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SGI Origin 2000 General Maintenance

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SGI Origin 2000 deskside rear
Back of the Origin 2000 deskside chassis: node board slots, BaseIO panel, AC input and main power switch (SGI Deskside Owner's Guide, Figure 2-5)

Routine care for the SGI Origin 2000, mainly the deskside module, from SGI's Origin2000 Deskside Owner's Guide (007-3453-002), Origin2000 Rackmount Owner's Guide (007-3456-003), the redundant power supply guide and the site preparation guide.[1][2][3][4] The same base module is used in the SGI Onyx2. SGI allowed owners to change only the drives, the CD-ROM drive and the module system controller (MSC); the midplane, fan tray, node boards, router boards, XIO boards and power supply were for SGI-trained engineers.[5] The parts that need attention on a machine of this age are the fans and the power supply.

Warning: SGI's own guides warn that the system uses hazardous electrical power internally. The power supply runs from mains and stores charge after it is unplugged.[5][3]

Environment

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Base module operating conditions (SGI Site Preparation, Table 6-3)
Specification Value
Temperature, up to 5,000 ft 5 to 35 °C
Temperature, 5,000 to 10,000 ft 5 to 30 °C
Rate of change 10 °C per hour maximum
Humidity 10% to 90%, non-condensing
Weight 54.4 to 77 kg

[4]

Leave at least 8 inches (20 cm) at the front and back. With 6 inches (15 cm) or less above the chassis, leave 6 inches at each side; with more than 6 inches above it, 1 inch (2.5 cm) at each side is enough. Do not stand more than 11.5 kg on top.[4] Keep it out of closets and do not drape anything over it, lay it on its side, or run it with the plastic covers off, which disrupts the airflow and can overheat it.[5][6]

Power

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  • A deskside module with one or two node boards runs on 120 V; three or four node boards need 208 V or more. The 120 V configurations need at least 100 V, so SGI did not support them on Japanese 100 V mains.[4]
  • Modules in racks run on 208 V only, and the redundant power supply needs a 220 V outlet.[4][3]
  • Allow for 140 A peak inrush current per module.[4]
  • SGI advised against switching the system off frequently and suggested leaving it running over nights and weekends.[6]

Switching off

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  1. As root, run /etc/halt to stop IRIX and drop to the PROM monitor.[5]
  2. Turn the MSC key switch to Standby. The boards and peripherals lose power.[5]
  3. Push down the circuit breaker switch at the bottom right of the rear panel to remove all power from the midplane and supply.[5]

Turn on in reverse: breaker up, then the terminal, then the key switch to On, and watch the MSC display for SYS OK.[5] Do not leave the key in the Diagnostic position.[6]

Covers

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SGI's procedure for the plastic covers, with the system off and the power cord unplugged:[5]

  1. Undo the captive Phillips screw near the centre of the bottom grille, lower the front panel about 4 mm and pull it forward.
  2. Release the four corner caps on the top cover by pushing a screwdriver through the upper grille to unlatch each one; press down on the outer corner if a cap will not lift.
  3. Undo the captive screw under each cap and lift the top panel straight off.

SGI advises leaving the rear bumper and the side panels in place; the three are interlocked and difficult to remove.[5] The sliding front door opens by pushing it down until it locks, and gives access to the drives and the MSC without removing any cover.[5]

Dust and fans

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The base module is designed for a typical office with relatively dust-free air.[4] An owner on the IRIX Network forum suggests taking out the power supply and cleaning between it and the midplane stiffeners, where dust can build up and cause overheating.[7] The fans are in a single fan tray; SGI's guides treat the tray as a unit for its engineers to change.[5] jan-jaap, a collector on the same forum, warns that the fans need enough static pressure to move air through a loaded module, and that quiet low-pressure fans are not a suitable substitute.[7] On systems with the redundant supply, the three fans under the supply run only at high speed.[3]

Drives

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  • The five 3.5-inch bays take SCA drives on SGI's 80-pin SCA sleds; non-SCA drives and sleds from older SGI systems do not fit.[8]
  • Each bay is wired to one SCSI ID: the system disk is ID 1 in the bay next to the MSC, and the others are IDs 2 to 5. The CD-ROM bay is ID 6.[5]
  • Power the system off before removing a drive, and put every drive back in the bay it came from. A system disk in the wrong bay will not boot, and a data disk in the wrong bay can corrupt data.[5][8]
  • Only single-ended Ultra SCSI and SCSI-2 drives are supported inside the chassis.[9]

Module system controller and CD-ROM

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The MSC and the CD-ROM drive are one assembly. To replace either, turn the key to Standby and the breaker off, remove the front cover, take out the four screws holding the assembly with a #1 Phillips screwdriver, and pull it free of the midplane using the finger grip near the upper right. Swap the faulty unit on the sheet-metal frame (four screws), then slide the assembly back until both connectors line up with the midplane, seat them firmly and refit the screws.[8]

Cables

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Serial cables from older SGI deskside systems do not work on the Origin 2000.[10] Keep RS-232 runs under 15 m.[10] Connect only one device at a time to the MSC diagnostic port: the front 8-pin mini-DIN and the rear DB-9 share the same circuit.[11]

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References

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  1. ↑ Silicon Graphics, Origin2000 Deskside Owner's Guide, 007-3453-002, 1997 (File:SGI Origin2000 Deskside Owner's Guide (007-3453-002).pdf).
  2. ↑ Silicon Graphics, Origin2000 Rackmount Owner's Guide, 007-3456-003, 1997 (File:SGI Origin2000 Rackmount Owner's Guide (007-3456-003).pdf).
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Silicon Graphics, Origin 2000 Redundant Power Supply Option Owner's Guide, 007-3654-001, 1999, pp. xi and 3 (File:SGI Origin 2000 Redundant Power Supply Option Owner's Guide (007-3654-001).pdf). 220 V requirement, power hazard warning, fan tray for the redundant supply.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Silicon Graphics, Site Preparation for SGI 2000-Series, Origin Family, Onyx2, Octane and O2, 007-3452-004, chapter 6, pp. 58-64 (File:SGI Site Preparation for SGI 2000-Series, Origin, Onyx2, Octane and O2 (007-3452-004).pdf). Clearances Table 6-1, load on top, airflow, Tables 6-3 to 6-5.
  5. ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 SGI, 007-3453-002, chapter 3, pp. 29-41. Parts reserved for SGI engineers, safety warning, voltages, front door, plastic covers, drive bays and SCSI IDs, power-on and power-off.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 SGI, 007-3453-002, chapter 7, pp. 69-70. General guidelines.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "O2000 / onyx2 PSU fail (?)", IRIX Network forum, posts by Noguri (12 June 2021) and jan-jaap (8 November 2023), forums.irixnet.org/thread-2958.html. Community advice on dust behind the supply and replacement fans.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 SGI, 007-3453-002, chapter 5, pp. 51-57. SCA drive sleds, drive removal, MSC and CD-ROM assembly.
  9. ↑ SGI, 007-3453-002, p. 18. Internal drive types.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 SGI, 007-3453-002, chapter 4, p. 46. Serial cables and cable length.
  11. ↑ SGI, 007-3453-002, chapter 6, pp. 62-63. Front and rear diagnostic ports.


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