Lenovo ThinkSystem ST250 V2 Server

The ThinkSystem ST250 V2 is a mainstream 1-socket tower server that also be rack mounted as a rack server. It is ideal for small-to-medium businesses, remote offices, branch offices, banking and public sector. The server supports one Intel Xeon E-2300 Series processor (formerly codenamed "Rocket Lake") or Intel Pentium ("Comet Lake Refresh") and up to 128 GB of 3200 MHz TruDDR4 ECC memory.

Figure 1 shows the ThinkSystem ST250 V2.

Figure 1. Lenovo ThinkSystem ST250 V2

The ThinkSystem ST250 V2 is an entry-level server with enterprise-grade management features and support for hot-swap power supplies and drives. It offers full support of Lenovo XClarity Administrator for comprehensive systems management and includes the next generation UEFI-based Lenovo XClarity Provisioning Manager for system setup and diagnosis, and the Lenovo XClarity Controller management processor for ongoing systems management and alerting. These tools make the ST250 V2 easy to deploy, integrate, service, and manage.

The ThinkSystem ST250 V2 is a office-friendly tower server that has been optimized to provide enterprise-class features to small businesses, retail, educational institutions and branch offices.

Scalability and performance

The ST250 V2 offers the following features to boost performance, improve scalability, and reduce costs:

• Improved single-socket processor performance:
  • Intel Xeon E-2300 Series processors ("Rocket Lake-E") up to to 8 cores and core speeds up to 3.7 GHz
  • Intel Pentium G6405, G6505 and G6605 processors ("Comet Lake Refresh") with 2 cores and core speeds up to 4.3 GHz
• Up to four 3200 MHz DDR4 ECC UDIMMs provide speed and capacity of up to 128 GB
• Four PCIe slots for I/O expansion, one of which has the new PCIe Gen4 interface to maximize I/O performance.
• Flexible storage configurations support either 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch hot-swap drive bays or a combination of the two (hybrid configuration). Drive bays support SAS and SATA HDDs and SSDs.
  • Up to 16x 2.5-inch hot-swap drive bays
  • Up to 8x 3.5-inch hot-swap drive bays
  • Up to 4x 3.5-inch + 8x 2.5-inch drive bays
• The server also supports simple-swap drives, include 1x NVMe drive:
  • Up to 8x 3.5-inch SATA drive bays
  • Up to 7x 3.5-inch SATA drive bays + 1x 3.5-inch NVMe drive bay
• The use of solid-state drives (SSDs) instead of, or along with, traditional hard disk drives (HDDs) can significantly improve I/O performance. An SSD can support up to 100 times more I/O operations per second (IOPS) than a typical HDD
• New high-speed RAID controllers from Lenovo and Broadcom provide 12 Gb SAS connectivity to the drive backplanes
• Offers two 5.25-inch media bays with support for optical drives or backup drives
• Supports two M.2 drives for OS boot support with VROC RAID redundancy
• The server has two integrated Gigabit Ethernet ports
• The server offers one PCIe 4.0 slot plus three PCIe 3.0 I/O expansion slots
• Support for a NVIDIA GPU for enhanced workload performance

Manageability and security

The following systems management features simplify local and remote management of the ST250 V2:

• The server includes an XClarity Controller (XCC) to monitor server availability. Optional upgrade to XCC Advanced to provide remote control (keyboard video mouse) functions. Optional upgrade to XCC Enterprise enables the additional support for the mounting of remote media files (ISO and IMG image files), boot capture, and power capping.
• Lenovo XClarity Administrator offers comprehensive hardware management tools that help to increase uptime, reduce costs and improve productivity through advanced server management capabilities.
• New UEFI-based Lenovo XClarity Provisioning Manager, accessible from F1 during boot, provides system inventory information, graphical UEFI Setup, platform update function, RAID Setup wizard, operating system installation function, and diagnostic functions.
• Support for Lenovo XClarity Energy Manager which captures real-time power and temperature data from the server and provides automated controls to lower energy costs.
• Integrated Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0 support enables advanced cryptographic functionality, such as digital signatures and remote attestation.
• Industry-standard Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) NI support for faster, stronger encryption.
• Intel Execute Disable Bit functionality can prevent certain classes of malicious buffer overflow attacks when combined with a supported operating system.
• Intel Trusted Execution Technology (Intel Xeon E processors only) provides enhanced security through hardware-based resistance to malicious software attacks, allowing an application to run in its own isolated space, protected from all other software running on a system.
• Helps prevent unauthorized software from running on the server by protecting against boot block-level malicious software with Intel Boot Guard technology.
• Protects application code and data from disclosure or modification with Intel Software Guard Extensions (SGX), enabling high-assurance security use cases, such as blockchain, identity and records privacy, secure browsing, and digital rights management (DRM).
• Physical security measures to prevent unauthorized access: Loop for a padlock to prevent the side panel from being opened and a slot at the rear of the server for a Kensington Cable Lock. Optional additional physical security features are a lockable front security door and a chassis intrusion switch (included in some models).

Energy efficiency

The ST250 V2 offers the following energy saving features to save energy, reduce operational costs, increase energy availability, and contribute to the green environment:

• Energy-efficient planar components help lower operational costs.
• High-efficiency power supplies with 80 PLUS Platinum certifications. Energy Star certified.
• Intel Intelligent Power Capability powers individual processor elements on and off as needed to reduce power draw.
• Low-voltage 1.2 V DDR4 memory DIMMs use up to 20% less energy compared to 1.35 V DDR3 DIMMs.
• SSDs use as much as 80% less power than traditional spinning HDDs.
• The server uses hexagonal ventilation holes, which can be grouped more densely than round holes, providing more efficient airflow through the system.
• Optional Lenovo XClarity Energy Manager provides advanced data center power notification, analysis, and policy-based management to help achieve lower heat output and reduced cooling needs.

The ThinkSystem ST250 V2 improves on the previous generation ST250, as summarized in the following table.

The following figure shows the architectural block diagram of the ST250 V2, showing the major components and their connections.

Figure 5. ST250 V2 system architectural block diagram

The following table lists the standard specifications.

ThinkSystem ST250 V2 models can be configured by using the Lenovo Data Center Solution Configurator (DCSC).

Configure-to-order (CTO) models are used to create models with factory-integrated server customizations. For CTO models, two base CTO models are available for the ST250 V2 as listed in the following table, CTO1WW and CTOLWW:

• The CTO1WW base CTO model is for general business and is selectable by choosing General Purpose mode in DCSC.
• The CTOLWW base model is intended for High Performance Computing (HPC) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) configurations and solutions, including configurations for Lenovo Scalable Infrastructure (LeSI), and is enabled using either the HPC & AI LeSI Solutions mode or HPC & AI Hardware mode in DCSC. CTOLWW configurations can also be built using System x and Cluster Solutions Configurator (x-config).

Preconfigured server models may also be available for the ST250 V2, however these are region-specific; that is, each region may define their own server models, and not all server models are available in every region.

The following table lists the base CTO models of the ThinkSystem ST250 V2 server.

Models of the ST250 V2 are defined based on whether the server has 2.5-inch drive bays at the front (called the 2.5-inch chassis) or whether it has 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 following tables list the available models, grouped by region.

• Models for Asia Pacific region
• Models for Australia and New Zealand
• Models for Brazil
• Models for EMEA countries
• Models for Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea (HTK)
• Models for India
• Models for Japan
• Models for Latin American countries (except Brazil)
• Models for USA and Canada

Refer to the Specifications section for information about standard features of the server.

The ST250 V2 supports one processor from the following Intel product families:

• Intel Xeon E-2300 Series processors ("Rocket Lake-E")
• Intel Pentium G6405, G6505 and G6605 processors ("Comet Lake Refresh")

All supported processors have the following characteristics:

• LGA 1200 socket (Socket H5)
• 14 nm semiconductor process technology
• Direct Media Interface (DMI) 3.0 connection to PCH
  • Xeon E-2300: DMI 3.0 x8 connection
  • Pentium: DMI 3.0 x4 connection
• Two DDR4 memory channels
• Support for ECC memory
  • Xeon E-2300: Up to 3200 MHz memory speed
  • Pentium: Up to 2666 MHz memory speed
• PCIe lanes:
  • Xeon E-2300: 20x PCIe 4.0 I/O lanes
  • Pentium: 16x PCIe 3.0 I/O lanes

The following table lists the supported processors.

The following table lists the feature codes that allow you to specify the mode you wish to preset in the factory for CTO orders.

The preset modes for the ST250 V2 are as follows:

• Maximum Performance Mode (feature BFYB): Achieves maximum performance but with higher power consumption and lower energy efficiency.
• Efficiency Favoring Performance Mode (feature BFYE): Maximize the performance/watt efficiency with a bias towards performance. This is the favored mode for Energy Star certification, for example.

The ST250 V2 supports 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.

TruDDR4 memory has a unique signature programmed into the DIMM, which enables ThinkSystem servers to verify whether the memory installed is qualified and supported. From a service and support standpoint, TruDDR4 memory automatically assumes the system's warranty, and service and support provided worldwide.

The processors have 2 memory channels and support 2 DIMMs per channel. The ST250 V2 supports 1, 2 or 4 DIMMs. 3 installed DIMMs is not supported. All DIMMs installed must be identical.

DIMMs installed in the ST250 V2 operate at a speed based on the processor installed, the number of DIMMs installed, and whether the DIMMs are single-rank or dual-rank:

• When connected to a Xeon processor:
  • 1 or 2 DIMMs: 3200 MHz
  • 4 single-rank (1R) DIMMs: 3200 MHz
  • 4 dual-rank (2R) DIMMs: 2933 MHz
• When connected to a Pentium processor:
  • 1 or 2 DIMMs (1 DPC): 2666 MHz
  • 4 single-rank (1R) DIMMs: 2666 MHz
  • 4 dual-rank (2R) DIMMs: 2400 MHz

The following table lists the memory options that are available for the ST250 V2 server.

The following rules apply when selecting the memory configuration:

• The server only supports UDIMMs
• Quantities of 1, 2 or 4 DIMMs are supported. 3 DIMMs is not supported.
• All DIMMs must be identical (same part number)
• When installing two DIMMs, install one in each memory channel (DIMM slots 1 and 3)
• Memory mirroring and memory rank sparing are not supported

The ST250 V2 supports 2.5-inch hot-swap, 3.5-inch hot-swap, and 3.5-inch simple-swap drives in a variety of drive bay configurations.

Drive bays and backplanes

The server supports up to 16 drive bays:

• Up to 16x 2.5-inch hot-swap drives
• Up to 8x 3.5-inch drives hot-swap drives
• Up to 8x 3.5-inch simple-swap drives
• A combination of 8x 2.5" hot-swap and 4x 3.5" hot-swap drives.

Hot-swap configurations SAS and SATA drives depending on the controller used (the onboard SATA controller supports SATA drives only). Simple-swap drive configurations support SATA drives only, or SATA drives plus a single NVMe drive.

The different drive bay configurations supported are shown in the following figure. The server also supports two M.2 drives, installed in a PCIe slot as shown in the internal view of the server.

Figure 6. Internal drive bay configurations

The following table lists the available hot-swap and simple-swap backplanes for configure-to-order builds. See the Field upgrades section for option part numbers.

Configuration notes regarding drive bays with the use of the onboard SATA controller:

• The onboard SATA controller has 8 SATA ports, which means that up to 8 SATA drives can be connected provided no optical drive is installed.
• If the onboard SATA controller is used and an optical drive is installed, then at most 6 drives can be installed. The other 2 onboard SATA ports are reserved for optical drives, even if only 1 optical drive is installed.
• The ST250 V2 also supports the use of a RAID adapter or SAS host bus adapter to support the use of SAS drives plus offering higher performance features and RAID functionality. Configurations guidance is as follows:
  • For 8-bay configurations, use one of the supported 8-port RAID adapters or HBA
  • For 12-bay or 16-bay configurations, use one of the supported 16-port RAID adapters
  • It is supported to add 1 or 2 optical drives to a RAID adapter/HBA configuration

Field upgrades

The following table lists the supported field upgrades. The table refers to configurations which are described in the Storage configurations section.

The following table lists the contents of the option part numbers for field upgrades.

The supercap is installed in the supercap holder than is located inside the server as shown in Components and connectors section.

For CTO orders, the required supercap holder is derived by the configurator. For field upgrades that add a RAID card with supercap, you will need to order the RAID Cable Kit, as listed in the following table. The cable kit includes two supercap holders, one for use with RAID 940 adapters, and one for use with RAID 9350 adapters.

The following figure shows the M.2 adapter for the ST250 V2.

Figure 7. M.2 adapter with two M.2 drives installed in a PCIe slot

The following table lists the ordering information. For field upgrades, in addition to the ThinkSystem M.2 SATA/NVMe 2-Bay Enablement Adapter, you will also need to order the M.2 Signal & Power Cable Kit.

Supported drives are listed in the Internal drive options section.

Configuration rules:

• The M.2 PCIe adapter is only supported in slot 4
• M.2 is mutually exclusive with the use of optical drives (ODDs) as they share the same connector.

The M.2 SATA/NVMe 2-Bay Enablement Kit has the following features when installed in the ST250 V2:

• Supports one or two M.2 SATA drives
• Support 42mm, 60mm, 80mm and 110mm drive form factors (2242, 2260, 2280 and 22110)
• JBOD native support; no built-in RAID support (RAID can be enabled via Intel VROC SATA RAID)
• Supports monitoring and reporting of events and temperature through I2C
• Firmware update via Lenovo firmware update tools

For details about M.2 components, see the ThinkSystem M.2 Drives and M.2 Adapters product guide:
https://lenovopress.com/lp0769-thinksystem-m2-drives-adapters

The IBM Security Key Lifecycle Manager software is available from Lenovo using the ordering information listed in the following table.

The ST250 V2 supports the use of the onboard 6Gb SATA ports to connect SATA drives. Hot-swap and simple-swap SATA drives are supported. These onboard SATA ports support RSTe mode for RAID functionality or AHCI mode for JBOD support.

In addition to the onboard SATA controller, the ST250 V2 with hot-swap drives supports the use of an internal RAID adapter or HBA. The following table lists the supported adapters.

For a comparison of the functions of the supported storage adapters, see the ThinkSystem RAID Adapter and HBA Reference:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1288-thinksystem-raid-adapter-and-hba-reference#st250-v2-support= ST250%2520V2

Configuration notes:

• Virtualization support: The onboard SATA ports can be used with virtualization hypervisors, including VMware ESXi, Linux KVM, Xen, and Microsoft Hyper-V, however support is limited to AHCI (non-RAID) mode. RSTe mode is not supported with virtualization hypervisors.
• Windows support: Windows only supports a RSTe-based RAID array of no more than 6 drives.

• E810 Ethernet and X350 RAID/HBAs: The use of both an Intel E810 network adapter and an X350 HBA/RAID adapter (9350, 5350 and 4350) is currently not supported in ThinkSystem servers. For details see Support Tip HT513226. Planned support for this combination of adapters is 4Q/2023 (SI 23-2).

The following tables list the drive options for internal storage of the server.

The ST250 V2 supports the internal backup unit options that are listed in the following table.

The RDX dock is attached via the internal USB 3.0 port on the system board. The USB cable ships with the dock. The RDX dock is supported only in the lower media bay (Bay 0).

For more information about the RDX dock, see the Backup Units page on the Lenovo Press site: https://lenovopress.com/servers/options/backup

The ST250 V2 supports the internal optical drive options listed in the following table. The internal optical are installed in the 5.25-inch media drive bays.

The server supports the external USB optical drive listed in the following table.

The drive is based on the Lenovo Slim DVD Burner DB65 drive and supports the following formats: DVD-RAM, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD-ROM, DVD-R DL, CD-RW, CD-R, CD-ROM.

Slot 1 and slot 3 in the ST250 V2 are an open-end design, which means that it can accept adapters with a longer edge connector than the physical length of the slot connector. For example, if a x8 adapter is installed in the x4 slot 3 of the server, half of the edge connector will not be connected to the slot. The adapter will still function, however performance will be impacted.

The ST250 V2 has two onboard Gigabit Ethernet ports, connected to a Broadcom BCM5720 embedded controller.

The BCM5720 embedded controller has the following features:

• Two 10/100/1000 Mb Ethernet RJ-45 ports
• NIC Teaming (load balancing and failover)
• IEEE 802.3ad Link Aggregation
• I/O Virtualization (IOV) for VMWare NetQueue and Microsoft VMQ
• IEEE 802.1Q Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANs)
• IEEE 802.3x flow control
• TCP, IP, and UDP checksum offload
• Large Send Offload (LSO) and TCP Segmentation Offload (TSO)
• Receive Side Scaling (RSS) and Transmit Side Scaling (TSS)
• Jumbo frames up to 9600 bytes
• IEEE 802.3az-2010 Energy Efficient Ethernet (EEE) compliant
• Hardware assist for IEEE 1588 and IEEE 802.1AS time synchronization implementations
• Preboot eXecution Environment (PXE) remote boot

The following table lists other supported network adapters. The maximum supported column indicates which slots each adapter is supported in. For slot locations see the I/O expansion options section.

• E810 Ethernet and X350 RAID/HBAs: The use of both an Intel E810 network adapter and an X350 HBA/RAID adapter (9350, 5350 and 4350) is currently not supported in ThinkSystem servers. For details see Support Tip HT513226. Planned support for this combination of adapters is 4Q/2023 (SI 23-2).

The following table lists the adapters suitable for connectivity to external SAS storage.

For a comparison of the functions of the supported external storage adapters, see the ThinkSystem RAID Adapter and HBA Reference:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1288#st250-v2-support=ST250%20V2&internal-or-external-ports=External

The ST250 V2 does not currently support Fibre Channel host bus adapters.

The ST250 V2 does not currently support Flash Storage adapters.

The ST250 V2 server supports the graphics processing units (GPUs) listed in the following table.

The following rule applies:

• The use of a GPU requires 550W hot-swap power supplies

For information about GPUs, see the ThinkSystem GPU Summary:
https://lenovopress.com/lp0768-thinksystem-gpu-summary

The ST250 V2 has the following variable-speed fans. All fans are fixed (non-hot-swap).

• One or two system fans at the front of the server, mounted on the drive cages. If the server has one drive cage, only one front fan is included.
• One system fan at the rear of the server
• Fan mounted on the heatsink of the processor
• One fan in each power supply

See the Inside view in the Components and connectors section for locations.

The server supports either a single fixed power supply or one or two hot-swap power supplies. When two hot-swap power supplies are installed, they form a redundant pair. The following table lists the supported power supplies.

Power supply options do not include a line cord.

For server configurations, the inclusion of a power supply is model dependent. Configure-to-order models can be configured without a power cord if desired.

The following table lists the maximum configuration for the 250W and 300W power supplies.

To ensures that the properly sized power supply is chosen for optimal performance, it is highly recommended to validate system configuration for specific power requirements by using the latest version of the Lenovo Capacity Planner:
https://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/us/en/products/solutions-and-software/software/lenovo-capacity-planner/solutions/ht504651

The ST250 V2 contains an integrated service processor, XClarity Controller (XCC), which provides advanced service-processor control, monitoring, and alerting functions. The XCC is based on the Pilot4 XE401 baseboard management controller (BMC) using a dual-core ARM Cortex A9 service processor.

• Front operator panel
• System status with XClarity Mobile
• Remote management
• Lenovo XClarity Provisioning Manager
• Lenovo XClarity Administrator
• Lenovo XClarity Integrators
• Lenovo XClarity Essentials
• Lenovo XClarity Energy Manager

The steps to connect the mobile device are as follows:

1. Enable USB Management on the server, by holding down the ID button for 3 seconds (or pressing the dedicated USB management button if one is present)
2. Connect the mobile device via a USB cable to the server's USB port with the management symbol
3. In iOS or Android settings, enable Personal Hotspot or USB Tethering
4. Launch the Lenovo XClarity Mobile app

Remote management

The server offers a dedicated RJ45 port at the rear of the server for remote management via the XClarity Controller management processor. The port supports 10/100/1000 Mbps speeds.

Remote server management is provided through industry-standard interfaces:

• Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) Version 2.0
• Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) Version 3 (no SET commands; no SNMP v1)
• Common Information Model (CIM-XML)
• Representational State Transfer (REST) support
• Redfish support (DMTF compliant)
• Web browser - HTML 5-based browser interface (Java and ActiveX not required) using a responsive design (content optimized for device being used - laptop, tablet, phone) with NLS support

IPMI via the Ethernet port (IPMI over LAN) is supported, however it is disabled by default. For CTO orders you can specify whether you want to the feature enabled or disabled in the factory, using the feature codes listed in the following table.

There are two XClarity Controller upgrades available for the server, Advanced and Enterprise.

Lenovo XClarity Controller Advanced adds the following remote control functions:

• Remotely viewing video with graphics resolutions up to 1600x1200 at 75 Hz with up to 23 bits per pixel, regardless of the system state
• Remotely accessing the server using the keyboard and mouse from a remote client
• Capturing blue-screen errors
• International keyboard mapping support
• LDAP-based authentication

Lenovo XClarity Controller Enterprise enables the following additional features:

• Boot Capture
• Remote mounting of CD-ROM (ISO) and diskette (IMG) files as virtual drives
• Virtual console collaboration - Ability for up to 6 remote users to be log into the remote session simultaneously
• Power capping
• License for XClarity Energy Manager

Because Lenovo XClarity Administrator does not require any agent software to be installed on the managed endpoints, there are no CPU cycles spent on agent execution, and no memory is used, which means that up to 1GB of RAM and 1 - 2% CPU usage is saved, compared to a typical managed system where an agent is required.

LXEM is a licensed product. A single-node LXEM license is included with the XClarity Controller Enterprise upgrade as described in the Remote Management section. If your server does not have the XCC Enterprise upgrade, Energy Manager licenses can be ordered as shown in the following table.

Topics in this section:

• Security features
• Platform Firmware Resiliency - Lenovo ThinkShield
• Intel Transparent Supply Chain

Security features

The ST250 V2 offers the following security features:

• Electronic security measures:
  • Administrator and power-on passwords
  • Secure firmware updates
  • Trusted Platform Module (TPM) supporting TPM 2.0
  • For China customers, the Nationz TPM plug-in module
  • Self-encrypting drives with support for IBM Security Key Lifecycle Manager
• Mechanical security measures
  • Loop for a padlock to prevent the side panel from being opened
  • Slot at the rear of the server for a Kensington Cable Lock
  • Optional lockable front door
  • Optional chassis intrusion switch

The server is NIST SP 800-147B compliant.

The Nationz TPM module is installed in a dedicated socket on the system board. See the Components and connectors section for locations of physical components.

The following table lists the security options for the server.

For self-encrypting drives (SEDs) with support for enterprise key managers, see the SED encryption key management section.

Platform Firmware Resiliency - Lenovo ThinkShield

Lenovo's ThinkShield Security is a transparent and comprehensive approach to security that extends to all dimensions of our data center products: from development, to supply chain, and through the entire product lifecycle.

The ThinkSystem ST250 V2 includes Platform Firmware Resiliency (PFR) hardware Root of Trust (RoT) which enables the system to be NIST SP800-193 compliant. This offering further enhances key platform subsystem protections against unauthorized firmware updates and corruption, to restore firmware to an integral state, and to closely monitor firmware for possible compromise from cyber attacks.

PFR operates upon the following server components:

• UEFI image – the low-level server firmware that connects the operating system to the server hardware
• XCC image – the management “engine” software that controls and reports on the server status separate from the server operating system
• FPGA image – the code that runs the server’s lowest level hardware controller on the motherboard

The Lenovo Platform Root of Trust Hardware performs the following three main functions:

• Detection – Measures the firmware and updates for authenticity
• Recovery – Recovers a corrupted image to a known-safe image
• Protection – Monitors the system to ensure the known-good firmware is not maliciously written

These enhanced protection capabilities are implemented using a dedicated, discrete security processor whose implementation has been rigorously validated by leading third-party security firms. Security evaluation results and design details are available for customer review – providing unprecedented transparency and assurance.

The ST250 V2 includes support for Secure Boot, a UEFI firmware security feature developed by the UEFI Consortium that ensures only immutable and signed software are loaded during the boot time. The use of Secure Boot helps prevent malicious code from being loaded and helps prevent attacks, such as the installation of rootkits. Lenovo offers the capability to enable secure boot in the factory, to ensure end-to-end protection. Alternatively, Secure Boot can be left disabled in the factory, allowing the customer to enable it themselves at a later point, if desired.

The following table lists the relevant feature code(s).

The following table lists the supported full-sized USB keyboards and mice available for Lenovo ThinkSystem servers.

The keyboards have the following features:

• Full-sized 104-key keyboard with 3 special Windows keys
• 3 LEDs for caps lock, scroll lock and num lock
• Wired USB connection with 1.8m cable
• Adjustable feet at the rear of the keyboard

The ST250 V2 can be installed in the rack with the Rack Mount Kit, which converts the server to a rack-mountable server.

Part number information is listed in the following table. The kit can only be ordered as an option part number, not in a CTO order.

The rack mount kit includes the following items:

• 1U tray to hold the server horizontally
• Left and right slide rails
• Cable management arm
• Brackets and other hardware
• Installation instructions

The following table summarizes the rail kit features and specifications.

The server supports the following operating systems:

• Microsoft Windows Server 2019
• Microsoft Windows Server 2022
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.4
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.7
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.8
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.0
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.1
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP3
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP4
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP5
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 Xen SP3
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 Xen SP4
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 Xen SP5
• VMware ESXi 7.0 U3
• VMware ESXi 8.0
• VMware ESXi 8.0 U1
• VMware ESXi 8.0 U2

For a complete list of supported, certified and tested operating systems, plus additional details and links to relevant web sites, see the Operating System Interoperability Guide: https://lenovopress.com/osig

Virtualization support: The onboard SATA ports of the server can be used with virtualization hypervisors, including VMware ESXi, Linux KVM, Xen, and Microsoft Hyper-V, however support is limited to AHCI (non-RAID) mode. RSTe mode is not supported with virtualization hypervisors.

For configure-to-order (CTO) configurations, the server can be preloaded with VMware ESXi installed on an M.2 drive. Ordering information is listed in the following table.

The ST250 V2 has the following overall physical dimensions, including tower feet, excluding components that extend outside the standard chassis, such as power supply handles:

• Width: 176 mm (6.9 inches)
• Height: 444 mm (17.5 inches)
• Depth: 578 mm (22.8 inches)

The following table lists the detailed dimensions. See the figure below for the definition of each dimension.

Figure 11. Server dimension

The server has the following weight:

• Weight, fully configured: 23.6 kg (52 lb)

Electrical requirements are as follows:

• Models with a 250 W AC fixed power supply:
  • 100-127 (nominal) V ac; 50 Hz or 60 Hz, 2.93 A
  • 200-240 (nominal) V ac; 50 Hz or 60 Hz, 1.28 A
• Models with a 300 W AC fixed power supply:
  • 100-127 (nominal) V ac; 50 Hz or 60 Hz, 3.56 A
  • 200-240 (nominal) V ac; 50 Hz or 60 Hz, 1.55 A
• Models with 550 W AC hot-swap power supplies:
  • 100-127 (nominal) V ac; 50 Hz or 60 Hz; 6.35 A
  • 200-240 (nominal) V ac; 50 Hz or 60 Hz; 2.75 A

Note for customers in China: 240V DC is not supported.

The server is designed to operate in ASHRAE A2 environments (10-35°C). With certain configurations, the server can also operate within ASHRAE Class A3 and A4 specifications. System performance may be impacted when operating temperature is outside ASHRAE A2 specification.

Temperature and humidity

The server is supported operating in the following environments:

• ASHRAE A2:
  • Temperature: 10°C to 35°C
  • Humidity: 8% to 80%
  • Altitude 0-3000 m (10,000 ft), derated 1°C per 300 m above 950 m
• ASHRAE A3:
  • Temperature: 5°C to 40°C
  • Humidity: 8% to 85%
  • Altitude 0-3000 m (10,000 ft), derated 1°C per 175 m above 950 m
• ASHRAE A4:
  • Temperature: 5°C to 45°C
  • Humidity: 8% to 90%
  • Altitude 0-3000 m (10,000 ft), derated 1°C per 175 m above 950 m

Non-operating environment support:

• Without packaging:
  • Temperature: -10 °C to 60 °C
  • Humidity: 8 to 90%
• Storage with packaging:
  • Temperature: -40 °C to 70 °C
  • Humidity: 8 to 90%

Heat output

Thermal (heat) output:

• Minimum configuration: 358.05 BTU per hour (105 watts)
• Maximum configuration: 1029.82 BTU per hour (302 watts)

Acoustical noise emissions

The server has the following acoustic noise emissions declaration:

• Sound power level (L_WAd):
  • Idling: 4.3 Bel (Typical), 4.4 Bel (Max)
  • Operating: 4.3 Bel (Typical), 4.5 Bel (Max)
• Sound pressure level (L_pAm):
  • Idling: 27.4 dBA (Typical), 28.6 dBA (Max)
  • Operating: 27.6 dBA (Typical), 29.0 dBA (Max)

Note:

• These sound levels were measured in controlled acoustical environments according to procedures specified by ISO7779 and are reported in accordance with ISO 9296, SPL is measured by bystander position (1m).
• The declared acoustic sound levels are based on the following configurations, which may change depending on configuration/conditions, for example M.2 drive, Broadcom 57414 25Gb NIC, Broadcom 57416 10Gb NIC, T1000, etc.
  • Typical: 1x 80W CPU, 4x 32GB DIMM, 2x HDD or SSD, RAID 5350-8i, 1x 300W PSU
  • Max: 1x 95W CPU, 4x 32GB DIMM, 2x HDD or SSD, 2x 550W PSU

Shock and vibration

The server has the following vibration and shock limits:

• 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:
    • 4 kg - 11 kg: 50 G for 167 in./sec velocity change across 6 surfaces
    • 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 specifications indicate the limits of particulates that the system can tolerate:

• Reactive gases:
  • The reactivity rate of copper coupons shall be less than 200 Angstroms per month (Å/month)
  • The reactivity rate of silver coupons shall be less than 200 Å/month
• Airborne particulates:
  • The room air should be continuously filtered with MERV 8 filters.
  • Air entering a data center should be filtered with MERV 11 or preferably MERV 13 filters.
  • The deliquescent relative humidity of the particulate contamination should be more than 60% RH
  • Data centers must be free of zinc whiskers

For additional information, see the Specifications section of the Setup Guide for the server, available from the Lenovo Documents site, https://pubs.lenovo.com/

The ST250 V2 has a 1-year or 3-year warranty, based on the machine type of the system:

• 7D8G - 1 year warranty
• 7D8F - 3 year warranty

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:

• Premier Support

  Premier Support provides a Lenovo-owned customer experience and delivers direct access to technicians skilled in hardware, software, and advanced troubleshooting, in addition to the following:

  • Direct technician-to-technician access through a dedicated phone line
  • 24x7x365 remote support
  • Single point of contact service
  • End to end case management
  • Third-party collaborative software support
  • Online case tools and live chat support
  • On-demand remote system analysis
• 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.

Lenovo Services is a dedicated partner to your success. Our goal is to reduce your capital outlays, mitigate your IT risks, and accelerate your time to productivity.

Here’s a more in-depth look at what we can do for you:

• Asset Recovery Services

  Asset Recovery Services (ARS) helps customers recover the maximum value from their end-of-life equipment in a cost-effective and secure way. On top of simplifying the transition from old to new equipment, ARS mitigates environmental and data security risks associated with data center equipment disposal. Lenovo ARS is a cash-back solution for equipment based on its remaining market value, yielding maximum value from aging assets and lowering total cost of ownership for your customers. For more information, see the ARS page, https://lenovopress.com/lp1266-reduce-e-waste-and-grow-your-bottom-line-with-lenovo-ars.

• Assessment Services

  An Assessment helps solve your IT challenges through an onsite, multi-day session with a Lenovo technology expert. We perform a tools-based assessment which provides a comprehensive and thorough review of a company's environment and technology systems. In addition to the technology based functional requirements, the consultant also discusses and records the non-functional business requirements, challenges, and constraints. Assessments help organizations like yours, no matter how large or small, get a better return on your IT investment and overcome challenges in the ever-changing technology landscape.

• Design Services

  Professional Services consultants perform infrastructure design and implementation planning to support your strategy. The high-level architectures provided by the assessment service are turned into low level designs and wiring diagrams, which are reviewed and approved prior to implementation. The implementation plan will demonstrate an outcome-based proposal to provide business capabilities through infrastructure with a risk-mitigated project plan.

• Basic Hardware Installation

  Lenovo experts can seamlessly manage the physical installation of your server, storage, or networking hardware. Working at a time convenient for you (business hours or off shift), the technician will unpack and inspect the systems on your site, install options, mount in a rack cabinet, connect to power and network, check and update firmware to the latest levels, verify operation, and dispose of the packaging, allowing your team to focus on other priorities.

• Deployment Services

  When investing in new IT infrastructures, you need to ensure your business will see quick time to value with little to no disruption. Lenovo deployments are designed by development and engineering teams who know our Products & Solutions better than anyone else, and our technicians own the process from delivery to completion. Lenovo will conduct remote preparation and planning, configure & integrate systems, validate systems, verify and update appliance firmware, train on administrative tasks, and provide post-deployment documentation. Customer’s IT teams leverage our skills to enable IT staff to transform with higher level roles and tasks.

• Integration, Migration, and Expansion Services

  Move existing physical & virtual workloads easily, or determine technical requirements to support increased workloads while maximizing performance. Includes tuning, validation, and documenting ongoing run processes. Leverage migration assessment planning documents to perform necessary migrations.

The ST250 V2 conforms to the following standards:

• ANSI/UL 62368-1
• IEC 62368-1 (CB Certificate and CB Test Report)
• FCC - Verified to comply with Part 15 of the FCC Rules, Class A
• Canada ICES-003, issue 7, Class A
• CSA C22.2 No. 62368-1
• CISPR 32, Class A, CISPR 35
• Argentina IEC 60950-1
• Japan VCCI, Class A
• Taiwan BSMI CNS13438, Class A; CNS14336-1; Section 5 of CNS15663
• CE, UKCA Mark (EN55032 Class A, EN62368-1, EN55024, EN55035, EN61000-3-2, EN61000-3-3, (EU) 2019/424, and EN50581-1 (RoHS))
• Korea KN32, Class A, KN35
• Russia, Belorussia and Kazakhstan, TP EAC 037/2016 (for RoHS)
• Russia, Belorussia and Kazakhstan, EAC: TP TC 004/2011 (for Safety); TP TC 020/2011 (for EMC)
• Australia/New Zealand AS/NZS CISPR 32, Class A; AS/NZS 62368.1
• UL Green Guard, UL2819
• Energy Star 3.0
• EPEAT (NSF/ ANSI 426) Bronze
• China CCC certificate, GB17625.1; GB4943.1; GB/T9254
• China CECP certificate, CQC3135
• China CELP certificate, HJ 2507-2011
• Japanese Energy-Saving Act
• Mexico NOM-019
• TUV-GS (EN62368-1, and EK1-ITB2000)
• India BIS 13252 (Part 1)
• Germany GS
• Brazil INMETRO
• South Africa NRCS LOA
• Ukraine UkrCEPRO
• Morocco CMIM Certification (CM)
• EU2019/424 Energy Related Product (ErP Lot9)

The server supports attachment to external drive enclosures using a RAID controller with external ports or a SAS host bus adapter. Adapters supported by the server are listed in the SAS adapters for external storage section.

Note: Information provided in this section is for ordering reference purposes only. For the operating system and adapter support details, refer to the interoperability matrix for a particular storage enclosure that can be found on the Lenovo Data Center Support web site:
http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com

Lenovo offers the ThinkSystem DE Series and ThinkSystem DM Series external storage systems for high-performance storage. See the DE Series and DM Series product guides for specific controller models, expansion enclosures and configuration options:

• ThinkSystem DE Series Storage
  https://lenovopress.com/storage/thinksystem/de-series#rt=product-guide
• ThinkSystem DM Series Storage
  https://lenovopress.com/storage/thinksystem/dm-series#rt=product-guide

The following table lists the external USB backup options that are offered by Lenovo.

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the Backup units category:
https://lenovopress.com/servers/options/backup

The following table lists the available external SAS tape backup options.

Tip: Verify the end-to-end support of an IBM tape backup solution through the IBM System Storage Interoperation Center (SSIC): http://www.ibm.com/systems/support/storage/ssic

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the Backup units category:
https://lenovopress.com/servers/options/backup

The following table lists the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units that are offered by Lenovo.

† Only available in China and the Asia Pacific market.

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the UPS category:
https://lenovopress.com/servers/options/ups

The following table lists the power distribution units (PDUs) that are offered by Lenovo.

For more information, see the Lenovo Press documents in the PDU category:
https://lenovopress.com/servers/options/pdu

The ST250 V2 server can be installed horizontally in a rack cabinet using the Rack Mount Kit, as described in the Rack installation section.

The following table lists the supported rack cabinets.

For specifications about these racks, see the Lenovo Rack Cabinet Reference, available from:
https://lenovopress.com/lp1287-lenovo-rack-cabinet-reference

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the Rack cabinets category:
https://lenovopress.com/servers/options/racks

The following table lists the supported KVM consoles.

The following table lists the available KVM switches and the options that are supported with them.

For more information, see the list of Product Guides in the KVM Switches and Consoles category:
http://lenovopress.com/servers/options/kvm

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:

• ThinkSystem ST250 V2 product page
  https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/data-center/servers/towers/ThinkSystem-ST250/p/77XX7TRST25
• ThinkSystem ST250 V2 interactive 3D tour
  https://lenovopress.com/lp1569-3d-tour-document-3d-tour-thinksystem-st250-v2
• ThinkSystem ST250 V2 drivers and support
  http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/products/servers/thinksystem/st250v2/7d8f/downloads

• Lenovo ThinkSystem ST250 V2 product publications:
  http://thinksystem.lenovofiles.com/help/index.jsp
  • Quick Start
  • Tower-to-Rack Conversion Kit Installation Instructions
  • Setup Guide
  • Maintenance Manual
  • Lenovo XClarity Provisioning Manager User Guide
• ServerProven hardware compatibility:
  http://www.lenovo.com/us/en/serverproven