Dot Hill Systems RAIDCore User manual

P/N 83-00004638-12
Revision A
December 2009
RAIDCore User Manual

Copyright Protected Material 2009. All rights reserved. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are proprietary to
their respective owners.
The material in this document is for information only and is subject to change without notice. While reasonable efforts have
been made in the preparation of this document to assure its accuracy, changes in the product design can be made without
reservation and without notification to its users.

RAIDCore User Manual 1
Contents
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Intended audience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Document conventions and symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Customer Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
Chapter 1 Safety Precautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Safety Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Safety Precautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Chapter 2 Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
RAIDCore Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Who Should Use This Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
System Requirements for Using RAIDCore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Supported Controllers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Supported Operating Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Features of RAIDCore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
RAIDCore Licensing Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
Major Features of RAIDCore Licensing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
Features Set: by RAIDCore License Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Chapter 3 Arrays, Disks, and RAID Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Understanding Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
RAID Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Array States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
Creating Arrays: Future Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Expanding Disk Capacity Online: Using OCE (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Migrating RAID Levels Online: Using ORLM (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Array Tasks: Starting and Stopping Tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
Understanding Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
Disks States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
RAID Minimum Disk Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
Rescanning Disks for Changes in State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
Sparing Options: Disks and Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
Distributed Sparing (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Dedicated Sparing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Global Sparing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
RAID Performance Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Number and Organization of Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Caching Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Application Workload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
RAID Reliability Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Data Redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Backup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Flexibility and Expansion Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Multiple RAID Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Operating System Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Chapter 4 Installing Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Before You Begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
System Setup Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Copy Drivers to Removable Storage Media: Windows Operating Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Use the storage medium and its copied files to install the drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Copy Drivers to Removable Storage Media: Linux Operating Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35
Install Drivers and Applications: Windows Operating Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36
Install Drivers on a System at the Same Time That the Windows Operating System is Installed . . . . . . .36

RAIDCore User Manual 2
Install Drivers, Configuration Devices, and the Management Suite: Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Install Drivers and Applications: Linux Operating Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
Install Drivers on a System at the Same Time That the Linux Operating System Is Installed . . . . . . . . . .41
Install Drivers at the Same Time That Red Hat Linux is Installed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42
Install Drivers at the Same Time That SUSE Linux is Installed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45
Install Drivers, Configuration Devices, and the Management Suite: Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49
Booting from a Legacy Disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52
Supplemental Linux Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52
Manually Install RAIDCore Drivers on an Existing Installation of Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52
Install the RAIDCore software driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52
Manually install the RAIDCore driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52
Chapter 5 BIOS Configuration Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
When to Use the RAIDCore BIOS Configuration Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
Access the RAIDCore BIOS Configuration Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
Understanding the Color Code in the BIOS Configuration Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
Initialize Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
Initialize Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
Create Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
Create An Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
Select An Array Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56
Resume the Boot Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
Delete Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
Delete an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
Swap Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
Swap Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
View Disk Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59
View Array Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60
Rescan All Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60
Change the Controller Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60
Select a Boot Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61
Change the Staggered Spinup Count . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
Continue Booting from the BIOS Configuration Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
Chapter 6 RAIDConsole Graphical User Interface (GUI) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Start the RAIDConsole GUI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Start RAIDConsole under Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Start RAIDConsole under Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Password Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Things to Know About Passwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Set Password Protection from the First Time Run Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Disable Password Protection from the First Time Run Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Enable Password Protection from the Options Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Disable Password Protection from the Options Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Change a Password from the Options Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Help and About Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66
Reviewing the GUI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68
The Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68
The Array View Section of the Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
Elements of the Array View Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
Array View Icons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
The Disk List Section of the Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70
Elements of the Disk List Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70
The Array List Section of the Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71
Elements of the Array List Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71
The Event View Section of the Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72
Elements of the Event View Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72

RAIDCore User Manual 3
The I/O Status Bar of the Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72
Elements of the I/O Status Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72
Working with Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
Initialize Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
To initialize disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
Rescan Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
Change Cache Properties for Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
Change disk caching properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74
Change Disk View Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74
Operations Available at the Physical View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74
Legacy Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75
Working with Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76
Create and Format Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76
Create an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76
Select an array and cache . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76
Select options and configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77
Partition an array for use with Windows Server 2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77
Format the array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77
Name Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78
To name an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78
Transform Arrays (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78
Transform an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79
Copy Arrays (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80
Copy an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80
Use the Un-Link and Un-Hide Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
Access Additional Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84
Prepare to Physically Remove an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84
Delete Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85
Delete an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85
Recreate a deleted array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85
Recover Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85
Recover an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85
Change Cache Settings for Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86
Change cache settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86
Change the Priority Level of a Task . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
To change a task priority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
Interrupt or Cancel a Task . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
Interrupt or cancel a task . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
Check for Consistency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88
Manually start a Consistency Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88
Manually stop a Consistency Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88
Schedule a Consistency Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89
Schedule a Consistency Check for later . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89
Delete a scheduled Consistency Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89
Scan an Array in the Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90
Enable or disable a Background Array Scan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90
Split Mirrored Arrays (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90
Split a mirror using default settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90
Before you start... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91
Use default settings to split a RAID 1 or RAID 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91
Split a mirror using the advanced split option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91
Add or Remove Distributed Spares (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Add a distributed spare while creating an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Add a distributed spare while transforming an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92

RAIDCore User Manual 4
Remove a distributed spare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Add or Remove Dedicated Spares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Add a dedicated spare while creating an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Add a dedicated spare after an array has been created . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Remove a dedicated spare assignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Remove All Dedicated Spares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93
Remove all dedicated spares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93
Add or Remove Global Spares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93
Add a global spare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93
Remove a global spare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93
Working with Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94
View or Change the License Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94
View license level using RAIDConsole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94
Change Password Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96
Change View Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96
Set small icons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96
Use Expand On Click . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96
Change how the array tree expands when an array is clicked in the Array View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96
Edit exit columns in the Disk List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97
Edit the Physical View of the Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .98
View Log Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .98
Set Event Notifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .99
Set or change event notifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100
Set Up Remote Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .101
Add a Remote System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .101
Read SMART Information from Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102
Read SMART information from disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102
Turn on Advanced Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Recover an array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Stop and restart the RAIDCore Event Service program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Stop and Restart the RAIDCore Event Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Stop the RAIDCore Event Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Start the RAIDCore Event Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Chapter 7 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105
System Startup Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105
Warning Messages: POST Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106
Array-Related Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109
Disk-Related Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114
Appendix A Software License: EULA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115
Software License: End-User License Agreement (EULA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115
1. Limited License to Authorized Distributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115
2. Limited License to End Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115
3. Restrictions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115
4. Proprietary Rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116
5. Source Code Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116
6. Term and Termination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116
7. No Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116
8. Limitation of Liability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117
9. Transfers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117
10. Export Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117
11. General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117
Appendix B bcadm Command Line Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119
What is bcadm? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119
To Use bcadm with a Linux OS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119
To Use bcadm with a Windows OS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119
Manage Arrays and Disks: bcadm --manage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120
Understand Query Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120

RAIDCore User Manual 5
bcadm Controller List Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120
bcadm Disk List Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121
bcadm Array List Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122
View Help from the Command Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123
To view a list of the major modes of operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123
To view help for a specific mode and its options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123
To view the bcadm man page on a Linux system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123
Create New Arrays: bcadm --create . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123
Delete Arrays: bcadm --delete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123
Transform Arrays: bcadm --transform (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124
Copy Arrays: bcadm --create-copy (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124
Legacy Disks: bcadm --create-copy (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125
Split Mirrored Arrays: bcadm --split (supported only by RAIDCore VST) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125
Follow or Monitor Arrays and Disks: bcadm --follow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
View or Change License Levels: bcadm --license . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
Before you begin... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129

RAIDCore User Manual 6

RAIDCore User Manual 7
Figures
1Dot Hill®window, showing Install Windows Management Suite selected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
2License Agreement window, showing I accept the terms of the License Agreement selected.. . . . . . . . . 40
3Four-Drive RAID 5 Array at the Main Menu (typical window). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
4Example of a RAID 5 Swapped for a RAID 10 (typical window) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
5Controller Options Section of the RAIDCore(tm) Array Configuration Window (typical) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
6First Time Run Dialog Box (typical) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
7RAIDConsole Dot Hill Window (typical) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
8Array Status Window: Accessing Array Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
9RAIDConsole Properties Window (typical). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
10 Sections of the Array Status Window (typical) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
11 Icons of the Array View Section of the Array Status Window (typical). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
12 Array View, Array Status Window: Select an Array to be Copied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
13 Array View: Un-Link Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
14 RAIDConsole - Event Service Window: Rescan Button. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
15 RAIDConsole Window: Task -> Pause and Task -> Remove Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
16 License Window, showing the license level and the space for entering an Activation ID . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
17 An example of an Entitlement Certificate, which contains the Activation ID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
18 Select Display Columns Window: Edit Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
19 Notification Setup Window: Notification Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
20 Options Drop-Down Menu of the SMART Information Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
21 SMART Information Window: Summary Error Log. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

8 Figures

RAIDCore User Manual 9
Tables
1Document Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2System Requirements for RAIDCore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3Features of RAIDCore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
4Feature Set for RAIDCore: by RAIDCore License Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
5RAID Levels and Selection Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
6RAID Levels - General Characteristics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
7Array States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
8Failure States by RAID Level. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
9Array Expansion Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
10 Types of Tasks per Array. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
11 Disk States. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
12 Minimum Disk Configurations per RAID Level. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
13 Sparing Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
14 System Setup Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
15 Driver Files for Windows Operating Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
16 Windows Operating System: Install Drivers, Configuration Devices, and Management Suite. . . . . . . . . . 37
17 Components of the Management Suite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
18 Installing the Red Hat Linux Drivers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
19 SUSE Linux 10.3: Installing the SUSE Linux Drivers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
20 SUSE Linux 11: Installing the SUSE Linux Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
21 Linux Operating System: Install Drivers, Configuration Devices, and Management Suite. . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
22 Components Installed with the Management Suite (Linux) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
23 Reasons for Using the RAIDCore BIOS Configuration Utility (Option ROM). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
24 BIOS Color Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
25 Selecting An Array Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
26 Choices for Selecting a Boot Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
27 Elements at the Array View Section of the Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
28 Disk List Section of the Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
29 Array List Section of the Array Status Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
30 Event View Elements, Array Status Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
31 I/O Status Bar Elements, Array Status Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
32 Restrictions and Conditions When Transforming a Legacy Disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
33 Issues and Recommendations for Creating and Formatting Arrays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
34 Issues and Recommendations for Transforming Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
35 Issues and Recommendations for Copying Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
36 Options for Unlinking Copied Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
37 Issues and Recommendations for Deleting Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
38 Cache Array Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
39 Consistency Check Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
40 Splitting a Mirror by RAID Level. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
41 Event Notification Types. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
42 Event Log Priority Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
43 System Does Not Boot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
44 The BIOS Configuration Utility Does Not Display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
45 Warning Messages: POST Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
46 Troubleshooting: Cannot Create an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
47 Troubleshooting: An Array is in an Offline State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
48 Troubleshooting: An Array is in a Critical State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
49 Troubleshooting: Cannot Assign a Dedicated Hot Spare to an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
50 Troubleshooting: Cannot Create a Global Hot Spare. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
51 Troubleshooting: Cannot Create an Array Larger Than 2 TB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
52 Troubleshooting: Recreating a Deleted Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
53 Troubleshooting: The Disk Fails. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
54 Troubleshooting: A Dedicated Hot Spare Fails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
55 Troubleshooting: The Wrong Disk was Removed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

RAIDCore User Manual 10
56 Troubleshooting: Cannot Initialize a Disk. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
57 Modes for the bcadm Program. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
58 bcadm Controller List Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
59 bcadm Disk List Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
60 bcadm Array List Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
61 Restrictions and Conditions When Transforming a Legacy Disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

RAIDCore User Manual 11
Preface
This user guide:
• Provides information about arrays, disks, and RAID levels (RAID types).
• Describes how to improve storage system performance or reliability by understanding array and disk tasks and
options.
Intended audience
This user guide is intended for use by system administrators and technicians who are experienced with the
following:
• Direct Attached Storage (DAS), Storage Area Network (SAN), or Network Attached Storage (NAS)
operators
• Network administration
• Network installation
• Storage system installation and configuration
Prerequisites
Prerequisites for installing and configuring this product include familiarity with:
• Servers and computer networks
• RAID and input/output signal technology (such as SCSI, SAS, or SATA)
• Fibre Channel and Ethernet protocols
Document conventions and symbols
Table 1 Document Conventions
Convention Element
Navy blue text: Figure 1 Cross-reference links and e-mail addresses
Navy blue, underlined text
(http://www.example.com)
Web site addresses
Bold font •Keynames
• Text typed into a GUI element, such as into a box
• GUI elements that are clicked or selected, such as menu and
list items, buttons, and check boxes
Italics font Text emphasis
Monospace font • File and directory names
• System output
•Code
• Text typed at the command-line
Monospace, italic font • Code variables
• Command-line variables
Monospace, bold font Emphasis of file and directory names, system output, code, and
text typed at the command line

12 Preface
CAUTION: Indicates that failure to follow directions could result in damage to equipment or data.
IMPORTANT: Provides clarifying information or specific instructions.
NOTE: Provides additional information.
TIP: Provides helpful hints and shortcuts.
Customer Support
For customer support, contact your system or motherboard supplier.

RAIDCore User Manual 13
1Chapter 1 Safety Precautions
General
This section includes general safety precautions and specific RAIDCore cautions. Read and keep this user
manual for future reference.
Safety Definitions
CAUTION: A Caution denotes the possibility of minor to severe damage to equipment and/or loss of data.
Safety Precautions
CAUTION: Before installing RAIDCore read all instructions and cautionary markings on the equipment and all
appropriate sections of this user manual.
CAUTION: Before installing RAIDCore in an existing system, back up all critical data. Failure to follow this
accepted system management practice could result in loss of data.
CAUTION: All components (drivers and applications) must be installed when upgrading to the latest version
of RAIDCore. This means that an older version driver will not work with the latest version of the RAIDCore
application and vice versa.
CAUTION: If a disk has a RAID array on it, it cannot be initialized. To initialize the disk anyway, delete the
array. Make sure this is what is desired. Deleted data on a disk cannot be retrieved.
CAUTION: Do not upgrade the system if there are any tasks (such as a Transform or a Restore) running on
any of the arrays.
CAUTION: Deleting an array permanently destroys all data that is on the array. This action cannot be
undone.
CAUTION: Booting an operating system from a RAIDCore bootable array is supported. Dot Hill Systems
Corp. does not support booting from a RAIDCore array without having a RAIDCore BIOS (option ROM).
CAUTION: Leaving Write Back caching enabled might increase the likelihood of data being corrupted,
if the system experiences a power interruption or unexpected shutdown.
CAUTION: When a task is cancelled, data that is in the part of the task that did not finish will be lost on the
destination array.

14 Chapter 1 Safety Precautions

RAIDCore User Manual 15
2Chapter 2 Getting Started
RAIDCore Technology
RAIDCore consists of (a) storage management and (b) RAID controller and port virtualization. RAIDCore runs
on existing systems by using a motherboard’s built-in SATA ports or enhanced chipsets that have SAS disk or
expansion capability.
RAIDCore provides a common interface to arrays, regardless of the type of controller.
Who Should Use This Manual
Only trained, experienced, and authorized personnel should install RAIDCore and use its features and
capabilities.
All unit operators must be familiar with system hardware, data storage, RAID technology, input/output signal
technology (such as SCSI, SAS, or SATA), and Direct Attached Storage (DAS) Storage, Network Attached
Storage (NAS), and/or Storage Area Network (SAN) concepts and technology.
The intended user audience of this user manual are system administrators and experienced users.
System Requirements for Using RAIDCore
Make sure the systems that use RAIDCore meet the requirements indicated in the following table.
Supported Controllers
The following controllers are supported by the latest version of RAIDCore:
• AMD SB0700, SP5100
Supported Operating Systems
The following operating systems are supported by the current release of RAIDCore:
• Microsoft Windows®Server 2003 SP2: Enterprise Edition, Standard Edition: 32-bit and 64-bit.
• Microsoft Windows®Server 2008: Enterprise Edition, Standard Edition: 32-bit and 64-bit.
• Microsoft Windows®Server 2008 R2: Enterprise Edition, Standard Edition: 64-bit.
•RedHat
®Enterprise Linux®5.3 and 5.4: 32-bit and 64-bit
•SUSE
®Linux Enterprise Server 10.3 and 11: 32-bit and 64-bit
NOTE: Microsoft Windows®Server 2003 without SP2 is not supported by RAIDCore.
Table 2 System Requirements for RAIDCore
Component Requirements
Memory (RAM) Minimum: 512 MB.
Recommended: 2 GB.
Hard disk At least one SATA or SAS Expansion disk (the number of disks depends on the
number, type, and capacity of the arrays to be created).

16 Chapter 2 Getting Started
Features of RAIDCore
The features of RAIDCore described in this user manual apply to all license levels and supported operating
systems. See Supported Operating Systems on page 15.
The following table describes these features. Also see Table 4 on page 21 for a summary of features that are
available with each license level of RAIDCore: RAIDCore Basic, RAIDCore Plus, and RAIDCore VST.
Table 3 Features of RAIDCore
RAIDCore Feature Description
Arrays (general information) RAIDCore allows:
• Creating arrays of different RAID levels using the same
disks.
NOTE: RAID 5 is supported by RAIDCore Plus and
RAIDCore VST. RAID 1n, 10n, and 50 are supported by
RAIDCore VST.
• Creating different RAID level arrays on the same disk, to
adapt each array to the I/O that it processes.
• Creating an array from a mix of different-type disks. For
example, a RAID 10 array can be created from a group of
disks that contain two SATA II HDDs, a SAS HDD, and a
SATA SSD.
• Migrating an existing array to another RAID level, if the type
of array being used is not the optimal type for the application.
This function depends on the array capacity and redundancy
level.
A array refers to data storage created by RAIDCore from one or
more disks. Although an array can be created from several disks, it
is seen by the operating system as a single disk.
Array copying The Copy option is used to create a new array that contains an exact
copy of the data on a source array. It combines the Create Array and
Copy Array functions into a single command.
NOTE: This feature is available only with RAIDCore
VST. See Copy Arrays (supported only by RAIDCore VST)
on page 80.
Array hiding An array can be hidden from the operating system so that neither
the software nor users can see or access it. This is a key element in
creating secure data backups.
Array recovery If an array is accidentally deleted, it can be recovered by creating a
new array with the same properties as the deleted array. This can
occur only if disk Write Access operations are not in-progress.

RAIDCore User Manual 17
Background array initialization
(BGI)
The background initialization of a redundant array creates the parity
data that allows the array to maintain its redundant data and survive a
disk failure.
Because background initialization helps RAIDCore identify and
correct problems that might occur with the redundant data at a later
time, background initialization is similar to check consistency.
Background initialization allows a redundant array to be used
immediately. Data is not lost if a disk goes offline prior to completion
of the BGI process.
Cache support for arrays Various array-caching options are supported: No Cache, Read
Cache, Write Back Cache, Read + Write Back Cache.
Cache support for disks Various disk-caching options are supported: No Cache, Disk Read
Ahead, Disk Write Back, Disk Read Ahead + Write Back.
Consistency Check A Consistency Check is a background operation that verifies and
corrects the mirror or parity data for fault-tolerant disks. It is
recommended that a Consistency Check be run periodically on the
disks.
By default, a Consistency Check automatically corrects mirror or
parity inconsistencies.
A Consistency Check can be scheduled or started manually by the
system user.
Controller spanning A unique feature of RAIDCore that allows very wide arrays to be
created from disks connected to different controllers.
NOTE: This feature is available only with RAIDCore
VST.
See Supported Controllers on page 15.
Disk roaming With disk roaming, SAS/SATA cables can be disconnected from
their disks and shuffled without confusing RAIDCore.
NOTE: Disconnect the SAS/SATA cables from the disks
only when the system is offline.
Disk roaming also allows:
• Disks to be moved to different slots in the backplane.
RAIDCore detects which disks belong to which arrays,
regardless of where the disks are moved in the backplane.
• Disk(s) to be moved between systems.
Table 3 Features of RAIDCore (continued)
RAIDCore Feature Description

18 Chapter 2 Getting Started
Fault tolerance The following fault tolerance features are available with
RAIDCore, in order to prevent data loss in case of a failed disk.
• Disk failure detection (automatic).
• Array rebuild using hot spares (automatic, if the hot spare is
configured for this functionality).
• Parity generation and checking (RAID 5 only).
• Hot-swap manual replacement of a disk without rebooting the
system (available only for systems with a backplane that
supports hot-swapping).
For example if a disk fails in RAID 10, the array remains functional
and data is read from the surviving mirrored disk(s). Up to two disk
failures can be sustained, depending on how the mirrored pairs fail.
Mirror rebuilding A broken mirror can be rebuilt after a new disk is inserted and the
disk is designated as a spare. The system does not have to be
rebooted.
Mirror splitting A mirrored array can be split, so that the volumes can be used
independently.
NOTE: This feature is available only with RAIDCore
VST. See Split Mirrored Arrays (supported only by
RAIDCore VST) on page 90.
Multiple RAID levels per disk Support for multiple array levels per disk allows the administrator
to create arrays of different RAID levels using the same disks.
Native Command Queuing (NCQ) Native Command Queuing is a command protocol of disks that are
supported by RAIDCore. NCQ enables individual disks to
internally optimize the order in which Read and Write commands
are executed. RAIDCore permits a queue depth of up to 32
read/write commands per disk.
Online Capacity Expansion (OCE) OCE is a process that allows the user to add storage capacity to an
existing array, without taking the system offline. OCE enables the
user to increase the total storage capacity of an array by integrating
unused storage into the array.
Data can be accessed while the disks are added and while data on
the array is being redistributed.
NOTE: This feature is available only with RAIDCore
VST. See Expanding Disk Capacity Online: Using OCE
(supported only by RAIDCore VST) on page 26.
Table 3 Features of RAIDCore (continued)
RAIDCore Feature Description