Lenovo ThinkAgile VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576 2U Integrated Systems and Certified Node (AMD EPYC 7003)

The Lenovo ThinkAgile VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 Integrated Systems and VX7576 Certified Node are 2-socket 2U systems that features the AMD EPYC 7003 "Milan" family of processors. With up to 64 cores per processor and support for the new PCIe 4.0 standard for I/O, the VX systems offer the ultimate in two-socket performance in a 2U form factor. 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.

Suggested uses: Inference, virtualization, VDI, HPC, Hyperconverged infrastructure

Figure 1. Lenovo ThinkAgile VX with 2.5-inch drive bays

The ThinkAgile VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 Integrated Systems and VX7576 Certified Node offer the following key features:

• Factory-integrated, pre-configured ready-to-go appliances built on proven and reliable Lenovo ThinkSystem servers that provide compute power for a variety of workloads and applications and powered by industry-leading hyperconverged infrastructure software from VMware.
• Provide quick and convenient path to implement a hyperconverged solution powered by VMware vSAN with "one stop shop" and a single point of contact provided by Lenovo for purchasing, deploying, and supporting the solution.
• 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.
• Integrated Systems include Lenovo ThinkAgile Advantage Single Point of Support for quick 24/7 problem reporting and resolution.
• Offer Lenovo deployment services to get customers up and running quickly.

The VMware software running on ThinkAgile VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 Integrated Systems and VX7576 Certified Node 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 ThinkAgile VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 Integrated Systems and VX7576 Certified Node are based on the ThinkSystem SR665 server.

The following table provides an overview comparison between the VX systems.

The following table lists the standard specifications.

Factory-integrated models of the ThinkAgile VX Series Integrated Systems 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 adding components (processors, memory, drives, and network adapters) to the selected model.

Models of the VX systems are defined based on whether the systems have 2.5-inch drive bays at the front (called the 2.5-inch chassis) or whether they have 3.5-inch drive bays at the front (called the 3.5-inch chassis). For models, the feature codes for these chassis bases are as listed in the following table.

The ThinkAgile VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 Integrated Systems and VX7576 Certified Node are based on the ThinkSystem SR665 server, however there are key differences:

• No onboard SATA controller support
• No RAID adapter support
• No SATA HDDs
• No support for SED drives
• No Fibre Channel support
• No InfiniBand support
• Drives are categorized as Cache or Capacity drives and are formed as disk groups (up to 5 disk groups)

For details about the ThinkSystem SR665, see the SR665 product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server

To verify what specific hardware components are supported with the VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576, see the DCSC configurator:
https://dcsc.lenovo.com

The VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576 systems support the following third-generation AMD EPYC processors.

For details about these processors, see the SR665 product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server#processor-options

The VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576 systems support the following memory options.

For details about these options, see the SR665 product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server#memory-options

Internal storage configurations of the VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576 are as follows. All drives are hot-swap and are accessible from the front or rear of the system, or from the internals of the server with the cover removed (where mid drives are supported)

• VX3575-G:
  • Front drive bays: Up to 24x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA or AnyBay or NVMe bays
  • Mid drive bays: Up to 8x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA drive bays
  • Rear drive bays: Up to 8x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA drive bays
• VX5575:
  • Front drive bays: Up to 12x 3.5-inch SAS/SATA or AnyBay drive bays
  • Mid drive bays: None
  • Rear drive bays: Up to 4x 3.5-inch SAS/SATA drive bays
• VX7575:
  • Front drive bays: Up to 24x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA or AnyBay or NVMe bays
  • Mid drive bays: Up to 8x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA drive bays
  • Rear drive bays: Up to 8x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA drive bays
• VX7576:
  • Front drive bays:
    • Up to 24x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA or AnyBay or NVMe bays
    • Up to 12x 3.5-inch SAS/SATA or AnyBay drive bays
  • Mid drive bays: Up to 8x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA
  • Rear drive bays:
    • Up to 8x 2.5-inch SAS/SATA drive bays
    • Up to 4x 3.5-inch SAS/SATA drive bays

Specific choices of drive backplane are listed in the table below.

For details about these options, including configuration rules, see the SR665 product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server#internal-storage

For OS boot functions, the systems also support one or two 7mm hot-swap drives at the rear of the server, or one or two M.2 drives installed on an adapter internal to the server. The following table lists the supported controllers/enablement kits for M.2 and 7mm boot drives.

For details about these options, including configuration rules, see the SR665 product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server#internal-storage

The following table lists the supported Disk Groups for each VX system.

The VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576 systems support the following storage controller options.

For details about these components, including configuration rules, see the SR665 product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server#controllers-for-internal-storage

This section lists the supported drives:

• Boot drives
• Internal drives for VX3575-G
• Internal drives for VX5575
• Internal drives for VX7575
• Internal drives for VX7576

Configuration Note:

• VMware will no longer support higher capacity drives greater than 8TB 
• Express Storage Architecture (ESA) supports a minimum of 4 drives and a maximum of 24 drives.  Please reference the vSAN ESA ReadyNode Hardware Guidance for additional requirements.
• VMware vSAN certification for Generic NVMe drives: The drives are listed in the VMware Compatibility Guide (VCG) under the drive vendor company name instead of Lenovo. To check a drive for vSAN certification, search the VCG using the Supplier part number. Part numbers can be found using the Product Guide for the corresponding Drive Family on Lenovo Press https://lenovopress.lenovo.com/servers/options/drives#sort=last_update. 

Boot drives

The following table lists the supported 7mm and M.2 drives suitable for OS boot functions.

Internal drives for VX3575-G

The following table lists the drives support in the VX3575-G. For both All Flash Storage and Hybrid Storage configurations, drives are classified as either Cache drives, Capacity drives, or both.

Internal drives for VX5575

The following table lists the drives support in the VX5575. For both All Flash Storage and Hybrid Storage configurations, drives are classified as either Cache drives, Capacity drives, or both.

Internal drives for VX7575

The following table lists the drives support in the VX7575. For both All Flash Storage and Hybrid Storage configurations, drives are classified as either Cache drives, Capacity drives, or both.

Internal drives for VX7576

The following table lists the drives support in the VX7576. For both All Flash Storage and Hybrid Storage configurations, drives are classified as either Cache drives, Capacity drives, or both.

The VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576 systems support the following networking options.

For details about these options, see the SR665 product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server#i-o-expansion
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server#network-adapters

The VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576 systems support the following GPU options.

For details about these options, see the SR665 product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server#gpu-adapters

The ThinkAgile VX3575-G Integrated System supports the following operating systems:

• VMware ESXi 7.0 U1
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U2
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U3
• VMware ESXi 8.0
• VMware ESXi 8.0 U1

The ThinkAgile VX5575 Integrated System supports the following operating systems:

• VMware ESXi 7.0 U1
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U2
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U3
• VMware ESXi 8.0
• VMware ESXi 8.0 U1

The ThinkAgile VX7575 Integrated System supports the following operating systems:

• VMware ESXi 7.0 U1
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U2
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U3
• VMware ESXi 8.0
• VMware ESXi 8.0 U1

The ThinkAgile VX7576 Certified Node supports the following operating systems:

• VMware ESXi 7.0 U1
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U2
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U3
• VMware ESXi 8.0
• VMware ESXi 8.0 U1

Configuration Note:

VMware vSAN certification for Generic NVMe drives: The drives are listed in the VMware Compatibility Guide (VCG) under the drive vendor company name instead of Lenovo. To check a drive for vSAN certification, search the VCG using the Supplier part number. Part numbers can be found using the Product Guide for the corresponding Drive Family on Lenovo Press https://lenovopress.lenovo.com/servers/options/drives#sort=last_update. 

For further details, including any restrictions, see the OS Interoperability Guide:
https://lenovopress.com/osig#term=vx%2520amd%25202u%25202s&support=all

VMware vSAN, vSphere, and vCenter Server software are required for ThinkAgile VX Series Integrated Systems and Certified Nodes. For Integrated Systems, you are required to purchase VMware vSAN licenses for VX Series from Lenovo. Customers have the option to transfer the license after it has initially landed on Lenovo VX Integrated System. For Certified Nodes, you can purchase the vSAN licenses from Lenovo or from VMware, or you can use your existing licenses. For vSphere and vCenter Server, you can use the existing VMware software licenses and active support contracts, or you can purchase software licenses and support from Lenovo or VMware.

Lenovo offers the following VMware software license and support options for ThinkAgile VX Series systems:

• 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

For details and ordering information, see the VMware Software Solution Product Guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1265-vmware-software-solution-product-guide

Configuration notes:

• The selection of vSAN licenses is required: Standalone licenses, HCI bundle licenses, VDI solution licenses, or VCF licenses.
• VMware software licenses that are available for selection include 1-year, 3-year, or 5-year software support (matches the duration of the selected solution-level warranty period).
• 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.

The VX3575-G, VX5575, VX7575 and VX7576 have a 3-year warranty based on the machine type:

• 7D43 - 3 year warranty

The ThinkAgile VX Series Integrated Systems can be configured with a three- or five-year hardware warranty with 24x7 ThinkAgile Advantage Single Point of Support (Lenovo server hardware and VMware software; requires an active software support contract purchased either from VMware or Lenovo) and various levels of coverage with a well-defined scope of services, including service hours, response time, term of service, and service agreement terms and conditions.

The Lenovo local support centers perform problem determination and resolution for hardware-related issues and escalate to VMware, on behalf of the customer, for software-related problem determination. VMware will contact the customer and will own the software-related problem resolution until closure.

The standard warranty terms are customer-replaceable unit (CRU) and onsite (for field-replaceable units FRUs only) with standard call center support during normal business hours and 9x5 Next Business Day Parts Delivered.

Lenovo’s additional support services provide a sophisticated, unified support structure for your data center, with an experience consistently ranked number one in customer satisfaction worldwide. Available offerings include:

• Warranty Upgrade (Preconfigured Support)

  Services are available to meet the on-site response time targets that match the criticality of your 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. YourDrive YourData is an optional extra (see below).
  • Essential Service: 24x7 service coverage with 4-hour onsite response or 24-hour committed repair (available only in select markets). Bundled with YourDrive YourData.
  • Advanced Service: 24x7 service coverage with 2-hour onsite response or 6-hour committed repair (available only in select markets). Bundled with YourDrive YourData.
• Managed Services

  Lenovo Managed Services provides continuous 24x7 remote monitoring (plus 24x7 call center availability) and proactive management of your 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 & OS device driver levels, and software as needed. We’ll also maintain records of latest patches, critical updates, and firmware levels, to ensure you systems are providing business value through optimized performance.

• Technical Account Management (TAM)

  A Lenovo Technical Account Manager helps you optimize the operation of your data center based on a deep understanding of your business. You gain direct access to your Lenovo TAM, who serves as your single point of contact to expedite service requests, provide status updates, and furnish reports to track incidents over time. In addition, your TAM will help proactively make service recommendations and manage your service relationship with Lenovo to make certain your needs are met.

• Enterprise Server Software Support

  Enterprise Software Support is an additional support service providing 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 comparability and interoperability issues, isolate causes of problems, report defects to software vendors, and more.

• YourDrive YourData

  Lenovo’s YourDrive YourData is a multi-drive retention offering that ensures your data is always under your control, regardless of the number of drives that are installed in your Lenovo server. In the unlikely event of a drive failure, you retain possession of your drive while Lenovo replaces the failed drive part. Your data stays safely on your premises, in your hands. The YourDrive YourData service can be purchased in convenient bundles and is optional with Foundation Service. It is bundled with Essential Service and Advanced Service.

• Health Check

  Having a trusted partner who can perform regular and detailed health checks is central to maintaining efficiency and ensuring that your 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.

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.

The ThinkAgile VX Series Integrated Systems (appliances) include one- (PRC only), three-, or five-year software support and subscription (matches the duration of the selected warranty period) that entitles customers to submit service requests to troubleshoot VMware software issues and receive code updates, including fixes, patches, and new software releases.

The Lenovo local support centers perform problem determination and resolution for hardware-related issues and escalate to VMware, on behalf of the customer, for software-related problem determination. VMware will contact the customer and will own the software-related problem resolution until closure.

For the VMware vSphere, vSAN, and vCenter Server software and subscription licenses purchased from Lenovo together with the ThinkAgile VX Series Integrated Systems, 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 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.

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

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:

https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/landingpage/lenovo-financial-services/

For more information, see these resources:

• Lenovo ThinkAgile VX Series
  https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/data-center/software-defined-infrastructure/ThinkAgile-VX-Series/p/WMD00000340
• ThinkAgile VX - Best Recipes
  http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/HT505302
• VMware documentation
  https://docs.vmware.com/
• ThinkSystem SR665 product guide:
  https://lenovopress.com/lp1269-thinksystem-sr665-server
• Interactive 3D Tour of the ThinkSystem SR665:
  https://lenovopress.com/lp1291
• Lenovo Press video walk-through of the ThinkSystem SR665:
  https://lenovopress.com/lp1293