Password protection for the application can be enabled or disabled the first time it is started, using the First Time Run dialog box. If the user chooses not to protect the application with a password at this time, the user can do it later from the Options menu.
Figure 6 First Time Run Dialog Box (typical)
Things to Know About Passwords
• If the password is forgotten, the user will not be able to run the application. Create a password that will be remembered.
• The password must be at least six characters long.
• The password is case-sensitive.
• Four chances are given to enter the password correctly. If the password is typed incorrectly, the application will close after the fourth try. To try again, reopen the application.
• The application does not keep track of passwords that have been used previously.
• To change an existing password, see Change Password Settings on page 96.
Set Password Protection from the First Time Run Dialog Box
1. Type a password in the Password box.
2. Confirm the password by typing it again in the Confirm box.
3. Click Continue. The Array Status window opens.
Disable Password Protection from the First Time Run Dialog Box
1. Select Disable Password Protection.
2. Click Continue. The Array Status window displays.
NOTE: If Disable Password Protection is selected, the next time RAIDConsole is started, a small dialog box appears, without spaces for entering choices for Password and Confirm.
Enable Password Protection from the Options Menu
1. At the Options menu, select Password.
2. Check Enable Password Protection.
3. Enter a password.
4. Confirm the password by typing it again.
5. Click OK.
Disable Password Protection from the Options Menu
1. On the Options drop-down menu, select Password.
2. Check Disable Password Protection.
3. Type a password.
4. Click OK.
Change a Password from the Options Menu
1. On the Options drop-down menu, select Password.
2. Check Change Password.
3. Type the current password.
4. Type a new password.
5. Confirm the password by typing it again.
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Help and About Windows
To view the software version and build number information for the GUI itself, access the Help drop-drop menu and select About. The RAIDConsole Dot Hill window appears. See the figure below.
Figure 7 RAIDConsole Dot Hill Window (typical)
To view detailed software release and component version information at the RAIDConsole, perform the following.
1. Access RAIDConsole, using one of the three methods indicated at Start the RAIDConsole GUI on page 63.
2. At the Array Status window, select the controller group icon and right-click. Select Properties.
See the following figure.
Figure 8 Array Status Window: Accessing Array Properties
3. The RAIDConsole Properties window appears, with information about component versions, license level, and firmware. See the figure below.
68 Chapter 6 RAIDConsole Graphical User Interface (GUI) Version information for the following is displayed:
• The RAIDCore driver (bcraid.sys)
• The configuration driver (bccfg.sys)
• The array maintenance service (bc_service.exe)
• The remote management service (bcapiservice)
• The pop-up message utility (bcpopup)
• The dynamic link library (bc_vbdll.dll).
To copy the version or license information, click Copy to Clipboard. Paste the information into a text editor, such as Notepad. This method captures the serial numbers of the disk drives in the system, which are listed by the disk controller channel.
Reviewing the GUI
The Array Status Window
Figure 10 Sections of the Array Status Window (typical)
NOTE: Certain languages do not display correctly in the Array View section. (English, other languages that use the Roman alphabet, and numerous other languages do display properly).
NOTE: To refresh the array and disk information displayed in the Array Status window, click View and then click Refresh. This command rereads configuration information from the driver, but does not poll the disks.
1 Array View section 2 Disk List section 3 Array List section 4 Event View section 5 I/O Status bar
1 2 3
5 4
The Array View Section of the Array Status Window Elements of the Array View Section
The Array View section on the left side of the Array Status window presents a graphical view of array properties during and after the creation of the array. See the following table for the Array View elements.
Array View Icons
The icons in the Array View section indicate the RAID level of the array(s) (RAID 0, RAID 1, etc.), and the disks in the array(s).
An example of the Array View icons is shown in the following figure.
Table 27 Elements at the Array View Section of the Array Status Window
Element Description
Controller Group The RAIDCore controller for the arrays displayed below it.
Array The array number assigned to created or creating arrays.
Array name The name assigned to an array.
Task Percent Complete and ETA
The progress of a current array task, such as a Create or a Transform, is shown as percent complete and with the estimated time left to completion
(hours:minutes:seconds).
Task type The nature of a current task, such as a Create or Transform.
Source array The original array to be transformed.
Destination array The array to which the source array is being transformed.
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The Disk List Section of the Array Status Window Elements of the Disk List Section
The Disk List section on the Array Status window provides information about all disks assigned or available to arrays, as indicated in the following table.
NOTE: Ctrl Chan is a default element and is always displayed at the Disk List. All other elements can be displayed or hidden by using Options -> View -> Edit Columns.
NOTE: If a disk is missing from the Disk List, the most likely causes are:
• A loose cable. Make sure that all disk cables are connected, then perform a rescan.
• A disk that is not fully seated in its bay. Make sure that the disk is inserted completely in its bay, then perform a rescan.
For more information, see Rescan Disks on page 73.
Table 28 Disk List Section of the Array Status Window
Element Description
Ctrl Chan Disk controller and channel number.
State State of the disk (Online, Offline, SMART Error).
WB Cache Enabled or Disabled.
Read Ahead Enabled or Disabled.
Type Disk type (Disk, Legacy, New, ATAPI).
Port Type The negotiated speed, not the speed of the port type.
In Use Indicates that the disk is In-Use or Free.
Capacity Disk capacity:
1 MB = 1,000,000 bytes 1 GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes
NOTE: Because the ATA storage industry has standardized the meanings of MB as 1,000,000 bytes and GB as 1,000,000,000 bytes, RAIDCore reports the same units.
Free Space Total amount of space unused on the disk.
Largest Free Largest contiguous unused space on the disk.
GS Indicates if the disk is assigned as a global spare.
Model Number Disk manufacturer’s model number.
Serial Number Disk manufacturer’s serial number.
Firmware Revision Disk manufacturer’s firmware version.
The Array List Section of the Array Status Window Elements of the Array List Section
The Array List section of the Array Status window provides the information about the arrays, as indicated in the following table.
Table 29 Array List Section of the Array Status Window
Element Description
Device The array number.
O.S. Name Drive number assigned by the operating system to the array.
• “Drive n” appears for an array that is Online and not hidden from the operating system.
• “Hidden” appears if the array is hidden from the operating system.
• “None” appears if the array is Offline.
Partition Drive letter that was assigned to this array during the partition process. (A blank space appears if the array has not been partitioned).
NOTE: If a dynamic volume is created on an array, RAIDConsole cannot retrieve the volume’s drive letter.
Array Name User-created name for the array.
Type RAID level (RAID type) or Legacy.
Total Capacity Total capacity: 1MB = 1,000,000 bytes, 1GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes.
State State of the array (Normal, Critical, Offline).
Task Task type, if in progress (Transform, Copy, Check, Check_Bitmap, Not_Active, Create, Restore).
Task State The state of the task (Started, Paused, Completed); the progress of the task is given in the Array View section.
Pri Task priority if a task is in progress.
Scan Background Array Scan enabled? (Yes/No).
Cache Current cache setting (NC = No Cache, R = Read Cache, WB = Write Back Cache, RW = Read/Write Cache)
Dst Spare Indicates whether the distributed spare option is being used.
Ded Spare Indicates the number of dedicated spares assigned to the array.
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The Event View Section of the Array Status Window Elements of the Event View Section
The Event View section of the Array Status window is an optional-view section. It can be displayed or hidden by selecting View -> Event View.
The information in the Event View is linked to the View Log, which displays user-initiated tasks or actions, and system-generated notifications and events. The View Log can be accesses by selecting View -> Log.
The Event View provides the information indicated in the following table.
The I/O Status Bar of the Array Status Window Elements of the I/O Status Bar
The I/O Status bar in the Array Status window provides the information indicated in the following table.
NOTE: The I/O status indicators indicate approximate numbers, especially when a system is experiencing a high volume of I/O traffic.
Table 30 Event View Elements, Array Status Window Element Description
Date The date on which the event occurred.
Time The time at which the event occurred.
System The system on which the event occurred.
CG The controller group to which the event applies.
Event The RAIDCore Asynchronous Event Notification (AEN) number of the event.
Priority The notification priority of the event: Low, Informational, Warning, Critical, or Fatal.
Text A brief description of the event.
Table 31 I/O Status Bar Elements, Array Status Window
Element Description
Host xx.x MB/S Host traffic in megabytes per second.
Disk xx.x MB/S Disk traffic in megabytes per second.
Host xxx IO/S Host I/Os per second.
Disk xxxx IO/S Disk I/Os per second.
H Queue Number of Host I/O requests currently in progress.
D Queue Number of Disk I/O requests currently in progress.
Dirty Number of dirty cache buffers if Write caching has been enabled (“dirty cache”
indicates the number of buffers not actually written out to the disks). This is informational only and not an error condition.
Host: xxx.xx MB/GB/TB Total amount of data transferred to or from the host since the last system boot.
Disk: xxx.xx MB/GB/TB Total amount of data transferred to or from the disks since the last system boot.
Working with Disks
Initialize Disks
When a disk is initialized, RAIDCore configuration information (metadata) is written to the disks. If a disk is new and has not been used before, it must be initialized before it can be used in RAIDCore arrays. After a disk is initialized, it shows as Disk in the Disk List.
CAUTION: Do not initialize a disk that is part of an array.
Initializing a disk in a non-redundant array deletes the array and its data; the array no longer appears in Array View. (This is especially true for a non-redundant bootable array. Initializing a disk in a non-redundant bootable array causes the array to Fail and deletes the operating system and drivers).
Initializing a disk in a redundant array causes the array to become Critical. Initializing two or more disks in a redundant array deletes the array and its data; the array no longer appears in Array View.
CAUTION: All new disks, and disks that contain existing data (including a disk that contains an operating system), appear as legacy arrays in the Array View and Array List until they are initialized.
To initialize disks
1. From the Disk drop-down menu, select Initialize. The Initialize Disk window is displayed.
2. Select the disk(s) to be initialized, by clicking on the box next to the disk(s).
3. Click Initialize Selected.
TIP: See also Initialize Disks on page 54.
Rescan Disks
The Rescan Disks option:
• Rescans the SATA channels that search for new or removed disks.
• Rereads the configuration information from each disk.
Sometimes when a disk is offline, it can be brought online through a rescan. Rescan also stops and then automatically resumes all tasks.
To rescan disks, select Rescan at the Disk drop-down menu.
TIP: See also Rescan All Channels on page 60.
Change Cache Properties for Disks
The Read Ahead and Write Back Cache properties can be changed if the disks support this option. The default settings are:
• Read Ahead is enabled.
• Write Back Cache is enabled.
CAUTION: Leaving Write Back Cache enabled might increase the likelihood of data being corrupted if the system experiences a power interruption or unexpected shutdown.
NOTE: The disk cache settings cannot be changed if tasks are active on the arrays. The option is enabled
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Change disk caching properties
1. From the Disk drop-down menu, select Properties. The Properties window appears.
2. Select the disks.
3. Under Disk Properties, click Enable or Disable for the WB Cache and Read Ahead settings.
4. Click Exit.
Change Disk View Settings
At the View drop-down menu click either Disk List View or Physical View.
The Disk List View is a view of the disks in a list format (as described in The Disk List Section of the Array Status Window on page 70). It is the default view. In this view, this user can:
• Right-click on a disk in the Ctrl Chan column to add or remove a dedicated or global spare.
• View information, such as disk capacity and the amount of free space (which do not display in the physical view).
The Physical View is a graphical representation of the disks and their status. A default picture is provided, but any JPEG (*.jpg) image can be inserted and edited to match the configuration of the disks in the system.
Operations Available at the Physical View
The following operations can be performed at the Physical View.
Create a Dedicated Spare
Right-click on a disk-identifying box to assign it as a dedicated spare or to assign it as a global spare.
View the Disk Status
View the disk status as conveyed by the font and background color of the disk-identifying boxes.
Edit the Physical View
Use Edit Physical View on the Options menu to:
• Add a *.jpg file (see the procedure below).
• Show or hide a disk in the view.
• Change the positions of the disk-identifying boxes, in order to match the configuration of the actual disks in the enclosure(s).
To add a different JPEG image, perform the following:
1. At the Physical View, click .jpg Image.
2. At the JPG IMage window, click the ... button.
3. Browse to the folder that contains the desired JPEG image.
4. Select the JPEG and click OK.
5. At the JPG Image window, click OK.
6. At the Physical View, click Commit. The physical view image is replaced.
Legacy Disks
A disk that was previously attached to a non-RAIDCore SATA controller can be used with a RAIDCore array.
RAIDCore recognizes disks with valid DOS partition tables as legacy disks. With the Copy command, data can be moved from a legacy disk onto a RAIDCore array. The legacy disk can be reused within a RAIDCore array.
There are a few restrictions and some different behaviors when transforming a legacy disk, as compared to a standard RAIDCore array:
Table 32 Restrictions and Conditions When Transforming a Legacy Disk
Action Result
Transform a legacy disk
Transforming cannot be undone. Copying a legacy disk moves the data to a new array.
The array on the legacy disk is gone. The legacy disk is initialized automatically and displays in the RAIDConsole Disk List as Disk. (It is no longer displayed as legacy) Copy a legacy disk When copying a legacy disk, the legacy disk cannot be used in the destination array and
cannot be hidden.
Legacy disk space If all the space on the legacy disk has been used, the disks in the destination array must have more capacity than the legacy disk or the data cannot be moved.
(This occurs because configuration information written to RAIDCore arrays takes up some space on each disk).
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Working with Arrays
Create and Format Arrays
RAIDCore allows the partitioning and creation of as many as eight arrays across installed disks. Portions of disks can be used to create arrays, at the same time that other arrays use different portions of the same disks.
Before you begin...
Review the issues and recommendations indicated in the following table.
Create an Array
Select an array and cache
1. From the Array drop-down menu, or by selecting an existing array and right-clicking, select Create.
2. In the Disk List select the disks to include in the array by checking the box next to the desired disks.
NOTE: Click the All button to select all disks, or click the Unused button to select those disks that have yet to be used in an array.
3. Select an array type from the Type list.
4. Enter the capacity in the Capacity field.
NOTE: The maximum available capacity changes with the disks selected, the RAID level, and the sparing option that is chosen.
TIP: For creating volumes larger than 2 TB, see Table 51 on page 112.
5. Select a cache option for the array. The default is Read + Write Back Cache.
TIP: Also see Create New Arrays: bcadm --create on page 123.
Table 33 Issues and Recommendations for Creating and Formatting Arrays
Issues Recommendations
Access to arrays The creation of arrays, even redundant arrays, allows users immediate access to the arrays, unless the Zero Create option is used during the create.
Array numbers Array numbers are valid only for a given boot, and can be different in the BIOS and drivers. If a permanent label is required, use the labeling feature described in Name Arrays on page 78.
Array size The array size of the new array is limited to 2.199 TB on some versions of Windows and Linux. Refer to the operating system documentation for details on maximum array sizes.
Number of arrays In some circumstances, more than eight arrays are possible. They might appear to function properly, but are not supported by Dot Hill Systems Corp.
System reboot If the system reboots, the creation process continues where it left off.
Select options and configurations
1. Select whether to configure dedicated spares by clicking the appropriate option.
2. Select whether to enable background array scanning by clicking Background Array Scan.
TIP: See Scan an Array in the Background on page 90 for details.
3. Choose whether to skip initialization by clicking Skip Initialization.
CAUTION: Creating a RAID 5 array with this Skip Initialization selected, and a cache option of No Cache, can, in some situations, result in data corruption.
NOTE: Arrays can be created instantly by skipping the background consistency check usually performed when initializing the array. For certain types of redundant arrays this is a viable option and has no data integrity drawbacks. A Consistency Check can be performed at a later time (see Schedule a Consistency Check on page 89). For RAID 5 sets, if the initialization is skipped, the arrays are not redundant until a Consistency Check is performed.
4. If the configuration information for an array is lost and the user wants to leave data that was on the disks
4. If the configuration information for an array is lost and the user wants to leave data that was on the disks