Dell T630 RAID configurations

Hello Paul

2. What is the maximum number of Disks I can have for a RAID 10 config ?

The maximum number of physical disks supported on the H730/H730P is 32. Hybrid arrays like RAID 10/50/60 use spans. On previous controllers we list span length limitations in the manual of the controller, but there is no mention of a limit on the H730/P. Because of the span length limitation hybrid arrays may have a smaller maximum disk size than what the controller or other RAID levels support. Because we have omitted a span length limitation from the H730/H730P manual I assume that even with the lowest span length setting on a hybrid array it will support a 32 drive virtual disk. You can read more about the specifications in the manual:

http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/19/product-support/product/poweredge-rc-h730p/manuals

3. Should I get Dual PERC Cards or just a single PERC Card ?

That is a very complex question to answer. Not only do you need to account for the total possible throughput of all of the drives to see if it will max out the controller bandwidth, but you need to calculate how much of the total available you will actually be using in your environment. Generally speaking, if those are 12Gb/s SAS drives and all drives will be highly utilized simultaneously you will likely see a performance benefit from using a second controller.

I would suggest discussing your hardware needs with a consultant. You will likely need to run data collection software in your environment to get a good idea of what hardware you need.

Thanks

With this many drives/arrays not only do you need to consider  the controllers bandwidth but also the bandwidth of  the motherboard bus, and other motherboard resources. Personally if I had that many arrays I would consider another server with 50% of the arrays on each, you would get far more throughput that way. 

Hi. Daniel,

This is the only restriction I found

Maximum number of virtual disks per disk group 16.  Is this what you are referring to ?

As I understand, for example (correct me if I am wrong)

Create a disk group with 12 Disks at RAID 10, and you can create maximum of 16 virtual disks on that Disk Group configured at RAID 10.

What is the maximum number of disks per disk group ? Is this 32 Disks?

Thanks,

Paul

Would I be able to create 5x RAID groups ? 4x RAID 10 and 1x RAID 1 ?

Yes, that is 5 virtual disks. The H730/P supports up to 64 virtual disks. There are restrictions on disk groups if you stack multiple arrays across the same drives. There is a specifications section in the User's Guide that I linked which covers this.

Thanks

This is the only restriction I found Maximum number of virtual disks per disk group 16.  Is this what you are referring to ?

No, the number of virtual disks that you can put on a disk group is only a consideration when you are stacking/slicing arrays as I mentioned previously. Just above that in the specification section is the maximum number of virtual disks per controller(64).

As I understand, for example (correct me if I am wrong) Create a disk group with 12 Disks at RAID 10, and you can create maximum of 16 virtual disks on that Disk Group configured at RAID 10.

Yes and no, any time you create a RAID array on our PERCs you are also creating a disk group. We do not allow you to control that level of array creation. Assigning a RAID level to a disk or group of disks creates a disk group. The virtual disk is the capacity assigned on that disk group. The disk group restriction is not limited to the same RAID level. A disk can be part of multiple disk groups of different RAID levels.

What is the maximum number of disks per disk group ? Is this 32 Disks?

Yes

Hi. Daniel,

Thanks for the reply.

How about for Question number 1.

Would I be able to create 5x RAID groups ? 4x RAID 10 and 1x RAID 1 ?

Thanks,

Paul