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Monitor/Rebuild Hardware RAID (Linux)

For Dedicated Servers and Server Power Deals

This article explains how to monitor a hardware RAID, detect a defective RAID and rebuild the RAID if necessary. 

The IONOS root servers  use hardware controllers from 3ware, Areca,  Adaptec,  Broadcom  or Dell. 

Identify Hardware Controller

You can use the lspcicommand to check which hardware controller is installed on your server. This command lists all devices on the PCI bus.

If you are using a minimal system, you have to install this program manually. To do this, enter the following command:
 

CentOS 7

yum install pciutils

Ubuntu 16.04 and Ubuntu 18.04

sudo apt-get  pciutils

To check which hardware controller is installed on your server, enter the following command:

lspci|grep RAID

Examples:

[root@localhost ~]# lspci|grep RAID
01:00.0 RAID bus controller: Adaptec Series 6 - 6G SAS/PCIe 2 (rev 01)

 

[root@localhost ~]# lspci|grep RAID
02:00.0 RAID bus controller: Broadcom / LSI MegaRAID Tri-Mode SAS3408 (rev 01)

 

[root@localhost ~]# lspci|grep RAID
01:09.0 RAID bus controller: 3ware Inc 7xxx/8xxx-series PATA/SATA-RAID (rev 01)

 

[root@localhost ~]# lspci|grep RAID
02:0e.0 RAID bus controller: Areca Technology Corp. ARC-1110 4-Port PCI-X to SATA RAID Controller

 

RAID Controller Management Programs

The software required to manage each RAID controller is installed by default. If necessary, you can download the software for the respective controller here:


Adaptec RAID controller:

https://storage.microsemi.com/en-us/downloads/
 

Broadcom RAID controller:

https://www.broadcom.com/support/download-search


Dell RAID Controller:

https://www.dell.com/support/home/de-de?app=products


3ware RAID controller:

https://www.broadcom.com/support/knowledgebase/1211161499498/operating-systems-supported-for-the-lsi-3ware-and-megaraid-contr


Areca RAID controller:

https://www.areca.com.tw/support/downloads.html

Get Details about the Hardware RAID Controller

Adaptec RAID Controller

The  Adaptec RAID controller  is  managed  with the  arcconf  command line tool . Use the following commands to view detailed information about the Adaptec RAID controller  and configuration: 

COMMAND EXPLANATION
arcconf GETCONFIG 1 This command displays information about the RAID controller, configuration, RAID arrays, available disks and their current state.
arcconf getconfig 1 PD Use this command to display information about the existing hard disks.
arcconf getlogscontroller-number device ¦ dead ¦ event [clear ¦ tabular] Use this command to display the log entries. You can use the following parameters to specify the type of log entries displayed:
Example: arcconf getlogs 1 device tabular DEVICE: Shows all log entries with errors the controller could detect on all connected devices.
  DEAD: Shows all log entries where device and disk failures were recorded.
  EVENT: Shows all log entries with information about special events (e.g. rebuilds, LDMs, etc.)
  You can also specify the following parameters:
  tabular: Displays the log in table format.
  clear: Deletes the specified controller protocol.
arcconf getlogs controller-number device ¦ dead ¦ event [clear ¦ tabular] > DATEINAME.log This command writes the log entries to a file.
Example: arcconf getlogs 1 device tabular > device.log  

You can find more information here:

User's Guide ARCCONF Command Line Utility

Broadcom RAID Controller

The  Broadcom RAID controller is managed and controlled with the StorCLI  command line tool . Use the following commands to display detailed information about the Broadcom RAID  controller and configuration:

COMMAND EXPLANATION
storcli64 /c0 show all This command displays information about the RAID controller and configuration.
storcli64 /c0/eall/sall show Use this command to display information about the existing hard disks.
storcli64 /c0/eALL/sALL show all This command displays information about the available disks and their current status (serial number, temperature, etc.).
storcli /cx show eventloginfo Use this command to display the log entries.

You can find further information here:

12Gb/s MegaRAID Tri-ModeStorCLI User Guide

Dell RAID Controller

The Dell RAID controller is  managed using the PowerEdge RAID Controller Command Interface(PERCCLI). Use the following commands to view detailed information about the Dell RAID controller and configuration: 

COMMAND EXPLANATION
perccli64 /c0 /e32/s0 show all Use this command to display information about disk 0.
perccli64 /c0/e32/s1 show all Use this command to display information about disk 1.
perccli64 /c0 show Use this command to display information about the existing hard disks.
perccli /c0 show eventloginfo This command displays the log entries for controller 0.

You can find more information here:

Dell EMC PowerEdge RAID Controller CLI Reference Guide

3ware RAID Controller

To get details about the 3ware RAID controller, type the following command:

# dmesg|grep 3ware
3ware Storage Controller device driver for Linux v1.26.02.002.
scsi0 : 3ware Storage Controller
3w-xxxx: scsi0: Found a 3ware Storage Controller at 0xd800, IRQ: 18.
scsi 0:0:0:0: Direct-Access 3ware Logical Disk 0 1.2 PQ: 0 ANSI: 0
3ware 9000 Storage Controller device driver for Linux v2.26.02.010.

tw_cli

The 3ware RAID controller is managed with the 3ware Storage Controller Management Command Line Interface. To open the command line interface, enter the command tw_cli. Use the help command to display all available commands. To leave the console, type exit. 

# tw_cli
//XXX> help

Copyright(c) 2004-2006 Applied Micro Circuits Corporation(AMCC). All rights reserved.

AMCC/3ware CLI (version 2.00.06.007)


Commands Description
-------------------------------------------------------------------
focus Changes from one object to another. For Interactive Mode Only!
show Displays information about controller(s), unit(s) and port(s).
flush Flush write cache data to units in the system.
rescan Rescan all empty ports for new unit(s) and disk(s).
update Update controller firmware from an image file.
commit Commit dirty DCB to storage on controller(s). (Windows only)
/cx Controller specific commands.
/cx/ux Unit specific commands.
/cx/px Port specific commands.
/cx/bbu BBU specific commands. (9000 only)
/ex Enclosure specific commands. (9KSX/SE only)
/ex/slotx Enclosure Slot specific commands.
/ex/fanx Enclosure Fan specific commands.
/ex/tempx Enclosure Temperature Sensor specific commands.

Certain commands are qualified with constraints of controller type/model support.
Please consult the twi_cli documentation for explanation of the controller-qualifiers.

The controller-qualifiers of the Enclosure commands (/ex) also apply to Enclosure
Element specific commands (e.g., /ex/elementx).

Type help <command> to get more details about a particular command.
For more detail information see twi_cli's documentation.

//XXX>

To view information about the status of the RAID system, type the following command:

//XXXX> info

Ctl Model Ports Drives Units NotOpt RRate VRate BBU
------------------------------------------------------------------------
c0 8006-2LP 2 2 1 0 2 - -

//XXXX> info c0

Unit UnitType Status %RCmpl %V/I/M Stripe Size(GB) Cache AVrfy
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
u0 RAID-1 OK - - - 232.885 ON -

Port Status Unit Size Blocks Serial
---------------------------------------------------------------
p0 OK u0 232.88 GB 488397168 4ND0XYFE
p1 OK u0 232.88 GB 488397168 4ND0YH77

To display hardware RAID controller alerts, type the following command:

//XXXX> show alarms

Ctl Date Severity Alarm Message
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
c0 - INFO (0x0F:0x0007): Initialization complete: Unit #0
c0 - INFO (0x0F:0x000C): Initialization started: Unit #0

An alarm message is displayed in the following format:

//XXXX> show alarms

Ctl Date Severity Alarm Message
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
c0 - INFO (0x0F:0x000B): Rebuild started: Unit #0
c0 - ERROR (0x0F:0x0002): Unit degraded: Unit #0

To remove a defective disk from the RAID on the second port, enter the following command:

//XXXX> maint remove c0 p1
Removing port /c0/p1 ... Done.

After replacing the defective hard disk, the new hard disk has to be recognized. To do this, enter the following command:

//XXXX> maint rescan
Rescanning controller /c0 for units and drives ...Done.
Found the following unit(s): [none].
Found the following drive(s): [/c0/p1].

To mount and rebuild a disk on the second port, enter the following command:

//XXXX> maint rebuild c0 u0 p1
Sending rebuild start request to /c0/u0 on 1 disk(s) [1] ... Done.

To view information about rebuilding the RAID, type the following command:

//XXXX> info c0

Unit UnitType Status %RCmpl %V/I/M Stripe Size(GB) Cache AVrfy
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
u0 RAID-1 REBUILDING 0 - - 232.885 ON -

Port Status Unit Size Blocks Serial
---------------------------------------------------------------
p0 OK u0 232.88 GB 488397168 4ND0XYFE
p1 DEGRADED u0 232.88 GB 488397168 4ND0YH77
Monitor 3ware RAID controllers with the software 3ware Disk Manager 2

3ware offers the software 3ware Disk Manager 2 (3dm2). With this software you can manage and monitor the 3ware RAID controller. 

You can download 3ware Disk Manager 2 here: 

https://www.broadcom.com/support/knowledgebase/1211161499498/operating-systems-supported-for-the-lsi-3ware-and-megaraid-contr

3ware documentation

For more information on installation, configuration and use, please refer to the 3ware documentation. You can find it here:

https://www.broadcom.com/support/knowledgebase/1211161499541/lsi-3ware-user-documentation-downloads

Areca RAID Controller

To get details about the Areca RAID controller, type the following command:

# dmesg|grep -i areca
ARECA RAID ADAPTER0: FIRMWARE VERSION V1.43 2007-4-17
scsi0 : Areca SATA Host Adapter RAID Controller
scsi 0:0:0:0: Direct-Access Areca ARC-1110-VOL#00 R001 PQ: 0 ANSI: 5
scsi 0:0:16:0: Processor Areca RAID controller R001 PQ: 0 ANSI: 0

Below are listed some sample commands. You can access the controller in the Rescue System: 

arcmsr_cli64
Copyright (c) 2004 Areca, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Areca CLI, Version: 1.71.240( Linux )


Controllers List
----------------------------------------
Controller#01(PCI): ARC-1110
Current Controller: Controller#01
----------------------------------------

CMD Description
==========================================================
main Show Command Categories.
set General Settings.
rsf RaidSet Functions.
vsf VolumeSet Functions.
disk Physical Drive Functions.
sys System Functions.
net Ethernet Functions.
event Event Functions.
hw Hardware Monitor Information.
exit Exit CLI.
==========================================================
Command Format: <CMD> [Sub-Command] [Parameters].
Note: Use <CMD> -h or -help to get details.
CLI>

With the command < cmd>  info  you can request system information. For example, after entering the hw info command,  the hardware monitor information is displayed: 

CLI> hw info
The Hardware Monitor Information
===========================================
Fan#1 Speed (RPM) : 2673
HDD #1 Temp. : 48
HDD #2 Temp. : 47
HDD #3 Temp. : 51
HDD #4 Temp. : 0
===========================================
GuiErrMsg<0x00>: Success.

CLI>

To display information about the disks, type the following command:

CLI> disk info
# ModelName Serial# FirmRev Capacity State
===============================================================================
1 ST3750640AS 5QD5G7Z1 3.AAK 750.2GB RaidSet Member(1)
2 ST3750640AS 5QD5G6JR 3.AAK 750.2GB RaidSet Member(1)
3 ST3750640AS 5QD5G7XQ 3.AAK 750.2GB RaidSet Member(1)
===============================================================================
GuiErrMsg<0x00>: Success.

CLI>

Use the following command to display system information about the Areca RAID controller.

CLI> sys info
The System Information
===========================================
Main Processor : 500MHz
CPU ICache Size : 32KB
CPU DCache Size : 32KB
System Memory : 256MB/333MHz
Firmware Version : V1.43 2007-4-17
BOOT ROM Version : V1.43 2007-4-17
Serial Number : Y813CAAAAR101890
Controller Name : ARC-1110
===========================================
GuiErrMsg<0x00>: Success.

CLI>

To display current events, type the following command:

CLI> event info
Date-Time Device Event Type
===============================================================================
2009-07-09 07:23:14 H/W MONITOR Raid Powered On
2008-09-29 08:06:24 H/W MONITOR Raid Powered On
2008-09-29 07:51:37 H/W MONITOR Raid Powered On
...

Use the following command to get information about the current RAID set:

CLI> rsf info
# Name Disks TotalCap FreeCap DiskChannels State
===============================================================================
1 Raid Set # 00 3 2250.5GB 0.0GB 123 Normal
===============================================================================
GuiErrMsg<0x00>: Success.

CLI>

In this example the RAID set consists of 3 x 750 GB.

To  display information about the logical RAID volumes, type the following command: 

CLI> vsf info
# Name Raid# Level Capacity Ch/Id/Lun State
===============================================================================
1 ARC-1110-VOL#00 1 Raid5 1500.3GB 00/00/00 Normal
===============================================================================
GuiErrMsg<0x00>: Success.

CLI>

If you  want to make changes to a hardware RAID with the Areca RAID controller, a password is required. The default password is "0000". Example:

<CLI> set password=0000.
Areca documentation

For more information on installation, configuration and application, please refer to the Areca documentation. You can find it here:

http://areca.starline.de/RaidCards/Documents/Manual_Spec/Software

Required steps after replacing a hard disk

If a defective hard disk is replaced, the  rebuild of the RAID system usually starts  automatically. To ensure the functionality of the RAID system, we recommend to  monitor the rebuild  of the RAID system. 

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