Removing and replacing a drive

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You can remove a faulty drive from a 5U expansion enclosure to replace it with a new one received from FRU stock.

Before you begin

Ensure that the drive is not a spare or a member of an array. The drive status is shown in Pools > Internal Storage in the IBM® Storage FlashSystem. If the drive is a member of an array, follow the fix procedures in the IBM Storage FlashSystem. The fix procedures minimize the risk of losing data or access to data. The procedures also manage the system's use of the drive.

Important: You can remove a drive assembly without powering off the expansion enclosure. However, to maintain operating temperature, complete the following tasks.
  • Do not remove a faulty drive assembly until its replacement is ready to be installed.
  • Do not keep the cover off an operational enclosure for more than 15 minutes. The reduction in airflow through the enclosure might cause the enclosure or its components to shut down to protect from overheating.

About this task

The 5U expansion enclosure supports 92 drives. Figure 1 shows an example of a drive assembly.
Figure 1. Drive assembly
Drive assembly
  •  1  Disk drive
  •  2  Online indicator
  •  3  Fault indicator
  •  4  Release latch
  •  5  Drive latch toes
  •  6  Drive carrier

Procedure

  1. Read all available safety information.
  2. Use the slide rails to pull the enclosure out from the rack, as described in Removing a 5U expansion enclosure from a rack.
  3. Remove the top cover, as described in Removing and replacing the top cover.
  4. Locate the slot that contains the drive assembly that you want to remove.
    Note: When a drive is faulty, the amber fault indicator is lit ( 3  in Figure 1). Do not replace a drive unless the drive fault indicator is on or you are instructed to do so by a fix procedure. When lit, the green indicator shows that activity is occurring on the drive.

    A label on the enclosure cover (Figure 2) shows the location of the drive slots. The drive slots are numbered 1-14 from left to right and A-G from the back to the front of the enclosure.

    The drive locations are also marked on the enclosure itself. The rows (A-G) are marked on the left and right edges of the enclosure. The columns (1-14) are marked on the front edge of the enclosure. The row and column marks are visible when the top cover is removed.

    Figure 2. Drive locations in a 5U expansion enclosure
    Drive locations in a 5U expansion enclosure
  5. Slide the release latch forward ( 1 ), as shown in Figure 3.
    Figure 3. Remove the drive assembly
    Remove the drive assembly
  6. Lift the handle ( 2 ) to unlock the drive carrier from the partition, as shown in Figure 3. Ensure the toe on the bottom of the latch is fully disengaged.
  7. Carefully lift the drive carrier up to remove it from the expansion enclosure.
  8. Repeat step 4 through step 7 for each drive you need to remove.

Replace the drive

  1. Read all of the available safety information.
  2. Carefully slide the expansion enclosure out of the rack.
  3. Remove the cover, as described in Removing and replacing the top cover.
  4. Locate the empty drive slot to receive the new drive or that contains the faulty drive that you want to replace.
    Note: When a drive is faulty, the amber fault indicator is lit ( 3  in Figure 1). Do not replace a drive unless the drive fault indicator is on or you are instructed to do so by a fix procedure.

    A label on the enclosure cover (Figure 4) shows the drive locations in the enclosure. The drive slots are numbered 1-14 from left to right and A-G from the back to the front of the enclosure.

    Figure 4. Drive locations in a 5U expansion enclosure
    Drive locations in a 5U expansion enclosure

    The drive slots must be populated sequentially, starting from the back-left corner position (slot 1, grid A1). Sequentially install the drive in the slots from left to right and back row to front. Always complete a full row before you install drives in the next row.

    For example, in Figure 5, the drives are installed correctly. Drives are installed in slots 1 -14 of row A and the installation continues in slot 15 in row B.
    Figure 5. Correct drive installation
    Correct drive installation

    In Figure 6, the drives are not installed correctly. Slot 1 (A1) does not contain a drive. In addition, drives are installed in row B even though row A contains empty drive slots.

    Figure 6. Incorrect drive installation
    Incorrect drive installation
  5. Touch the static-protective package that contains the drive to any unpainted metal surface on the enclosure. Wear an anti-static wrist strap to remove the drive from the package.
  6. Ensure that the drive handle ( 1  in Figure 7) of the drive assembly is in the open (unlocked) position.
  7. Hold the drive by two top corners so that it hangs squarely over the appropriate drive slot.
    Figure 7. Replace the drive
    Replace the drive
  8. Lower the drive down, without pushing, until it stops and the bottom of the latch is aligned with the top of the partition. Ensure that the handle is not open more than 45 degrees from the drive carrier. ( 2  in Figure 7). If the drive does not slide down easily then inform IBM remote technical support.
  9. Rotate the handle down to lock the drive assembly into the chassis ( 3  in Figure 7).
  10. Ensure the toe on the bottom of the latch is fully engaged with the partition in the chassis.
  11. Ensure that the top toe of the latch is also fully engaged ( 4  in Figure 7).
  12. Repeat steps 13 through 19 for each drive you are replacing.
  13. Replace the cover, as described in Removing and replacing the top cover.
  14. Slide the expansion enclosure back into the rack, as described in Installing a 5U expansion enclosure in a rack.