–  View  the  RAID  configuration  and  associated  devices 
–  Monitor  operation  of  the  RAID  controller 
Consider  the  following  information  when  you  use  the  IBM  ServeRAID  Configuration 
Utility  program  or  ServeRAID  Manager  to  configure  and  manage  arrays: 
v  The  ServeRAID-8s  SAS  controller  supports  RAID  levels  0,  1,  1E,  5.  6,  10,  50, 
and  60. 
v  Servers  that  come  with  twelve  2.5-inch  hot-swap  SAS  drives  also  come  with  two 
ServeRAID  SAS  controllers;  a  ServeRAID-8k  controller  in  the  ServeRAID 
connector  on  the  system  board  and  a  ServeRAID-8s  controller  in  PCI  Express 
slot  2.  The  ServeRAID-8k  controller  supports  the  first  eight  hard  disk  drives,  and 
the  ServeRAID-8s  controller  supports  the  four  remaining  hard  disk  drives. 
v  The  integrated  ServeRAID-8k  controller  is  disabled  when  BIOS  detects  an 
optional  ServeRAID-10is  has  been  installed  in  the  server. 
v  When  you  configure  the  12  hard  disk  drives,  you  may  configure  the  first  eight 
drives  into  an  array  that  is  attached  to  the  ServeRAID-8k  and  the  remaining  four 
drives  into  an  array  that  is  attached  to  the  ServeRAID-8s. 
v  Hard  disk  drive  capacities  affect  how  you  create  arrays.  The  drives  in  an  array 
can  have  different  capacities,  but  the  ServeRAID  controllers  treat  them  as  if  they 
all  have  the  capacity  of  the  smallest  hard  disk  drive. 
v  To  help  ensure  signal  quality,  do  not  use  drives  with  different  speeds  and  data 
rates. 
v  Do  not  include  SAS  and  SATA  drives  in  the  same  array. 
v  To  update  the  firmware  and  BIOS  code  for  an  optional  ServeRAID  controller  or 
controllers,  you  must  use  the  IBM  ServeRAID  Support  CD  that  comes  with  the 
ServeRAID  option.
Using  the  IBM  ServeRAID  Configuration  Utility  program 
Use  the  IBM  ServeRAID  Configuration  Utility  program  to  perform  the  following 
tasks: 
v  Configure  a  redundant  array  of  independent  disks  (RAID)  array 
v  View  or  change  the  RAID  configuration  and  associated  devices
Starting  the  IBM  ServeRAID  Configuration  Utility  program 
To  start  the  IBM  ServeRAID  Configuration  Utility  program,  complete  the  following 
steps: 
1.  Turn  on  the  server. 
2.  When  the  prompt  <<<  Press  <CTRL><A>  for  IBM  ServeRAID  Configuration 
Utility!  >>>  is  displayed,  press  Ctrl+A. 
3.  To  select  the  channel  for  which  you  want  to  change  settings,  use  the  arrow  keys 
and  press  Enter. 
4.  To  change  the  settings  of  the  selected  items,  follow  the  instructions  on  the 
screen.  Be  sure  to  press  Enter  to  save  your  changes.
IBM  ServeRAID  Configuration  Utility  menu  choices 
The  following  choices  are  on  the  IBM  ServeRAID  Configuration  Utility  menu: 
v  Array  Configuration  Utility 
Select  this  choice  to  create,  manage,  or  delete  arrays  or  to  initialize  drives. 
v  SerialSelect  Utility 
Select  this  choice  to  configure  the  controller  interface  definitions  or  to  configure 
the  physical  transfer  and  SAS  address  of  the  selected  drive. 
 
Chapter  4.  Configuring  the  server  55