Any ideas on a fix for this. I've been experiencing Fujitsu hard drives going offline after a reboot and being labeled defunct even though there is nothing wrong with them. I swap the HDs around, and the same occurs to SCSI ID 0, 1, & 2 only. I'm running (in theory, note sarcasm) an IBM x346 8840, C1X with the ServeRAID-7k with the firmware 7.12.13 that is suppose to address this according to the readme file. I've also updated the BIOS 1.17 & BMC 1.2, but it made no difference. I've run long diagnostics on all HDs, RAID card, BIOS, and the entire server, and everything checks out. I've done this numerous times. I've factory defaulted the BIOS & ServeRAID, made zero difference. I think this is an outstanding bug still. Any ideas?
<hr />
From Read Me File
<hr />
IBM ServeRAID Firmware 7.12.13
Supports IBM ServeRAID 4h/4Mx/4Lx/5i/6M/6i/7k Controllers
Change History
________________________
BIOS/FW 7.12.13
Problem(s) fixed: Fixed problem with some Fujitsu drives going prematurely defunct after reboots
The ServeRAID config is RAID 10 across 6 HDs. I've done factory defaults on it a handful of times (& do the "automatic RAID config and manual", but it makes no difference. So, I'm not sure what you mean by Event Logs, but Windows is not installed on the server & the RAID card doesn't have an Event Log I'm aware of. As per Windows Event Logs, I can't get the ServeRAID to be stable enough to warrant a Windows install. So, not sure what else you want. Also, I spoke with IBM Support (out of Atlanta, GA) and found out a # of things. The firmware fix is for IBM branded Fujitsu hard drives and one must run the HD firmware update, which is sadly not possible for non-IBM branded Fujitsu HDs. So, I think I'm out of luck. I'm looking into replacing the RAID card, since it has too many issues (e.g. doesn't like Fujitsu HDs, config change requires boot CD, etc). So, I'm looking into switching over to a true Adaptec card, such as the Adaptec SCSI RAID 2130SLP that has some Q&A invested in it. Now, I just need to find a SCSI cable that is long enough.....
Thank you for the info and your prompt replies. Sadly, the SR6M has the potential to have the same issue as reported by SR 7.12.13 firmware notes. So, I'm not going to explore that. I'm probably going to get a RAID card that has a broader level of QA testing (as explained below) and willing to take the heat issues since the server will be in a datacenter with more than adequate cooling. So, I really have 3 choices in order of reality.
1) replace SR7k with a Adaptec 2130SLP RAID (PCI-X) & replace SCSI cable backplane to card - $550
2) replace IBM server with Dell server (fully decked out with warranty, etc) - $5,000
3) replace the 6 Fujitsu HDs (300GB, 10k, U320) with similar $1300 IBM HDs (still have no warranty) - $7,700
As you can see, 1 & 2 are the only real options. As a side note, I hate that one must boot a RAID CD to gain access to the full RAID configuration. Dell, HP, and Adaptec don't require this. I wonder why IBM does this especially since the SR is rebranded Adaptec(?).
-Ben
P.S. You don't need to respond, I'm just venting a bit.
Summary
The firmware of ServeRAID-7k (and it's siblings) 7.12.13 does not solve the issue for all Fujitsu HDs, only IBM branded ones. So, the answer is 1) replace the SR7k with an Adaptec RAID card or 2) replace the IBM server with a Dell Server ($5k) since replacing the 6 HDs with IBM branded ($7.7k) costs more than a brand new Dell server fully configured with a 3 year warranty. That is sad. Come on IBM, I expected more from you.
The firmware of ServeRAID-7k (and it's siblings) 7.12.13 does solve the issues for IBM HDDs, but of course not for OEM HDDs (for example OEM from Fujitsu). OEM HDDs not supported by IBM. List of supported IBM HDDs available on IBM ServerProven Web site.
1) replace the SR7k with an Adaptec RAID card or
This solution is not supported by IBM (it could give you a new problem).
2) replace the IBM server with a Dell Server
If you need so cheapest solution, there are many other cheaper servers.
Why you choose non-supported solutions? Do you like create a problems for yourself? Who is at fault? IBM?
That is sad. Come on Ben, IBM expected more from you.
Regards,
Alexander Novikov
Russia, Moscow
P.S. You don't need to respond, I'm just venting a bit.
Tags
Use the search field to
find all types of content in My developerWorks with that tag.
Use the slider bar to see more or fewer tags.
Popular tags shows the top tags for this particular type of content or application that you're viewing.
My tags shows your tags for this particular type of content or application that
you're viewing.
