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Blade server controls and LEDs

Use this information for details about the controls and LEDs on the blade server.

Note
The control panel door is shown in the closed position in the following illustration. To access the power-control button, you must open the control panel door.
Blade server control panel buttons and LEDs

Keyboard/video/mouse (KVM) select button: Press this button to associate the shared BladeCenter® unit keyboard port, video port, and mouse port with the blade server. The LED on this button flashes while the request is being processed and then is lit when the ownership of the keyboard, video, and mouse has been transferred to the blade server. It can take approximately 20 seconds to switch the keyboard, video, and mouse control to the blade server.

Using a keyboard that is directly attached to the management-module, you can press keyboard keys in the following sequence to switch KVM control between blade servers instead of using the KVM select button:

  • NumLock NumLock blade_server_number Enter
  • blade_server_number is the two-digit number of the blade-server bay in which the blade server is installed. A blade server that occupies more than one blade-server bay is identified by the lowest bay number that it occupies.
If there is no response when you press the KVM select button, you can use the management-module Web interface to determine whether local control has been disabled on the blade server. See http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/management/ for more information.
Notes
  1. The operating system in the blade server must provide USB support for the blade server to recognize and use the keyboard and mouse, even if the keyboard and mouse have PS/2-style connectors.
  2. If you install a supported Microsoft Windows operating system on the blade server while it is not the current owner of the keyboard, video, and mouse, a delay of up to 1 minute occurs the first time that you switch the keyboard, video, and mouse to the blade server. All subsequent switching takes place in the normal KVM switching time frame (up to 20 seconds).

Activity LED: When this green LED is lit, it indicates that there is activity on the hard disk drive or network.

Location LED: The system administrator can remotely turn on this blue LED to aid in visually locating the blade server. When this LED is lit, the location LED on the BladeCenter unit is also lit. The location LED can be turned off through the management-module Web interface at or through IBM® Director Console. For more information about the management-module Web interface, see http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/management/. For more information about IBM® Director, see the documentation on the IBM® Director CD that comes with the server, or visit the IBM® Director Information Center.

Information LED: When this amber LED is lit, it indicates that information about a system error in the blade server has been placed in the management-module event log. The information LED can be turned off through the management-module Web interface at or through IBM® Director Console. For more information about the management-module Web interface, see http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/management/. For more information about IBM® Director, see the documentation on the IBM® Director CD that comes with the server, or visit the IBM® Director Information Center at http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/eserver/v1r2/topic/diricinfo_all/diricinfoparent.html .

Blade-error LED: When this amber LED is lit, it indicates that a system error has occurred in the blade server. The blade-error LED turns off only after the error is corrected.

Media-tray select button: Press this button to associate the shared BladeCenter unit media tray (removable-media drives) with the blade server. The LED on the button flashes while the request is being processed and then is lit when the ownership of the media tray has been transferred to the blade server. It can take approximately 20 seconds for the operating system in the blade server to recognize the media tray.

If there is no response when you press the media-tray select button, you can use the management-module Web interface to determine whether local control has been disabled on the blade server.

Note
The operating system in the blade server must provide USB support for the blade server to recognize and use the removable-media drives.
Power-control button: This button is behind the control panel door. Press this button to turn on or turn off the blade server.
Note
The power-control button has effect only if local power control is enabled for the blade server. Local power control is enabled and disabled through the management-module Web interface.
Power-on LED: This green LED indicates the power status of the blade server in the following manner:
  • Flashing rapidly: The service processor (BMC) on the blade server is communicating with the management module.
  • Flashing slowly: The blade server has power but is not turned on.
  • Lit continuously: The blade server has power and is turned on.