Lenovo ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Node (Xeon SP Gen 2)

Lenovo ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes are designed for deploying industry-leading Hyper-Converged Infrastructure (HCI) software from VMware on Lenovo enterprise platforms that feature the second generation of the Intel Xeon Processor Scalable family (Xeon SP Gen 2). They deliver fully validated and integrated Lenovo hardware and firmware that is certified with VMware software and preloaded with the VMware ESXi hypervisor. VMware offers a unique, software-defined approach to hyper convergence, leveraging the hypervisor to deliver compute, storage and management in a tightly integrated software stack.

The ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes are dense nodes in the 2U 4-node rack-mount enclosures that can be optimized for various types of workloads, including general purpose workloads for small and medium businesses, compute-heavy workloads (such as virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), server virtualization, private/hybrid clouds, enterprise applications, and light databases), and high-performance workloads (such as databases, e-mail and collaboration, and load-balancing clusters).

The ThinkAgile 2U4N Certified Nodes are shown in the following figure.

Figure 1. Lenovo ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes

The ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes are built on industry-leading Lenovo ThinkSystem servers that feature enterprise-class reliability, management, and security.

The ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes deliver fully validated and integrated hardware and firmware that is certified with VMware software.

The ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes offer the following key features:

• Offer quick and convenient path to implement a hyperconverged solution powered by VMware vSAN with a wide range of selection options for processors, memory, storage, and network connectivity.
• Built on proven and reliable Lenovo ThinkSystem servers featuring Intel Xeon Processor Scalable Family that provide compute power for a variety of workloads and applications.
• Meet various workload demands with cost-efficient hybrid or performance-optimized all-flash storage configurations.
• Deliver fully validated and integrated hardware and firmware that is certified with VMware software.
• Preloaded with the VMware ESXi hypervisor and ready for out-of-box deployment (software licenses are not included).
• Provide flexibility in using the existing VMware enterprise license agreements or purchasing new software licenses and support contracts from VMware or Lenovo.
• Offer optional Lenovo deployment services to get customers up and running quickly.

The VMware software running on ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes delivers the following key features:

• Distributed architecture that allows "pay-as-you-grow", non-disruptive scaling by adding new nodes to the cluster (scale-out) to increase capacity and performance.
• Advanced capacity management, including deduplication, compression, and erasure coding (RAID 5/6), which helps deliver greater storage utilization with dramatically lower storage capacity and costs.
• Automation of VM storage provisioning and control of storage service levels (capacity, performance, availability) with VM-centric policies to load balance storage resources.
• Native HCI security solution with two-factor authentication (SecurID and CAC) and data-at-rest encryption that does not require self-encrypting drives (SEDs).
• Stretched cluster with local and site failure protection between two geographically dispersed sites for higher level of availability with near zero downtime.
• Centralized management with provisioning, administering, and monitoring virtual resources across multiple hosts and clusters from a centralized interface.
• Rapid workload provisioning, simplified data center operations, increased business efficiency, and decreased CAPEX and OPEX costs.
• VM and data protection with agent-less, image-level virtual machine backups and application-aware protection for business-critical Microsoft applications (Exchange, SQL Server, SharePoint) along with WAN-efficient, encrypted backup data replication.
• Reduced unplanned downtime and virtually eliminated planned downtime for server and storage maintenance with live workload migration, high availability, and fault tolerance.
• Enhanced application performance and availability with resource management, load balancing, and access prioritization.
• Intelligent operations management and automation to proactively monitor and manage compute, storage, and networking resources, identify performance bottlenecks, and re-balance workloads by leveraging predictive analytics.
• Capacity planning and optimization guidance to address future needs with performance trends, projections and extended forecasts.
• Managing remote offices and branch offices with rapid provisioning of servers through virtualization, minimization of host configuration drift, and enhanced visibility into regulatory compliance, across multiple sites.

The following table lists the system specifications of the ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes.

Factory-integrated models of the ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes are configured by using the Lenovo Data Center Solution Configurator (DCSC):
http://dcsc.lenovo.com

During the configuration process, you are selecting one of the Configure-to-Order (CTO) base models first, and then you are selecting components (processors, memory, drives, network adapters, power supplies, and software) for that model.

Note: You are required to engage a Lenovo representative in the project that includes the ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes.

The following table lists the available chassis selection options for the VX 2U4N Certified Nodes.

The VX 2U4N Certified Nodes and Enclosures ship with the following items:

• Electronic Publications Flyer
• D2 Tool-less Slide Rail Kit with or without CMA (enclosure only; depending on the rack installation option selected)
• Two customer-selected power cables (enclosure only)

The ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes can be configured with one or two processors. The following table lists the processor options that are available for selection.

* For CTO configurations, the feature code represents a processor, and heatsinks are derived by the configuration tool. For field upgrades, the part number includes a processor and a heatsink.

The following table lists the specifications of the processors for the certified nodes.

Configuration notes:

• The Intel Xeon Gold 5218 and 5218B processors have similar specifications; however, they use different silicon designs and cannot be mixed in the same system.
• The processors that support SST-PP offer three distinct operating points that are defined by a core count with a base speed associated with that core count. The operating point is static, it is selected during the boot process and cannot be changed at runtime.

The ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes support Lenovo TruDDR4 memory. TruDDR4 memory uses the highest-quality components sourced from Tier 1 DRAM suppliers and only memory that meets strict requirements is selected. It is compatibility tested and tuned to maximize performance and reliability.

The VX 2U4N Certified Nodes supports up to 16 DIMMs with two processors. Each processor has six memory channels (two integrated memory controllers with three memory channels per memory controller), and there is a one DIMM per channel for four channels and two DIMMs per channel for two channels for a total of 8 DIMMs per processor.

The following rules apply when selecting the memory configuration:

• The certified node supports RDIMMs with rated speeds of 2666 MHz or 2933 MHz for up to 1 TB of memory capacity.
• Mixing x4 and x8 RDIMMs and RDIMMs of different speeds and capacities is allowed in the supported quantities that are shown in the Memory options table in this section.
• All DIMMs in the certified node operate at the same speed, which is determined as the lowest value of:
  • DIMM rated speed (2666 MHz or 2933 MHz).
  • Memory speed supported by the specific processor (2133 MHZ, 2400 MHz, 2666 MHz, or 2933 MHz).
  • Memory speed for the selected quantity of DIMMs per channel:
    • One DIMM per channel (1 DPC): 2933 MHz.
    • Two DIMMs per channel (2 DPC): 2666 MHz.
  Note: Maximum memory speed can be achieved when Max performance mode is enabled in UEFI.

The following memory protection technologies are supported:

• ECC
• SDDC (for x4-based memory DIMMs)
• ADDDC (for x4-based memory DIMMs; Gold and Platinum processors only)
• Patrol scrubbing
• Demand scrubbing

Configuration notes:

• 16 DIMMs are supported in the configurations with the 4-drive backplanes (configurations with the 6-drive backplane do not support 16 DIMMs).
• 16 DIMMs are supported only in the configurations with the following processors (the processors not listed below support only up to 12 DIMMs):
  • Intel Xeon Bronze 3204 6C 85W 1.9GHz
  • Intel Xeon Bronze 3206R 8C 85W 1.9GHz
  • Intel Xeon Silver 4208 8C 85W 2.1GHz
  • Intel Xeon Silver 4210 10C 85W 2.2GHz
  • Intel Xeon Silver 4210R 10C 100W 2.4GHz
  • Intel Xeon Silver 4214 12C 85W 2.2GHz
  • Intel Xeon Silver 4214R 12C 100W 2.4GHz
  • Intel Xeon Silver 4214Y 12/10/8C 85W 2.2GHz
  • Intel Xeon Silver 4215 8C 85W 2.5GHz
  • Intel Xeon Silver 4216 16C 100W 2.1GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5215 10C 85W 2.5GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5215M 10C 85W 2.5GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5215L 10C 85W 2.5GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5218 16C 125W 2.3GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5218B 16C 125W 2.3GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5218N 16C 105W 2.3GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5218T 16C 105W 2.1GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5220 18C 125W 2.2GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 5220S 18C 125W 2.7GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 6222V 20C 115W 1.8GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 6226 12C 125W 2.8GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 6230 20C 125W 2.1GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 6238 22C 140W 2.1GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 6238L 22C 140W 2.1GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 6238M 22C 140W 2.1GHz
  • Intel Xeon Gold 6262V 24C 135W 1.9GHz
  • Intel Xeon Platinum 8253 16C 125W 2.2GHz

The ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Node supports the following internal drive bay configurations to provide storage capacity:

1. 6 SFF hot-swap drive bays:
   1. 6x 2.5" SAS/SATA
   2. 4x 2.5" SAS/SATA & 2x 2.5" AnyBay
2. 4 SFF hot-swap drive bays:
   1. 4x 2.5" SAS/SATA
   2. 4x 2.5" U.2 NVMe PCIe

In addition, the VX 2U4N Certified Nodes support two internal M.2 SATA SSDs for the hypervisor boot volume.

Lenovo AnyBay allows a choice of drive interface types in the same drive bay: SAS drives, SATA drives, or U.2 NVMe PCIe drives.

The following table lists the internal storage options for the VX 2U4N Certified Node.

* Factory-installed only.

Configuration note: Two M.2 SATA SSDs are required for selection, and they must be of the same model and capacity.

The onboard NVMe interface provides 4x PCIe 3.0 x4 ports for JBOD (non-RAID) connectivity to U.2 NVMe PCIe SSDs in the AnyBay or NVMe drive bays.

The following tables list drive options for the VX 2U4N Certified Node.

* For hybrid storage configurations only; not available as a cache drive in all flash storage configurations.
^ For all flash storage configurations only; not available as a cache drive in hybrid storage configurations.

The VX 2U4N Certified Enclosure supports one I/O module with 8x 10 GbE SFP+ or RJ-45 network ports (two ports per VX 2U4N Certified Node) and one I/O shuttle with 4x PCIe x16 or 8x PCIe x8 slots (one PCIe x16 or two PCIe x8 slots per node). The VX 2U4N Certified Node also has one PCIe 3.0 x8 connector for an internal storage controller.

The PCIe slots are supplied by the PCIe x16 or x8 I/O shuttles, and the slot form factors are as follows:

• PCIe x16 I/O shuttle:
  • Slot 1 (Node 1): PCIe 3.0 x16 low-profile
  • Slot 2 (Node 2): PCIe 3.0 x16 low-profile
  • Slot 3 (Node 3): PCIe 3.0 x16 low-profile
  • Slot 4 (Node 4): PCIe 3.0 x16 low-profile
• PCIe x8 I/O shuttle:
  • Slot 1-A (Node 1): PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile
  • Slot 1-B (Node 1): PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile
  • Slot 2-A (Node 2): PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile
  • Slot 2-B (Node 2): PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile
  • Slot 3-A (Node 3): PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile
  • Slot 3-B (Node 3): PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile
  • Slot 4-A (Node 4): PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile
  • Slot 4-B (Node 4): PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile

The ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes provide two-port 1/10 GbE RJ-45 or 10 GbE SFP+ network connectivity with the onboard Intel X722 NIC in the certified node and an Ethernet I/O Module (EIOM) installed in the VX Enclosure. Additional 1/10 GbE RJ-45, 10 GbE SFP+, 25 GbE SFP28, 40 GbE QSFP+, or 100 GbE QSFP28 ports can be selected, if required.

The following table lists the network adapter options that are available for selection.

# PCIe slots in the VX Enclosure.
* The adapter comes without transceivers or cables; for ordering transceivers or cables, see the configuration notes below the table.
^ The 25 GbE connectivity requires the optional Mellanox QSA 100G to 25G Cable Adapter (4G17A10853) (one per port); the supported cables include 25 GbE passive DAC and active optical cables (25 GbE transceivers not supported) (see Transceivers and cables for 25 GbE SFP28 adapters for details).
† The adapter is supported in the PCIe x16 slots supplied by the PCIe x16 I/O Shuttle.

Configuration notes:

• PCIe x8 Low Profile network adapters are supported in the low-profile PCIe x8 and x16 slots supplied by the 8-slot PCIe x8 or 4-slot PCIe x16 I/O shuttles.
• PCIe x16 Low Profile network adapters are supported in the low-profile PCIe x16 slots supplied by the 4-slot PCIe x16 I/O shuttle.
• Supported transceivers or DAC cables should be purchased for the SFP+, SFP28, QSFP+, and QSFP28 adapters, and UTP Category 6 cables should be purchased for the 10 GbE (Category 6) RJ-45 adapters. The maximum number of transceivers or cables that are supported per adapter equals the quantity of the adapter ports, and all adapter ports must have the same type of the transceiver or cable selected.

  The following transceiver and cables can be purchased:

  • UTP cables for 10 GbE RJ-45 adapters
  • Transceivers and cables for 10 GbE SFP+ adapters
  • Transceivers and cables for 25 GbE SFP28 adapters
  • Transceivers and cables for 40 GbE QSFP+ adapters
  • Transceivers and cables for 100 GbE QSFP28 network adapters

The following table lists cables for the 10 GbE RJ-45 adapters.

The following table lists transceivers and cables for the 10 GbE SFP+ adapters.

* The Emulex VFA5.2 ML2 (00AG560) and PCIe (00AG570) network adapters do not support active SFP+ DAC cables.

The following table lists transceivers and cables for the 25 GbE SFP28 adapters.

The following table lists transceivers and cables for the 100 GbE QSFP28 network adapters.

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the Ethernet Adapters category:
http://lenovopress.com/servers/options/ethernet#rt=product-guide

* Factory-installed only.

Configuration notes:

• Two power supplies per system.
• For N+N power redundancy, the power supplies should provide sufficient power without oversubscription for the selected node configuration. To ensure that the right power supply is chosen, you should always validate the certified node configuration using the latest version of the Lenovo Capacity Planner:
  http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/lnvo-lcp
• The power supplies support AC (Worldwide) and HVDC (China only) power sources.

The VX 2U4N Certified Enclosures ship with two customer-configured power cords. The following table lists the rack power cables and line cords that can be ordered for the VX 2U4N Certified Enclosures.

Configuration note: If the 1100 W AC power supplies (feature code AUZ0) in the VX 2U4N Enclosure are connected to a low-voltage power source (100 - 125 V), the only supported power cables are those that are rated above 10 A; cables that are rated at 10 A are not supported.

The VX 2U4N Certified Enclosures ship with a rail kit with or without CMA depending on the rack installation option selected. The following table lists the rack installation options that are available for the VX 2U4N Certified Enclosures and Nodes.

* CTO only.

Configuration note: For 6-drive backplane configurations, the VGA/USB KVM Breakout Module occupies the upper-left drive bay, limiting the maximum number of drives to 5.

The following table summarizes the rail kit features and specifications.

^ Measured when mounted on the rack, from the front surface of the front mounting flange to the rear most point of the rail.

The ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes support the following VMware HCI components:

• VMware vSphere ESXi hypervisor
• VMware vSAN distributed enterprise storage
• VMware vCenter Server centralized management

The VMware ESXi hypervisor is factory-preinstalled on the 2x M.2 SSDs configured in a RAID-1 drive group.

VMware software licenses and support are not included with ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes. Customers can use the existing VMware software licenses and active support contracts, or they can purchase software licenses and support from VMware or Lenovo.

Lenovo offers the following VMware software license and support options for ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes:

• VMware vSAN License and Subscription
• VMware vSphere License and Subscription
• VMware HCI Kit License and Subscription
• VMware Horizon License and Subscription
• VMware Cloud Foundation License and Subscription
• VMware vCenter Server License and Subscription

Configuration notes:

• The selection of VMware software licenses is optional.
• VMware software licenses are available with 1-year, 3-year, or 5-year software support.
• The quantity of processor-based licenses is derived by the configuration tool based on the number of processors selected.
• The quantity of VM-based licenses is specified based on VM requirements.
• The quantity of CCU-based licenses is specified based on the concurrent user requirements.

VMware vSAN License and Subscription

Lenovo offers the following VMware vSAN License and Subscription options that can be purchased for ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes:

• VMware Virtual SAN 6 Standard provides support for hybrid and all-flash storage configurations.
• VMware Virtual SAN 6 Advanced provides support for hybrid and all-flash storage configurations with space efficiency features (compression, deduplication, and erasure coding).
• VMware Virtual SAN 6 Enterprise provides support for hybrid and all-flash storage configurations with space efficiency features (compression, deduplication, and erasure coding), stringent security (data-at-rest encryption), and advanced failure protection (stretched cluster).
• VMware Virtual SAN 6 Enterprise Plus is a bundle of vSAN Enterprise and vRealize Operations Advanced features.
• VMware Virtual SAN 6 for Remote Office Branch Office (ROBO) provides support for hybrid and all-flash storage configurations for up to 25 virtual machines at remote locations.
• VMware Virtual SAN 6 for Desktop provides support for hybrid and all-flash storage configurations for customers using vSAN exclusively for virtual desktop infrastructure.

The following table lists ordering information for the VMware vSAN License and Subscription options.

The following table compares features of the VMware vSAN software editions.

* A maximum of 25 VMs is supported at any single location under the ROBO license. Two or more nodes can be used in a cluster under the ROBO license, however, the maximum number of VMs at the location must not exceed 25.
** Requires All-Flash configurations; hybrid configurations not supported.

VMware vSphere License and Subscription

Lenovo offers the following VMware vSphere License and Subscription options that can be purchased for ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes:

• VMware vSphere 6 Standard provides an entry-level solution for basic server consolidation and business continuity.
• VMware vSphere 6 Enterprise Plus offers resource management with enhanced application availability and performance for server virtualization and cloud solutions.
• VMware vSphere 6 Remote Office Branch Office (ROBO) Standard provides remote site server virtualization with business continuity and backup features.
• VMware vSphere 6 Remote Office Branch Office Advanced provides remote site server virtualization that offers business continuity and backup with advanced features such as standardization of host configurations.

Note: Lenovo also offers VMware vSphere 6 Remote Office Branch Office (ROBO) Enterprise as a part of the VMware 6 HCI Kit for ROBO Standard or Advanced, and it provides remote site server virtualization and consolidation with business continuity and backup, standardization of host configurations, and data security through encryption.

The following table lists ordering information for the VMware vSphere License and Subscription options.

The following table compares features of the VMware vSphere software editions.

* Requires vCenter Server Standard.
** DRS Maintenance Mode functionality.

VMware HCI Kit License and Subscription

Lenovo offers the following VMware HCI license bundles for ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes that include both vSphere and vSAN License and Subscription options:

• VMware HCI Kit Essentials (For 3 nodes):
  • vSphere Essentials Plus
  • vSAN Standard
• VMware HCI Kit Standard (Per CPU):
  • vSphere Standard
  • vSAN Standard
• VMware HCI Kit Advanced (Per CPU):
  • vSphere Enterprise Plus
  • vSAN Advanced
• VMware HCI Kit Enterprise (Per CPU):
  • vSphere Enterprise Plus
  • vSAN Enterprise
• VMware HCI Kit with Operations Management (Per CPU):
  • vSphere Enterprise Plus
  • vSAN Enterprise Plus
• VMware HCI Kit ROBO Standard (Per 25 VMs):
  • vSphere ROBO Enterprise
  • vSAN ROBO Standard
• VMware HCI Kit ROBO Advanced (Per 25 VMs):
  • vSphere ROBO Enterprise
  • vSAN ROBO Advanced

Note: VMware vSphere Essentials Plus provides server virtualization and consolidation with centralized management and business continuity for up to three nodes, and it includes the following features: vSphere Hypervisor, vMotion, Cross-Switch vMotion, High Availability, Data Protection and Replication, and vCenter Server Essentials.

The following table lists ordering information for the VMware HCI Kit License and Subscription options.

VMware Horizon 7

Lenovo offers the following VMware Horizon 7 License and Subscription options for Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) deployments that can be purchased for the ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes:

• VMware Horizon 7 Standard delivers simple, powerful VDI with great user experience, and it includes VMware vSphere Desktop (delivers the full range of vSphere 6 Enterprise Plus features for desktop workloads) and vCenter Server for Desktop.
• VMware Horizon 7 Advanced delivers desktops and applications for physical and virtual machines through a unified workspace, and it includes VMware vSphere Desktop, vCenter Server for Desktop, and vSAN Advanced for Desktop with All-Flash.
• VMware Horizon 7 Enterprise delivers desktops and applications with closed-loop management and automation, and it includes VMware vSphere Desktop, vCenter Server for Desktop, and vSAN Advanced for Desktop with All-Flash.

The Standard license is available in 10-user or 100-user packs for concurrent users, and the Advanced and Enterprise licenses are available in 10-user or 100-user packs for concurrent or named users.

The following table lists ordering information for the VMware Horizon License and Subscription options.

The following table compares key features of the VMware Horizon software editions.

VMware Cloud Foundation

Lenovo offers VMware Cloud Foundation for hybrid cloud deployments of the ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes. VMware Cloud Foundation is an integrated software platform that automates the deployment and lifecycle management of a complete software-defined data center (SDDC) in hyperconverged environments.

The following Cloud Foundation License and Subscription options are offered:

• Cloud Foundation Basic includes vSphere Enterprise Plus, vSAN Advanced, NSX Data Center Professional, and SDDC Manager.
• Cloud Foundation Standard includes vSphere Enterprise plus, vSAN Advanced, NSX Data Center Advanced, vRealize Suite Standard, vRealize Network Insight Advanced, and SDDC Manager.
• Cloud Foundation Advanced includes vSphere Enterprise plus, vSAN Advanced, NSX Data Center Advanced, vRealize Suite Enterprise, vRealize Network Insight Advanced, and SDDC Manager.
• Cloud Foundation Enterprise includes vSphere Enterprise plus, vSAN Enterprise, NSX Data Center Enterprise plus, vRealize Suite Enterprise, vRealize Network Insight Enterprise, and SDDC Manager.
• Cloud Foundation for VDI includes SDDC Manager for Desktop and NSX Data Center Advanced or Enterprise plus for Desktop, and it comes with or without Horizon Enterprise.

Configuration note: vCenter Server that is required for Cloud Foundation is licensed separately; only one vCenter Server license is required for all vCenter Servers deployed in a Cloud Foundation system.

The following table lists ordering information for the VMware Cloud Foundation License and Subscription options.

VMware vCenter Server

VMware vCenter Server provides centralized management of vSphere environments to simplify day-to-day operations and reduce the complexity of managing virtual infrastructure.

vCenter Server is required for managing ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes. The nodes can be added to an existing installation of vCenter Server, or the software license for the vCenter Server instance can be purchased from Lenovo by selecting one the following License and Subscription options:

• VMware vCenter Server 6 Foundation for vSphere 6 (Per Instance) (manages up to 4 hosts)
• VMware vCenter Server 6 Standard for vSphere 6 (Per Instance) (unlimited hosts)

The vCenter Server licenses purchased from Lenovo include one, three, or five years of support and subscription.

The following table lists ordering information for the VMware vCenter License and Subscription options.

VMware vCenter Server offers the following key features:

• Centralized management of virtualized hosts and virtual machines from a single console.
• Centralized inventory of virtual machines, hosts, datastores and networks.
• Alerts and notifications can trigger automated workflows to remedy and preempt problems.
• Host profiles standardize and simplify configuration and management of VMware ESXi hosts.
• Resource management for virtual machines allows to control allocation of processor, memory, disk and network resources.
• Continuously monitors utilization across resource pools and intelligently allocates available resources among virtual machines according to predefined rules
• Automatically restarts virtual machines that have failed without manual intervention with VMware vSphere HA.
• Maintains records of significant configuration changes and exports reports for event tracking.
• Patch management enforces compliance to patch standards through automated scanning and patching of online ESXi hosts and select Microsoft and Linux virtual machines.

The ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes support the following systems management tools:

• Lenovo XClarity Controller
• Lenovo XClarity Administrator and XClarity Pro
• Lenovo XClarity Integrator for VMware vCenter
• Lenovo XClarity Energy Manager

Lenovo XClarity Controller

The ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes contain Lenovo XClarity Controller (XCC), which provides advanced service-processor control, monitoring, and alerting functions. XClarity Controller offers three functional levels: Standard, Advanced, and Enterprise.

By default, the VX Certified Nodes include XClarity Controller Standard features, and they can be configured for Advanced or Enterprise functionality by using the Features on Demand (FoD) upgrades.

XClarity Controller Enterprise Upgrade adds the following functionality to the Advanced features:

• Capping power usage
• Mapping the ISO and image files located on the local client as virtual drives for use by the server
• Mounting the remote ISO and image files via HTTPS, SFTP, CIFS, and NFS
• Collaborating across up to six users of the virtual console
• Controlling quality and bandwidth usage

The XClarity Controller provides remote server management through the following interfaces:

• Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) Version 2.0
• Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) Version 3
• Common Information Model (CIM)
• Data Center Manageability Interface (DCMI) Version 1.5
• Redfish REpresentational State Transfer (REST) API
• Web browser with HTML5 support
• Command-line interface
• Virtual Operator Panel with XClarity Mobile App via the front USB port with XClarity Controller access

Virtual Operator Panel provides quick access to system status, firmware, network, health, and alerts information. With proper authentication, it also allows to configure systems management and network settings and to control system power (Power on, Power off, Restart). The Virtual Operator Panel can be accessed from the XClarity Mobile App running on the Android or iOS mobile device that is connected to the front USB port with XClarity Controller access (See Components and connectors).

Lenovo XClarity Administrator and XClarity Pro

Lenovo XClarity Administrator is a centralized systems management solution that helps administrators deliver infrastructure faster. This solution integrates easily with Lenovo x86 servers, appliances, certified nodes, Top-of-Rack Ethernet switches, and storage systems, providing automated agent-less discovery, inventory, monitoring, and alerts across multiple systems. In addition, some managed endpoints support firmware updates and configuration management.

Lenovo XClarity Administrator is an optional software component for managing ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes which can be downloaded and used at no charge to discover and monitor the nodes and manage firmware upgrades for them.

If software support is required for XClarity Administrator and XClarity Integrator for vCenter, Lenovo XClarity Pro software subscription should be ordered. Lenovo XClarity Pro is licensed on a per managed system basis, that is, each managed Lenovo system requires a license.

The following table lists the geo-specific Lenovo XClarity software license options.

Lenovo XClarity Integrator for VMware vCenter

Lenovo XClarity Integrator for VMware vCenter is a software plug-in module for Lenovo XClarity Administrator that allows administrators to manage physical infrastructure from leading external virtualization management software tool from VMware.

Lenovo XClarity Integrator for VMware vCenter can be downloaded and used at no charge. For more information, refer to the Lenovo XClarity Integrator for VMware vCenter web page:
https://support.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/lnvo-vmware

Lenovo XClarity Energy Manager is an optional software component for VX Certified Nodes that is licensed on a per managed node basis, that is, each managed system requires a license. The 1-node Energy Manager license is included in the XClarity Controller Enterprise upgrade.

To manage systems without XClarity Controller Enterprise licenses, a node license pack should be purchased. The following table lists the geo-specific Lenovo XClarity Energy Manager software license options.

* NA = North America; AP = Asia Pacific.
** EMEA = Europe, Middle East, Africa; LA = Latin America.

For more information, refer to the Lenovo XClarity Energy Manager web page:
http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/lnvo-lxem

The ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes have the following dimensions and weight (approximate):

• Enclosure
  • Height: 87 mm (3.4 in.)
  • Width: 448 mm (17.6 in.)
  • Depth: 834 mm (32.8 in.)
  • Weight (maximum, with four nodes): 55.0 kg (121.3 lb)
• Node
  • Height: 41 mm (1.6 in.)
  • Width: 222 mm (8.7 in.)
  • Depth: 562 mm (22.1 in.)
  • Weight (maximum): 7.5 kg (16.5 lb)

The ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes comply with ASHRAE class A2 specifications. The node performance might be impacted when the operating temperature is outside the ASHRAE A2 specifications. Depending on the hardware configuration, some VX Certified Nodes comply with ASHRAE class A3 and class A4 specifications. To comply with ASHRAE class A3 and class A4 specifications, the nodes must meet the following hardware configuration requirements at the same time:

• Two 1600 W or 2000 W power supplies installed.
• NVMe drives not installed.
• Processors with TDP more than 125 W not installed, or Gold 5217 or 5222 processors not installed.
• Mellanox Ethernet adapters with active optical cables not installed.

The ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes are supported in the following environment:

• Air temperature:
  • Operating:
    • ASHRAE Class A4: 5 °C - 45 °C (41 °F - 113 °F); for altitudes above 900 m (2,953 ft), decrease the maximum ambient temperature by 1 °C for every 125-m (410-ft) increase in altitude
    • ASHRAE Class A3: 5 °C - 40 °C (41 °F - 104 °F); for altitudes above 900 m (2,953 ft), decrease the maximum ambient temperature by 1 °C for every 175-m (574-ft) increase in altitude
    • ASHRAE Class A2: 10 °C - 35 °C (50 °F - 95 °F); for altitudes above 900 m (2,953 ft), decrease the maximum ambient temperature by 1 °C for every 300-m (984-ft) increase in altitude
  • Non-operating: 5 °C - 45 °C (41 °F - 113 °F)
  • Storage: -40 °C - +60 °C (-40 °F - 140 °F)
• Maximum altitude: 3,050 m (10,000 ft)
• Humidity:
  • Operating:
    • ASHRAE Class A4: 8% - 90% (non-condensing); maximum dew point: 24 °C (75 °F)
    • ASHRAE Class A3: 8% - 85% (non-condensing); maximum dew point: 24 °C (75 °F)
    • ASHRAE Class A2: 8% - 80% (non-condensing); maximum dew point: 21 °C (70 °F)
  • Storage: 8% - 90% (non-condensing)
• Electrical:
  • 100 - 127 (nominal) V AC; 50 Hz / 60 Hz (1100 W power supplies only)
  • 200 - 240 (nominal) V AC; 50 Hz / 60 Hz
  • 180 - 300 V DC (supported in China only)
• Acoustics (maximum configuration, operating): 6.8 bels
• Vibration:
  • Operating: 0.21 G rms at 5 Hz to 500 Hz for 15 minutes across 3 axes
  • Non-operating: 1.04 G rms at 2 Hz to 200 Hz for 15 minutes across 6 surfaces
• Shock:
  • Operating: 15 G for 3 milliseconds in each direction (positive and negative X, Y, and Z axes)
  • Non-operating:
    • 12 kg - 22 kg: 50 G for 152 in./sec velocity change across 6 surfaces
    • 23 kg - 31 kg: 35 G for 152 in./sec velocity change across 6 surfaces

The following table lists the maximum system power load, rated inlet current, and system heat output based on the power supply and source voltage.

The ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes conform to the following regulations:

• United States: FCC Part 15, Class A; UL 60950-1
• Canada: ICES-003/NMB-03, Class A; CAN/CSA-C22.2 60950-1
• Mexico: NOM-19
• Argentina: IEC60950-1
• European Union: CE Mark (EN55022 Class A, IEC/EN60950-1, EN55024, EN61000-3-2, EN61000-3-3)
• Germany: TUV-GS (IEC/EN60950-1, EK1-ITB2000)
• Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus: EAC (TR CU 004/2011, TR CU 020/2011)
• China: CCC GB4943.1, GB9254 Class A, GB17625.1
• India: BIS
• Japan: VCCI, Class A
• Taiwan: BSMI CNS13438, Class A; CNS14336-1
• Korea: KN22, Class A; KN24
• Australia/New Zealand: AS/NZS CISPR 22 Class A
• Reduction of Hazardous Substances (ROHS)
• Energy Star 3.0 (excluding configurations with Bronze 3204, Gold 5222, or Platinum 8256 processors)

Note: For more information on the Energy Star 3.0 certification, refer to the Energy Star 3.0 Certifications for ThinkSystem Servers publication:
http://lenovopress.com/lp1230

The ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes can be configured with a three-, four, or five-year hardware warranty and various levels of service coverage with a well-defined scope of services, including service hours, response time, term of service, and service agreement terms and conditions.

The base warranty provides 9x5 Next Business Day response with parts delivered. Lenovo’s additional support services provide a sophisticated, unified support structure for a customer's data center, with an experience consistently ranked number one in customer satisfaction worldwide.

The following Lenovo support services are available for selection:

• Warranty service level upgrades (Preconfigured Support) are available to meet the on-site response time targets that match the criticality of customer's systems:
  • 3, 4, or 5 years of service coverage.
  • 1-year or 2-year post-warranty extensions.
  • Foundation Service: 9x5 service coverage with next business day onsite response, with optional YourDrive YourData.
  • Essential Service: 24x7 service coverage with 4-hour onsite response or 24-hour committed repair (available only in select regions), bundled with YourDrive YourData.
  • Advanced Service: 24x7 service coverage with 2-hour onsite response or 6-hour committed repair (available only in select regions), bundled with YourDrive YourData.
• Managed Services

  Lenovo Managed Services provide continuous 24x7 remote monitoring (plus 24x7 call center availability) and proactive management of a customer's data center using state of the art tools, systems, and practices by a team of highly skilled and experienced Lenovo services professionals.

  Quarterly reviews check error logs, verify firmware and operating system device driver levels, and software as needed. Lenovo will also maintain records of latest patches, critical updates, and firmware levels, to ensure customer's systems are providing business value through optimized performance.

• Technical Account Management (TAM)

  A Lenovo Technical Account Manager helps customers optimize operations of their data centers based on a deep understanding of customer's business. Customers gain direct access to a Lenovo TAM, who serves as their single point of contact to expedite service requests, provide status updates, and furnish reports to track incidents over time. Also, a TAM helps proactively make service recommendations and manage service relationship with Lenovo to make certain that customer's needs are met.

• Enterprise Software Support

  Lenovo Enterprise Software Support is an additional support service that provides customers with software support on Microsoft, Red Hat, SUSE, and VMWare applications and systems. Around the clock availability for critical problems plus unlimited calls and incidents helps customers address challenges fast, without incremental costs. Support staff can answer troubleshooting and diagnostic questions, address product compatibility and interoperability issues, isolate causes of problems, report defects to software vendors, and more.

• YourDrive YourData

  Lenovo’s YourDrive YourData service is a multi-drive retention offering that ensures that customer's data is always under their control, regardless of the number of drives that are installed in their Lenovo server. In the unlikely event of a drive failure, customers retain possession of their drive while Lenovo replaces the failed drive part. Customer's data stays safely on customer premises, in their hands. The YourDrive YourData service can be purchased in convenient bundles with Foundation, Essential, or Advanced services.

• Health Check

  Having a trusted partner who can perform regular and detailed health checks is central to maintaining efficiency and ensuring that customer systems and business are always running at their best. Health Check supports Lenovo-branded server, storage, and networking devices, as well as select Lenovo-supported products from other vendors that are sold by Lenovo or a Lenovo-Authorized Reseller.

Some regions might have different warranty terms and conditions than the standard warranty. This is due to local business practices or laws in the specific region. Local service teams can assist in explaining region-specific terms when needed. Examples of region-specific warranty terms are second or longer business day parts delivery or parts-only base warranty.

If warranty terms and conditions include onsite labor for repair or replacement of parts, Lenovo will dispatch a service technician to the customer site to perform the replacement. Onsite labor under base warranty is limited to labor for replacement of parts that have been determined to be field-replaceable units (FRUs). Parts that are determined to be customer-replaceable units (CRUs) do not include onsite labor under base warranty.

If warranty terms include parts-only base warranty, Lenovo is responsible for delivering only replacement parts that are under base warranty (including FRUs) that will be sent to a requested location for self-service. Parts-only service does not include a service technician being dispatched onsite. Parts must be changed at customer’s own cost and labor and defective parts must be returned following the instructions supplied with the spare parts.

For the VMware software and subscription licenses provided by the customer, software support that is provided by VMware is based on the support level included with these licenses.

Lenovo offers optional one-, three-, or five-year VMware software support and subscription for ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes that entitles customers to submit service requests to troubleshoot VMware software issues and receive code updates, including fixes, patches, and new software releases.

For the VMware vSphere, vSAN, and vCenter Server software and subscription licenses purchased from Lenovo together with the ThinkAgile VX Certified Nodes, software support that is provided by VMware includes Production-level support with 24x7 phone and web coverage with the following target response times (priorities are defined by VMware based on the impact on productivity):

• Severity 1 (Critical: Substantial loss or disruption of service, significant risk of data loss): 30 minutes
• Severity 2 (Major: Operations are severely constrained, significant impact): 4 business hours
• Severity 3 (Minor: Non-critical loss of functionality, minimal impact): 8 business hours
• Severity 4 (Cosmetic: General questions): 12 business hours

For more information, refer to the Data Center Implementation Services web page:
https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/data-center/services/implementation-services/

The following table lists the Ethernet LAN switches that are offered by Lenovo that can be used with the ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes for network connectivity.

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the Top-of-rack Switches category:
http://lenovopress.com/servers/options/switches#rt=product-guide

The following table lists the rack cabinets that are currently offered by Lenovo that can be used for mounting the ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes and other IT infrastructure building blocks.

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the Rack Cabinets category:
http://lenovopress.com/servers/options/racks#rt=product-guide

The following table lists the power distribution units (PDUs) that are currently offered by Lenovo that can be used for distributing electrical power to the ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes and other IT infrastructure building blocks mounted in a rack cabinet.

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the Power Distribution Units category:
http://lenovopress.com/servers/options/pdu#rt=product-guide

The following table lists the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units that are currently offered by Lenovo that can be used for providing electrical power protection to the ThinkAgile VX 2U4N Certified Nodes and other IT infrastructure building blocks.

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the Uninterruptible Power Supply Units category:
http://lenovopress.com/servers/options/ups#rt=product-guide

Lenovo Financial Services reinforces Lenovo’s commitment to deliver pioneering products and services that are recognized for their quality, excellence, and trustworthiness. Lenovo Financial Services offers financing solutions and services that complement your technology solution anywhere in the world.

We are dedicated to delivering a positive finance experience for customers like you who want to maximize your purchase power by obtaining the technology you need today, protect against technology obsolescence, and preserve your capital for other uses.

We work with businesses, non-profit organizations, governments and educational institutions to finance their entire technology solution. We focus on making it easy to do business with us. Our highly experienced team of finance professionals operates in a work culture that emphasizes the importance of providing outstanding customer service. Our systems, processes and flexible policies support our goal of providing customers with a positive experience.

We finance your entire solution. Unlike others, we allow you to bundle everything you need from hardware and software to service contracts, installation costs, training fees, and sales tax. If you decide weeks or months later to add to your solution, we can consolidate everything into a single invoice.

Our Premier Client services provide large accounts with special handling services to ensure these complex transactions are serviced properly. As a premier client, you have a dedicated finance specialist who manages your account through its life, from first invoice through asset return or purchase. This specialist develops an in-depth understanding of your invoice and payment requirements. For you, this dedication provides a high-quality, easy, and positive financing experience.

For your region-specific offers please ask your Lenovo sales representative or your technology provider about the use of Lenovo Financial Services. For more information, see the following Lenovo website:
http://www.lenovo.com/us/en/landingpage/lenovo-financial-services

For more information, see these resources:

• Lenovo ThinkAgile VX Series
  http://www3.lenovo.com/us/en/p/WMD00000340
• Lenovo Data Center Solution Configurator (DCSC):
  http://dcsc.lenovo.com
• ThinkAgile VX - Best Recipes
  http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/HT505302
• VMware documentation
  https://docs.vmware.com/
• Lenovo Data Center Support
  http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com