HP (Hewlett-Packard) BL685c G5 manual

Performance characterization of HP ProLiant BL685c G5 with Quad-Core AMD Optero n processors (2.3 GHz) in a 64-bit HP Server Based Computing environment Executive summary ............................................................................................................................... 3 Audience ........................................[...]

Appendix C – SBC solution sizing ....................................................................................................... 21 Online sizer tool ............................................................................................................................ 21 For more information .........................................[...]

Executive summary Important: This document describes a perfor mance characterization performed utilizing the HP 64-bit test harness, which incorporates a Microsoft® Office 2003 workload. Test results cannot be compared directly wit h the results of tests performed using the 32-bit Office XP- or Office 2003-based h arness. The HP ProLiant BL685c G5[...]

Figure 1 . HP ProLiant BL685c G5 server blade AMD Opteron processors The HP ProLiant BL685c G5 server blade supports up to four Quad-Core AMD Opteron 8300 Series processors. This native quad-core proc essor delivers the following benefits: • Outstanding performance The Quad-Core Opteron processor is designed fo r optimal multi-threaded applicatio[...]

• Investment protection By leveraging AMD’s Common Co re Strategy and Same Socket Technology, Quad-Core Opteron processors can minimiz e changes to the custom er’s software and data center infrastructure, protecting IT investments and simplifying management. AMD Dual Dynamic Power Management Dual Dynamic Power Management fu nctionality allows[...]

Test methodology HP continues to upgrade existing HP ProLiant server s and introduce new servers to meet particular business needs. To help customers select th e appropriate server for their particular HP SBC environment, HP publishes this and other perfor mance characterizations so that you can compare individual server performance and scalability[...]

Test tools To facilitate the placement and management of simulated loads on an HP SBC server, HP used Terminal Services Scalability Planning Tools (TSSca ling), a suite of tools developed by Microsoft to help organizations with Microsoft Windows® Se rver 2003 Terminal Server capacity planning. Table 1 describes these tools. Table 1 . Comp onent s [...]

Table 3 outlines the activities performed by each user class uti lizing Office 2003 products. Table 3 . Activities incorporated into the test scripts for each user clas s Activity description Heavy Us er Medium User Light User Access Open a database, apply a filter, search through records, add records, and delete records. X Excel Open, print and sa[...]

Note: When running canary scripts, HP c onsiders user response times to become unacceptable when they increase markedly over a baseline measurement. Test topology Figure 2 illustrates the HP SBC test environment. Figure 2 . The tested environment Note: Test environments such as that sho wn in Figure 2 are available to customers at HP Solution Cente[...]

Configurations Table 4 summarizes the configuration s of servers and clients us ed in the test environment. Table 4 . System configurations Server Configuration 4P HP ProLiant BL685c G5 server blade with: • Opteron Processor Model 8356 (2.3 GHz) – 512 KB L2 cache per core; 2 MB L3 cache • 32 GB RAM • Integrated Smart Array E200i controller [...]

Table 4 . System configurations (continued) Server Configuration Variety of Intel Pentium®-based Compaq Evo workstations (600 MHz – 2.533 GHz), each with: • At least 256 MB of memory • 1024 x 768/16-bit color depth • 100 Mbps NIC Client Windows 2000 Professional or Windows XP HP SBC server summary Table 5 summarizes the configuration o f t[...]

Table 5. System summary for the HP ProLiant BL685c G5 server blad e (continued) Component Description Total physical memory 32,765.62 MB Available physical memory 30.78 GB Total virtual memory 79.06 GB Available virtual memory 78.78 GB Page file space 48.00 GB Page file C:pagefile.sys Performance test results This section outlines the te st result[...]

Perfmon values HP ran a series of performance tests u sing scri pts based on the Heavy, Medium, and Light User profiles. Figure 3 shows the test res ults for Heavy Users. Figure 3 . % Processor Time values for Heavy Users – showing that 301 Heavy Us ers were supported when processor utilization reached 80% Figure 3 shows the optimal number of H e[...]

Canary times Figure 4 shows sample results for the HP ProLiant BL685c G5 server blade running a typical canary script. Individual user response times are shown in blue , with a yellow line depicting average response times. HP analyzed this figure to determine when re sponse times began to increase markedly and consistently over a baseline level, in[...]

Test analysis summary Figure 5 summarizes the optimal numbe rs of users supported by the HP ProLiant BL685c G5 s erver blade. Figure 5 . Optimal numbers of user s supported in the 64-bit test harness For Heavy and Medium Users, HP characterized the scalability of the HP ProLiant BL685c G5 server blade through the numbers of users supported when CPU[...]

Appendix A – HP BladeSystem Out of the box, HP BladeSystem removes constraint s imposed by conventional IT infrastructures, unifying server, storage, networking, power, and mana gement capabilities in a change-ready, energy-thrifty, and cost-effective sy stem. HP BladeSy stem helps customer s of all sizes – from large enterprises to small and m[...]

Management • HP Onboard Administrator provides comp lete control of the infrastruct ure • Interactive HP Insight Display allows easy setup and configuration from the front of the rack • HP Insight Control Environment for HP BladeSystem automates deployment, pr ovisioning, server and performance management, and patch and vulnerabi lity managem[...]

Performance • Up to eight c-Class server blades • Up to three I/O fabrics • Multi-terabit mid-plane to support cu rrent and futu re I/O connection s • N+N and N+1 power redundancy for maximum configuration flexibility • Choice of AC (with support for low-line or high-line power) or DC power supplies Management • HP Onboard Administrator[...]

Appendix B – Using Microsoft Windows Server 2003 x64 Editions Microsoft offers a new generati on of high-performance platfo rms for 64-bit applications with continued support for 32-bit applications and existing deployment and management tools – all on the same platform. These new operating sy stems provid e an evolutionary path to 64-bit techn[...]

More information For more information on the impact of 64-bit Wi ndows Server 2003 x64 Editions in an HP SBC environment, refer to the HP white paper , “Scalability and performance of HP ProLiant s ervers on 64- bit Microsoft Windows Server 2003 in a n HP SBC environment.” To learn about 64-bit computing in an HP SBC environment, refer to the H[...]

Appendix C – SBC solution sizing As with any laboratory benchmark, the performanc e metrics quoted in this performance brief are idealized. In a production environment, these me trics may be impacted by a variety of factors, including the following: • Overhead Agents and services (virus sca nning, backup and restore, provisio ning, security, ma[...]

Figure C-1 . The HP SBC sizer’s welcome s creen Based on information provided by the customer, the sizer can provide a quick, consistent mechanism for identifying the “best-fit” server for a parti cular HP SBC environment and generate a Bill of Materials (BOM) for that server. 22[...]

For more information HP ProLiant BL685c G5 server blade http://www.hp.com/servers/bl685c HP BladeSystem c-Class server blades http://www.hp.com/servers/cclass HP ActiveAnswers for Serv er Based Computing http://www.hp.com/solutions/activeanswers/hpsbc HP ProLiant Essentials Rapid Deployment Pack (RDP) http://www.hp.com/go/rdp Consolidated HP SBC on[...]