Home › Servers › Lenovo

Lenovo ThinkSystem SR680a V3

CurrentServers8U rack
Lenovo ThinkSystem SR680a V38U rack16 × SFF 2.5" bays

The Lenovo ThinkSystem SR680a V3 is an air-cooled 8U AI supercomputer server powered by dual 5th Gen Intel Xeon Scalable processors and an 8-way NVIDIA HGX H100 or H200 baseboard. Built for massive large language model (LLM) training and AI inference clusters, it delivers 32 PFLOPS of FP8 AI compute with NVLink interconnects.

Buy Lenovo ThinkSystem SR680a V3Sell yours

Specifications

BrandLenovo
FamilyThinkSystem SR
Form factor8U rack
ReleasedMar 2024
ProcessorUp to 2x 5th Gen Intel Xeon Scalable processors up to 64 cores each (up to 385W TDP)
Memory32x DDR5 DIMM slots supporting up to 4TB DDR5-5600 ECC RDIMM
Drive baysUp to 16x 2.5-inch hot-swap NVMe SSD bays (PCIe 5.0) plus dual M.2 boot mirrors
Gpu support8-way NVIDIA HGX H100 / H200 SXM5 baseboard interconnected with 900 GB/s bidirectional NVLink
Network8x PCIe 5.0 x16 slots dedicated to 400Gb/s NDR InfiniBand / BlueField-3 DPUs plus OCP 3.0 slot
Power supplyUp to 8x hot-swap 3000W or 3300W Titanium power supplies (N+N redundancy)
ManagementLenovo XClarity Controller 2 (XCC2)

Compatible parts

SSDs

Works together

How the Lenovo ThinkSystem SR680a V3 connects to servers, storage and the network: 5 ways, with the parts and products on each path.

Fibre Channel SANiSCSI and NVMe/TCP over EthernetDirect-attached SASFile storage (NFS and SMB)GPU cluster fabric

Fibre Channel SAN

Match the speed: 16Gb and 32Gb FC HBAs, switches and array ports work together, and each generation also runs one or two speeds below its own (a 32Gb port runs at 16Gb and 8Gb).

Adapters for the server (check the fit list)

Switches

Storage

Optics

Fibre Channel SAN: how it fits together

iSCSI and NVMe/TCP over Ethernet

Keep the speed the same at all three points: a 25GbE server, a 25GbE switch port and a 25GbE array port. Mixed speeds work but the slowest link sets the pace.

Adapters for the server (check the fit list)

Switches

Storage

Optics

iSCSI and NVMe/TCP over Ethernet: how it fits together

Direct-attached SAS

12Gb SAS uses Mini-SAS HD (SFF-8644) connectors; older 6Gb gear uses Mini-SAS (SFF-8088). Adapter cables exist, but the link runs at the slower speed.

Adapters for the server (check the fit list)

Storage

Direct-attached SAS: how it fits together

File storage (NFS and SMB)

Front-end ports face the clients; back-end ports (on scale-out systems) connect the nodes to each other and need their own switch pair.

Adapters for the server (check the fit list)

Switches

Storage

Optics

File storage (NFS and SMB): how it fits together

GPU cluster fabric

InfiniBand adapters and switches must match the generation: HDR is 200Gb, NDR is 400Gb. VPI adapters such as ConnectX-6 and ConnectX-7 can run either InfiniBand or Ethernet.

GPUs

Adapters for the server (check the fit list)

Switches

GPU cluster fabric: how it fits together

Plan and size it

Check compatibility with Lenovo

Before you buy, confirm the exact configuration against the vendor's own lists: firmware levels, operating systems, adapters and optics that Lenovo has tested with the Lenovo ThinkSystem SR680a V3.

Equivalent models from other brands

FAQ

What is the peak power draw of a fully configured SR680a V3?

A fully populated system with eight 700W H100/H200 SXM GPUs can draw up to 10.2 kW under peak synthetic loads.

How does the SR680a V3 connect to the cluster GPU fabric?

It utilizes eight dedicated 400Gb/s OSFP NDR InfiniBand adapters in a 1:1 ratio with the eight SXM GPUs for rail-optimized fabrics.

Buying or selling ThinkSystem SR680a V3?

New, refurbished or used. Tell us the quantity and condition and we connect you with a vetted reseller in your region, usually within one working day.

Buy ThinkSystem SR680a V3Sell yours

Sources