User Guide

BIOS Configuration Utility: PowerEdge Expandable RAID Controller 2/SC

Starting the BIOS Configuration Utility | Configuration Utility Menu Tree | Configuration-On-Disk | Configure Menu | Initialize Menu | Objects Menu | Battery Backup | Format Menu | Rebuild Menu | Check Consistency Menu | Configuring Arrays and Logical Drives | Choosing Configuration Method | Designating Drives as Hot Spares | Using Easy Configuration | Using New Configuration | Using View/Add Configuration | Initializing Logical Drives | Formatting Physical Drives | Formatting Drives | Rebuilding Failed Disk Drives | Using a Preloaded SCSI Drive "As Is" | Exiting the Utility

Starting the BIOS Configuration Utility

While the host computer boots, press <Ctrl><m> when the following message appears:

Host Adapter-1 Firmware Version x.xx DRAM Size 16 MB

0 Logical Drives found on the Host Adapter

0 Logical Drives handled by BIOS

Press <Ctrl><m> to run PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility

For each PowerEdge Expandable RAID Controller 2/SC (hereafter referred to as "PERC 2/SC") in the host system, the firmware version, DRAM size, and the status of logical drives on that adapter are displayed. If you do not press <Ctrl> <m> within a few seconds of the prompt, the computer continues normal booting. When you press <Ctrl> <m>, the PERC BIOS Configuration Utility screen appears.

BIOS Configuration Utility Menu Options

Using PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility

Configuration Utility Menu Tree

Configuration-On-Disk

PERC 2/SC supports Configuration-on-Disk (drive-roaming). Configuration-on-Disk saves configuration information both in the PERC 2/SC NVRAM and on the disk drives attached to PERC 2/SC. If PERC 2/SC is replaced, the new PERC 2/SC controller can detect the RAID configuration, maintaining the integrity of the data on each drive even if the drives have changed channel and/or target ID.

Adding Configuration-on-Disk Support

1. Press <Ctrl><m> at the PERC 2/SC POST screen to run the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility.
2. Select the Configure Menu. Select View/Add Configuration. Select Disk when asked to use Disk or NVRAM and select Save.
3. Press <Esc> to exit.
4. Reboot the computer.

Configure Menu

Choose the Configure option to select a method for configuring arrays and logical drives.

Initialize Menu

	CAUTION: Initializing a logical drive destroys all data on the logical drive.

Choose Initialize from the BIOS Configuration Utility main menu to initialize one or more logical drives. This action typically follows the configuration of a new logical drive.

Objects Menu

Choose the Objects option from the BIOS Configuration Utility main menu to access the controllers, logical drives, physical drives, and SCSI channels individually. You can also change settings for each object. The Objects menu options are as follows.

NOTE: Battery Backup appears on some Objects menus; however, PERC 2/SC does not support this feature.

Adapter

Choose Adapter from the Objects menu to select a controller (if the computer has more than one) and to modify parameters. You can install only 1 PERC 2/SC controller, but you can also install other PowerEdge Expandable RAID Controllers.

The Adapter menu options are listed in the following table.

Logical Drive

Choose Logical Drive from the Objects menu to select a logical drive and to perform the listed actions.

Virtual Sizing

Virtual Sizing allows PERC 2/SC Console to determine the drive capacity. The operating system reports the drive capacity as determined by PERC 2/SC Console. Select Virtual Sizing from the View/Update Parameters option on the Logical Drive menu. The Logical Drive menu is selected from the Objects menu.) Select Enabled to enable Virtual Sizing. Set this option to Enabled before adding a physical drive to a logical drive. After you have created a logical drive set, the partition of the drive should be as large as the virtual size of the logical drive. After you have created a logical array set, the drive partition can be as large as the full size of the logical drive; however, this is the full virtual drive size, not the actual physical drive size.

NOTE: The physical drive must be in the Ready state before it can be added to a logical drive. No operation can be started while a drive is being reconstructed.

Physical Drive

Choose Physical Drive from the Objects menu to select a physical device and to perform the operations listed in the following table. The physical hard-disk drives in the computer are listed; move the cursor to the desired device and press <Enter> to display the following options.

SCSI Channel

Choose SCSI Channel from the Objects menu to select a SCSI channel on the currently selected controller. You can perform the following operations on the selected channel.

Battery Backup

This option is not available.

Format Menu

	CAUTION: Formatting a hard-disk drive destroys all data on the drive.

Choose the Format option from the BIOS Configuration Utility main menu to low-level format 1 or more physical drives.

Formatting

Because most SCSI disk drives are low-level formatted at the factory, this step is usually not necessary. You must format a disk only if:

• The disk drive was not low-level formatted at the factory.
• An excessive number of media errors have been detected on the disk drive.

You do not have to choose Format to erase existing information, such as a system partition, on your SCSI disks. That information is erased when you initialize the logical drive(s).

Rebuild Menu

Choose the Rebuild option from the BIOS Configuration Utility main menu to rebuild one or more failed disk drives.

Check Consistency Menu

Choose Check Consistency to verify the redundancy data in logical drives that use RAID levels 1 through 5.

The parameters of the existing logical drives appear as follows:

Discrepancies are automatically corrected, assuming always that the data is correct. However, if the failure is a read error on a data drive, the bad data block is reassigned with the generated data.

Press the arrow keys to choose the desired logical drives. Press the spacebar to select or deselect a drive for consistency checking. Press <F2> to select or deselect all the logical drives. Press <F10> to begin the consistency check. A progress indicator for each selected logical drive is displayed, as follows:

When the check is finished, press any key to clear the progress display. Press <Esc> to display the main menu.

Configuring Arrays and Logical Drives

You can configure physical arrays and logical drives with the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility using the following methods:

• Easy Configuration
• New Configuration
• View/Add Configuration

Each configuration method requires a different level of user input. The general flow of operations for array and logical drive configuration is as follows:

1. Choose a configuration method.
2. Designate hot spares (optional).
3. Create arrays using the available physical drives.
4. Define logical drives using the space in the arrays.
5. Save the configuration information.
6. Initialize the new logical drives.

Choosing Configuration Method

Easy Configuration

In Easy Configuration, each physical array you create is associated with exactly 1 logical drive. You can modify the following parameters:

• RAID level
• Stripe size
• Cache write policy
• Read policy
• I/O policy

If logical drives have already been configured when you select Easy Configuration, the configuration information is not disturbed.

New Configuration

In New Configuration, you can modify the following logical drive parameters:

• RAID level
• Stripe size
• Cache write policy
• Read policy
• I/O policy
• Logical drive size
• Spanning of array

If you select New Configuration, the existing configuration information on the selected controller is destroyed when the new configuration is saved.

View/Add Configuration

View/Add Configuration allows you to control the same logical drive parameters as New Configuration without disturbing the existing configuration information. You can also choose to enable the Configuration-on-Disk feature.

PERC 2/SC Default Settings

Reserved Disk Space During Configuration

Up to 20.6 MB of disk space is reserved when a hard-disk drive is being configured.

Designating Drives as Hot Spares

Hot spares are physical drives that are powered up along with the RAID drives and usually stay in a standby state. If a disk drive used in a RAID logical drive fails, a hot spare will automatically take its place and the data on the failed drive is reconstructed on the hot spare. Hot spares can be used for RAID levels 1 and 5. The PERC 2/SC controller supports up to 8 hot spares.

Designate physical drives as hot spares using one of the following methods:

• Press <F4> while creating arrays in Easy Configuration, New Configuration, or View/Add Configuration mode.
• Select a physical drive and press <Enter.> Select Make HotSpare.

Press <F4>

When you choose any configuration option, a list of all physical devices connected to the current controller appears.

Press the arrow keys to choose a disk drive that has a READY indicator and press <F4> to designate the drive as a hot spare. The indicator will change to HOTSP.

Select Physical Drive

Select Objects from the Management menu and then select Physical Drive. A physical drive selection screen appears. Select a disk drive and press <Enter> to display the action menu for the drive.

Press the arrow keys to select Make HotSpare and press <Enter>. The indicator for the selected drive changes to HOTSP.

Using Easy Configuration

In Easy Configuration, each array is associated with exactly one logical drive. To create arrays using Easy Configuration, follow these steps:

1. Choose Configure from the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility main menu.
2. Choose Easy Configuration from the Configure menu.
   The array selection menu appears.
   Hot-key information is displayed at the bottom of the screen. The hot-key functions are as follows:

• <F2> — Displays the manufacturer data and error count for the selected drive
• <F3> — Displays the logical drives that have been configured
• <F4> — Designates the selected drive as a hot spare

3. Press the arrow keys to choose specific physical drives. Press the spacebar to associate the selected physical drive with the current array.
   The indicator for the selected drive changes from READY to ONLIN A[array number]-[drive number]. For example, ONLIN A2-3 means disk drive 3 in array 2.

4. Add physical drives to the current array as desired.
   Try to use drives of the same capacity in a specific array. If you use drives with different capacities in an array, all drives in the array are treated as if they have the capacity of the smallest drive in the array.
   The number of physical drives in a specific array determines the RAID levels that can be implemented with the array.

• RAID 0 requires 1 or more physical drives.
• RAID 1 requires exactly 2 physical drives.
• RAID 5 requires at least 3 physical drives.

5. Press <Enter> when you are finished creating the array.
   The logical drive configuration screen appears. The window at the top of the screen shows the logical drive being configured as well as any existing logical drives. The column headings are:

• LD — Logical drive number
• RAID — RAID level
• Size — Logical drive size
• #Stripes — Number of stripes (physical drives) in the associated physical array
• StrpSz — Stripe size
• DriveState — State of the logical drive

6. Highlight RAID and press <Enter>.
7. Set the RAID level for the logical drive.
   The available RAID levels for the current logical drive are displayed.
8. Select a RAID level and press <Enter> to confirm.
9. Set the stripe size, cache write policy, read policy, and I/O (cache) policy from the Advanced menu. Press <Esc> to exit the Advanced menu.
10. When you have defined the current logical drive, choose Accept and press <Enter>.
    The array selection screen appears if any unconfigured disk drives remain.
11. Repeat steps 3–10 to configure another array and logical drive.
    PERC 2/SC supports up to 8 logical drives per controller.
12. When you are finished configuring logical drives, press <Esc> to exit Easy Configuration.
    A list of the currently configured logical drives appears.
13. Respond to the Save prompt.
    The Configure menu appears.
14. Initialize the logical drives you have just configured.

Using New Configuration

The New Configuration option allows you to associate logical drives with partial and/or multiple physical arrays (the latter is called spanning of arrays).

NOTE: Choosing New Configuration erases the existing configuration information on the selected controller. To use the spanning feature and keep the existing configuration, use View/Add Configuration.

1. Choose Configure from the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility main menu.
2. Choose New Configuration from the Configure menu.
   An array selection window showing the devices connected to the current controller is displayed. Hot-key information appears at the bottom of the screen. The hot-key functions are as follows:

• <F2> — Displays drive data and PERC 2/SC error count for the selected drive
• <F3> — Displays the logical drives that have been configured
• <F4> — Designates the selected drive as a hot spare
• <F10> — Displays the logical drive configuration screen

3. Press the arrow keys to choose specific physical drives. Press the spacebar to associate the selected physical drive with the current array.
   The indicator for the selected drive changes from READY to ONLIN A[array number]-[drive number]. For example, ONLIN A2-3 means disk drive 3 in array 2.
4. Add physical drives to the current array as desired.
   Try to use drives of the same capacity in a specific array. If you use drives with different capacities in an array, all the drives in the array is treated as though they have the capacity of the smallest drive in the array. The number of physical drives in a specific array determines the RAID levels that can be implemented with the array.

• RAID 0 requires 1 or more physical drives per array.
• RAID 1 requires 2, 4, 6, or 8 physical drives per array.
• RAID 5 requires at least 3 physical drives per array.

5. Press <Enter> when you are finished creating the current array. To continue defining arrays, repeat step 4. To begin logical drive configuration, go to step 6.
6. Press <F10> to configure logical drives.
   The logical drive configuration screen appears. The window at the top of the screen shows the logical drive being configured as well as any existing logical drives. The column headings are:

• LD — Logical drive number
• RAID — RAID level
• Size — Logical drive size
• #Stripes — Number of stripes (physical drives) in the associated physical array
• StrpSz — Stripe size
• Drive-State — State of the logical drive

7. Set the RAID level for the logical drive. Highlight RAID and press <Enter>.
   A list of the available RAID levels for the current logical drive appears.
8. Select a RAID level and press <Enter> to confirm.
9. Highlight Span and press <Enter>.
10. Highlight a spanning option and press <Enter>.
    The spanning mode options are as follows:

• CanSpan — Array spanning is enabled for the current logical drive. The logical drive can occupy space in more than 1 array.
• NoSpan — Array spanning is disabled for the current logical drive. The logical drive can occupy space in only 1 array.

For 2 arrays to be spannable, they must have the same stripe width (they must contain the same number of physical drives) and must be consecutively numbered. For example, assuming Array 2 contains 4 disk drives, it can be spanned only with Array 1 and/or Array 3, and only if Arrays 1 and 3 also contain 4 disk drives. If the two criteria for spanning are met, PERC 2/SC automatically allows spanning. If the criteria are not met, the Span setting has no effect on the current logical drive.

11. Move the cursor to Size and press <Enter>.
12. Set the logical drive size.
    By default, the logical drive size is set to all available space in the array(s) being associated with the current logical drive, accounting for the Span setting and for partially used array space. For example, if the previous logical drive used only a part of the space in an array, the current logical drive size is set to the remaining space by default.
13. Open the Advanced menu to set the remaining options.

Press <Esc> to exit the Advanced Menu.

14. After you define the current logical drive, choose Accept and press <Enter>.
    If space remains in the arrays, the next logical drive to be configured appears.
15. Repeat steps 6-14 to configure another logical drive.
    If the array space has been used, a list of the existing logical drives appears.
16. Press any key to continue, and respond to the Save prompt.
17. Initialize the logical drives you have just configured.

Using View/Add Configuration

View/Add Configuration allows you to associate logical drives with partial and/or multiple physical arrays (this is called spanning of arrays). The existing configuration is left intact, so you can also use View/Add Configuration to look at the current configuration.

1. Choose Configure from the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility main menu.
2. Choose View/Add Configuration from the Configure menu.
   An array selection window showing the devices connected to the current controller is displayed. Hot-key information appears at the bottom of the screen.
   The hot-key functions are as follows:

• <F2> — Displays drive data and PERC 2/SC error count for the selected drive
• <F3> — Displays the logical drives that have been configured
• <F4> — Designates the selected drive as a hot spare
• <F10> — Displays the logical drive configuration screen

3. Press the arrow keys to choose specific physical drives. Press the spacebar to associate the selected physical drive with the current array.
   The indicator for the selected drive changes from READY to ONLIN A[array number]-[drive number]. For example, ONLIN A2-3 means disk drive 3 in array 2.
4. Add physical drives to the current array as desired.
   Try to use drives of the same capacity in a specific array. If you use drives with different capacities in an array, all the drives in the array is treated as if they have the capacity of the smallest drive in the array. The number of physical drives in a specific array determine the RAID levels that can be implemented with the array.

• RAID 0 requires 1 or more physical drives per array.
• RAID 1 requires 2, 4, 6, or 8 physical drives per array.
• RAID 5 requires at least 3 physical drives per array.

5. Press <Enter> when you are finished creating the array. To continue defining arrays, repeat step 4. To begin logical drive configuration, go to step 6.
6. Press <F10> to configure logical drives.
   The logical drive configuration screen appears. The logical drive that is currently being configured and any existing logical drives are displayed. The column headings are:

• LD — Logical drive number
• RAID — RAID level
• Size — Logical drive size
• #Stripes — Number of stripes (physical drives) in the associated physical array
• StrpSz — Stripe size
• Drive-State — State of the logical drive

7. Highlight RAID and press <Enter>.
   The available RAID levels for the logical drive appear.
8. Select a RAID level and press <Enter> to confirm.
9. Highlight Span and press <Enter>.
   The spanning mode options are as follows:

• CanSpan — Array spanning is enabled for the current logical drive. The logical drive can occupy space in more than 1 array.
• NoSpan — Array spanning is disabled for the current logical drive. The logical drive can occupy space in only 1 array.

For 2 arrays to be spannable, they must have the same stripe width (they must contain the same number of physical drives) and they must be consecutively numbered. For example, assuming Array 2 contains 4 disk drives, it can be spanned only with Array 1 and/or Array 3, and only if Arrays 1 and 3 also contain 4 disk drives. If the 2 criteria for spanning are met, PERC 2/SC automatically activates spanning. If the criteria are not met, the Span setting has no effect on the current logical drive.

10. Highlight a spanning option and press <Enter>.
11. Move the cursor to Size and press <Enter>.
12. Se the logical drive size.
    By default, the logical drive size is set to all available space in the array(s) being associated with the current logical drive, accounting for the Span setting and for partially used array space. For example, if the previous logical drive used only a part of the space in an array, the current logical drive size is set to the remaining space by default.
13. Open the Advanced menu to set the remaining options.

Press <Esc> to exit the Advanced menu.

14. After you define the current logical drive, choose Accept and press <Enter>.
    If space remains in the arrays, the next logical drive to be configured appears.
15. Repeat steps 6–14 to configure another logical drive.
    If all array space is used, a list of the existing logical drives appears.
16. Press any key to continue, and respond to the Save prompt.
17. Initialize the logical drives you have just configured.

Initializing Logical Drives

Initialize each new logical drive you configure. You can initialize the logical drives using 1 of 2 methods:

• Batch initialization — The Initialize option in the main menu lets you initialize up to eight logical drives simultaneously.
• Individual initialization — The Objects/Logical Drive Action menu for an individual logical drive has an Initialize option.

Batch Initialization

1. Choose Initialize from the BIOS Configuration Utility main menu.
   A list of the current logical drives appears.
2. Press the arrow keys to select all drives. Press the spacebar to select the logical drive to be initialized. Press <F2> to select/deselect all logical drives.
3. When you have finished selecting logical drives, press <F10> and choose Yes from the confirmation prompt.
   The progress of the initialization for each drive is shown in bar graph format as follows:

4. When initialization is completed, press any key to continue. Press <Esc> to display the main menu.

Individual Initialization

1. Choose Objects from the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility main menu. Choose the Logical Drive option from the Objects menu.
2. Select the logical drive to be initialized.
3. Choose the Initialize option from the Action menu.
   Initialization progress appears as a bar graph on the screen.
4. When initialization is completed, press any key to display the previous menu.

Formatting Physical Drives

You can do low-level formatting of SCSI drives using the BIOS Configuration Utility.

Because most SCSI disk drives are low-level formatted at the factory, this step is usually not necessary. Usually, you must format a disk under the following circumstances:

• The disk drive was not low-level formatted at the factory.
• An excessive number of media errors have been detected on the disk drive.

Media Errors

Check the View Drive Information screen for the drive to be formatted. You can view this screen by choosing Objects from the Management menu. Select the Physical Drives option, and choose a device. Press <F2>.

The error count is displayed at the bottom of the properties screen. If you feel that the number of errors is excessive, you should probably format the disk drive. If more than 32 media errors were detected, PERC 2/SC automatically puts the drive in FAIL state. This occurs even in a degraded RAID set. The errors are displayed as they occur. In such cases, formatting the drive can clear up the problem.

You do not have to choose Format to erase existing information, such as an MS–DOS� partition, on your SCSI disks. That information is erased when you initialize logical drives.

Formatting Drives

You can format the physical drives using on of the following two methods:

• Batch formatting — Choose the Format option in the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility main menu to format up to 8 disk drives simultaneously.
• Individual formatting — Choose the Format option from Objects on the Physical Drive action menu for a physical disk drive.

Batch Formatting

1. Choose Format from the BIOS Configuration Utility Management menu.
   A device selection window showing the devices connected to the current controller is displayed.
2. Press the arrow keys to select all drives. Press the spacebar to select the physical drive for formatting.
   The indicators for selected drives flash.
3. When you have finished selecting physical drives, press <F10> and choose Yes from the confirmation prompt.
   The indicators for the selected drives change to FRMT[number], where number reflects the order of drive selection. Formatting may take some time, depending on the number of drives you have selected and the drive capacities.
4. When formatting is completed, press any key to continue. Press <Esc> to display the main menu.

Individual Formatting

1. Choose Objects from the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility main menu. Choose Physical Drive from the Objects menu.
   A device selection window showing the devices connected to the current controller is displayed.
2. Press the arrow keys to select the physical drive to be formatted and press <Enter>.
   The action menu appears.
3. Choose Format from the action menu and respond to the confirmation prompt.
   Formatting can take some time, depending on the drive capacity.
4. When formatting is completed, press any key to display the previous menu.

Rebuilding Failed Disk Drives

If a disk drive fails in an array that is configured as a RAID 1 or 5 logical drive, you can recover the lost data by rebuilding the drive.

Rebuild Types

The rebuild types are:

Manual Rebuild — Rebuilding an Individual Drive

1. Choose Objects from the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility main menu. Choose Physical Drive from the Objects menu.
   A device selection window showing the devices connected to the current controller is displayed.
2. Press the arrow keys to select the physical drive to rebuild. Press <Enter>.
3. Choose the Rebuild option from the action menu and respond to the confirmation prompt.
   Rebuilding can take some time, depending on the drive capacity.
4. When rebuilding is completed, press any key to display the previous menu.

Manual Rebuild – Batch Mode

1. Choose Rebuild from the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility main menu.
   A device selection window showing the devices connected to the current controller is displayed. The failed drives have FAIL indicators.
2. Press the arrow keys to select all drives to be rebuilt. Press the spacebar to select the selected physical drive(s) to be rebuilt.
3. After selecting the physical drives, press <F10> and select Yes at the prompt.
   The indicators for the selected drives change to REBLD. Rebuilding can take some time, depending on the number of drives selected and the drive capacities.
4. When rebuilding is completed, press any key to continue. Press <Esc> to display the main menu.

Using a Preloaded SCSI Drive "As Is"

NOTE: To use a preloaded system drive in the manner described here, you must make it the first logical drive defined (for example, LD1) on the controller it is connected to. This will make the drive ID 0 LUN 0. If the drive is not a boot device, the logical drive number is not critical.

You may have a SCSI disk drive that is already loaded with software. The drive may be a boot disk containing an operating system. You can use the PERC 2/SC controller as a SCSI adapter for such a drive by performing the following steps:

1. Connect the SCSI drive to the channel on the PERC 2/SC controller, with proper termination and TID settings.
2. Boot the computer and start the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility by pressing <Ctrl><m>.
3. Choose Easy Configuration from the Configure menu.
4. Press the cursor keys to select the preloaded drive.
5. Press the spacebar.
   The preloaded drive should now become an array element.
6. Press <Enter>.
   You have declared the preloaded drive as a one-disk array. Display the logical drive configuration screen.
7. Set the read policy and cache option on the Advanced menu.
8. Exit the Advanced menu. Highlight Accept and press <Enter>.
9. Press <Esc> and choose Yes at the Save prompt.
10. Exit the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility and reboot.
11. Set the host system to boot from SCSI, if such a setting is available.

Exiting the Utility

Press <Esc> when the PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility Management menu is displayed to exit PERC 2/SC BIOS Configuration Utility. Choose Yes at the prompt. You must then reboot the computer. The PERC 2/SC BIOS message appears again. Press <Esc> when the BIOS Configuration Utility prompt appears.