Advisory: KERNEL UPGRADE RECOMMENDED to Prevent MCE or Unresponsiveness on ProLiant Servers Running Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 (AMD64/EM64T) Using Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5100 or 5200 Series or Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5300 or 5400 Series - c01384232

DESCRIPTION

IMPORTANT: The Red Hat kernel update provided in the Resolution is recommended to prevent the server from intermittently encountering a Machine Check Exception (MCE). HP recommends performing this upgrade at the customer's earliest possible convenience. Neglecting to perform the recommended action could result in the potential for subsequent errors to occur.

Neglecting to implement these minimum Red Hat Enterprise Linux versions may lead to serious system errors.

Red Hat has communicated a rare but potential scenario with servers running processors that address greater than 36-bit physical addressing running Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 (AMD64/EM64T). If an HP ProLiant server is running Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 (AMD64/EM64T), the server may, under rare circumstances, encounter a Machine Check Exception (MCE) or the server may stop responding when configured with any of the following processors:

Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5100 Series (G-0 stepping)
Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5200 Series
Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5300 Series (G-0 stepping)
Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5400 Series

Note: All of the processors listed above support 38-bit physical addressing. Previous CPU steppings of the Intel Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5100 Series and Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5300 Series which support 36-bit physical addressing do not require these updates.

To determine if a processor has greater than 36-bit physical addressing, issue the command cat /proc/cpuinfo and view the physical address size reported on the line that begins with "address sizes." Below is an example from a server with greater than 36-bit physical addressing:
address sizes : 38 bits physical, 48 bits virtual.

This condition can also occur after upgrading an existing server with one of the Intel Xeon processors listed above.

Red Hat has released an updated kernel for affected processors that provides a resolution to this issue and has no known measurable performance impact.

This issue is documented in two Red Hat Knowledge Base (kBase) articles that describe this minimum Red Hat Enterprise Linux support. For additional details regarding the Red Hat errata kernel-2.6.9-55-0.12 update, refer to the knowledge base articles on the Red Hat website at the following URLs:

http://kbase.redhat.com/faq/FAQ_85_11695

http://kbase.redhat.com/faq/FAQ_85_11696

Note: One or more of the links above will take you outside the Hewlett-Packard Web site. HP does not control and is not responsible for information outside of the HP Web site.

Additional information regarding ProLiant servers and processors is available on the Linux for ProLiant Processor Notes webpage located at the following URL:

http://h18004.www1.hp.com/products\servers\linux\processor-notes.html

There is another advisory involving the server encountering a rare Machine Check Exception (MCE) when the server is configured with Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5200-series and Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5400-series Processors. Refer to Customer Advisory, SYSTEM ROM UPGRADE RECOMMENDED to Prevent Rare Machine Check Exception or Server Unresponsiveness on ProLiant Servers Utilizing Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5200-series and Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5400-series Processors , located at the following URL:

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=c01352906

SCOPE

Any ProLiant BL460c server blade, ProLiant BL480c server blade, ProLiant BL20p G4 server blade, ProLiant DL140 G3 server, ProLiant DL160 G5 server, ProLiant DL180 server, ProLiant DL360 G5 server, ProLiant DL380 G5 server, ProLiant ML150 G3 server, ProLiant ML370 G5 server, or ProLiant ML350 G5 server running Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 (AMD64/EM64T) configured with any of the following processors:

This issue requires a rare set of conditions, resulting in a low probability of occurrence. This issue is not specific to Hewlett-Packard products.

RESOLUTION

To ensure that a Machine Check Exception (MCE) does not occur and ensure that the server does not stop responding, upgrade to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.5 errata kernel-2.6.9-55-0.12 (available 01 November 2007) or later.

Upgrading to the errata kernel-2.6.9-55-0.12 or later is required if the existing server is upgraded with one of the Intel Xeon processors listed above. Additionally, if the server / processor combination is listed in the SYSTEM ROM UPGRADE RECOMMENDED to Prevent Rare Machine Check Exception or Server Unresponsiveness on ProLiant Servers Utilizing Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5200-series and Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5400-series Processors Customer Advisory, the server System ROM must also be upgraded.

RECEIVE PROACTIVE UPDATES : Receive support alerts (such as Customer Advisories), as well as updates on drivers, software, firmware, and customer replaceable components, proactively via e-mail through HP Subscriber's Choice. Sign up for Subscriber's Choice at the following URL:

http://www.hp.com/go/myadvisory

SEARCH TIP : For hints on locating similar documents on HP.com, refer to the Search Tips document: http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=c00638154 .

To search for additional advisories related to ProLiant servers running Linux, use the following search string:

+Advisory +Linux

KEYWORDS: hang, lockup, freeze, CPU, proc

Hewlett-Packard Company shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein. The information provided is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. To the extent permitted by law, neither HP or its affiliates, subcontractors or suppliers will be liable for incidental,special or consequential damages including downtime cost; lost profits;damages relating to the procurement of substitute products or services; or damages for loss of data, or software restoration. The information in this document is subject to change without notice. Hewlett-Packard Company and the names of Hewlett-Packard products referenced herein are trademarks of Hewlett-Packard Company in the United States and other countries. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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