• • • • • • •

This chapter explains how to use FAST to manipulate and modify containers.

Reconfiguring a Container

Using the Container Reconfiguration Wizard, you can change a container in the following ways:

  • Migrate from one RAID level to another without adding space
  • Add space without changing the current RAID level (known as online capacity expansion, or OCE)
  • Migrate RAID level and add space
  • Specify a new chunk size for the following types of containers: stripe set, RAID-5 set, stripe set of mirror sets
  • Move the container's partitions to other disks

    Note: For a list of source containers and their supported reconfigurations, see Container Reconfiguration Guidelines.

Accessing the Container Reconfiguration Wizard

To access the Container Reconfiguration Wizard, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select a container.
  2. Select Reconfiguration Wizard from the Container menu. The Container Reconfiguration Wizard appears (Figure 1).

    Figure 1. Container Reconfiguration Wizard

User Guide

User Guide
Modifying Containers: Dell Flexible Array Storage Tool User's Guide Back to Contents Page

Modifying Containers: Dell™ Flexible Array Storage Tool User's Guide

Reconfiguring a Container Managing Container Failover Working with Mirror Sets Scrubbing a RAID-5 Set Working with Container Properties Managing Container Cache Clearing a Container Deleting a Container
Dialog Box Element Function
Disks
List Displays a list of all SCSI disks connected to the active controller:
  • Force in Dest check box. Forces the system to include the selected disk in the new container.
  • Disk ID. Displays the Disk ID (Bus:ID:LUN).
  • Largest Free. Displays the largest available freespace on the disk.
  • Total Free. Displays the total available freespaces on the disk.
  • In Dest. Indicates with an X that the disk will be included in the new container.
  • In Src. Indicates with an X that the disk is included in the original container.
Force channel optimization check box Attempts to use disks on different channels for optimum performance and redundancy. Note: Not available for single-channel controllers.
Initialize button Initializes the selected SCSI disks.
Configuration
Source Displays the source container's type, number, and size.
Destination type pull-down list Specifies the type of container to generate.
Destination characteristics
Source Displays different colored bars indicating the source container's characteristics; by choosing a destination type, you can compare the original source container characteristics to the current selection in Destination type.
Redundancy Indicates whether the destination container is redundant (Maximum) or not redundant (None).
Capacity utilization Indicates the destination container's ability to use all space for data storage.
Sequential Read Indicates the destination container's relative performance for sequential reads.
Random Read Indicates the destination container's relative performance for random reads.
Sequential Write Indicates the destination container's relative performance for sequential writes.
Random Write Indicates the destination container's relative performance for random writes
Chunk size list Sets the chunk size for the following container types: stripe set, RAID-5 set, stripe set of mirror sets (RAID 0/1).
Size
Use all of nn maximum option Uses the maximum disk space to generate the destination container.
User specified size box and units list Lets you enter the size of the destination container (must be greater than the size of the original container; always round up fractions) and specify a unit of measure in the units list.
Maintain source container's original size option Makes the destination container the exact same size as the source container.
OK button Creates the specified destination container.
Cancel button Closes the dialog box and does not create the destination container.

Reconfiguring a Container

To reconfigure a container, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select the container you want to reconfigure.
  2. Select Reconfiguration Wizard from the Container menu.
  3. To change the container type, select a container type from the Destination type list.
    Container Reconfiguration Guidelines, provides guidelines for converting a container from one type to another.
  4. To change the size of the container, use one of the following methods:
      • Select Use all of.
      • Type a number greater than the size of the original container in the User specified size box, and specify a unit of measure. You can type the first letter of the unit in the User specified size box immediately following the size (for example, type 500m for 500 Megabytes), or select a unit from the list adjacent to the User specified size box.
      For information on minimum and maximum container sizes, see the installation guide for your controller.

      Note: The size must always be greater than the original size of the container when using this option. For example, if the original container is 5.01 GB, FAST shows the container as 5.00 GB. You will get an error message stating that the new container is too small if you choose 5 GB for the new destination. You must enter 5.01 or greater.

    To maintain the size of the container, select Maintain source container's original size.

    Note: If you are reconfiguring a container on a NetWareTM server, the option Maintain source container's original size is selected for you; all other options are grayed out.

  5. For maximum performance of any container type (except a volume set) and for maximum redundancy of the following container types, check Force channel optimization. This option attempts to place component disks on alternating physical SCSI buses (channels).
    • Stripe set
    • RAID-5 set
    • Stripe set of mirror sets
    If channel optimization is not possible, a message is displayed in the message area.

    Note: This feature is not available for single-bus controllers.

  6. Select from the Disks list one or more disks on which you want to create the new container, or accept the disks specified by FAST. FAST automatically tries to optimize your selections, so look carefully at the In Dest column to see which disks are to be included in the container.
      • Disks that are not selected are never considered for inclusion in the destination container. To move a container's partitions to a different disk, be sure to deselect the disks marked as included in the source container.
      • Selected disks are considered for inclusion in the destination container.
      • Disks whose Force in Dest check boxes are checked are forced to be included in the destination container.
  7. If the destination container type is one of the following, select a new chunk size from the Chunk size pull-down list, if appropriate:
    • Stripe set
    • RAID-5 set
    • Stripe set of mirror sets
  8. Click OK.

    Note: After adding space to a container, you will probably want to extend the file system. For instructions, see the following section.

Extending the File System

After you expand a container (for example, using the Reconfiguration Wizard) the file system can, in some cases, be extended to use the additional available space. When the size of the file system and the size of the container do not match, the size of the file system is indicated by a number enclosed in angle brackets (Figure 2).

Figure 2. File system size does not match container size

The procedure for extending the file system is specific to each operating system. The following sections explain how to extend the file system for these operating systems:

  • Windows NT and Windows 2000
  • NetWareTM
Extending a File System on Windows NT and Windows 2000

On Windows NT and Windows 2000 systems, the Extend File System option is only available for the NTFS file system and only when NTFS is the sole operating system partition on a container. Note that the NTFS file system cannot be extended on a boot container or the system container.

To extend the file system on an NTFS file system, do the following:

  1. Select the container on which you want to extend the file system.
  2. Select Extend File System from the Container menu.
  3. Click OK in the message box that appears.

The NTFS file system is marked for expansion and is not extended until you reboot your system1. (This is a Windows NT and Windows 2000 limitation.)

To use additional available space on containers with a single FAT or FAT32 file system or with multiple operating-system partitions, use Microsoft Disk Administrator (Windows NT) or Microsoft Disk Management utility (Windows 2000).

Extending RAID Set Capacity on NetWare

NetWareTM views data in terms of logical volumes on partitions residing on virtual disks (where a container equates to a virtual disk). NetWare 4.x supports only a single logical volume on a virtual disk. This limitation has been removed in NetWare 5.x.

To reflect these capabilities, FAST does not allow for the specification of a container size when reconfiguring a container on a NetWare 4.x based system, but you can specify a container size during reconfiguration on a NetWare 5.x based system.

Note: In a reconfigured NetWare 5.x container, the preexisting NetWare partition itself can not be increased in size; however, a new NetWare partition can be created in the additional space created on the container.

In order for NetWare to access the extended capacity of the reconfigured container, you must create a new logical volume from the additional space on the newly expanded container. The controller driver then reports this new space to the NetWare operating system as a new virtual disk.

To use the capacity of the RAID set in a reconfigured NetWare container, do the following:

  1. On the NetWare console, do the following:
    1. Execute the list devices command so that the internal device table is updated and the newly-created container is seen by NetWare as a new virtual disk.
    2. Partition this new virtual disk.
    3. Create one or more disk segments for this new partition. Either make a new volume on each segment, or add this segment to the volume already associated with the reconfigured container.
    For information on how to create partitions and volumes, see the appropriate NetWare documentation. For information on how to display the NetWare console remotely on the Microsoft system running FAST, see NetWare and rconsole.
  2. On the NT client running FAST, refresh the screen. The NetWareTM icon appears in the new container if FAST can see the new or newly spanned NetWare volume.

    Note: To extend the capacity of a reconfigured NetWare 5.x container, you can create a new NetWare partition using the free space on the reconfigured container.

Managing Container Failover

The controller management software allows you to assign a disk as a failover disk to one or more containers. Container failover is the process by which the controller rebuilds data on a failover disk when a drive that is part of a redundant container fails. If the controller detects an unrecoverable error during I/O on a redundant container, it checks for an available failover disk that has sufficient free space to handle the failover.

Note: Failover disks only work with redundant containers.

The free space on the failover disk must be contiguous and must be equal to or larger than the size of the failed container's partition. The controller checks for failover disks in the following order until a suitable one is found:

  1. Failover disk assigned to a specific container.
  2. If the container is an underlying container in a multilevel container, failover disk assigned to the top-level container of a specific container.
  3. If the failed disk is in a SAF-TE enclosure and automatic failover is enabled, then a new disk inserted into the same SAF-TE slot as the failed drive is used.

Configuring a Container's Failover Assignment

Use the Configure Failover command to view, assign, or remove failover disks for a single container. Use the Assign Failover command to assign one or more failover disks to one or more containers simultaneously. You can assign up to 30 disks to a container for automatic failover.

Note: Failover does not apply to legacy disk containers.

Using the Configure Failover Command

The Configure Failover command allows you to view, assign, or remove failover disks for a single container. To use the Configure Failover command, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select a container.

    Note: Although all container types accept failover assignments, only redundant container types use the failover disk in the event of disk failure. If a container is reconfigured to a redundant type, the failover assignment is retained.

  2. Select Configure Failover from the Container menu.
    The Configure Failover dialog box appears (Figure 3).

    Figure 3. Configure Failover dialog box

Dialog Box Element Function
Container icon and adjacent information Indicates the type, system-assigned number (the number that identifies the container in the CLI), and size of the container.
Available Disks
List Displays a list of all SCSI disks available for failover; includes Disk ID (Bus:ID:LUN), Use Count (the number of containers to which the disk is currently assigned as a failover disk), Size, and largest available freespace (Largest Free). (Disks used by the selected container and disks with insufficient freespace are not eligible for failover assignment, and are not displayed.)
Assigned Disks
List Displays a list of disks assigned as failover disks; includes Disk ID (Bus:ID:LUN), Use Count, Size, and largest available freespace (Largest Free).
Assign button Moves selected disks from the Available Disks list to the Assigned Disks list.
Remove button Moves selected disks from the Assigned Disks list to the Available Disks list.
OK button Accepts changes, closes the dialog box, and sets the failover disks.
Cancel button Ignores changes and closes the dialog box.

  1. To assign one or more failover disks, select the disks in the Available Disks list and click Assign.
  2. To remove one or more failover disks, select the disks in the Assigned Disks list and click Remove.
Using the Assign Failover Command

The Assign Failover command allows you to assign one or more failover disks to one or more containers simultaneously. To use the Assign Failover command, do the following:

  1. Select Container view from the View menu.
  2. Select the New View Window from the Window menu.
  3. Select Disk view from the View menu.
  4. Select Tile Vertically from the Window menu. You should now have two view windows, one Disk view and one Container view, side by side in the same window.
  5. In Container view, select any number of single- and multilevel containers. If you select the top-level container of a multilevel container, the failover assignment is applied to all of the lower-level containers. You can also select lower-level containers individually.
    To select multiple containers, hold down the Ctrl key while to selecting the containers.
  6. Select Disk view from the View menu.
  7. In Disk view, select up to 30 disks.
    To avoid losing the selections you just made in the Container view, continue to press and hold the Ctrl key while selecting the disks. Be sure to select the disk and not the individual partitions.
  8. Select Assign Failover from the Container menu.
    FAST assigns each disk to each selected container as a failover.

Automatic Failover

You can assign automatic failover capabilities for a controller from the Controller properties dialog box. To enable automatic failover, do the following:

  1. Select Controller view from the View menu.
  2. Select a controller.
  3. Select Properties from the Edit menu.
  4. In the Controller properties dialog box, click the Failover tab.
  5. Check Enable automatic failover to allow a disk inserted in the same SAF-TE slot as a failed disk to initiate automatic failover for the container.

Reserving Failover Space

When you use freespace on a disk assigned as a failover disk, be sure to leave sufficient freespace for failover space. For example, you should reserve 500 MB of freespace on a disk assigned as a failover to a 500 MB mirror set.

Caution: Any attempt to use freespace on a container that is assigned as a failover disk will result in a warning message similar to the following:

One or more disks selected for use is assigned as a failover disk. Using this space may result in loss of failover capability for one or more containers. Are you sure you wish to create this container?

When Failover Occurs

When failover occurs, FAST displays a message box explaining that the failover operation has begun.

Note: FAST does not have to be running for a successful failover to occur. As long as a failover disk with sufficient free space is configured for the failed redundant container, the failover will occur.

During the failover operation, a yellow flag appears on the partition being replaced by the failover. Once failover is complete, the partition flag reverts to its normal state (red).

If the failover disk does not contain a single freespace large enough to replace the failed partition, it then uses the next-assigned failover disk. If a disk of sufficient size is not available, failover does not begin. Instead, a message box describing the problem is displayed.

If failover cannot be started, due to no assigned failover disk or all assigned disks having insufficient freespace, FAST displays a message giving you the opportunity to configure a failover disk for the failed container.

When you click on OK, the message box disappears, and the FAST screen is refreshed after the failover completes.

Note: On Windows NT and Windows 2000, information about device failures is sent directly to the Event Log. On NetWareTM systems, however, the NetWare administrator must ensure that conlog is running on the NetWare console so that the device failure messages are captured in a log file; otherwise, the device failure messages print to the console and might scroll off of the screen.

Working with Mirror Sets

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

  • Splitting a mirror set
  • Unmirroring a mirror set
  • Scrubbing a mirror set

Splitting a Mirror Set

Use the Split command to permanently convert a mirror set into two volume sets and to preserve the data in each resulting container. The Split command works on single-level and multilevel mirror sets.

Note: The Split command is not supported on Windows 2000 or NetWare systems.

To split a single-level or multilevel mirror set, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select a single-level or multilevel mirror set.
  2. Select Split from the Container Mirror Set submenu.
    FAST displays the following message:
  3. Click Yes.

Unmirroring a Mirror Set

Use the Unmirror command to convert a mirror set to a volume set. Unmirroring preserves the data in the mirror set, but erases any data maintained by the redundant partition and returns the redundant container's partitions to freespace. The Unmirror command works on single-level or multilevel mirror sets.

To unmirror a single-level or multilevel mirror set, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select a single-level or multilevel mirror set.
  2. Select Unmirror from the Container Mirror Set submenu.
    FAST displays the following message:
  3. Click Yes.

Scrubbing a Mirror Set

Use the Scrub command at any time to read all the blocks of a single-level or multilevel mirror. It is important to run this task after a system failure to determine whether the blocks are consistent. If Scrub detects any inconsistent blocks, it can fix them.

To scrub a single-level or multilevel mirror set, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select the single-level or multilevel mirror set you want to scrub.
  2. Select Scrub from the Container menu. The Scrub Container dialog box appears (Figure 4):

    Figure 4. Scrub Container dialog box (for mirror set)

Dialog Box Element Function
Container icon and adjacent information Indicates the type, system-assigned number, and size of the .
Options
Repair data inconsistencies Repairs errors; if the check box does not contain a check, checks for redundancy only.
Scrub button Accepts changes, closes the dialog box, and scrubs the mirror set; if the Repair data inconsistencies check box is selected, also repairs errors.
Cancel button Closes the dialog box and does not scrub the container.

  1. To repair any errors encountered, check Repair data inconsistencies.
  2. Click OK.

Scrubbing a RAID-5 Set

Use the Scrub command at any time to read all the blocks of a RAID-5 set after a system failure to determine whether the blocks are consistent. If Scrub detects any inconsistent blocks, it can fix them.

To scrub a RAID-5 set, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select the RAID-5 set you want to scrub.
  2. Select Scrub from the Container menu.
    The Scrub Container dialog box appears (Figure 5):

    Figure 5. Scrub Container dialog box (for a RAID-5 set)

Dialog Box Element Function
Container icon and adjacent information Indicates the type, system-assigned number, and size of the container.
Options
Repair parity errors check box Repairs parity errors; if not checked, the container is examined for redundancy only.
Scrub button Accepts changes, closes the dialog box, and scrubs the RAID-5 set; if Repair parity errors is checked, also repairs parity errors.
Cancel button Closes the dialog box and does not scrub the RAID-5 set.

  1. To repair any errors encountered, check Repair parity errors.
  2. Click OK.

Working with Container Properties

The Container2 properties dialog box varies with each container type and number of operating-system partitions. The Container properties dialog boxes discussed in this section provide information about the following containers:

  • Containers with a single operating-system partition
  • Containers with multiple operating-system partitions (Windows NT and Windows 2000 only)
  • Legacy disk containers

Each Container properties dialog box contains the following tabs:

  • General
    Displays information about the container's file system and other container properties. (There are separate general tabs for single and multiple operating-system partition containers.)
  • Cache Settings
    Enables you to specify the read and write cache settings for the container.
  • Tasks
    Shows all tasks running on the container and allows you to stop, suspend, or resume a task and to specify the task's priority.
  • Reconfiguration
    Appears in the Container properties dialog box for a container that is being reconfigured.

To access the Container properties dialog box, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select a container.
  2. Select Properties from the Edit menu.
    The appropriate Container properties dialog box appears.
  3. Verify and/or change the options in the dialog box, and click Apply to make the changes or OK to make the changes and exit the dialog box.

Properties of Containers with a Single Operating-System Partition

The dialog boxes in this section are examples of Container properties dialog boxes for a container with a single operating-system partition.

Note: Not all dialog box options are available for all container types or for containers on a NetWareTM server.

General Properties Settings

To view the settings of the general properties for a container, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select the container.
  2. Select Properties from the Edit menu.
    The General tab for the appropriate container type appears as the default (Figure 6).

    Figure 6. Container properties dialog box
    (General tab; single operating-system partition)

Dialog Box Element Function
Container icon and adjacent information Indicates the type, system-assigned number, and size of the container.
File system properties
File system pull-down list Displays the container's current file system type or None; allows for the creation or removal of a file system. Note: FAT is not available for containers greater than 4 GB. FAT32 is not available for containers greater than 32 GB.
Drive letter pull-down list Displays the drive letter assigned to the container; assigns an available drive letter to the container or None for no drive letter.
File system label box Displays the name of the disk drive (as displayed in Windows Explorer); 32 characters maximum; assigns a name to the disk drive.
Container properties
Container label Specifies the container label.
Read only check box Indicates whether the container is read-only.
Chunk size pull-down list Displays or sets the chunk size, that is, the amount of data that is written to one partition before the I/O data stream switches to the next partition in the following container types: stripe set, RAID-5 set, stripe set of mirror sets.
OK button Accepts changes and closes the dialog box.
Cancel button Ignores changes and closes the dialog box.
Apply button Accepts changes.

Cache Property Settings

The Write cache area displays the read and write cache settings for the selected container (Figure 7).

Note: F or controllers that do not support write caching, a container's write cache will never be enabled regardless of the Write cache setting.

Figure 7. Cache settings for a RAID-5 set

Dialog Box Element Function 
Container icon and adjacent information Indicates the type, system-assigned number, and size of the container.
Read Cache
Enable Enables the read cache.
Disable Disables the read cache.
Write Cache
Cache status Displays the write cache status of the controller. Note: Fast always displays the write cache status as Inactive (Write cache not supported) for Write Cache Disabled controllers.
Enable when protected Enables write cache when a working battery is found on this controller.
Enable always Enables write cache for this container so that it is always active under all circumstances. Note: This option is grayed out for controllers that do not support write caching.
Disable Disables the write cache. Note: This option is grayed out for controllers that do not support write caching.
Discard Unwritten Data button Deletes all cached data that has not been written to disk.
OK button Accepts changes and closes the dialog box.
Cancel button Ignores changes and closes the dialog box.
Apply button Accepts changes.

Reconfiguration Property Settings

You can use the information provided in the Reconfiguration tab to determine whether there are enough temporary or hidden containers available to perform another operation while you are reconfiguring a container. A maximum of 64 containers per controller is supported (containers numbered 32-63 are hidden or temporary containers). If an operation cannot be started, it is possible that the problem is caused by insufficient temporary space.

The Reconfiguration tab (Figure 8) appears only when a container is being reconfigured.

Figure 8. RAID-5 set properties dialog box (Reconfiguration tab)

Dialog Box Element Function
Container and task icons Depicts the specified reconfiguration process. For example, in Figure 8, the icons show that a 500 MB stripe set is being expanded to a 1000 MB RAID-5 set.
Restart Reconfiguration button Restarts a reconfiguration task that has been stopped by the Stop button in the Tasks tab.
Hidden containers used during reconfiguration
Source Displays the number of each container associated with the source container's configuration.
Temporary Displays the number of each temporary container created during the reconfiguration process.
Destination Displays the number of each container associated with the destination configuration.
OK button Accepts changes and closes the dialog box.
Cancel button Ignores changes and closes the dialog box.
Apply button Accepts changes.

Tasks Property Settings

The Tasks tab of the Container properties dialog box displays information about the size of the container as well as showing a list of all tasks currently running on this container (Figure 9).

Figure 9. RAID-5 set properties dialog box (Tasks tab)

Dialog Box Element Function
Container icon and adjacent information Indicates the type, system-assigned number, and size of the container.
Tasks list Displays the following information for any tasks running on the container:
  • Task ID. ID number associated with a specific task.
  • Function. Type of task running on the controller.
  • Percent done. Progress (percentage completion) of the currently running task.
  • Container. ID number of the container associated with the task.
  • Device. (Not used).
  • State. Status of the task.
  • Speed. Task speed setting, which defines the rate of specific tasks to minimize their effect on I/O transactions.
Stop button Stops the selected task; the reconfiguration task can be restarted with the Restart Reconfiguration button in the Reconfiguration tab.
Suspend button Suspends the selected task.
Resume button Resumes the selected suspended task.
Task Speed pull-down list Specifies the speed for the selected task.
OK button Accepts changes and closes the dialog box.
Cancel button Ignores changes and closes the dialog box.
Apply button Accepts changes.

Properties of Containers with Multiple Operating-System Partitions (Windows NT and Windows 2000 Only)

The RAID-5 set properties dialog box in Figure 10 is an example of a Container properties dialog box for a container with multiple operating-system partitions.

Figure 10. RAID-5 set properties dialog box
(General tab; multiple operating-system partitions)

Dialog Box Element Function
Container icon and adjacent information Indicates the type, system-assigned number, and size of the container.
Chunk size list For stripe and RAID-5 sets, indicates the container's chunk size.
Container label Specifies the container label.
Date and Time information Indicates the date and time that this container was created.
Partition information
Partition count Displays the number of partitions on the container.
Offset Displays the partition's offset.
Size Displays the partition's size.
Drive Letter Displays the drive letter assigned to the partition.
File System Displays the type of file system for which the partition is formatted.
Boot Partition Indicates if the boot prompt resides on this partition.
System Partition Indicates if your system directory resides on this partition.
OK button Accepts changes and closes the dialog box.
Cancel button Ignores changes and closes the dialog box.
Apply button Accepts changes.

The Cache Settings and Tasks tabs in this dialog box function the same as the Cache Settings and Tasks tabs in the properties dialog box for a container with a single operating-system partition (see Figure 7 and Figure 9). The Container properties dialog box for a container with multiple operating-system partitions does not have a Reconfiguration tab.

Properties of Legacy Disk Containers

Figure 11 is a sample Legacy disk container properties dialog box.

Figure 11. Legacy disk container properties dialog box (General tab)

Dialog Box Element Function
Container icon and adjacent information Indicates the legacy disk container type, system-assigned number (the number used to identify the container in the CLI), and size of the container.
Chunk size pull-down list Never available for a legacy disk container.
Container label Never available for a legacy disk container.
Date and Time information Indicates the date and time that this container was created.
Partition information
Partition count Displays the number of partitions on the container.
Offset Displays the partition's offset.
Size Displays the partition's size.
Drive Letter Displays the drive letter assigned to the container.
File System Displays the file system for which the partition is formatted or None.
Boot Partition Indicates if the boot prompt resides on this partition.
OK button Closes the dialog box.
Cancel button Closes the dialog box.
Apply button Is never available.

Managing Container Cache

To enable/disable cache on a container, do the following:

  1. Open the Container properties dialog box of the container for which you want to enable or disable cache. (See Working with Container Properties.)
  2. Click the Cache Settings tab.
    The Cache Settings tab is divided into two distinct areas:
    • Read cache
    • Write cache
    The Write cache area automatically displays the current status of the container cache.
    You can customize the cache settings on your container in a variety of ways. Container cache settings are not lost if a container is moved from one port setting to another.
  3. Read cache is enabled by default, and it is recommended that you do not modify this setting unless your application performs completely random reads. If, however, you want to modify read cache, under Read cache, select either the Enable or Disable radio button.
  4. Under Write cache, set one of the following:
    • Enable when protected—Enables the write cache when a working battery is found on this container's controller. This is the default.
    • Enable always—Enables write cache for this container so that it is always turned on under all circumstances.

      Note: You can only select the Enable always button for controllers that support unprotected writeback.

    • Disable—Disable write cache.
  5. Click OK.

Clearing a Container

Use the Clear command to erase a container's files and remove its file system (including the drive letter and label).

Note: If you are clearing a container on a NetWareTM system, you must first go to the NetWare console and remove the corresponding volume and partition. For information on how to perform these operations, see the appropriate NetWare documentation. For information on how to display the NetWare console remotely on the Microsoft system running FAST, see NetWare and rconsole.

To clear any container, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select the container.
  2. Select Clear from the Container menu.
    The following icons appear while FAST clears the container (Figure 12):

    Figure 12. A RAID-5 set being cleared

    Icon Function
    Indicates that the controller is clearing the container. While this icon is present, the container cannot be modified or deleted; however, files and data can be modified on the container's file system.
    Indicates that FAST is clearing the container.
    Shows the progress of the clear container task.

    Caution: You cannot retrieve the data from a cleared container.

Deleting a Container

Use the Delete command to remove a container from the system. A deleted container's partitions are returned to freespace.

Caution: You cannot retrieve the data from a deleted container, and a deleted container cannot be undeleted.

To delete a container, do the following:

  1. In Container view, select the container you want to delete.
  2. Select Delete from the Container menu.
    The following message appears:
  3. Click Yes.

Deleting a Container on a NetWare System

When deleting a container on a NetWareTM system, you must first go to the NetWare console and remove the corresponding volume and partition. For information on how to perform these operations, see the appropriate NetWare documentation. For information on how to display the NetWare console remotely on the Microsoft system running FAST, see NetWare and rconsole.

After you delete a container on a NetWare server, you must run the list devices command on the NetWare console so that the corresponding virtual disk is removed from the system's internal device table.

Note: NetWareTM 5.x does not support dynamically-updated NovellTM Storage Services (NSS) configurations. For example, if you delete a newly-created container on a NetWare 5.x system, the change is not reflected in the NSS Update Provider Information, List Devices, or Scan devices for new hardware options. To update the NSS configuration, you must first upgrade to NetWare 5.1 Service Pack 1 (or higher), then unload and reload NSS (which forces NSS to reload its configuration information).

1 After rebooting your system, if you check the Windows Event Log, you will find an error message indicating that the file system structure on the disk is corrupt and unusable. Ignore this message; it always appears, including when the extend operation was successful.
 2 The word Container, in italics, represents a type of container (for example, RAID-5 set).

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