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Intel Select Solutions for Virtual Radio Access Network (vRAN) with Lenovo ThinkEdge SE450

Solution Brief

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Published
8 Dec 2021
Form Number
LP1544
PDF size
6 pages, 170 KB

Abstract

The new Lenovo ThinkEdge SE450 server verified as an Intel® Select Solution for vRAN, allows customers to quickly and efficiently deploy various 5G vRAN and MEC solutions more securely and easily than ever before.

Reduce time to value with validated and optimized vRAN solutions

5G is fueling a rapid transition to virtualization and cloud-native technologies and many operators are embracing a shift to virtualized RAN (vRAN) for greater agility. vRAN architectures offer many advantages including the following:

  • Enhanced user experience and faster network performance: critical real-time tasks are optimized for performance and completed at the edge, closer to where the data is being generated and used for reduced latency. Reduced costs including both CapEx and OpEx: using standards-based infrastructure improves hardware utilization efficiency and reduces operating costs through reduced maintenance and power savings
  • Flexible performance and agile adaptability: as general-purpose infrastructure decoupled from specific workloads can transparently adapt when the new network elements and services are added and can respond dynamically to changing network requirements.

Intel Select Solutions for vRAN provide pre-validated reference designs that help accelerate 5G deployments.

The foundation of the Intel Select Solutions for vRAN is a robust set of Intel architecture components that include the 3rd Gen Intel Xeon Scalable processor, the Intel vRAN Accelerator ACC100, Intel Ethernet 800 Series Network Adapters and Intel QuickAssist Technology (Intel QAT).

The new Lenovo ThinkEdge SE450 has been verified by Intel as an Intel Select Solution for vRAN and can be configured to meet either the Base or the Plus Configuration requirements for best-in-class solutions. The SE450, built on the flexible performance of the 3rd Gen Intel Xeon Scalable processor, is complemented by a software stack based on Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Built for the Edge

The ThinkEdge SE450 is purposely designed to operate outside of the datacenter, where the data is created and where the users need it.  The small form factor of the server allows it to be installed in remote locations with no typical IT infrastructure.  For example, the SE450 can be installed in a small cabinet, mounted on the wall or self-standing with a floor stand.  The server is also built to operate in ruggedized conditions, sustaining wider operating temperature as well as shock and vibration.

Figure 1. Lenovo ThinkEdge SE450

The small form factor and ruggedized server does not compromise on performance by supporting Intel’s 3rd Gen Xeon Scalable processors and up to four (4) PCI expansion cards.

Security at the edge is crucial, which is why the SE450 includes the later TPM 2.0 technology and various secure technologies protecting the device and data it contains.

The new SE450 is designed to process a huge amount of data, directly at edge sites and deliver the insights needed for edge AI use cases to become a reality.  It is created to deliver the promise of AI at the edge by using the latest Intel technologies and several AI acceleration cards.

While the SE450 is deployed in several remote locations, it is easily configured centrally by xClarity Orchestrator and the Cloud infrastructure is automatically installed and managed with Lenovo Open Cloud Automation (LOC-a). Remote access to the server via a completely out-of-band wireless access avoids any unnecessary trip to the edge locations.

Specifications

The following table lists the specifications for the Lenovo ThinkEdge SE450

Table 1. Specifications for ThinkEdge SE450
Form Factor 2U rack server 300mm (11.8in) depth with 4x FHHL adapters; or
2U rack server 360mm (14.2in) depth with 4x FHFL adapters
Processor 1x 3rd Gen Intel® Xeon® Platinum processor, up to 36 cores, up to 225W TDP
Drive Bays Up to 6x 2.5-inch 7mm drives; Up to 6x NVMe drives supported; 2x M.2 boot drives (RAID 1)
Memory 10x DDR4 memory slots; Maximum 1TB using 8x 128GB 3DS RDIMMs; Supports up to 2x Intel® Optane™ Persistent Memory 200 Series modules (PMem)
Expansion Slots Up to 4x PCIe 4.0 slots, 1x OCP 3.0 slot
GPUs Up to 4x single-width GPUs or 2x double-width GPUs
Network Interface LOM adapter installed in the OCP 3.0 slot; PCIe adapters
Ports Front: 1x Power Button, 1x system locator, health with LED, 1x VGA, 2x USB 3.1, 1x Serial Port (optional), 1x RJ-45 1Gb for dedicated management, 1x system locator LED; Optional Wi-Fi (management)     
HBA/RAID Support SW RAID standard; optional HW RAID with or without cache, or SAS HBAs
Power Dual redundant power supplies AC (up to 1100W Platinum) or Dual redundant power supplies -48V DC 1100W
Systems Management Lenovo XClarity Controller
OS Support Microsoft, Red Hat,Ubuntu, CentOS, VMware.
Limited Warranty 3-year customer replaceable unit and onsite service, next business day 9x5; optional service upgrades

You can learn more about SE450 downloading the datasheet for this server.

The SE450 exceeds the performance benchmarks required to address challenges emerging at the network Edge.

The following table lists the ThinkSystem servers that are compatible.

Table 2. Intel Select Solutions for vRAN requirements
Ingredient Intel Select Solutions for vRAN Base Configuration Hardware Intel Select Solutions for vRAN Plus Configuration Hardware
CPU 3rd Generation Intel Xeon Gold 5318N processor (one socket, 20 cores) or higher SKU 3rd Generation Intel Xeon Gold 6338N processor (one socket, 32 cores) or higher SKU
Memory 128 GB (16 GB DIMM/Channel recommeneded)
Intel Ethernet Controller 1x E810-CAM2 or CAM1 based NIC for 100GB/s throughput e.g. 1x E810-XXVDA4 or 1x E810-CQDA2 2x E810-CAM2 or CAM1 based NIC for 200 GB/s throughput e.g. 2x E810-XXVDA4 or 1x E810-2CQDA2
Acceleration 1x Intel vRAN Dedicated Accelerator ACC100 Intel QAT (optional)
Storage (SSD/NVMe) At least 2x480GB for boot (Intel SSD, Intel Optane SSD or M.2 equivalent)

Together with the SE450, Intel Select Solutions for vRAN offer operators a streamlined path to deployment with validated software stacks built in conjunction with other industry leaders for flexible performance and enhanced security. The verification of the SE450 together with the software helps reduce time, effort and expense associated with developing vRAN solutions.

Conclusion

Lenovo’s deep technical partnerships with industry leaders ensures that network operators, service providers, cloud service providers or enterprise infrastructure companies can choose among the highest performance and optimized solutions with confidence. With the latest ThinkEdge SE450 server verified as an IntelSelect Solution for vRAN, customers should be able to quickly and efficiently deploy various 5G vRAN and MEC solutions more securely and easily than ever before.

Customers will spend less time, effort, and expense evaluating hardware and software options with the the SE450 because Intel Select Solutions for vRAN helps simplify design choices by tightly specifying hardware and software ingredients to ensure interoperability and predictable performance.

Related product families

Product families related to this document are the following:

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Lenovo and the Lenovo logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Lenovo in the United States, other countries, or both. A current list of Lenovo trademarks is available on the Web at https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/legal/copytrade/.

The following terms are trademarks of Lenovo in the United States, other countries, or both:
Lenovo®
ThinkEdge®
ThinkSystem®
XClarity®

The following terms are trademarks of other companies:

Intel®, Intel Optane®, and Xeon® are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries.

Linux® is the trademark of Linus Torvalds in the U.S. and other countries.

Microsoft® is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both.

Other company, product, or service names may be trademarks or service marks of others.