the POWER9 server arrived! but the RAM hasn't yet so I can't actually boot it

I wonder why IBM decided to use cryptic (but documented) numeric codes instead of readable messages for the control panel, despite the LCD being large enough for something more readable

like, what's the prompt for confirming a factory reset? A170800B of course!

and to do a factory reset you need to select function 73, but first you need to enable customer extended/service functions by setting functions 25 and 26 to 00

User account is locked. Please, try again after 5 minutes.

I can’t log into the ASMI web interface and I’m not sure if the factory reset reset the password

according to IBM documentation you're supposed to "contact an authorized service provider" to reset the admin password

but, I asked the seller and they told me that there's two switches on the FSP (Flexible Service Processor) card and that you can reset the password by changing the positions of both switches, booting the server (or rather the FSP), then changing the switches back and rebooting it again. I did that and it worked! the switches are tiny and covered by yellow translucent tape so I didn't notice them at first