Adaptec AAR-2420SA Instruction sheet

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README.TXT
Adaptec ASR-4000/ASR-4800SAS/ASR-4805SAS RAID Controllers
Adaptec AAR-2420SA/AAR-2820SA SATA RAID Controller
Adaptec ASR-2130SLP/ASR-2230SLP SCSI RAID Controller
as of October 20, 2006
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Please review this file for important information about issues
and erratas that were discovered after completion of the standard
product documentation. In the case of conflict between various
parts of the documentation set, this file contains the most
current information.
NOTE: The latest BIOS and documentation can be downloaded
from www.adaptec.com.when they become available.
The following information is available in this file:
1. Software and Documentation
1.1 Controller & Utility Software
1.2 Documentation on this CD
2. Installation Instructions
3. General Cautions
4. Known Limitations
4.1 Connecting to Adaptec Storage Enclosure 335SAS
4.2 Booting to a bootable CD
4.3 ASR-4000SAS/ ASR-2130SLP/ ASR-2230SLP controllers
4.4 ASR-2230SLP controller
4.5 ASR-4800SAS controller
4.6 Using the controller in a Dell Precision 530
4.7 ACU utility
4.8 FreeBSD
4.9 Adaptec Storage Manager
4.10 ASR-4805SAS controller
4.11 SAS and SATA controllers and Adaptec 335SAS enclosure
4.12 Installing ASR-2420SA/ASR-2820SA controller on NetWare
4.13 OpenServer 6.0
4.14 Using the ASR-4800SAS in a Gateway 920
4.15 NetWare
4.16 Creating an Array from the Adaptec Storage Manager CD
4.17 Using the controller with an Adaptec S50 JBOD Enclosure
4.18 SMART errors on SATA controllers
4.19 Firmware upgrades
4.20 RAID 10/50/60 disk drive maximums
4.21 Microsoft VDS Storage Manager LUN Error
4.22 ASR-4805SAS controller
4.23 UnixWare and OpenServer
4.24 Using the Clear initialization method to partition an array
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1. Software and Documentation
1.1. Controller & Utility Software
Note: The latest versions of BIOS and driver software

can be downloaded from www.adaptec.com when they become
available.
- BIOS
- ACU
- Windows Drivers
o Windows 2000 Server, Advanced Server, Professional
o Windows 2003 Server, Standard, Enterprise
o Windows XP Professional, Home Edition
- Linux Drivers
o Red Hat Enterprise 3.0, IA-32 and x64
o Red Hat Enterprise 4.0, IA-32 and x64
o SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 8.0, 9.0, 10 IA-32 and x64
- Netware Drivers
o NetWare 6.5
- FreeBSD Drivers
o FreeBSD 5.3, 5.4, and 6.0
- SCO Drivers
o OpenServer 5.0, 6.0
o UnixWare 7.1.4
- Sun Solaris Drivers
o Solaris 10
1.2. Documentation on this CD
- Adaptec SAS, SATA, and SCSI RAID Controllers Installation
and User's Guide
- Adaptec SAS, SATA, and SCSI RAID Controllers
README.TXT file
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2. Installation Instructions
- The Adaptec SAS, SATA, and SCSI RAID Controllers Installation
and User's Guide contains complete installation information for
the controllers and drivers, as well as complete instructions
for all utilities. The Adaptec Storage Manager User's Guide
contains complete installation information for the Adaptec
Storage Manager software.

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3. General Cautions
- While an array is being built or cleared, DO NOT remove and
reinsert any drive from that array. Doing so may cause
unpredictable results for any of the controller's arrays.
- While a drive is being cleared, DO NOT try to include it in a
new array. Doing so may cause unpredictable results.
- DO NOT move drives containing an array or volume from one
controller to another while the power is on. Doing so could
cause the loss of the array configuration or data, or both.
Instead, power off both affected controllers, move the drives,
and then restart.
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4. Known Limitations
4.1 Connecting to Adaptec Storage Enclosure 335SAS
The ASR-4000 controller does not support this
product.
4.2 Booting to a bootable CD
A system cannot boot to a bootable CD in a SCSI CDRW drive
connected to the ASR-2230SLP SCSI RAID controller.
4.3 ASR-4000/ ASR-2130SLP/ ASR-2230SLP controllers
Use only the utilities/flash tools included with this release.
Upgrade any existing tools to those included with this
release, as this release supports additional features that
were not available with previous releases
4.4 ASR-2230SLP controller
With an Intel Pro/1000 MT 32-bit PCI NIC on the system, after
controller POST the controller goes to a
BLED 0xEF NMI_HANDLER_FAILURE.
4.5 ASR-4800 controller
When the controller is connected to an external enclosure,
only the internal SAS connector closest to the bracket is
available for use with internal SAS or SATA disk drives. The
other internal SAS connector shares the SAS bus with the
external connector, which is occupied.
This controller does not support Hitachi DeskStar 500 GB SATA
disk drives.
Various devices on the serial bus can negotiate at different
speeds. To determine the speed at which a particular device
is negotiating, view the device properties in Adaptec Storage
Manager. (Click on the device, then click the Properties

button.)
4.6 Using the controller in a Dell Precision 530
When using the controller in a Dell Precision 530 with
Diskercise and Diskstress, data corruption/miscompares may
occur.
4.7 ACU utility
On some Intel and IBM systems, when you try to run the ACU,
this message appears:
“Not enough free memory to load the utility!
Press any key to attempt loading the utility forcibly
OR Wait for the system initialization to be completed
[Default]”
This is normal. On Intel systems, wait for the system
initialization to be completed. Then the ACU will run. On IBM
systems, press any key when prompted to load the utility
forcibly.
The ACU /C0 buildall command does not start a build/verify on
RAID 1 or RAID 10 arrays that are being created using the
quick init method.
When connected to an 4800SAS or 4805SAS, hard drive
information is not seen in ACU. If the system is rebooted,
then the drives are seen during the controller post.
4.8 FreeBSD
Adaptec Storage Manager is not supported in FreeBSD;
storage management must be done through the Adaptec
Configuration Utility.
To enable enhanced features with a feature key, insert the
Adaptec RAID Installation CD into your CD drive, launch
Adaptec Storage Manager, then unlock the enhanced features,
following the instructions provided in the online Help or in
the Adaptec Storage Manager User’s Guide.
4.9 Adaptec Storage Manager
After a rebuild and waking up from hibernation, a controller
may be detected incorrectly in Adaptec Storage Manager.
Press F5 to correct the problem.
4.10 ASR-4805 controller
When the controller is installed in PCI-E slot 2 of a
Dell PE 1800 system, there is no BIOS POST.
When the controller is installed in PCI-E slot 3 in a
Dell PE 1800 system, the system halts and the keyboard locks
up.
When the controller is set to boot from a RAID array and a

second RAID array is created, the controller may no longer
be able to find the boot drive.
When the controller is installed in the primary PCIe slot of
an Intel 955X or nVidia nForce4 (Intel edition) motherboard,
if you use the Adaptec Flash Utility to perform a Mode0 flash,
the controller will show incorrectly and cannot be flashed. If
a Mode0 flash is required, install the controller in an
alternate PCIe slot or alternate computer.
4.11 SAS and SATA controllers and Adaptec 335SAS enclosure
When the Adaptec 335SAS enclosure is attached to an Adaptec
SAS controller, such as ASR-4800SAS or ASR-4805SAS, the
enclosure numbering nomenclature starts with "0". For
example, if two Adaptec 335SAS enclosures are connected to a
ASR-4800SAS SAS controller, management tools such as Storage
Manager will denote the enclosures as "Enclosure 0" and
"Enclosure 1". When the Adaptec 335SAS enclosure is attached
to an Adaptec SATA controller, such as AAR-2420SA or
AAR-2820SA, the enclosure numbering nomenclature starts with
"14". For example, if two Adaptec 335SAS enclosures are
connected to an AAR-2820SA SATA controller, management tools such
as Storage Manager will denote the enclosures as
"Enclosure 14" and "Enclosure 15".
4.12 Installing ASR-2420SA/ASR-2820SA controller on NetWare
When NetWare is installed to an array controlled by an
ASR-2420SA or ASR-2820SA controller, the server will not
start after reboot.
To work around this issue:
During installation, after creating the DOS partition there
is a menu screen labeled "Server Settings" opens. One of the
options on this screen is "Boot OS". "DOS" is the default
Boot OS option, but select "NetWare" as the Boot OS option
instead.
If a DOS boot must be used, pre-configure the bootable DOS
partition using MS-DOS 6.22, then install using the existing
DOS partition; or, boot from an MS-DOS 6.22 floppy, then
change to C:\NWSERVER and execute SERVER.EXE.
4.13 OpenServer 6.0
Arrays may not be displayed correctly, even after you restart
your computer.
To resolve the problem:
As root, run 'resmgr -r -m vtoc' until it fails. Then, as
root, run '/etc/conf/bin/idconfupdate -f'. Then, reboot.
4.14 Using the ASR-4800 in a Gateway 920

When more than one ASR-4800 controllers are installed in a
Gateway 920 server, the system will not POST.
4.15 Netware
If you are using a previous-generation Adaptec RAID controller
as a boot controller, the AACRAID.HAM driver must be updated
before a new RAID controller is installed.
Back up and replace the current driver using the NetWare file
browser or DOS copy. Power down your system and install the
new RAID controller. Power on your system, then check for
correct driver load on both controllers.
4.16 Creating an Array from the Adaptec Storage Manager CD
When you create an array with the Adaptec Storage Manager
bootable CD, the maximum size of the array is 2 TB.
4.17 Using the controller with an Adaptec S50 JBOD Enclosure
Temperature warnings from Adaptec S50 JBOD Enclosure (firmware
version T016) are not shown in Adaptec Storage Manager (or on
the enclosure).
4.18 SMART errors on SATA controllers
During POST, SMART errors for disk drives connected to SATA
controllers are indicated as follows:
o N = No SMART errors reported
o Y = SMART errors reported
o N/A = Disk drive does not support SMART error reports
4.19 Firmware upgrades
Check your controller BIOS settings after upgrading the
controller firmware/BIOS, as the BIOS may have been reset to
its default settings during the upgrade.
4.20 RAID 10/50/60 array leg limitations
A RAID 10, RAID 50, or RAID 60 array cannot have more than 32
legs when created using the Build method. Maximum disk drive
count is only limited by RAID level. For instance, a RAID 10
array built with 32 RAID 1 legs (64 disk drives) is supported;
a RAID 5 array built with 32 RAID 5 legs (96 disk drives) is
also supported. Although you can create a RAID 10 array with
more than 64 drives using the Quick Init method, the maximum
number of build/verify operations that can happen at any one
time is 32; therefore, such an array could not be verified.
4.21 Microsoft VDS Storage Manager LUN Error
On some systems when creating a new LUN, the Microsoft VDS
Storage Manager for SANs snap-in may not work properly and
crash with an MMC snap-in error.

4.22 ASR-4805 controller
On Intel 945X or 955X motherboards with Mode0 set, the controller
is not recognized when installed in the primary 16x PCIe slot.
4.23 UnixWare and OpenServer
Adding or moving controllers in an existing UnixWare or OpenServer
system may cause some device resources to change, which may lead
to the operating system being unable to boot. Currently, there
is no workaround available in the operating system. Before
installing the operating system, make sure all PCI devices are
either enabled or installed.
The individual behavior and affected devices will vary from system
to system. This is due to the different ways in which motherboards
may handle their PCI bus layouts, and how those layouts could be
changed when installing or rearranging devices. If the bus layout
changes and affects a critical system device (video, boot controller,
etc.) then the operating system may be unable to recover from that
change and be non-bootable.
4.24 Using the Clear initialization method to partition an array
When partitioning an array using the Clear initialization method
under UnixWare, OpenServer 6, and Solaris after the Clear
has completed, you must reboot the system and then manually run
the utility to make the array available to the operating system.
For UnixWare and OpenServer, use the following command:
/sbin/sdiadd
For Solaris, use the following command:
Devfsadm –I sd
4.25 Cannot install Solaris 10 Update 2 using console mode on ASR-2230SLP
Controller
Work Around:
When installing the driver, select item #5 which loads driver disks.
The problem using
option #5 is after you load the driver disk it will automatically time
out and go to the GUI
mode setup. Bypass the GUI mode setup, when the text mode screen
“Proposed Window
System Configuration For Installation:” displays, immediately press
the <ESC> key to change
the proposed configuration . A text screen kdmconfig- View and Edit
Window System Configuration
displays, press the F3 key (Quit ) without saving. A command line will
display, install the OS now
(the driver is already loaded). For more information about installing
the operating system, see the

Adaptec SAS, SATA, and SCSI RAID Controllers Installation and User's
Guide on this CD.
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(c) 2006 Adaptec, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
This software contains the valuable trade secrets of Adaptec or its
licensors. The software is protected under international copyright
laws and treaties. This software may only be used in accordance with
the terms of its accompanying license agreement.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior
written consent of Adaptec, Inc., 691 South Milpitas Blvd.,
Milpitas, CA 95035.