The purpose of this blog is to explain the difference between IBM Hardware Support (HWMA) and IBM HWMA Extended Support.
If you are an IBM POWER server user, you may be familiar with the acronym “HWMA”, or Hardware Maintenance Agreement.
If so, you probably know that if you have HWMA in place, IBM will repair a server hardware failure. In the United States, you just call 800-IBM-SERV (800-426-7378). You provide the IBM receptionist with your server type (i.e. 8286, 9009, etc.) and serial number and explain the nature of your hardware failure to schedule IBM to come onsite for your repair.
If you have “call home’ service, you may get a call from IBM to schedule the repair for you.
IBM HWMA Extended Support
IBM HWMA Extended Support is like HWMA but for servers that are beyond End of Service (EOS), the date that IBM withdraws IBM HWMA.
As many IBM i users may have been already notified, IBM has withdrawn support for a range of POWER servers including 9406-520, 9407-515, 8203-E4A, and 8202-E4B to E4C. As it has been explained to me by IBM, the IBM POWER brand (the group that supports how the new POWER brand is marketed and supported) has announced dates whereby it will no longer provide IBM hardware support after EOS.
What To Do If You Are Affected By EOS?
If you want hardware support after EOS you can purchase HWMA Extended Support.
There are several differences between HWMA and HWMA Extended Support that you may want to know.
First, HWMA Extended Support comes from IBM TSS, Technology Support Services.
What is TSS?
TSS is a separate group within IBM Services that provides hardware support for a variety of products. In addition to IBM, they support HP, Cisco, SUN, Dell, EMC, and a whole lot more. They have evolved into an IBM single-source to maintain any manufacturer’s hardware for clients that want IBM support for their infrastructure with lots of different hardware devices from different manufacturers.
How Can They Support So Many Different Hardware Devices?
In most cases, with used parts and contractors…not IBM field engineers.
You contact TSS dispatch. TSS dispatch reaches out to the appropriate contractors and used parts suppliers to fix the problem.
Let’s Bring This Back To EOS POWER Servers And IBM i.
The IBM HWMA Extended Support Agreement is DIFFERENT from your standard HWMA agreement.
When you study this agreement, IBM makes clear that support is on a “best efforts” basis AND subject to parts availability.
In essence, please do not expect that your legacy hardware can be fixed. If there are no parts available, that is just the way it is.
I am not critical of this approach. On the other hand, as a consumer I believe you need to understand that HWMA Extended Service is not the same as HWMA.
How Can This HWMA Extended Support Adversely Affect You?
What most POWER users probably do not know is that starting with POWER6 (9407-515 and 8203-E4A), IBM serializes the system board to be assigned to the server serial number. This means that if the system board fails, you need special IBM HWMA software to assign a new system board with a new serial number for your server to work.
Without this software, if you replace the system board, your server will NOT come back into production because the system board serial number is not authorized to work with the server serial number.
Since IBM HWMA Extended Service has been announced, I have made many inquiries to IBM to understand if IBM TSS has access to this special software. To date I have not received any written confirmation that IBM TSS has this special software to replace a system board.
Let me be clear, system board failures are rare. More commonly, your hardware failure will be a disk drive, a cache battery, a tape read-write head, a fan or a power supply.
Even so, be mindful that system boards have more layers and finer circuits that ever before. They are a technological marvel. And as a result, more prone to a hardware failure than 15-20 years ago when the circuits were larger with fewer layers of circuitry.
When Notified Of End Of Service (EOS) What Are My Options?
If you can afford to have your server down for several days to a few weeks in the event of a system board failure, HWMA Extended Service is fine.
On the other hand, if you are highly dependent on your IBM POWER server and cannot afford any downtime, upgrade to a newer IBM POWER server and eliminate this system board failure risk altogether.
Need Help?
Call me at 714-593-0387 or email me at blosey@source-data.com. Let us know how we can help!
To learn more about us, and view our customer testimonials, please visit our website: www.Source-Data.com and see our other links:
1) IBM I on POWER (iSeries/AS400)
https://www.source-data.com/ibm-i-on-power-server/
2) IBM I (iSeries/AS400) Cloud Hosting
https://www.source-data.com/cloud-400/
3) IBM I (iSeries/AS400) Disaster Recovery Options
https://www.source-data.com/cloud400-disaster-recovery/
4) IBM I (iSeries/AS400) Version Upgrade
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