IBM-AUSTRIA - PC-HW-Support    30 Aug 1999

Using the ServeRAID DOS Configuration Program

To start the ServeRAID Configuration Utility program:

1.  Insert the IBM ServeRAID Configuration Utility  Diskette into the primary diskette drive and turn on the system. If the system  is already turned on, shut down and restart the system.

    Each time the system starts, the ServeRAID 3L Adapter performs a power-on  self-test (POST). The POST checks the configuration information for the  ServeRAID 3L adapter and for the configured hard disk drives.

   1.  If POST does not detect changes in the adapter  configuration or any adapter hardware problems, continue with step b.
   2.  If you have multiple ServeRAID adapters  installed in your system, you will see a screen with multiple adapters. The  screen may not look exactly like this one.

     +--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
     |     IBM PC ServeRAID Adapter Disk Array Configuration Utility Ver. X.XX        |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |          +--------------------------------------+                              |
     |          |            Select Adapter            |                              |
     |          +--------------------------------------+                              |
     |          |1. Help                               |                              |
     |          |2. ServeRAID Adapter 1                |                              |
     |          |3. ServeRAID Adapter 2                |                              |
     |          |4. Exit                               |                              |
     |          +--------------------------------------+                              |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |Multiple IBM ServeRAID Adapter found in the system. Select a choice using the Up|
     |Arrow (  ) and Down Arrow (  ) keys and press Enter.                              |
     +--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
    

   Note:  In the upper-right corner of the screen, you see Ver. x.xx. On your screen,  the x.xx is replaced with the version number of the configuration program.

2.  You can install multiple ServeRAID adapters in your  server, but you must configure each adapter separately. Refer to the  documentation that comes with your server to determine the maximum number of PCI  adapters you can install in the server.

    Use the Up Arrow (  ) or Down Arrow (  ) key to highlight your choice, then, press Enter. The Main Menu appears.

3.  If you have only one ServeRAID adapter installed in  your server, the Main Menu appears, as shown in the following figure.

     +--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
     |         IBM PC ServeRAID Adapter Disk Array Configuration Ver. X.XX            |
     |           Adapter Number: 1 Bus Number: 0 Host ID = Null Config                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |          +--------------------------------------+                              |
     |          |              Main Menu               |                              |
     |          +--------------------------------------+                              |
     |          |1. Help                               |                              |
     |          |2. View Configuration                 |                              |
     |          |3. EZ-RAID Configuration              |                              |
     |          |4. Create/Delete/Copy Log Drive       |                              |
     |          |5. Initialize/Synchronize Log Drive   |                              |
     |          |6. Rebuild/Device Management          |                              |
     |          |7. Advanced Functions                 |                              |
     |          |8. Exit                               |                              |
     |          +--------------------------------------+                              |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |                                                                                |
     |Multiple IBM ServeRAID Adapter found in the system. Select a choice using the Up|
     |Arrow (  ) and Down Arrow (  ) keys and press Enter.                              |
     +--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
    

4.  To choose an option from the Main Menu, type the  highlighted number of the menu item, or use the Up Arrow (  ) key or Down Arrow  (  ) key to highlight your choice, then, press Enter. You also can  press Esc to  return to the previous menu, the previous work area of a screen, or to the  beginning of the Main Menu.

To restore or convert disk array information when you upgrade from an IBM ServeRAID adapter or an IBM Streaming adapter to an IBM Netfinity ServeRAID 3L Ultra2 Adapter/Controller:

1.  From the Main Menu, select Advanced Functions.
2.  Select Restore/Convert Saved Config.

Note: You cannot convert all ServeRAID configurations created for an IBM ServeRAID or an IBM Streaming RAID adapter for use with the IBM ServeRAID 3L Adapter/Controller.
Since the IBM ServeRAID adapter/controller only supports data arrangement using the right asymmetric method, a configuration using the left symmetric arrangement is not supported.
Restore/Convert Saved Configuration displays a message in the status area whenever it detects a left symmetric data arrangement configuration. If this message appears, follow the instructions on the screen to continue.
Be sure that all cable connections from the drives to the IBM ServeRAID 3L Adapter/Controller are the same as they were when using the IBM ServeRAID adapter or IBM Streaming RAID adapter.

To change write policies of logical drives:

1.  From the Main Menu, select Advanced Functions.
2.  Select Logical Drive Params Management.

This option lets you enable the NVRAM (Battery-Backup Cache) write cache feature if the Non-Volatile Write Cache Feature Card is installed on the ServeRAID 3L Adapter.

The Change Write Policy command configures a local drive in an array to work in either write-through mode or write-back mode. In write-through mode, completion status is sent after the data is written to the drives. In write-back mode, completion status is sent before the data is actually written to the drives. The write-back mode usually provides higher performance, but with increased risk of data loss in the event of a power failure.

When you enable write-back mode, you enable the NVRAM (Battery-Backup Cache) write cache feature for a logical drive, which provides a backup of the data being written to a logical drive in the NVRAM (Battery-Backup Cache) cache on the Non-Volatile Write Cache Feature card.

To 'fine tune' the ServeRAID 3L subsystem for optimal performance:

1.  From the Main Menu, select Advanced Functions.
2.  Select Change ServeRAID Parameters.

You can control the following parameters:

•  Stripe unit size - defines the stripe unit size of the  data close to the size of the system I/O requirements. The default setting is 8K  bytes.
  Note: Once a stripe unit is chosen and data is stored on the logical drives, the  stripe unit cannot be changed without destroying data on the logical drives.
•  Rebuild priority - sets the priority of the execution  order of the rebuild I/O requests with respect to system I/O requests. You can  change the Rebuild Priority without affecting data in the logical drives. The  default setting is High .
•  Unattended mode - enables/disables the ServeRAID  3L Adapter or controller to resolve configuration-related conflicts without user  intervention. The default setting is Off .
•  Read ahead - enables/disables the cache read ahead  up to the end of the stripe unit. You can change the Read Ahead without  destroying data in the logical drives. The default setting is On .

To set a basic configuration:

1.  From the Main Menu, select Advanced Functions.
2.  Select Init/View/Synchronize Config.

When you choose Initialize Configuration:.

•  All defined logical drives and arrays are deleted
•  Configuration is reset to factory parameters
•  All attached drives are reset to Ready
•  The configuration Host ID changes to 'Null Configuration.'
•  'Start Device' is issued to all drives.

The ServeRAID 3L Adapter/Controller stores its ServeRAID configuration in its NVRAM (Battery-Backup Cache), FLASH (EEPROM), and on all physical hard disk drives that are part of a logical drive. An option is provided to view the configuration from all of these sources.

You may also choose a source (hard disk drive, FLASH, NVRAM (Battery-Backup Cache)) from which to synchronize the ServeRAID configuration. For example, you may do this when a new ServeRAID adapter/controller is used to replace a defective one. We recommend using the hard drive, since it refreshes information in the buffers about the drive firmware levels.

The ServeRAID 3L Adapter/Controller also maintains a list of all changes to its ServeRAID configuration. A power-on change list, wrong SCSI ID list, and an unidentified drive list are updated when devices are added or moved.

Changes to the states of the devices also change this list. An option is provided to view all of this information.

To display the ServeRAID 3L Adapter/Controller status or to write a new adapter configuration Host ID:

1.  From the Main Menu, select Advanced Functions.
2.  Select Display/Change Adapter Params.

You can also change the ServeRAID 3L Adapter/Controller SCSI channel ID and speed.

Please see the LEGAL  -  Trademark notice.
Feel free - send a   for any BUG on this page found - Thank you.