, maximum security, reliability, and low total cost of ownership. IBM also recognizes the importance of sharing data across platforms in order to reduce data duplication, increase data availability, and improve network response time. IBM System Storage service offerings for SAP solutions include the following: Virtualization solutions from IBM to help improve flexibility in the storage infrastructure. The IBM System Storage Toolkit for Administrators helps simplify and automate the process of optimizing an IBM System Storage DS8000 - or DS6000 -based storage system. IBM FlashCopy solutions are designed to be able to handle large volumes of business-critical data and help SAP customers maintain high application-server availability to help minimize the impact on revenue-generating applications. Working with SAP, IBM has tested several backup/recovery and high availability scenarios designed to maintain data consistency and minimize user downtime.

4.3.1 SAP customer requirements

Whether they operate in retail, finance, pharmaceuticals or many other vertical markets, todays competitive businesses depend on SAP to run many of their core operational processesprocurement, sales, finance, customer relationship management and supply chain management, to name just a few. Applications such as SAP ERP give managers enterprise-wide visibility and control. With the increasing complexity of enterprise software systems, however, comes an ever-growing pool of data that must be kept secure and available 24 hours, 7days a week. SAP addresses this challenge by running on a two-tier or three-tier architecture with servers running the applications and a dedicated server for the database. Additional specialized servers often run backup and recovery operations, such as IBM Tivoli Systems Management and Tivoli Storage Management.

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Above all, SAP customers need storage solutions that maximize performance while keeping implementation and maintenance costs down. At the storage infrastructure level, SAP and IBM work together in two ways: first, through established interpretability programs, and second, through jointly developed SAP-specific service offerings. IBM is an SAP Global Services Partner, Global Technology Partner, and Global Hosting Partner. Many of the IBM storage solutions have been certified with SAP, including: IBM System Storage DS8000, DS6000, DS4700, DS3400 or DS3200 Server SAN Volume Controller IBM Linear Tape-Open (LTO) IBM Tivoli Storage Manager IBM Tivoli Access Manager IBM Tivoli Identity Manager Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications IBM DB2 Universal Database IBM DB2 CommonStore In addition, the IBM System Storage Proven Program is an interpretability initiative through which IBM provides a portfolio of pre-tested products and solutions from third-party vendors. For SAP customers, designated tested products, such as SAP ERP, help eliminate guesswork and reduce the risk of implementing new technologies. The potential results for customers include low integration costs and fast solution deployment. Numerous SAP solutions have been tested with IBM storage solutions, including the full SAP Business Suite, as well as applications such as SAP ERP and SAP Advanced Planning and Optimization and SAP. For a current list of tested products, see: http://www.storage.ibm.com/proven

4.3.2 IBM System Storage DS family

At the core of this e-business infrastructure is a complete range of disk storage solutions, which are designed to support business continuity and improve information life cycle management. The DS family includes solutions that scale from the smallest distributed storage servers to the largest data centers.

DS8000 for large enterprises

The IBM System Storage DS8000 sets high standards for performance, automation and integration in data-intensive environments. Components of the DS8000 series include a high-bandwidth and fault-tolerant design Fibre Channel interconnect; an expandable, flexible cache with performance optimization capabilities; and Fibre Channel attached disk technology. The series is designed to be able to scale from 1.1 Terabyte to more than 1 Petabyte. With virtualization functions, powerful data backup, and remote mirroring and recovery functions, the DS8000 can help allocate system resources to maximum advantage while boosting backup and data recovery capabilities. The system also accommodates nondisruptive microcode changesthus adding to data availability and overall flexibility.

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DS6000 for enterprises

A second option for mid-size and large businesses is the DS6000 series, which offers cost-effective and space-efficient enterprise functionality built on the IBM PowerPC microprocessor. The DS6000 relies on the core functional code of the DS8000 and intuitive, Web-based interfaces to help simplify data management and protect and recover data. It supports a variety of mainframe and open systems at a variety of price/performance levels. The DS8000 and DS6000 series are grounded in a sophisticated architectural strategy that helps IBM continually demonstrate technology leadership at very competitive prices. The architecture provides the solid foundation to deliver advanced functions and, ultimately, business continuance and efficiency. The defining attributes of the DS8000/DS6000 include: Platform for consolidation The DS8000/DS6000 provides an attractive platform not only for large applications but also for large-scale storage consolidation encompassing multiple hosts and applications. The DS8000/DS6000 attaches directly to a wide variety of popular IBM and non-IBM servers, using Fibre Channel, IBM FICON and IBM ESCON. With a high-performance design and up to 192 terabytes of physical capacity, the DS8000/DS6000 is well positioned to handle demanding application I/O workloads. DS8000/DS6000 customers can select and intermix disk capacities to customize system price and performance. Self-healing facilities A comprehensive approach to maintaining continuous access to SAP data requires more than just redundancy and support for concurrent system changes. Advanced features in the DS8000/DS6000 can help boost data availability during day-to-day operations, as well as during unanticipated events. DS8000/DS6000 features a fault-tolerant hardware design, in which major components such as disk drives, data paths, logic components, power supplies and cache are redundant. Comprehensive error detection and correction facilities continuously help protect the integrity of SAP data. All disk drives are RAID protected, and multiple spare disks are used to help quickly and automatically restore fault tolerance in the event a disk drive fails. In addition, IBM Predictive Failure Analysis can help determine when a disk drive is likely to fail in the near future so that dynamic disk sparing can be invoked pro-actively. DS8000/DS6000 also calls home to order parts or report a problemoften before anyone detects it. There is no additional charge for this feature. Maintaining access to data goes well beyond hardware fault tolerance alone. System upgrades to increase disk capacity or cache size or add host attachments can all be made concurrently with DS8000/DS6000 online operation. Many repairs can be carried out while application access to data continues. Internal software can often be changed while the DS8000/DS6000 remains online. Various changes to the customized configuration, such as defining logical disk volumes and assigning and reassigning these to various host computers, can be made dynamically by the customer at any time and usually without vendor involvement. Design for high performance Some vendors try to draw attention to the performance attributes of isolated disk system elements, such as internal bandwidth. But component specifications do not readily translate to application productivity. DS8000/DS6000 is designed to deliver high performance from the SAP application point of view. Two features enhance performance of the DS8000/DS6000: a large read-write cache and a stripe-all design.
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Attractive total cost of ownership (TCO) Unlike many other vendors, IBM does not impose onetime charges for many essential features, including basic configuration management and multi-path host I/O drivers. A selection of 10K and 15K RPM disks of different capacities helps optimize system price/performance and price/capacity. And a high-performance RAID-5 configuration option allows customers to achieve cost and scalability benefits of RAID-5 that are not possible with conventional mirroring designs. For SANs, each Fibre Channel port can be shared by multiple heterogeneous hosts and Host Bus Adapter (HBA) cards, potentially reducing the number of ports needed.

DS4000 for small and medium businesses

IBM DS4000 servers offer cost-effective, scalable and flexible storage, ranging from the affordable IBM System Storage DS4100 to the high-performance IBM System Storage DS4800 for on demand environments. High-availability models include many redundant-design components with dual active controllers. The FlashCopy feature can help dramatically shorten backup windows, helping enhance business readiness with minimal effect on online operations. Customers can easily expand storage capacity by adding expansion units.

4.3.3 IBM System Storage N series

The IBM Storage System N series provides a range of reliable, scalable storage solutions to meet different storage requirements of a customer. It uses network access protocols such as NFS, CIFS, HTTP and iSCSI as well as Storage Area technologies such as Fibre Channel to achieve this. It has built-in RAID-DP and RAID4 technologies to ensure that the customer data is well protected. To further leverage on this protection, one can implement mirroring, replication, snapshot and backup options. N series network storage is easy to install, manage, administer, and troubleshoot, thus making it an ideal choice for data storage. It has the following range of products to meet different needs of different organizations.

System Storage N7000

N7000 can be easily categorized as the enterprise class storage solution from IBM offering highest level of performance, scalability and availability to an enterprise. Its designed to provide the customer a mission critical high performance data transaction environment. It is available in two models - N7600 and N7800 - as a Single Node A10 or a cluster enabled A20 models. The 7600/7800 A10 series can scale up to 336 TB, while the N7600 A20 series can scale up to 420 TB. The N7800 A20 series can scale up to 504 TB using expansion drawers.

System Storage N5000

The N5200 and N5500 storage solution from IBM are suitable for high availability, high capacity and highly secured data environments. It comes in a 6U rack optimized models and offers choice for enterprise data management at midrange affordability. N5000 series is available in two models - the N5200 and the N5500 series. Each one of these further offers the G-10 single node and the G-20 clustered node option. Currently they can connect to NAS, IP SAN and FC SAN environments and use Fibre Channel or SATA disk drives in separate drawers. The N5200 can scale up to 84 TB while the N5500 can scale up to 168 TB disk storage using expansion units. It can support redundant hot plug power supplies, cooling fan and cluster failover on the G-20 model. 66
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N5000 series gateway

The IBM System Storage N5000 series gateway, an evolution of the N5000 series product line, is a network based Virtualization solution. It provides a number of key features that enhance the value and reduce the management costs of utilizing a Storage Area Network (SAN) and simplifies storage provisioning and management. It lowers the storage management and operating costs and increases storage utilization. N5000 series gateway is available in 2 models - the N5200 and the N5500 series. Each one of these further offers the G-20 being the clustered model to support failover and fail back solution.

System Storage N3700

The N3700 is a 3U solution designed to provide NAS and iSCSI functionality to the small and medium business solutions. The basic N3700 offering is a single node model A10, which can be upgraded to a dual node model A20. The dual node A20 is designed to support fail-over and failback functions to ensure maximum reliability. The N3700 series support maximum of 14 disk drives in a chassis and can scale further up to 16 TB of data storage using the expansion units. It supports Fiber as well as SATA disk drives in separate drawers. The N3700 has the capability to connect to a Fibre Channel tape drive for backup and restore. It can support redundant hot plug power supplies, cooling fan and cluster failover on the A20 model.

4.3.4 IBM System Storage SAN Volume Controller

The IBM System Storage SAN Volume Controller (SVC) enables a single point of control for disparate, heterogeneous storage resources to help support improved business application availability and greater resource utilization. The objective is to identify all storage resources in your IT infrastructure, to integrate it and to provide a virtualized interface to all of your storage capacity. With SVC you can do it quickly, efficiently, in real time, while avoiding administrative cost. More information about the SAN Volume Controller is available from: http://www.ibm.com/systems/storage/software/virtualization/svc/ In addition, see IBM System Storage SAN Volume Controller, SG24-6423 available from: http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/abstracts/sg246423.html

4.3.5 Value added options

IBM offers various other tools such as backup devices and software, to enable a customer to implement a turnkey solution to meet its IT challenges. Some of these are defined below.

Linear Tape-Open Libraries

IBM Linear Tape-Open (LTO) Libraries are designed to enable SAP administrators to archive and protect mission-critical data. Field-proven autoloaders are designed to offer exceptional data and media reliability along with logical library partitioning that can help improve configuration flexibility.

Tivoli storage management software

IBM Tivoli storage management software is designed to automate backup and restore processes to help maximize the integrity and availability of e-business data. IBM Tivoli

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Storage Manager (TSM) assists with backups, archiving, data recovery, and cloning. With TSM for Enterprise Resource Planning you can improve the availability of your SAP database servers and reduce your administration workload with automated data protection designed for SAP environments. For more information about IBM Tivoli Storage Manager for Enterprise Resource Planning see: http://www.ibm.com/software/tivoli/products/storage-mgr-erp/ TSM for Advanced Copy Services integrates Flash-Copy backup into SAP, providing backup within seconds. Currently being only available for AIX only it is planned to be supported for Windows and Linux within 2007 and thus may be available by the time of your reading. You can find more information about TSM for Advanced Copy Services, including availability, from: http://www.ibm.com/software/tivoli/products/storage-mgr-advanced-copy-services/

Storage Area Network Switches

IBM SAN switches enable storage servers to be configured into high-performance storage area networks (SAN) for greater flexibility to respond to changing business needs. You can deploy SAN fabrics at the departmental and data center levels and then interconnect these as the requirements change.

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Chapter 5.

The IBM advantage

So far, we have discussed SAP and its offerings, and the IBM and SAP synergy along with the IBM offerings on SAP. This chapter describes the advantages of IBM and SAP partnership and the core strength of IBM System x and BladeCenter offerings on SAP. We discuss the following topics: 5.1, SAP International Competence Centers on page 70 5.2, The IBM SAP International Competence Center on page 70 5.3, IBM Global Business Services on page 73 5.4, Insight from IBM - optimal utilization of resources on page 73 5.5, SAP NetWeaver BI Accelerator and the IBM solution on page 74 5.6, Scalability - multi-node capabilities on x3950 on page 76 5.7, Snoop Filter - sheer performance on page 77 5.8, IBM Pass Thru Card on page 78 5.9, Active Memory - protection against memory failures on page 78 5.10, PowerExecutive on page 80 5.11, SAP with Tivoli integration on page 81 5.12, Summary on page 82

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

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5.1 SAP International Competence Centers

International Competence Centers (ICCs) are the central interface between SAP and partners, to provide briefings, best practices, and recommendations for customer implementations. ICCs were founded to increase the compatibility between SAP software and the selected partners hardware, databases, and technologies. For over 30 years, IBM and SAP have combined services, technologies and applications to help some 5,000 of our clients worldwide implement successful SAP projects. IBM employs over 10,000 SAP practitioners in 80 countries, with an average of nine years of hands-on SAP experience across the team. Our global SAP implementation capabilities offer IBM's full breadth of services including consulting, infrastructure and applications, in-depth support, and operational and management processes. SAP business solutions (SAP Business Suite and the new generation of cross-functional applications, SAP xApps) are empowered by SAP NetWeaver, which offers full interoperability and extensibility at all levels of integration. This openness is essential, and provides our customers the groundwork for mastering a high degree of system heterogeneity. Furthering their commitment to join customers, SAP and IBM established the first Collaboration Technology Support Centers (CTSC), specifically focused on interoperability topics and collaborative projects. To support customers with questions associated with interoperability issues, SAP established the second CTSC with Microsoft. Each company has direct communications and links into each other's development, sales, and consulting teams in order to promote joint and cohesive solutions and provide leadership on software interoperability topics. Customers can work directly with the CTSC to help determine the best fit or mix of software solutions for their environment.

5.2 The IBM SAP International Competence Center

Founded in 1993, located at SAP Headquarters in Waldorf, Germany, the IBM SAP International Competence Center (ISICC) is a central point of access for IBM and SAP projects. Figure 5-1 on page 71 shows how the ISICC is central to IBMs partnership with SAP.

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Customer Care

Technology Supervision

Executive briefings Solution design Proof of Concepts Support in pilot situations Escalation Management
IBM SAP Partnership

Solution availability/
development

Hardware/software
certification

Benchmarks Sizing guidelines White Papers Technical education

Relationship with SAP Contracts/Negotiations Business Planning Information Hub Business Initiatives
Marketing & Sales Enablement Business Partner Attendance

Content delivery Sales and Marketing Collateral Sales Education Support Customer References

Technical Q&A service Event support Education CSI support

Figure 5-1 The ISICC is the center of the alliance

The IBM SAP International Competence Center can provide the following services: Customer Briefing and events: Executive Customer Briefings: Full day event for a single customer with a tailored agenda ensuring special demands of the customer are met. Workshops/Infodays: Offered to provide customers and Business Partners a forum for discussing new challenges and exchanging information with industry experts, for example, Business Partner Boost Program, Lotus Business Partners, Dynamic Infrastructure, and so on. Education Classes: Classes on hot topics for Business Partners and IBM, for example, Sizing classes, DB2 for SAP Business One, Portal Interoperability, and so on. Info Service: The Info Service is a managed question and answer (Q&A) service that the ISICC provides to IBM and SAP. It provides a single point of contact for all SAP related questions. Provides a worldwide network of experts on technology topics. Key support function in the alliance. In 2004 more than 5000 requests were handled. More than 80% of all requests get answered within one working day. To contact ISICC: e-mail: [email protected] Phone: +49-6227-73-1099 SAP Solution Sizing: Responsible for Sizing Guidelines Covers the growing complexity of SAP solution landscapes Conceptual guidance ensuring fulfillment of customer requirements
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Fine tuning and tailoring Teaches the Teacher sizing classes 3rd level sizing and configuration support for the field and Business Partners Activities provided by IBM SAP International Competence Center (ISICC): IBM and SAP Partnership Technology Exploitation Joint Marketing Initiatives Joint Solution Development Joint Events Technical Support WW Sizing Guidelines Benchmarks for Sizing Guidelines Server Certification Technical White Papers Technical Education Support 2nd Level tech Support Escalation Management Technical Q&A Support Marketing Support SAP/IBM Marketing Coordination Customer Executive Briefings Sales and Marketing Materials Sales Education Support Figure 5-2 shows the integration process between the IBM SAP International Competence Center (ISICC) and the other areas.

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Product Development
IBM
Product Laboratories Product Laboratories System x iSeries System p pSeries System i xSeries System z zSeries System Storage DB2 DB2 Middleware Lotus .... Tivoli WebSphere Microsoft Oracle Linux distributions Benchmarking Performance System x System p System i System z DB2

Solution Enablement

ISICC
Benchmarking Technical proof of concepts Sizing guidelines Product launch co-ordination

Technical Sales Support

ATS/FTSS/eTS Technical assessment Installation/Performance guidelines Complex architecture solution support Proof of concept Skill transfer / education

Other

Porting teams System i System z DB2 LinuxLab Linux on POWER 2nd level customer support Education Customer Executive Briefing De-escalation Management

Alliance/brand/sector/BCS/BP Presentations/flyers Competitive positioning Sizing support Strategic customer bid support Briefings Skill transfer / education

SAP

Application Development ERP CRM SCM BI Middleware

Marketing
Alliance/Brand/Sector/BCS/BP Campaigns Event support

Figure 5-2 The Integration between the ISICC and the IBM teams

5.3 IBM Global Business Services

IBM Global Business Services offers to their customers to implement their SAP solutions. IBM employs over 10,000 SAP practitioners in 80 countries, with an average of nine years of hands-on SAP experience across the team. Our global SAP implementation capabilities offer IBMs full breadth of services including consulting, infrastructure and applications, in-depth support, and operational and management processes. http://www.ibm.com/solutions/sap/doc/content/landingdtw/1882654130.html

5.4 Insight from IBM - optimal utilization of resources

Customers often look to IBM to help them resolve stressful issues. Those customers that have large databases and a large IT infrastructure face multiple challenges. They often face system bottleneck issues, where the users complain of slow access to the database. Then there is the ever-growing demand of hardware resources to meet the ever-growing database, while adding to or upgrading their existing installations, because the hardware resources are just not enough. To add to this stress, there is a constant requirement to streamline all IT operations, increase the Return on Investments (ROI), reduce the operational cost, and optimize utilization of resources. Insight is the IBM solution to such issues. It is a free analytical tool, which enables customers to reduce the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of their SAP setup by helping them increase

Customers
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Sales Support

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their optimization. Insight provides a professional analysis of the SAP environment free of charge and thus gives new perspectives of tactical and operational issues to the customer. It helps identify the deficiencies in the system and fine-tunes the parameters to gain performance improvement. Insight ensures that critical bottlenecks and disruptions can be avoided with no major effort and investment. It helps improve response times and, as a result, acceptance by end-users. Insight is a tool that is designed to increase return on hardware investment thus offering a higher return on Investment (ROI) and substantially reducing the risk of costly downtime.

Features of Insight
The Insight tool from IBM helps SAP customer identify the deficiencies and challenges and resolve these issues. It is a free of charge tool to review a production SAP environment. Insight delivers a report detailing the existing workload and utilization of the system. This report can be used in the SAP upgrade sizing process. Insight is available for all IBM and non-IBM platforms. Supports all generally available SAP releases. Insight is a set of three Microsoft Windows programs: Insight Collector captures SAP R/3 workload and OS utilization statistics Insight Reducer gathers information, verifies and compresses data set Insight Reporter generates the report (run by an IBM Techline specialist) You can read more about Insight, download documents including a white paper, and download the software from: http://www.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS381

5.5 SAP NetWeaver BI Accelerator and the IBM solution

SAP has a high number of Business Information Warehouse implementations in their installed base. The business analytics market is growing at a healthy pace as more organizations embrace fact-based decision making. The two primary drivers of the demand for business analytics solutions are increasing data volumes and end-user populations. These drivers place new performance requirements on existing analytic platforms. To address some of these requirements, SAP has introduced SAP BI accelerator functionality with SAP NetWeaver, deployed as an appliance combining software and hardware to increase the performance characteristics of SAP NetWeaver BI deployments. Many of these clients have very large databases and face performance issues. SAP NetWeaver BI Accelerator is a high performance analytical tool which is integrated within the SAP NetWeaver Business Intelligence component. The goal is to provide Near-Real-Time-Analytic, and the ability to provide large numbers of users the access to data in a data warehouse in close to real time. IBM has been the leading partner in the ramp-up phase and is a unique SAP partner for this solution. The solution with IBM is based on a Black Box Appliance concept: a separate server that links into the existing BI solution with minimal setup modifications. IBM is in a 74
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unique position to deliver a complete end-to-end BI solution, which is extremely scalable and enables customers to process large data volumes up to 200 times faster than with the traditional approach. The solution, based on IBM blade servers and storage, can be implemented into any existing SAP BI environment and is flexible enough for IBM and non-IBM business intelligence environments. The SAP BI Acclerator solution offers the following advantages: Bring BI to the majority and empower the business user. Crunch through terabytes of data in shorter time, enabling faster business insight, and super charge the customer business intelligence solution. Support a growing number of BI applications such as composite applications and a growing number of users with a stable, improved query response. Reduce administration costs. Scalable architecture that grows with increasing requirements over time. Achieve lower TCO for BI computing environment. Increase customer satisfaction on SAP BI investments with improved price and performance. BI accelerator is installed on a pre configured blade system. A blade system consists of hosts in the form of server blades. The server blades are connected to central disk storage. This is referred to here as a file server, regardless of the underlying hardware. The special feature of a BI accelerator installation on a blade system is that the BI accelerator software can be stored centrally as well as the BI accelerator data. This means that the software will be installed only once on the file server. Maintaining the system is efficient because you only have to implement software updates once. All server blades on which BI accelerator is running access the same program files. However, each server blade has its own configuration files. The configuration files in the directory <TREX_DIR> are only used as templates. A script creates a separate subdirectory for each server blade and copies the configuration files to this subdirectory. Because BI accelerator is an integral part of the SAP NetWeaver release strategy and a key building block towards their Enterprise roadmap, all SAP clients will have to reconsider their BI strategies in the near future. You can use BI accelerator only in connection with the SAP NetWeaver 2004s BI starting with SAP NetWeaver 2004s Support Package Stack 5. BI accelerator is a special Linux 64-bit version of SAP NetWeaver 2004s Search and Classification (TREX) which is delivered on preconfigured hardware. You cannot use BI accelerator for the regular TREX search and classification.

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5.6 Scalability - multi-node capabilities on x3950

Organizations that implement SAP have experienced a phenomenal data growth over time. This is primarily due to the growth in number of users and new SAP modules being added over a period of time. The challenge is not only to secure and maintain this data, but also to ensure that the hardware used for database server is capable of handling this data growth. Most of the hardware has limited capability to scale up and therefore needs to be replaced after some time. Migrating the hardware and database is never an easy option, and the re-investment in hardware is never appreciated by management. The IBM System x3950 is a unique solution for such challenging environments. It has a scalable design which allows it to grow from a 4-socket server to a 32-socket server therefore offering complete protection of your investments. The x3950 offers the ability to scale the server by connecting multiple chassis together to form a larger complex. These chassis (or nodes) can be either other x3950 servers or x3950E modular expansion enclosures. The x3950E modular expansion enclosure is a system used to extend an x3950 configuration. Like the x3950, the x3950E contains microprocessors, memory, disks, and PCI-X adapters. However, unlike the x3950, the x3950E modular expansion enclosure can only be used to expand an x3950 configuration. The x3950E is functionally identical to the x3950 and supports the same hardware options. The key differences between the x3950 and x3950E are: The x3950E modular expansion enclosure is for expansion purposes and cannot be used as the primary node of a multi-node complex, and it cannot be used as the primary node in a partition. It does not have a DVD-ROM drive installed. The x3950E enclosure has no processors installed as standard. The x3950E has no memory installed (although two memory cards are installed). The x3950 server can be configured together with one, three, or seven x3950Es to form a single 8-way, 16-way, or 32-way complex, as shown in Figure 5-3 on page 77. Any other multi-node configurations are not supported.

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

32-way
Up to 512 GB RAM x3950 + 7x 3950E Eight chassis

x3950E
16-way
Up to 256 GB RAM x3950 + 3x 3950E Four chassis

x3950E x3950E x3950E x3950E x3950E x3950E x3950

8-way
Up to 128 GB RAM x3950 + 1x 3950E Two chassis

x3950E x3950E

2-way or 4-way
Up to 64 GB RAM x3950 single chassis

x3950E x3950

x3950E x3950

x3950

Figure 5-3 Multi node configuration supported by x3950

Additional x3950s can be substituted for the x3950E. While this increases the cost of the complex, it means you can implement partitioning. Multi-node complexes support partitioning on node boundaries. This means, for example, you can logically partition your 16-way as two 8-way systems, while still leaving the complex cabled as a 16-way. This increases flexibility. You can reconfigure the complex using the Web interface without changing the systems or cabling. However, every partition must have an x3950 as the primary node. This restriction means that clients must decide from the beginning whether they want to use the partitioning feature and order an appropriate combination of x3950 and x3950E systems. A multi-node configuration can be partitioned using the RSA II Web interface. However, each partition must have an x3950 as the primary node. You cannot partition a multi-node configuration so that any partition has only x3950E nodes. If you want maximum partitioning flexibility, all your nodes should be x3950 systems.

5.7 Snoop Filter - sheer performance

The XceL4v dynamic server cache present in the X3 Architecture servers (x3950, x3850 and x3800) serves two purposes in the X3 Architecture servers: As a single, 4-way server, the XceL4v and its embedded DRAM (eDRAM) is used as a snoop filter to reduce traffic on the front side bus. It stores a directory of all processor cache lines to minimize snoop traffic on the dual front side buses and minimize cache misses. This results in reducing the transaction latency and thereby improving overall CPU throughput. The snoop filter provides an enhanced performance boost for a 4-way server, compared to a server with simple repeater as in typical server designs. As is evident, this results in an overall increase in the server performance. This feature is one of the factors for industry leading performance benchmarks displayed by the IBM System x servers.
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5.8 IBM Pass Thru Card

The CPU Pass Thru Card is an option that allows for flexible configurations of the x3755 and is needed when one or three CPUs are installed. It allows for direct connection to additional I/O slots and faster access to processors for optimal performance. The IBM CPU Pass Thru Card provides a solution for potential savings with ISVs1 that have a licensing fee structure based on CPUs. The x3755 with Pass Thru Card would provide equal or better system performance for a lower software licensing fee. According to a benchmark test made by an independent organization, IBM System x3755 using the IBM Pass Thru Card with 3 AMD Opteron processors are 17.3% faster, compared with 4 AMD Processors and both servers with the same configuration. The IBM Benchmark test shows the IBM x3755 server with IBM Pass Thru Card. The benefits in decreased latency and increased memory throughput are shown in Figure 5-4.
Stream benchmark results 20000 18000 Memory throughput (MBps) 16000 14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 4000 2000 0 Copy Scale Add Triad Memory operation 3-way with Passthru card 3-way without Passthru card

Figure 5-4 Memory throughput benefit of the PassThru Card

Detailed information for this product is available in the Redpaper System x3755 Technical Introduction at this site: http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/redpapers/pdfs/redp4260.pdf

5.9 Active Memory - protection against memory failures

There are a number of advanced features implemented in the X3 Architecture memory subsystem, collectively known as Active Memory. The active memory capability provides the
1

An Independent Software Vendor (ISV) is a business term for companies that specialize in making or selling software products that run on one or more computer hardware or operational system platforms.

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

following features which are extremely critical to large database and application server environments such as SAP: Memory ProteXion The Memory ProteXion feature (also known as redundant bit steering) provides the equivalent of a hot-spare drive in a RAID array. It is based in the memory controller, and it enables the server to sense when a chip on a DIMM has failed and to route the data around the failed chip. Normally, 128 bits out of every 144 are used for data and the remaining 16 bits are used for ECC functions. However, X3 Architecture needs only 12 bits to perform the same ECC functions, therefore leaving four bits free. These four bits are equivalent to an x4 memory chip on the DIMM that Memory ProteXion uses. In the event that a chip failure on the DIMM is detected by memory scrubbing, the memory controller can reroute data around that failed chip through these spare bits. It can do this automatically without issuing a Predictive Failure Analysis (PFA) or light path diagnostics alert to the administrator, although an event is logged to the service processor log. After the second DIMM failure, PFA and light path diagnostics alerts would occur on that DIMM as normal. Memory scrubbing Memory scrubbing is an automatic daily test of all the system memory that detects and reports memory errors that might be developing before they cause a server outage. Memory scrubbing and Memory ProteXion work in conjunction with each other and do not require memory mirroring to be enabled to work properly. When a bit error is detected, memory scrubbing determines if the error is recoverable or not. If it is recoverable, Memory ProteXion is enabled and the data that was stored in the damaged locations is rewritten to a new location. The error is then reported so that preventative maintenance can be performed. As long as there are enough good locations to allow the proper operation of the server, no further action is taken other than recording the error in the error logs. If the error is not recoverable, then memory scrubbing sends an error message to the light path diagnostics, which then turns on the proper lights and LEDs to guide you to the damaged DIMM. If memory mirroring is enabled, then the mirrored copy of the data from the damaged DIMM is used until the system is powered down and the DIMM is replaced. Memory mirroring Memory mirroring is roughly equivalent to RAID 1 in disk arrays, in that usable memory is halved and a second copy of data is written to the other half. If 8 GB is installed, then the operating system sees 4 GB once memory mirroring is enabled. It is disabled in the BIOS by default. Because all mirroring activities are handled by the hardware, memory mirroring is operating system independent. When memory mirroring is enabled, certain restrictions exist with respect to placement and size of memory DIMMs and the placement and removal of memory cards. Chipkill memory Chipkill is integrated into the XA-64e chipset. So it does not require special Chipkill DIMMs and it is transparent to the operating system. When combining Chipkill with Memory ProteXion and Active Memory, X3 Architecture provides very high reliability in the memory subsystem. When a memory chip failure occurs, Memory ProteXion transparently handles the rerouting of data around the failed component, as described above. However, if a further failure occurs, the Chipkill component in the memory controller reroutes data. The memory controller provides memory protection similar in concept to disk array striping with
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parity, writing the memory bits across multiple memory chips on the DIMM. The controller is able to reconstruct the missing bit from the failed chip and continue working as usual. One of these additional failures can be handled for each memory port for a total of four Chipkill recoveries. Hot-add and hot-swap memory The X3 Architecture servers support the replacing of failed DIMMs while the server is still running. This hot-swap support works in conjunction with memory mirroring. The server also supports adding additional memory while the server is running. Adding memory requires operating system support. These two features are mutually exclusive. Hot-add requires that memory mirroring be disabled and hot-swap requires that memory mirroring be enabled. In addition, to maintain the highest levels of system availability, if a memory error is detected during POST or memory configuration, the server can automatically disable the failing memory bank and continue operating with reduced memory capacity. You can manually re-enable the memory bank after the problem is corrected by using the Setup menu in the BIOS. Memory mirroring, Chipkill, and Memory ProteXion provide multiple levels of redundancy to the memory subsystem. Combining Chipkill with Memory ProteXion allows up to two memory chip failures for each memory port on the system, for a total of eight failures sustained. For example: 1. The first failure detected by the Chipkill algorithm on each port does not generate a light path diagnostics error because Memory ProteXion recovers from the problem automatically. 2. Each memory port could then sustain a second chip failure without shutting down. 3. Provided that memory mirroring is enabled, the third chip failure on that port would send the alert and take the DIMM offline, but keep the system running out of the redundant memory bank.

5.10 PowerExecutive
PowerExecutive is a plug-in for IBM Director that records and displays the power data collected by BladeCenter blades. With this product it is possible to know the real power consumption of your servers. It is built in to the servers for free. And just like all other system management in BladeCenter, power measurement is completely out-of-band; it does not depend on or affect the software running on the blades. In each IBM blade, engineers have installed power and thermal sensors to keep track of how much power the server is using. The blade's firmware then calculates the use and feeds those numbers to the PowerExecutive application. More information for IBM PowerExecutive is available at: http://www.ibm.com/systems/management/director/extensions/powerexec.html

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5.11 SAP with Tivoli integration

Companies are looking to maximize their investments, especially when we are talking about SAP. IBM Service Management solutions from Tivoli are designed to improve IT process innovation and integration. IBM Tivoli products are Certified for SAP NetWeaver. IBM IT Optimization for SAP Business Suite creates a pool of shared resources to manage the workload. Automates SAP infrastructure management. IBM Dynamic Infrastructure for SAP Business Suite is the core technology for IT optimization of SAP landscapes. IBM provides a complete integration suite to administer SAP environments: Availability Incident and Problem Management in SAP environments Monitoring SAP Transactions Response time Optimization Scheduling of SAP jobs Storage Management Tivoli System Automation Orchestration Automate SAP Data Center Processes High Availability solutions for SAP BSM Visualize SAP environments in business terms Manage Service Levels to business objectives Provisioning Identity Management of SAP users Software Deployment Security Single Sign-ON for SAP users, Identity Management and Directory Server Integration Options available by IBM Tivoli to integrate and interoperate with NetWeaver: Tivoli Storage Solutions, used to work with backup and recovery solutions for SAP databases and application landscapes with Tivoli Storage Management using latest storage technologies and complete disaster recovery functionalities. Archiving and document management can also be addressed with the Tivoli CommonStore. Tivoli integrates SAP landscapes from a monitoring and availability perspective using several interfaces and SAP management tools, also leveraging the Computing Center Management System (CCMS). Tivoli Composite application management, recognizes performance problems from a user perspective and quickly isolate problems in end-to-end transaction scenarios across the enterprise. Tivoli Workload Scheduler for Applications, organizes the workflow integrating the SAP NetWeaver applications. For example, this is important when the application has to receive information when a specific job is finished so another work process can start properly.
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Tivoli Security integration for managing identity and access, integration of the security provided by SAP NetWeaver and IBM Tivoli Security Portfolio. For example, you can administrate the user account on the SAP system so that the users can logon to the SAP system using Single Sign-On. Tivoli provisioning enables third party software tools to communicate and integrate with Adaptive Computing using the Adaptive Computing Controller Command Interface.

5.12 Summary
To briefly summarize, an IBM System x and BladeCenter offering is the most ideal platform for customers to implement mission-critical applications like SAP, that are looking for reliability, manageability, and scalability with the flexibility to run Windows or Linux. The X3 Architecture Family is the foundation of a cost-effective SAP solution landscape. This new family of products provides a low cost, scalable platform with superior performance and unmatched reliability. The IBM System x and BladeCenter family is perfectly suited for SAP solutions because it offers the following advantages which are unmatched: Scalability - IBM offers unparalleled XpandOnDemand scalability from 2-way to 32-way servers. No competitor can provide such scalability beyond 4-way on an EM64T architecture. Performance - IBM System x and BladeCenter servers have delivered industry-leading performance benchmarks on SAP and other platforms, a clear lead over their competitive products. The IBM X3 architecture ensures utmost focus on reducing latency which improves the throughput and overall system performance. Reliability - It is imperative for a critical server environment to have built-in redundancy on maximum components to ensure that the servers are always available to the users with no downtime. With unique features such as light path diagnostics, active memory and other such features, System x and BladeCenter are the best platforms to meet this requirement for high end solutions like SAP. Cost-effective deployment - Because the IBM System x servers offer extremely high scalability and high performance, the overall hardware sizing requirement is reduced for any application. Moreover, the simplification of deployment and maintenance allows SAP customers to focus on their implementation and better manage their infrastructure costs. Helps focus on business - SAP Adaptive Computing based on NetWeaver, used in conjunction with IBM Dynamic Infrastructure on Linux systems can help customers manage compute resources in a more efficient manner. This will help increase overall utilization of assets, while providing additional capacity on demand. It improves collaboration across different spheres of any organization, thus helping them to focus on growing their business. Manageability - IBM helps customers improve the management of their IT infrastructure by reducing the complexity of IT. Through Autonomic Computing technologies, IBM helps customers leverage their critical skills better, allowing IT to do more with less and can help position themselves to dynamically respond to unpredictable workloads and better manage the proliferation of systems.

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Abbreviations and acronyms

ABAP ACT AMD API AS ASCS ATA BGP BI BIOS BMC CCMS CCNA CD-ROM CIFS CPU CRM CTSC DB DDR DIMM DRAM ECC eDRAM ERP ESCON FC FICON FSB GB GRC HA HBA HCL HDD HPC HT Advanced Business Application Programming Advanced Cabling Technology Advanced Micro Devices application programming interface Australian Standards ABAP central services instance AT attachment Border Gateway Protocol Business Intelligence Basic input output system Baseboard management controller Computer Center Management System Cisco Certified Network Associate Compact disc read only memory Common Internet File System Central processing unit Customer Relationship Management Collaboration Technology Support Centers Database Double Data Rate Dual inline memory module Dynamic random access memory Error checking and correcting Embedded DRAM Enterprise Resource Planning Enterprise systems connection Fibre Channel Fibre Connection Front-side bus Gigabyte Governance, Risk and Compliance High availability Host Bus Adapter Hardware Compatibility List Hard disk drive High performance computing Hyper-Threading MP MSCS MSIM NAS NEBS NFS NOS OEM OS OSPF PCI IGS IP IPMI ISICC ISV IT ITSO IVN IXA KVM LAN LED LTO MCDBA MCSA MCSE ICC ICM IGMP HTTP HW I/O IBM Hypertext Transfer Protocol Hardware Input/output International Business Machines Corporation International Competency Center Internet Communication Manager Internet Group Management Protocol Internet Graphics Service Internet Protocol Intelligent Platform Management Interface IBM SAP International Competence Center Independent Software Vendor Information technology International Technical Support Organization Industry value network Integrated xSeries Adapter Keyboard video mouse Local area network Light emitting diode Linear Tape-Open Microsoft Certified Database Administrator Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer Multiprocessor Microsoft Cluster Server Multi-Switch Interconnect Module Network addressable storage Network equipment building system Network file system Network operating system Other equipment manufacturer Operating system Open Shortest Path First Peripheral Component Interconnect

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PDF PDU PFA PLM POST QA RADIUS RAID RAM RDM RFID RIP ROI RPM RSA SA SAN SAPS SAS SATA SCM SCSI SD SDM SDN SFF SFP SIMD SIO SL SOA SQL STP SVC TACACS TB TCO TCP/IP TPC TSA

Portable Document Format Power distribution unit Predictive Failure Analysis Product lifecycle management Power on self test Quality Assurance Remote Authentication Dial In User Service Redundant array of independent disks Random access memory Remote Deployment Manager Radio frequency identification Routing Information Protocol Return on Investment Red Hat Package Manager Remote Supervisor Adapter Solution assurance Storage Area Network SAP Application Benchmark Performance Standard Serial Attached SCSI Serial ATA Supply Chain Management Small computer system interface Sales and distribution Software Deployment Manager SAP Developer Network Small form factor Small form-factor pluggable Single instruction multiple data Storage and I/O SlimLine Service Oriented Architecture Structured query language SATA Tunneled Protocol SAN Volume Controller Terminal Access Controller Access Control System Terabyte Total Cost of Ownership Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol Transaction Processing Council Tivoli System Automation

TSM URL USB VRRP WfMC WW

Tivoli Storage Manager Uniform Resource Locator Universal serial bus Virtual router redundancy protocol Workflow Management Coalition World wide

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The Benefits of Running SAP Solutions on IBM System x and BladeCenter

Related publications
The publications listed in this section are considered particularly suitable for a more detailed discussion of the topics covered in this Redpaper.

IBM Redbooks
For information about ordering these publications, see How to get IBM Redbooks on page 86. Note that some of the documents referenced here may be available in softcopy only. IBM System Storage Solutions Handbook, SG24-5250 Integrating IBM Director with Enterprise Management Solutions, SG24-5388 Introduction to Storage Area Networks, SG24-5470 IBM System Storage: Implementing an IBM SAN, SG24-6116 Implementing IBM Director 5.20, SG24-6188 The IBM eServer BladeCenter JS20, SG24-6342 IBM System Storage SAN Volume Controller, SG24-6423 IBM eServer xSeries and BladeCenter Server Management, SG24-6495 IBM Tivoli Storage Manager in a Clustered Environment, SG24-6679 Planning and Installing the IBM eServer X3 Architecture Servers, SG24-6797 IBM BladeCenter 4Gb SAN Solution, SG24-7313 Nortel Networks L2/3 Ethernet Switch Module for IBM eServer BladeCenter, REDP-3586 IBM BladeCenter Networking with the 4-Port Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module, REDP-3660 IBM eServer BladeCenter Layer 2-7 Network Switching, REDP-3755 Cisco Systems Intelligent Gigabit Ethernet Switch Module for the IBM eServer BladeCenter, REDP-3869 IBM eServer BladeCenter and Topspin InfiniBand Switch Technology, REDP-3949 IBM BladeCenter iSCSI SAN Solution, REDP-4153

Online resources
These Web sites are also relevant as further information sources:

IBM pages
IBM System x and BladeCenter with SAP applications http://www.ibm.com/systems/x/solutions/infrastructure/erpcrm/sap.html IBM Hardware Sizing Questionnaires http://www.ibm.com/erp/sizing Benchmarks: IBM System x http://www.ibm.com/servers/eserver/xseries/benchmarks

Copyright IBM Corp. 2007. All rights reserved.

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IBM System Storage Proven http://www.storage.ibm.com/proven SAP with Veritas Storage Foundation HA on IBM System x and IBM BladeCenter http://www.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/WP100970 Tivoli Storage Manager for Enterprise Resource Planning http://www.ibm.com/software/tivoli/products/storage-mgr-erp/ Tivoli Storage Manager for Advanced Copy Services http://www.ibm.com/software/tivoli/products/storage-mgr-advanced-copy-services/ IBM Tivoli System Automation for Multiplatforms http://www.ibm.com/software/tivoli/products/sys-auto-multi/ IBM Insight for SAP ERP - Utility for anyone running SAP http://www.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS381 IBM PowerExecutive http://www.ibm.com/systems/management/director/extensions/powerexec.html IBM Global Business Services and SAP http://www.ibm.com/solutions/sap/doc/content/landingdtw/1882654130.html

SAP pages
SAP on Linux http://www.sap.com/linux/ SAP on Microsoft Windows https://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/sdn/windows SAP Standard Application Benchmarks http://www.sap.com/benchmark

Others pages
Transaction Processing Performance Council http://www.tpc.org SAP Certification: IBM systems http://saponwin.com/pub/hardware.asp?l=vendor&sl=12&la=en

How to get IBM Redbooks

You can search for, view, or download Redbooks, Redpapers, Hints and Tips, draft publications and Additional materials, as well as order hardcopy Redbooks or CD-ROMs, at this Web site: ibm.com/redbooks

Help from IBM

IBM Support and downloads

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ibm.com/support IBM Global Services ibm.com/services

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