System firmware and FSP

Information about low level stuff: the POWER system firmware, the hypervisor and the Flexible Service Processor (FSP).

By reading this document, you acknowledge that I cannot be held liable for any damage coming from the use of the information listed below. If you don't accept it, please leave this page.

Trivia

• Power Hypervisor - PHYP is "Based on iSeries (SLIC) hypervisor, enhanced for converged i/p design, provides VLAN, virtual I/O, sub-processor partitioning" - applies for POWER5++ [1]
• "The POWER Hypervisor code is based on the iSeries PLIC code that is enhanced for use with the IBM eServer i5 hardware." [4]
• PHYP consists of two parts: a non-blocking interrupt driven layer, called Platform Licensed Internal Code (PLIC), and a multitasking kernel, called Dispatchable PHYP. [2]
• ==> PLIC performs time critical operations required for virtualization. It enforces, for example, the partitioned environment. [2]
• ==> Dispatchable PHYP executes as a hidden LPAR and provides non-critical platform services. One of its main duties is to process messages from the HMC and services processor. ... Dispatchable PHYP is responsible for processing and maintaining configuration data on the platform. [2]
• On AS/400: "Partitioning LIC, or PLIC, is the code that communicates with each partition and controls the hardware. PLIC is used to implement Logical Partition (LPAR) functions and to control bus and storage management functions for each partition." [3]
• "The layers of code supporting Linux and AIX-5L consist of System Firmware and Run-Time Abstraction Services (RTAS)." [4]
• ==> "System Firmware is composed of Low Level Firmware and Open Firmware. Low Level Firmware is code that performs server unique input/output (I/O) configurations such as high-speed link (HSL)-2/RIO-G loops and PCI-X bridges. Open Firmware contains the boot time drivers (for example, SCSI, SSA, Token Ring, and Ethernet), the boot manager, and the device drivers required to initialize the PCI adapters and attached devices." [4]
• ==> "The Run-Time Abstraction Services consist of code that supplies platform dependent accesses and can be called from the operating system. The intent of this code is to minimize the need for an operating system to understand hardware unique details. These calls are passed to the POWER Hypervisor that handles all I/O interrupts." [4]
• The hypervisor "Runs on CEC (main system) CPU and resides in CEC Memory" and is "Loaded into the CEC by the FSP on base system IPL" [6]
• "On partitioned hardware, all partitions have a Virtual Service Processor (VSP), provided by the Hypervisor." [6] The PHYP itself has a hidden partition, number 0.

System Firmware updates

• POWER6, POWER7 firmware is delivered in 'code streams' (separate firmware by platform MTM, for example: 01AM720_xxx_yyy for Power 770 and 780) [1]
• Concurrent firmware activation requires a Hardware Management Console. [1]
• HMC is required for firmware updates: POWER5: 590, 595 or 570 with Dual FSP; POWER6 560, 570, 575 and 595; POWER7 770, 780 and 795 [1]
• By default, once an HMC is connected to a managed server, the firmware update policy is set as HMC managed. If you no longer have an HMC your only option is to set the system back to ‘Manufacturing Default Configuration' [1]
• Resetting the managed system to a nonpartitioned configuration

Access the PHYP command interface

"You can gather additional debug information from a failing system by using the debug virtual server (DVS). The DVS enables communication with the server firmware and partition firmware. DVS allows a maximum of eight open connections. External interfaces such as the ASMI and service processor remote application can communicate with the server firmware and partition firmware through DVS. This communication is bidirectional. External interfaces can send a message to the server firmware and partition firmware through DVS. DVS uses the partition ID and session ID to distinguish between the server firmware and partition firmware. The range for both the partition ID and session ID is 0 to 255. Clients, such as the ASMI, interact with DVS using a TCP/IP socket. Port 30002 on the service processor is used for this communication." [5]

• Log on to the ASMI as 'celogin' or 'celogin1'. The user 'admin' doesn't have the full ASMI menu.
• Select "Debug Virtual TTY".
• For partition ID, select 0 for PHYP (see below), session ID 0.
• When the message "Operation completed successfully" appears, telnet from the HMC or another IP in the HMC private LAN to the service processor' s IP address, port 30002.
• You should get to the phyp # prompt now.
• See the referred IBM document [7] for details

Note: the port is only open for a certain amount of time. After that, you will be dropped with the message "Command Time expired Set time 1176079193, Current Time 1218914654"

FSP commands

These commands are not guaranteed to work. As you can see, some of them are not even there on a POWER6 system. I guess these are pretty much outdated now. I have found some of these notes on a random site without any reference.

Most commands have no --help or other flags. The 'registry' command is an exception, see below.

Please bear in mind that the use of these commands may lead to unexpected behavior, system crash/reboot and data loss, and irreversible damage to the system. If you just want to examine the config files or binaries, the only way I found to extract them from the FSP is to create a symlink into the lighttpd's served directory, then get the files via the Web server. The config files can be viewed with cat, for example.

[*] Note: Clear FSP errors (errl -p) and FIPS errors (fipsdump -i) before restarting

registry command

IBM FSP Registry Command 3.2

Usage: registry [flags] option [] []

options:

-r, --read : read

-w, --write : write

-s, --size : sizeof

-u, --udata : retrieve user data

-m, --mpoint : retrieve mount point

-l, --list : list registry keys

-h, --help : print this message

flags:

-H, --hex : print output in hexadecimal or

write as hexadecimal

-R, --raw : print output in raw form (no formatting)

-E, --echo : echo the passed with write option

-V, --verobose : display command processing error messages

PHYP commonly used commands

Note: To close a PHYP console (telnet) type in the following: ^] (as with regular vterms)

Please bear in mind that the use of these commands may lead to unexpected behavior, system crash/reboot and data loss, and irreversible damage to the system.