Using the Disk Array Manager

The disk array manager is the interface for performing various tasks with disk arrays.

The IBM® SAS Disk Array Manager can be accessed either through the System Management Interface Tool (SMIT), or for some tasks, the AIX® command line. The Disk Array Manager can also be started from AIX diagnostics.

To start the IBM SAS Disk Array Manager, do the following:

At the command prompt, type smit, and press Enter.
Select Devices.
Select Disk Array.
Select IBM SAS Disk Array.
Select IBM SAS Disk Array Manager from the menu with options for configuring and managing the IBM SAS RAID Controller.

The following menu for managing disk arrays is displayed.

+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                                                                                |
|                           IBM SAS Disk Array Manager                           |
|                                                                                |
|Move cursor to desired item and press Enter.                                    |
|                                                                                |
|  List SAS Disk Array Configuration                                             |
|  Create an Array Candidate pdisk and Format to 528 Byte Sectors                |
|  Create a SAS Disk Array                                                       |
|  Delete a SAS Disk Array                                                       |
|  Add Disks to an Existing SAS Disk Array                                       |
|  Configure a Defined SAS Disk Array                                            |
|  Change/Show Characteristics of a SAS Disk Array                               |
|  Reconstruct a SAS Disk Array                                                  |
|  Change/Show SAS pdisk Status                                                  |
|  Diagnostics and Recovery Options                                              |
|                                                                                |
|                                                                                |
|                                                                                |
|                                                                                |
|F1=Help             F2=Refresh          F3=Cancel           F8=Image            |
|F9=Shell            F10=Exit            Enter=Do                                |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

You can also use a SMIT fast path to start the IBM SAS Disk Array Manager. On the AIX command line, type smit sasdam, and press Enter.

If a disk array is to be used as the boot device, you might need to prepare the disks by booting from the IBM server hardware stand-alone diagnostics CD and creating the disk array before installing AIX. You might want to perform this procedure when the original boot drive is to be used as part of a disk array.

To start the IBM SAS Disk Array Manager from the AIX diagnostics, do the following:

Start the AIX diagnostics, and on the Function Selection screen, select Task Selection.
Select RAID Array Manager and press Enter.
Select IBM SAS Disk Array Manager and press Enter.