Western Digital Array Management Setup User manual

WD
Array Management Setup
User Manual

WD
Array Management Setup
User Manual
Information furnished by WD is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, no responsibility is assumed by WD for its use nor for
any infringement of patents or other rights of third parties which may result from its use. No license is granted by implication or
otherwise under any patent or patent rights of WD. WD reserves the right to change specifications at any time without notice.
© 2005 Western Digital Technologies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Western Digital is a registered trademark; and WD, the WD logo, and EasyBuild are trademarks of Western Digital Technologies, Inc.
Other marks may be mentioned herein that belong to other companies.
2779-001011-A01 Sep 2005

TABLE OF CONTENTS - i
Table of Contents
1 Chapter 1: Introduction
AMS Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
How They Work Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
AMS Installation Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
4 Chapter 2: Installation
Installation Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Operating System Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Network Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Installation Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
AMS Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
10 Chapter 3: Initial Setup
Launch AMS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Remote AMS Login . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Create a New User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Create an Array. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Setup Alert Notification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Specify Alert Notification Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
22 Chapter 4: AMS User Interface
Tree View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Tree View and Component Specific Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Object View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Information View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Status Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Pulldown Menus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Toolbar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Popup Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
31 Chapter 5: RAID Monitoring and Maintenance with AMS
Remote AMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Message Server IP Address Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Local AMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
User Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Alert Notification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Specify Alert Notification Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Synchronize an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Delete an Array. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

TABLE OF CONTENTS - ii
56 Appendix A: RAID Concepts
RAID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
58 Appendix B: Partition and Format
62 Appendix C: Networking Issues
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
DHCP Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
64 Appendix D: WD Service and Support

WD ARRAY MANAGEMENT SETUP
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION - 1
USER MANUAL
Chapter 1: Introduction
The WD Array Management Setup (AMS) is a utility application designed specifically for
monitoring and managing the WD SATA RAID Controller. AMS runs over a local area
network and makes possible RAID monitoring and management from any computer on the
network and even over Internet. This allows your IT manager to watch your RAIDs and take
care of them over the network.
AMS Components
There are three components to AMS. Depending on your installation, all three may be on the
same workstation or work separately across your network:
Monitoring Utility—The Monitoring Utility is a Graphic User Interface (GUI) that reports
on the condition of the RAID array. It receives and displays reports on RAID condition and
operation through the Message Server. The Monitoring Utility works on any PC with a
TCP/IP network connection to your RAID.
When installed on the computer that operates the RAID, the Monitoring Utility also provides
a complete set of RAID management tools.
Message Server—The Message Server normally runs on a network file server but can also run
on the PC controlling the RAID.
Message Agent—The Message Agent runs on the PC that controls the RAID, called the
"RAID PC". The Message Agent directly monitors the RAID and sends messages through the
Message Server to all PCs running the Monitoring Utility.
How They Work Together
The WD Array Management Setup (AMS) utility provides and easy way to set up, monitor,
modify, and repair your RAID. AMS works with the WD SATA RAID Controller.
AMS watches the RAID and when significant events happen, or it discovers a problem, the
Message Agent sends a warning to the Message Server. The Message Server passes the warning
along to all PCs running the Monitoring Utility.
Warnings appear on the PC in the form of email messages and popup alerts. You can select
either one or both. You can also select which events and problems AMS will report.
A major benefit of AMS is that it runs over a TCP/IP network. This enables remote
monitoring of your RAIDs, including offsite monitoring over an Internet connection.
Once you become aware of a problem, go to the PC that controls the RAID, called the
"RAID PC" to take corrective action. If you have more than one RAID PC on your network,
AMS will indicate which one has the problem.
AMS allows monitoring access only through the network. Management access occurs only at
the RAID PC.

WD ARRAY MANAGEMENT SETUP
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION - 2
USER MANUAL
AMS Installation Options
1. Following are some examples of ways you can incorporate AMS into your network and
RAID systems.
Figure 1. LAN and Internet Connections
Rout er & Fi re w all
L apt op com pute r
+ Mo nitoring Ut ility
A ne two rke d PC
+ Monitoring Utility
Comp any LAN
Int ernet
Ho me -ba se d P C
+ Monitoring Utility
Mo de m
Ne tw or k F i le S er ve r
+ Message Server
PC
+ WD SATA RAID Cont ro lle r
+ Int ernal RAID arra y
+ Message Agent
PC
+ WD SATA RAID Controller
+ Message Agent
PC
+ WD SATA RAID Controller
+ Message Agent

WD ARRAY MANAGEMENT SETUP
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION - 3
USER MANUAL
In the following example, there are three PCs with WD SATA RAID Controllers connected
to the company's LAN. The AMS Message Agent runs on each of the PCs with a WD SATA
RAID Controller. The AMS Message Server runs on the company's file server. The AMS
Monitoring Utility runs on networked PCs and also on remote PCs connecting to the
company network through the Internet. With this arrangement, you can monitor RAID
condition and activity from offsite, such as a hotel room or home office.
Figure 2. Company LAN without a File Server
In the above example, there are three PCs with WD SATA RAID Controllers connected to
the company's LAN, the same as before. But this network has no file server, so the AMS
Message Server runs on one of the networked PCs. AMS Monitoring Utility runs on both
networked PCs. If this LAN were upgraded with a suitable router and an Internet connection,
you could set up offsite monitoring as in Figure 1.
Figure 3. PCs with Internal RAID
WD's SATA RAID Controller is designed to setup and control a RAID within the PC's
enclosure. They have the same need of monitoring and management as an external RAID
subsystem. All three AMS components run on the PC itself.
A networked PC
+ Monitoring Utility
Company LAN
A net wo r ke d P C
+ Monitoring Utility
+ Message Server
PC
+ WD SATA RAID Controller
+ Internal RAID array
+ Messa
g
e A
g
ent
PC
+ W D SATA RAID Controller
+ Message Agent
PC
+ W D SATA RAID Controlle
r
+ Message Agent
PC
+ WD SATA RAID Controlle
r
+ Internal RAID array
+ Monitoring Utility
+M A t
PC
+ WD SATA RAID Controller
+ Monitoring Utility
+ Message Agent

WD ARRAY MANAGEMENT SETUP
CHAPTER 2: INSTALLATION - 4
USER MANUAL
Chapter 2: Installation
To install WD Array Management Setup (AMS) is an uncomplicated procedure, once you
understand your systems and how you want to use AMS. The purpose of this Chapter is to
help you plan and carry out your installation of AMS.
By way of review, AMS consists of three components:
!Monitoring Utility
!Message Server
!Message Agent
These were described in the previous chapter. Before proceeding with the installation, you
must know which component goes where. If you plan to run AMS over a network, you must
know the IP addresses of each computer on the network that will be involved in your RAID
monitoring and management activity.
Installation Locations
In the table below are possible locations for each of the three AMS components.
Table 1. Acceptable AMS Component Installation Locations
Monitoring Utility
The Monitoring Utility installs on any computer you will use to monitor and manage the
RAIDs.
If your RAID runs without a network connection, install it on the RAID PC with the rest of
the AMS components.
If your RAIDs are networked, you can install the Monitoring Utility on any computer
connected to the network.
If your company has networked RAIDs and Internet access, you may choose to install the
Monitoring Utility on a laptop or home-based PC for dial-in remote access.
Monitoring Utility Message Server Message Agent
Internet-connected PC •
Network PC ••
Network File Server ••
RAID PC •••

WD ARRAY MANAGEMENT SETUP
CHAPTER 2: INSTALLATION - 5
USER MANUAL
Limit your installation to the computers of RAID users and your IT administrator. AMS
features password protection to further limit access and provide security of your data.
Figure 4. Networked RAID has many installation options
Message Server
The Message Server is required if your RAID PC connects to a network.
If you want run AMS over a network, install the Message Server on one of your networked
computers including a file server, a networked PC or the RAID PC.
Only one installation of the Message Server is required for AMS to work over a network. You
may install Message Server on more than one network PC or file server, but AMS's network
configuration will only use one of them, thus any additional installations are useless.
Do not install the Message Server on any PC that may be disconnected from the network,
such as a laptop or a computer that connects via the Internet. Not only will a disconnect cause
AMS to fail, but reconnecting again may involve time-consuming network configuration.
Network configuration is discussed later in this chapter.
Message Agent
The Message Agent installs on the RAID PC, whether your RAID is networked or not. For
AMS to monitor and manage a RAID, it must have Message Agent installed.
If you have more than one AMS-compatible RAID PC on your network, you may install a
copy of Message Agent on all of them.
Rout er & Fire wall
L apt op com pute r
+ Monitoring Utility
A ne tw o rke d PC
+ Monitoring Utility
Comp any LAN
Int erne t
Home-based PC
+ Monitoring Utility
Mo de m
Network File Server
+ Message Server
PC
+ WD SATA RAID Cont roller
+ Int erna l RAID a rra y
+ Message Agent
PC
+ W D SATA RAID Cont ro lle r
+ Message Agent
PC
+ WD SATA RAID Cont roller
+ Message Agent

WD ARRAY MANAGEMENT SETUP
CHAPTER 2: INSTALLATION - 6
USER MANUAL
Operating System Support
AMS is a utility designed to run on top of previously installed WD SATA RAID Controller.
Generally, if your PC runs the WD SATA RAID Controller properly, it will run AMS also.
Windows 2003 Server, XP, or 2000 operating systems are required to take full advantage of all
the features of AMS. In some cases, you can run AMS on other Windows operating systems.
This becomes an issue when running AMS over a network where there are PCs with different
operating systems.
Network Requirements
If you plan to install AMS on a network be sure all the hosts and servers are connected and
running. That is, each of the PCs, RAIDs and Servers must have a working network
connection before you install AMS.
For AMS to be configured over a network, you must know the IP (network) address of the
RAID PC(s) in your system. The Message Server uses IP addresses to communicate with the
Message Agent on the RAID PCs and the Monitoring Utility on the network PCs.
See Appendix C: Networking Issues for help in finding the IP Address of the RAID PC.
Installation Procedure
Before you start...
If you are installing AMS to run over a network, determine the computers and servers onto
which you will install AMS. Obtain the IP addresses of all RAID PCs where AMS will be
installed.
AMS Installation
With that information ready, follow these steps to install AMS on each computer or server:
1. Boot the PC/server and launch Windows.
2. If the computer is already running, exit all programs.
3. Insert the WD RAID setup and management CD into your CD-ROM
drive.
4. Open the CD and locate the AMS folder.
5. Inside the AMS folder, look for the AMS Installer icon (right).