Contec IPC SERIES User manual

IPC Series
Silicon Disk Drive with RAID
for PCI
1GB type
PC-RSD1000-PCI
2GB type
PC-RSD2000-PCI
4GB type
PC-RSD4000-PCI
8GB type
PC-RSD8000-PCI
CF uninstalling type
PC-RSD-PCI
User’s Manual
CONTEC CO.,LTD.

PC-RSD Series i
Check Your Package
Thank you for purchasing the CONTEC product. The product consists of the items listed below.
Check, with the following list, that your package is complete. If you discover damaged or missing
items, contact your retailer.
Product Configuration List
-Product [One of the followings] …1
(PC-RSD-PCI, PC-RSD1000-PCI, PC-RSD2000-PCI, PC-RSD4000-PCI
or PC-RSD8000-PCI)
* CF is appended to each board. (Only PC-RSD-PCI is unappended.)
- First step guide …1
- FD *1 [Driver for the PC-RSD Series] …1
- CompactFlash removal prevention fitting …2
- Scerws …2
*1 : The FD contains the driver software and User’s Guide (this guide).
FD
[Driver for PC-RSD Series]
CompactFlash removal prevention fitting
First step guide
Screws
Product

ii PC-RSD Series
Copyright
Copyright 2006 CONTEC CO., LTD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
No part of this document may be copied or reproduced in any form by any means without prior written
consent of CONTEC CO., LTD.
CONTEC CO., LTD. makes no commitment to update or keep current the information contained in this
document. The information in this document is subject to change without notice.
All relevant issues have been considered in the preparation of this document. Should you notice an
omission or any questionable item in this document, please feel free to notify CONTEC CO., LTD.
Regardless of the foregoing statement, CONTEC assumes no responsibility for any errors that may
appear in this document nor for results obtained by the user as a result of using this product.
Trademarks
MS, Microsoft, and Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Other company and product
names mentioned herein are generally trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

PC-RSD Series iii
Table of Contents
Check Your Package ...............................................................................................................................i
Copyright .................................................................................................................................................ii
Trademarks..............................................................................................................................................ii
Table of Contents ...................................................................................................................................iii
1. BEFORE USING THE PRODUCT 1
About the Board ...................................................................................................................................... 1
Features............................................................................................................................................. 1
Accessories (Option)..................................................................................................................... 1
Customer Support.................................................................................................................................... 2
Web Site ........................................................................................................................................... 2
Limited One Year Warranty ................................................................................................................... 2
How to Obtain Service............................................................................................................................ 2
Liability ................................................................................................................................................... 2
Safety Precautions ................................................................................................................................... 3
Safety Information ........................................................................................................................... 3
Handling Precautions ....................................................................................................................... 3
Environment ..................................................................................................................................... 5
Inspection ......................................................................................................................................... 5
Storage .............................................................................................................................................. 5
Disposal ............................................................................................................................................ 5
2. SETUP 7
What is Setup?......................................................................................................................................... 7
Step 1 Setting the Hardware ................................................................................................................... 8
Parts of the Board............................................................................................................................. 8
Plugging the Board........................................................................................................................... 8
Step 2 Installing the Hardware ............................................................................................................. 10
Mounting this product on Windows XP installed PC....................................................................... 10
Turning on the PC.......................................................................................................................... 10
Setting the “Found New Hardware Wizard”.................................................................................10
Check Method of Hardware Install Completion...........................................................................12
Installing Windows XP newly on a hard disk or this product.......................................................... 13
Installing drivers while installing Windows XP newly................................................................ 13
Check Method of Hardware Install Completion...........................................................................14
Mounting this product on Windows 2000 installed PC.................................................................... 15
Turning on the PC.......................................................................................................................... 15
Setting the “Found New Hardware Wizard”.................................................................................15
Check Method of Hardware Install Completion...........................................................................18

iv PC-RSD Series
Installing Windows 2000 newly on a hard disk or this product .......................................................19
Installing drivers while installing Windows 2000 newly..............................................................19
Check Method of Hardware Install Completion ...........................................................................20
Setup Troubleshooting...........................................................................................................................21
Symptoms and Actions...................................................................................................................21
If your problem cannot be resolved ...............................................................................................21
3. FUNCTION 23
IDE Function..........................................................................................................................................23
RAID Function ......................................................................................................................................23
RAID 0 (Striping)...........................................................................................................................23
RAID 1 (Mirroring)........................................................................................................................23
JBOD [Just Bunch Of Disks] (Spanning)......................................................................................23
4. ABOUT THE RAID BUILDING SOFTWARE 25
Setup Utility...........................................................................................................................................25
Start up the Setup Utility................................................................................................................25
Building a striping (RAID 0) .........................................................................................................27
Building a new mirroring (RAID 1) using two CFs......................................................................30
Setting the CF which has already been used and added to mirroring (RAID 1).......................33
Building a Spanning .......................................................................................................................37
Canceling RAID Setting.................................................................................................................40
RaidMgr Utility......................................................................................................................................41
Installing RaidMgr Utility..............................................................................................................41
Starting RaidMgr ............................................................................................................................42
Building a striping (RAID 0) .........................................................................................................43
Building a mirroring (RAID 1) ......................................................................................................45
Building a spanning (JBOD)..........................................................................................................47
Screen details on RaidMgr .............................................................................................................49
Delete the built RAID.....................................................................................................................50
Rebuilding a mirror disk ................................................................................................................51
If failing a CF in mirroring.............................................................................................................52
Uninstalling the support software and driver .......................................................................................55
Uninstalling the support software [RaidMgr]................................................................................55
Uninstalling the driver....................................................................................................................56
Contents of FD.......................................................................................................................................57
5. ABOUT HARDWARE 59
Hardware specification..........................................................................................................................59
About Rewrite Life ................................................................................................................................60

1. Before Using the Product
PC-RSD Series 1
1. Before Using the Product
This chapter provides information you should know before using the product.
About the Board
This product is a PCI board type silicon disk drive. It can be used the same as a hard disk by mounting
it to a PCI bus slot of your PC. With a CompactFlash Memory Card (CF) with FIX DISK specification
adopted as the storage media, this product, as a disk drive as an alternative to a hard disk, is the most
suitable for the system which requires reliability and tough operation conditions such as
around-the-clock operation, environment resistances (to temperature, humidity, vibration and shock),
and quietness. Since this product has two CF slots, an additional drive can be mounted (capacity
upgrade) by adding a CF (option). Also, RAID drive configurations for striping [RAID 0], mirroring
[RAID 1], and spanning [JBOD] are possible by adding a CF and using utilities.
Features
- Just like a hard disk, this product can be used as an add-on drive for PC main body or the CF of this
product can be used as OS boot disk drive. Also, it can be used as two drives by adding an option
CF.
- Unlike a hard disk, there is no rotating/moving parts, making most suitable for the uses requiring
tough environment resistances (to temperature, humidity, vibration and shock) and for long
continuous operations.
- An add-on CF slot exists at the PCI blanket part, offering facilities of adding and exchanging of an
option CF even after this product is mounted to PC.
- Three types of RAID functions *1 [RAID 0 (striping), RAID 1 (mirroring), and JBOD (spanning)]
are available by adding a CF to the add-on CF slot and using utilities.
*1 RAID configurations in a hard disk which is connected to PC can not be made.
Accessories (Option)
CompactFlash 1GB (FIX DISK specification) : CF-1GB-R
CompactFlash 2GB (FIX DISK specification) : CF-2GB-R
CompactFlash 4GB (FIX DISK specification) : CF-4GB-R
CompactFlash 8GB (FIX DISK specification) : CF-8GB-R

1. Before Using the Product
2PC-RSD Series
Customer Support
CONTEC provides the following support services for you to use CONTEC products more efficiently
and comfortably.
Web Site
Japanese http://www.contec.co.jp/
English http://www.contec.com/
Chinese http://www.contec.com.cn/
Latest product information
CONTEC provides up-to-date information on products.
CONTEC also provides product manuals and various technical documents in the PDF.
Free download
You can download updated driver software and differential files as well as sample programs available in
several languages.
Note! For product information
Contact your retailer if you have any technical question about a CONTEC product or need its price,
delivery time, or estimate information.
Limited One Year Warranty
CONTEC products are warranted by CONTEC CO., Ltd. to be free from defects in material and
workmanship for up to one year from the date of purchase by the original purchaser.
Repair will be free of charge only when this device is returned freight prepaid with a copy of the
original invoice and a Return Merchandise Authorization to the distributor or the CONTEC group office
from which it was purchased.
This warranty is not applicable for scratches or normal wear, but only for the electronic circuitry and
original products. The warranty is not applicable if the device has been tampered with or damaged
through abuse, mistreatment, neglect, or unreasonable use, or if the original invoice is not included, in
which case repairs will be considered beyond the warranty policy.
How to Obtain Service
For replacement or repair, return the device freight prepaid, with a copy of the original invoice. Please
obtain a Return Merchandise Authorization number (RMA) from our Sales Administration Department
before returning any product.
* No product will be accepted by CONTEC group without an RMA number.
Liability
The obligation of the warrantor is solely to repair or replace the product. In no event will the warrantor
be liable for any incidental or consequential damages due to such defect or consequences that arise from
inexperienced usage, misuse, or malfunction of this device.

1. Before Using the Product
PC-RSD Series 3
Safety Precautions
Understand the following definitions and precautions to use the product safely.
Safety Information
This document provides safety information using the following symbols to prevent accidents resulting in
injury or death and the destruction of equipment and resources. Understand the meanings of these
labels to operate the equipment safely.
DANGER DANGER indicates an imminently hazardous situation which, if not avoided, will
result in death or serious injury.
WARNING WARNING indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, could
result in death or serious injury.
CAUTION CAUTION indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, may
result in minor or moderate injury or in property damage.
Handling Precautions
DANGER
Do not use the product where it is exposed to flammable or corrosive gas. Doing so may result in
an explosion, fire, electric shock, or failure.
CAUTION
- Do not strike or bend the board.
Otherwise, the board may malfunction, overheat, cause a failure or breakage.
- Do not touch the board's metal plated terminals (edge connector) with your hands.
Otherwise, the board may malfunction, overheat, or cause a failure.
If the terminals are touched by someone's hands, clean the terminals with industrial alcohol.
- Do not install or remove the board to or from the slot while the computer's power is turned on.
Doing so could cause trouble. Be sure that the personal computer or the I/O expansion unit power
is turned off.
- Make sure that your PC or expansion unit can supply ample power to all the boards installed.
Insufficiently energized boards could malfunction, overheat, or cause a failure.
- No part of this document may be copied or reproduced in any form by any means without prior
written consent of CONTEC CO., LTD.
- The specifications of this product are subject to change without notice for enhancement and quality
improvement.
Even when using the product continuously, be sure to read the manual and understand the contents.
- All relevant issues have been considered in the preparation of this document. Should you notice
an omission or any questionable item in this document, please feel free to notify CONTEC CO.,
LTD.

1. Before Using the Product
4PC-RSD Series
- Do not modify the product. CONTEC will bear no responsibility for any problems, etc., resulting
from modifying this product.
- Regardless of the foregoing statements, CONTEC is not liable for any damages whatsoever
(including damages for loss of business profits) arising out of the use or inability to use this
CONTEC product or the information contained herein.
- Do not turn off the power during disk access (when rewriting).
Otherwise, CF in the product and the data contained in the CF may be damaged.
- The silicon disk may malfunction if this product instantaneously stops during a write operation.
For this reason, the product has a protection circuit that minimizes disk failures during an
instantaneous stop. Use UPS as a complete countermeasure for instantaneous stop problems.
- This product does not operate properly, when combined with our SBC [PC-686C(PC)H series].
- CF has a limitation for the number of times to rewrite, due to the memory used. This write
tolerance depends on the actual use conditions.
- Use only the supplied option CF (CF-xGB-R) for the expansion CF. CONTEC will bear no
responsibility for any problems, etc., resulting from using the commercially available CF.
- The operation of this product has been checked in combination with our other products. Use the
product within the scope of your responsibilities when using it in combination with products from
other companies.

1. Before Using the Product
PC-RSD Series 5
Environment
Use this product in the following environment. If used in an unauthorized environment, the board may
overheat, malfunction, or cause a failure.
Operating temperature
0 - 50°C
Operating humidity
10 - 90%RH (No condensation)
Corrosive gases
None
Floating dust particles
Not to be excessive
Inspection
Inspect the product periodically as follows to use it safely.
- Check that the board has
no dust or foreign matter adhering.
- Check that the bus connector
of the board and its cable have
been plugged correctly.
- The gold-plated leads of the bus connector
have no stain or corrosion.
Storage
When storing this product, keep it in its original packing form.
(1) Put the board in the storage bag.
(2) Wrap it in the packing material, then put it in the box.
(3) Store the package at room temperature at a place free from direct sunlight, moisture, shock,
vibration, magnetism, and static electricity.
Disposal
When disposing of the product, follow the disposal procedures stipulated under the relevant laws and
municipal ordinances.

1. Before Using the Product
6PC-RSD Series

2. Setup
PC-RSD Series 7
2. Setup
This chapter explains how to set up the board.
What is Setup?
Setup means a series of steps to take before the product can be used.
Different steps are required for software and hardware.
The setup procedure varies with the OS and applications used.
Follow the steps shown in this chapter to prepare hardware and software.
Step 1 Setting the Hardware
This section describes the setup procedure to mount this product on your PC.
Please note that CFs should be removed in advance before Windows is newly installed on the hard disk
or before this product is added to your PC on which Windows is currently installed.
If this product is used under DOS in MS-DOS Version 6.2, IBM PC DOS 2000 J7.0/V or PC DOS 7,
only the setup “Step 1” is required. If it is used under Windows, proceed to “Step 2” after “Step 1” is
completed. Other OSs are not supported. For the supported OS types, see “Chapter 5 About
Hardware”.
Step 2 Installing the Hardware
This section describes the setup procedure for this product if used as a disk drive under Windows.
If Setup fails to be performed normally, see the “Setup Troubleshooting” section at the end of this
chapter.
CAUTION
- When using under DOS, the disk capacity limit (2GB) is applied. For 4GB and 8GB CFs, the
remaining capacity can be used by dividing it to expanded partitions.
Also under DOS, RAID configuration is not allowed in either CFs.
- More than one product cannot be used on the same PC.
After completing the setup for this product having an add-on CF, the system will recognize it as two
disk drives. The drive mapping depends on your PC conditions (BIOS setting and IDE device
connection status).
CAUTION
Shut down the system before attaching/removing CFs.

2. Setup
8PC-RSD Series
Step 1 Setting the Hardware
This section describes how to set the board and plug it on your PC.
Remove CFs in advance before Windows is newly installed on the hard disk or before this product is
added to your PC on which Windows is currently installed.
Parts of the Board
Figure 2.1. shows the names of major parts on the board.
CF has been
mounted.
CF Slot (Primary master)
CF Access LED
CF Slot for expansion (Seconfary master)
CF removal prevention fitting
CF removal prevention fitting
Figure 2.1. Part Names
Plugging the Board
(1) If OS is preinstalled, shutdown the system before mounting this board.
(2) Unplug the power code of your PC from the wall
outlet.
(3) Remove the cover from the PC. For instructions on
how to remove, refer to the user’s guide for your PC.
(4) Remove the PCI slot cover so that the board can be
mounted.
(5) If OS is DOS or a new OS is installed to the CF of
this product, proceed to step (6).
If Windows is newly installed to a hard disk or
Windows is currently installed on your PC, remove the mounted CF from this board.
(6) Plug the board into an expansion slot.

2. Setup
PC-RSD Series 9
(7) Attach the board bracket to the PC with a screw.
(8) If OS is DOS or a new OS is installed to the CF of this product, check if the CF is mounted on this
product and then put the cover back into place. If Windows is newly installed to a hard disk or
this product is added to the PC on which Windows is currently installed, proceed to “Step 2
Installing the Hardware”, mount the CF on the slot where it was originally mounted on and then put
the cover back into place.
(9) If OS is DOS, after completing the board mounting, turn on the PC. A message saying “IT8212
RAID... ” will be displayed after a period of time. At this time, RAID setting is not performed, so
continue the startup by pressing [Esc] key. Without pressing [Esc], the status will become startup
status after a period of time. After the startup, this product can be used as an IDE device.
Applicable PCI bus slots
PCI bus slots used in PCs have keys to prevent 5V and 3.3V PCI bus boards from being accidentally
plugged into wrong bus slots. This board can be plugged into both of the 5V and 3.3V PCI bus slots.
AB
5V key
3.3V key
<PCI bus slot> <PCI bus board>
5-V PCI bus slot
3.3-V PCI bus slot
A :
B : Slit for 5-V PCI bus slot
Slit for 3.3-V PCI bus slot
CAUTION
- Do not touch the board's metal plated terminals (edge connector) with your hands.
Otherwise, the board may malfunction, overheat, or cause a failure.
If the terminals are touched by someone's hands, clean the terminals with industrial alcohol.
- Do not install or remove the board to or from the slot while the computer's power is turned on.
Otherwise, the board may malfunction, overheat, or cause a failure.
Doing so could cause trouble. Be sure that the personal computer or the I/O expansion unit power is
turned off.
- Make sure that your PC or expansion unit can supply ample power to all the boards installed.
Insufficiently energized boards could malfunction, overheat, or cause a failure.
- Power supply from the PCI bus slot at +5V is required.

2. Setup
10 PC-RSD Series
Step 2 Installing the Hardware
Windows needs to detect the I/O address and interrupt used by the board. This is called hardware
installation. The procedure is different for each OS. Install the hardware according to the respective
procedure.
After the hardware installation is completed, the hardware can be used as a disk drive on Windows.
Mounting this product
on Windows XP installed PC
Turning on the PC
After mounting the board in “Step 1 Setting the Hardware ” and checking if the CF has been removed,
turn on your PC. After a period of time, a message saying “IT8212 RAID... ” will be displayed at the
startup. At this time, RAID setting is not performed, so continue the startup by pressing [Esc] key.
Without pressing [Esc], the status will become startup status after a period of time. Log on as a user
with administrative privileges of the PC after Windows startup.
CAUTION
- The board cannot be properly installed unless the resources (I/O addresses and interrupt level) for
the board can be allocated. Before attempting to install the board, first determine what PC
resources are free to use.
- More than one product cannot be used on the same PC.
Setting the “Found New Hardware Wizard”
(1) The “Found New Hardware Wizard” will be
started. Click the [Next] button after checking
the “No, not this time”.
If using Windows XP with no SP2 (Service
Pack 2) installed, this window will not be
displayed. Proceed to (2). (1) Select
(2) Click

2. Setup
PC-RSD Series 11
(2) The “Found New Hardware Wizard” will be
started. Select “Install from a list or specific
location[Advanced]”, then click on the [Next]
button.
(3) Select “Search for the best driver in these
locations.” and then check only the
“Include this location in the search:”.
(4) Insert the supplied Driver FD into the floppy
disk drive, specify the following folder, and
press [Next] button.
- Source folder A:\WINXP
(5) Click the [Continue Anyway] button after the
“Hardware Installation” is displayed.
(6) Click the [Finish] button.
(1) Select
(2) Click
(1) Select
(3) Click
(2) Specify
Click
Click

2. Setup
12 PC-RSD Series
(7) If the “System Settings Changes”is displayed, click the [No] button.
CAUTION
In Windows XP, the Hardware Wizard displays the following alert dialog box when you have
located the INF file. This dialog box appears, only indicating that the relevant driver has not
passed Windows Logo testing, and it can be ignored without developing any problem with the
operation of the board. In this case, click on the [Continue Anyway] button.
You have now finished installing the Hardware.
Shutdown the system and mount the removed CF back to the slot.
Check Method of Hardware Install Completion
(1) Click the [Start] button on the left side of task bar
and then right-click the [My Computer] or it on the
desktop side.
(2) Click the [Propaties] on the menu.
(3) When the [System propaties] is displayed, click the
[Hardware] tab and then click the [Device
Manager].
(4) Check if the board name has been registered
correctly in [SCSI and RAID controllers].
(5) Check if [ITE Disk Array 0 SCSI Disk Device] has
been registered in [Disk Drives].
After checking that it has been registered for disk drive,
you can now use it as a disk drive. The drive mapping depends on your PC conditions (BIOS setting
and IDE device connection status).
CAUTION
When formatting a CF in Windows XP, do not format it as “dynamic disk”.
Once formatted as “dynamic disk”, the CF cannot be used on other PCs or OSs.
Click

2. Setup
PC-RSD Series 13
Installing Windows XP newly
on a hard disk or this product
CAUTION
- When installing drivers of this product while installing Windows XP newly on a hard disk, remove
the CF of this product in Step 1. When installing Windows XP on the CF of this product, do not
remove the CF in Step 1.
- The board cannot be properly installed unless the resources (I/O addresses and interrupt level) for
the board can be allocated. Before attempting to install the board, first determine what PC
resources are free to use.
- More than one product cannot be used on the same PC.
- When installing OS on this product, make sure to prepare the CF having the capacity larger than
that required by OS.
Installing drivers while installing Windows XP newly
(1) After completing the board mounting, turn on the PC. A message saying “IT8212 RAID... ” will
be displayed after a period of time. At this time, RAID setting is not performed, so press [Esc]
key. Without pressing [Esc] key, the status will become startup status after a period of time.
(2) When installing from floppy disk, start up your PC from the “Windows XP installation disk”.
When installing from CD-ROM, start up you PC from CD-ROM.
When a message “Press F6 if you need to install third party SCSI or RAID driver” is displayed,
press [F6] key.
(3) After [Windows XP setup] is displayed, press [S] key to specify a driver you want to add.
(4) Insert the supplied Driver FD into the floppy drive and press [Enter] key.
(5) Select “CONTEC PC-RSD Series (Windows XP)” from a list displayed on the screen and press
[Enter] key.
(6) [Windows XP setup] screen is displayed again and a message saying “Setup will load support for
the following mass storage device(s)” is displayed. [CONTEC PC-RSD Series (Windows XP)]
is now included in this list.
If any additional device you want to install, specify it now. If all devices are specified, proceed
to the next step.
(7) Press [Enter] key on [Windows XP setup] screen to continue the Windows XP installation. In the
middle of installation, the Windows XP installation location can be selected from either the CF of
this product or PC hard disk.

2. Setup
14 PC-RSD Series
CAUTION
In Windows XP, the Hardware Wizard displays the following alert dialog box of [Installng
Software], [Installing Hardware]. This dialog box appears, only indicating that the relevant driver
has not passed Windows Logo testing, and it can be ignored without developing any problem with
the operation of the board. In this case, click on the [Yes] button.
You have now finished installing the Hardware.
After installing Windows XP on the hard disk, shutdown the system and mount the removed CF back to
the slot.
Check Method of Hardware Install Completion
(1) Click the [Start] button on the left side of task bar
and then right-click the [My Computer] or it on the
desktop side.
(2) When the [System propaties] is displayed, click the
[Hardware] tab and then click the [Device
Manager].
(3) Check if the board name has been registered
correctly in [SCSI and RAID controllers].
(4) Check if [ITE Disk Array 0 SCSI Disk Device] has
been registered in [Disk Drives].
After checking that it has been registered for disk drive, you can now use it as a disk drive. The drive
mapping depends on your PC conditions (BIOS setting and IDE device connection status).
CAUTION
When formatting a CF in Windows XP, do not format it as “dynamic disk”. Once formatted as
“dynamic disk”, the CF cannot be used on other PCs or OSs.

2. Setup
PC-RSD Series 15
Mounting this product
on Windows 2000 installed PC
Turning on the PC
After mounting the board in “Step 1 Setting the Hardware ” and checking if the CF has been removed,
turn on your PC. A message saying “IT8212 RAID... ” will be displayed after a period of time. At
this time, RAID setting is not performed, so press [Esc] key. Without pressing [Esc] key, the status
will become startup status after a period of time. Log on as administrator after Windows startup.
CAUTION
- The board cannot be properly installed unless the resources (I/O addresses and interrupt level) for
the board can be allocated. Before attempting to install the board, first determine what PC
resources are free to use.
- More than one product cannot be used on the same PC.
Setting the “Found New Hardware Wizard”
(1) The “Found New Hardware Wizard” will be
started. Click the [Next] button
(2) Select “Search for a suitable driver for my
device [recommended]” and then check the
[Next] button.
Click
(1) Select
(2) Click