Recover Data

Got a report RAID Failed.   Thought not so bad, Ill just add extra RAID disk's, turns out this was the last disk. Cheers! 

Backed up the data, removed the Disk, inserted 2 new disk's rebuilt the RAID and the OS.  I am now left with the old RAID disk. However some data was not backed up, so i need to access this disk again. 

RAID CARD = 6IR    it was on a PE T105. 

I just need to know if it possible to read the old the disk using another piece of hardware?  I would have to use the SAS -> SATA converter.    

I had failed RAID 1, and I was not able to repair the RAID by adding new disks.

Can you clarify EXACTLY what happened and what you tried?

What server model?
What RAID controller?

You will need to use a controller compatible with the SAS 6/iR ... like another SAS 6/iR.  A PERC 6/I should work (OS will not be bootable).  Possible that an H200 could pick up the new configuration.  A generic LSI equivalent to the SAS 6/H200 "might" be able to.

I still have the old hardware available to use. How would I configure the controller to use a single disk or not  format the old disk? Could I set up the OS with RAID on a single disk then insert the old disk? Will this not overwrite the data automatically? 

"RAID failed" ... then entire array/VD failed or a disk failed?  You shouldn't introduce non-original disks to an array UNLESS the array is online and functional.  You can never repair an offline array by adding or replacing a disk.

Yeah pretty much! there was only a single disk in the RAID and it was faulty, the sectors was so poor when entering another disk (Provided by Dell Support to match the old one) it just couldnt read anything, So I will be rebuilding the whole server from new, with new disks. Once i get the data off this old disk. 

I just need to know if it possible to read the old the disk using another piece of hardware?

You will need to use a controller compatible with the SAS 6/iR ... like another SAS 6/iR.  A PERC 6/I should work (OS will not be bootable).  Possible that an H200 could pick up the new configuration.  A generic LSI equivalent to the SAS 6/H200 "might" be able to.

I would have to use the SAS -> SATA converter.

What converter?

Got a report RAID Failed.   Thought not so bad, Ill just add extra RAID disk's, turns out this was the last disk.

"RAID failed" ... then entire array/VD failed or a disk failed?  You shouldn't introduce non-original disks to an array UNLESS the array is online and functional.  You can never repair an offline array by adding or replacing a disk.

I still have the old hardware available to use. How would I configure the controller to use a single disk or not  format the old disk?

You will probably need to boot to the CTRL-C utility and "activate" the array to import it for use.

Could I set up the OS with RAID on a single disk then insert the old disk? Will this not overwrite the data automatically?

You can't create a single-disk RAID with the SAS 6/iR - even RAID 0 requires two disks on the SAS 6.  And yes, creating an array with any disks on the SAS 6 will destroy existing data.  The PERC 6 does not have either of these limitations.  I would recommend spending a little more for the higher-end controllers in the future.

there was only a single disk in the RAID and it was faulty

Either it wasn't RAID (the SAS 6/iR also supports non-RAID/JBOD with single, unconfigured disks), or the RAID 1 lost its first drive previously, leaving only one good disk with data.

The SAS 6 will support two VD's ... you could configure another, install the OS, then access the "broken" RAID array directly.

If the disk was part of a broken RAID 1, then you will need to use a compatible device for recognizing the VD and reading the data.

I have tried to run from local desktop using a SAS to SATA converter, it couldn't even be seen in the bios. Could be a bad sign, or it can't be seen because of the VD settings. 

I would put in one disk and leave it unconfigured in non-RAID and install the OS, then insert the other RAID disk, boot to CTRL-C (or do it from the OpenManage software) to activate the VD (or import), then attempt to read the data off.

this has confused me slightly because i thought u needed to 2 disks?  So I could only insert one disk. access the controller settings and delete the existing RAID. then i should be able to install the OS?   Once install i then activate the array? 

Currently the Array is active with RAID 1 and 2 disks. I guess could I insert the old one now. An hopefully it will not build over as it sees a VD marker? IF it does start to build over, is there anything i can do to stop it? 

The configuration matters.  RAID and non-RAID are not interchangeable or compatible.  If it was a single non-RAID disk, then you should be able to read the data from any non-RAID device (as long as the disk is healthy enough to be read).  If the disk was part of a broken RAID 1, then you will need to use a compatible device for recognizing the VD and reading the data.

So in order to access the old disk.  I would have to.  Install 2 new disks Set controller to run with RAID 1 and install OS.  Then could I remove one of the disk's and inset the old disk without it overwriting?

The T105 only supports two disks.  If you have the power/data connectors to add another disk, then do that, but if not, you can try removing the disk, but what the controller will try to do is find a suitable replacement for the disk you remove, and when you insert the new disk, it may try to use it for a replacement.  It "should" not do this when it recognizing existing VD settings on it, but a worst-case scenario would involve the controller ignoring the config and kicking off a rebuild of that disk.  If the firmware is out of date might be a leading cause for it to do that.

I would put in one disk and leave it unconfigured in non-RAID and install the OS, then insert the other RAID disk, boot to CTRL-C (or do it from the OpenManage software) to activate the VD (or import), then attempt to read the data off.

Or would I have to.  Set the controller to RAID 1 Select only 1 Disk as apart of the RAID, Making the 2nd a hot swappable?  Install OS, Remove the hot-swap and put the old disk in?

RAID 1 requires two disks.  A RAID 0 technically requires only one disk, but the SAS 6 requires two disks for a RAID 0.

Ok, Got ya. 

Is there any settings I need to adjust in the controller settings to set as non-raid?   As mentioned before I did rebuild the server with 2 disks and RAID 1.    But I am willing to do again to get access to this data. 

thanks 

Either it wasn't RAID (the SAS 6/iR also supports non-RAID/JBOD with single, unconfigured disks), or the RAID 1 lost its first drive previously, leaving only one good disk with data.

You could be right there, either way, It only had a single disk in the server. and the staff was under the impression it was set to RAID 1. 

So in order to access the old disk.  I would have to. 

1. Install 2 new disks
2. Set controller to run with RAID 1 and install OS. 
3. Then could I remove one of the disk's and inset the old disk without it overwriting? 

Or would I have to. 

1. Set the controller to RAID 1
2. Select only 1 Disk as apart of the RAID, Making the 2nd a hot swappable? 
3. Install OS, Remove the hot-swap and put the old disk in? 

I haven't used a Dell server in a very long time, so having this old one thrown at me is not helping. 

Thanks for the help.

Yes.  You DO need two disks if creating a RAID array.  Because the SAS 6 supports non-RAID as well, you can use a single disk by leaving it unconfigured and not part of a RAID array (VD).  This will allow you to safely configure an OS on the controller without the risk of overwriting the RAID disk with a rebuild when you insert it.

Currently the Array is active with RAID 1 and 2 disks. I guess could I insert the old one now. An hopefully it will not build over as it sees a VD marker? IF it does start to build over, is there anything i can do to stop it?

Yeah, you can pull the drive to stop the rebuild and stop the destruction of data, but then it will be too late for a DIY recovery and your only hope will be professional data recovery.

No, for non-RAID, the drives are simply left unconfigured.

I saw you mentioned you rebuilt the server ... if you have too much invested in that install to wipe it out, then you could try it the other way (or use a different disk).

I don't mind rebuilding the server. What I meant was, couldn't i use one them disks and just insert the old one? 

Well i have inserted the old Disk. and it now looks like this. 

Physical Disk 0:0,  Ready,  SAS

Physical Disk 0:1, Foreign, SAS

But I am not able to read the disk. There must be something i have to do in the RAID config?  

In the CTRL-C utility, it will show the disks as RAID and the details of the RAID 1 (Integrated Mirror - IM); if not, it will show them as non-RAID with no VD info.

Disks in a "foreign" state stay there and are unusable for anything until the foreign configuration is taken care of.  In your case, you want to import it.  Use OMSA for this (Storage, SAS 6/iR, Information/Configuration, Foreign/Import from dropdown):

http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/04/Drivers/DriversDetails?driverId=V1JDD&fileId=3365593125&osCode=WS8R2&productCode=poweredge-t105&languageCode=EN&categoryId=SM

Download and run to extract, then run C:\Openmanage\windows\setup.exe.  Choose Custom to make sure that Storage Management is installed, add yourservernameoripaddress:1311 to IE's Intranet Zone.

You should also be able to do this from the controller, but I would do it from the OS. 

I imported the foreign config, an it seems to have put the disk in a offline state now.   

Is it a case of just restarting? then I would be able to view the disk? 

Thanks