Glossary

IBM Power 11 Glossary

IBM Power 11, IBM i, and Power hardware terminology, defined in plain English.

A

• AS/400 — IBM's original 1988 midrange server line and the common industry shorthand still used today for the IBM i and Power server ecosystem.

C

• CPW — Commercial Processing Workload, IBM's relative-performance benchmark for IBM i systems, used to compare processor options across Power models.

D

• DCM — Dual-Chip Module, a Power 11 processor packaging that pairs two processor chips per module for higher total core counts.
• DDIMM — Differential DIMM, IBM's buffered DDR5 memory module design used across every Power 11 model for improved bandwidth and reliability over standard DIMMs.

E

• eSCM — Entry Single-Chip Module, a lower-core-count Power 11 processor packaging option available on the S1112 and S1122.

F

• Feature Code — IBM's alphanumeric code identifying a specific orderable component, such as a processor option (EJMT, EBGA) or memory kit, on a Power 11 configuration.

H

• HMC — Hardware Management Console, the appliance required to manage partitioning, firmware, and service functions on IBM Power servers.

I

• IBM i — IBM's integrated operating system for Power servers, the modern successor to OS/400, running on every current Power 11 model.

L

• LPAR — Logical Partition, an independent virtual system running its own OS instance on a shared Power 11 physical server, managed via PowerVM and the HMC.

M

• Machine Type-Model — IBM's identifier for a specific hardware configuration, such as 9824-22A for the Power S1122, used on quotes, service contracts, and support entitlement.

N

• NED24 — IBM's external NVMe expansion drawer, used to add direct-attached flash storage capacity beyond a Power 11 chassis's internal drive bays.

P

• Power 10 — IBM's prior-generation Power processor and server family (S1014, S1022, S1022s, S1024, E1050, E1080), the direct predecessor to Power 11.
• Power 11 — IBM's 2025-generation Power processor and server family, spanning the entry S1112 through the flagship E1180, built around three pillars IBM calls Trusted, Autonomous, and Modern.
• PowerVM — IBM's hypervisor for Power servers, enabling logical partitioning (LPAR) so a single physical Power 11 system can run multiple independent IBM i, AIX, and Linux instances.

R

• Redbooks — IBM's official technical publication series, providing in-depth introduction and technical overview documents for each Power 11 model family.
• rPerf — Relative Performance, IBM's benchmark estimate for AIX and Linux workload throughput, analogous to CPW but for non-IBM i operating systems.

S

• SMT8 — Simultaneous Multithreading with 8 threads per core, the maximum threading mode on Power 11 processors, used in IBM's SMT8 rPerf benchmark figures.
• Software Tier — IBM's IBM i software pricing tier (P05, P10, P20, P30) tied to a processor feature's performance level, determining IBM i license and subscription cost.

V

• VIOS — Virtual I/O Server, a specialized partition that shares physical network and storage adapters across other logical partitions on a Power 11 system.