Dell PowerEdge 6650 - How to install OS by newbie?

First you need this driver (hard drive version):

You must run the file on a working Windows computer.

"Previously i try to install other drivers .iso and system starts like w/o CD-no effect or anything to selcect." AND "In option 1, "Boot to the Windows CD" how to do this?"

You need to boot to the BIOS Setup (F2) and put CD/DVD at the top of the boot sequence.  Also, you cannot simply burn the ISO file to a CD - you must use special software capable of creating a CD from an ISO image.  If you browse the CD, you should NOT see the ISO file.

"Can I use CD(I don't have floppy disks and computer with reader-writer for floppy disk)?"

No.  Windows XP/2003 are NOT smart enough to get the driver from any other media but floppy disk, so if you don't have a floppy drive to create the disk (or don't have a floppy disk), then you will have to use the nLite method (Option 2).

"In option 3, where I can download free/demo windows with sp2?"

You can't.  Again, 2003 is too old to be smart enough to use different media/keys, so you have to use the media that matches your key (retail, OEM, VL, etc.).  If your media does not have SP2, and you want to use the installation utility, you will need to use nLite to integrate SP2.

SP2:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=41

 

First you need this driver (hard drive version):
http://www.dell.com/support/drivers/us/en/19/DriverDetails/Product/poweredge-xeo6650?driverId=8KN93&osCode=WNET&fileId=2731108922&languageCode=en&categoryId=SR

You need to download then run the file to extract its contents.

Option 1:

Put the extracted files above on a floppy disk.  Boot to the Windows CD and hit F6 as soon as you see the prompt on the screen (bottom).  Follow the prompts to load the driver for the PERC 3/4 controller.  If Windows tries to tell you it already has a driver, ignore it and use the one on the disk.

Option 2:

Download and use nLiteOS.com to integrate the driver into the installation media (this will create a new CD from which to install).

Also remember that the PERC's do NOT support non-RAID, so you MUST configure and initialize RAID in the CTRL-M utility before Windows will be able to see any disks to install to.

Option 3:

Download and use the installation utility from Dell:
http://www.dell.com/support/drivers/us/en/19/DriverDetails/Product/poweredge-xeo6650?driverId=H56T7&osCode=WNET&fileId=2731106269&languageCode=en&categoryId=SZ

This method will walk you through creating RAID and installing the OS, complete with any drivers you will  need, BUT you MUST have a Windows CD with SP2 on it.  If you don't, nLite can also integrate Service Packs.

First link( http://www.dell.com/support/drivers/us/en/19/DriverDetails/Product/poweredge-xeo6650?driverId=8KN93&osCode=WNET&fileId=2731108922&languageCode=en&categoryId=SR ) there are three formats, Hard-Drive, Rel-Notes-Text and Update Package for Microsoft® Windows® which to choose?

And how to run/install this?

Previously i try to install other drivers .iso and system starts like w/o CD-no effect or anything to selcect(press F6, "testing memory" and anything about installing antything from CD etc.).

In option 1, "Boot to the Windows CD" how to do this?

And in option 1 you tell about file from first link?

Can I use CD(I don't have floppy disks and computer with reader-writer for floppy disk)?

In option 3, where I can download free/demo windows with sp2?

"I had done this earlier."

Then you either have a problem with your CD media or your CD drive.  If you don't have a working CD drive, then you are dead in the water since the 6650 cannot boot to USB (unless you can do a PXE boot to install).

"Can you give me link for this?"

If you have Windows 7 or 8, just right-click the ISO and choose Burn Image to CD/DVD.  Otherwise you can use something like CDBurnerXP or ISORecorder.

"So, if I can't use CD why you tell me here:" ... "why you tell me about creating CD with .iso ?"

You can't use a CD to load the RAID driver.  Windows has no way to look at a CD to find a driver file at the F6 prompt.  You must use CD to load the OS though.

"nLiteOS.com ... link please?"

Link was provided:  http://nliteos.com

"configure and initialize RAID ... I have to do this with CD/floppy(with driver etc.) or without?"

This is done in the CTRL-M utility and is exclusively a hardware function ... no drivers are needed.  Boot to CTRL-M, Configure, Clear, View/Add, Space Bar to add drives, Enter, F10 to continue.  After creating and saving the RAID level you want, go to the Main menu and Initialize the new RAID array/Logical Drive.

 

"You need to boot to the BIOS Setup (F2) and put CD/DVD at the top of the boot sequence."

I had done this earlier.

"No.  Windows XP/2003 are NOT smart enough to get the driver from any other media but floppy disk, so if you don't have a floppy drive to create the disk (or don't have a floppy disk), then you will have to use the nLite method (Option 2)."

So, if I can't use CD why you tell me here:

"You need to boot to the BIOS Setup (F2) and put CD/DVD at the top of the boot sequence.  Also, you cannot simply burn the ISO file to a CD - you must use special software capable of creating a CD from an ISO image.  If you browse the CD, you should NOT see the ISO file."

why you tell me about creating CD with .iso ?

 

"Download and use nLiteOS.com to integrate the driver into the installation media (this will create a new CD from which to install)."

Link please?

 

"Also remember that the PERC's do NOT support non-RAID, so you MUST configure and initialize RAID in the CTRL-M utility before Windows will be able to see any disks to install to."

I have to do this with CD/floppy(with driver etc.) or without?

 

Thanks for helping me, you are the best!

"Then you either have a problem with your CD media or your CD drive."

There is a way to check this and be sure, that is the CD drive problem?

"If you have Windows 7 or 8, just right-click the ISO and choose Burn Image to CD/DVD.  Otherwise you can use something like CDBurnerXP or ISORecorder."

Win7, I use "standard/system" to burn CD.

"This is done in the CTRL-M utility and is exclusively a hardware function ... no drivers are needed.  Boot to CTRL-M, Configure, Clear, View/Add, Space Bar to add drives, Enter, F10 to continue.  After creating and saving the RAID level you want, go to the Main menu and Initialize the new RAID array/Logical Drive."

Ok I try this, and here are results:

Boot to CTRL-M>Configure>Clear << DONE

"View/Add, Space Bar to add drives, Enter, F10 to continue." Here is one hard drive ID-1(remember, I have four installed) with status "READY"and nothing to do.

Main menu>Initialize and I see on down, on pink: "No Logical Drives are currently configured. Please Any Key To Continue."

To determine whether your CD drive is bad or it is the media (for both 2003 CD and installation utility), try booting to it on another system - any system.  If it boots on another system, then there is either an issue with your CD drive or you don't have the BIOS set up right to boot to CD (again, make sure CD is at the top of the boot sequence and make sure there is a checkmark next to it, enabling it).

"Win7, I use "standard/system" to burn CD."

I don't know what "standard/system" is.

In CTRL-M, if you have only one disk showing, then you have other problems (three dead disks, three incompatible disks, bad backplane/cable, or they aren't installed right).  Are the drive lights on for all the drives, visible from the front of the system in their carriers/caddies?  You can configure a single disk in a RAID 0 (if you want to troubleshoot the disks later) ... you have to hit the Space Bar on the 'ready' drive to add it to the configuration (disk will start blinking), Enter to stop drive selection, then F10 to configure/continue.  You have to configure and save a Logical Drive (RAID array) before you can initialize it.

I open case and check CD driver cables, and they are ok.

But I get flashlight and I see that the all three not working hard-drives are unconnected and not touching conncetor, this is effect of plastic carriers w/o pushing spring, so I add to carriers paper(to keep connected) and push drives manually then push carriers and close this, and I check, all drives are connected properly.

So I start configuring drives in CTRL-M:

1 Configure-Clear DONE

2 View/Add - first drive 18GB selceted, second 32GB selected and I see window and in this, "One drive have more memory than other" - or something like this, but I continue to selecting two 32 drives - four selected.

3 ENTER and four drives are "ONLINE"

4 F10 and I see options for setting memory etc. but I do not hange anything only accept.

5 Main menu - Initialize and I see 0% ... Server buzzer star beeping and I see on TOP of server on LCD "Drive Failure"

So I clear configuration like in first step and beeping stops.

I open viev/add and see drives, I check drives, F2 for drive info. and I see that second and fourth drives have "Media error: 1" - What is this?

So I start configuring drives like above, but without drives with "Media error: 1" that is I select first and third drive and in Initializing I get 100% but on initializing list I see only one 18GB drive, this is normal?

Summary, so that means I have two damaged drives(second and fourth)?

Thins can be problem with drivers(software) or drives are damaged(hardware)?

This is not easy, meybe I make video when I configuring drives?

"try booting to it on another system - any system"

You mean that I have to open on computer burned CD to check if the file is fine?

How to know if the file is undamaged in burnign proces?

Or you mean I have to check if the file is existing on CD?

"or you don't have the BIOS set up right to boot to CD (again, make sure CD is at the top of the boot sequence and make sure there is a checkmark next to it, enabling it)."

OK

"Are the drive lights on for all the drives, visible from the front of the system in their carriers/caddies?"

I have five hard-drive slots, 1=empty, 2=18GB, 3,4,5=32GB and only on 1,2 slot I have "light-lead-plastic rods" so I cant see lights on 3,4,5.

Uff, I think This is all what I want to tell you, serwers are difficult!!!

"4 F10 and I see options for setting memory etc. but I do not hange anything only accept."

Which RAID level did you choose?  RAID 0 might have been the default, and you shouldn't do RAID 0.

"5 Main menu - Initialize and I see 0% ... Server buzzer star beeping and I see on TOP of server on LCD "Drive Failure""

You have a bad drive.  Which one does it indicate is the problem?  Remove any drives showing as bad and throw them in the garbage.  You can configure with only the good drives you have.

"try booting to it on another system - any system"

If you can boot to the CD on one system, but not on the 6650, then either the CD drive is bad or the system is not set up properly to boot to CD.

It's not that difficult, but you have to have a solid computer tech foundation for them to make sense.

"Which RAID level did you choose?"

RAID 0.

"Which one does it indicate is the problem"

I tell you, that the drives with "Media Error: 1" are in 3 and 5 slot.

"Remove any drives showing as bad and throw them in the garbage.  You can configure with only the good drives you have."

I can/how to check what exactly is damaged in drives?

Ok, thanks so much for help and tommorow I set RAID5 and put two worikng drives into carriers with "light guides"

Given your experience with servers, I would recommend you go back and create something other than a RAID 0.  RAID 0 has NO redundancy - if one disk dies, then you lose 100% of what was on all the drives, and if you have a single write error, then you have data corruption.  If you have 3 or more working disks, you can do a RAID 5.  If you have two, you can do a RAID 1.

"I can/how to check what exactly is damaged in drives?"

You can't without being a drive technician or have access to advanced disk tools.  But that's ok, because it can't be repaired, so it doesn't really matter what exactly went wrong with the disk - it just should not be used.

Good luck and let us know how it goes tomorrow.

Ok, hard drives.

I put on slot:

1-working 18GB

2-woriking 32GB

3-empty

4-32GB with "Media Error:1"

5-32gb with "Media Error:1"

I try to format hard drive from slot #4 and after format this drive still have media err:1

Ok I configure/initialize hard drives from slot #1 and #2 with "RAID1"

Here are images:

http://static.pokazywarka.pl/i/2511942/372544.jpg

http://static.pokazywarka.pl/i/2511942/296775.jpg

I do this with 18GB disc and 32GB disc in RAID1 so this is bad?

For redundancy I have to use two drives with the same capacity yes?

And then when I go to viev/add and see info about #4 hard drive I see 0 media errors, lol?

So I try to configure/initialize this #4 and this is fine!

Pics:

http://static.pokazywarka.pl/i/2511961/761267.jpg

http://static.pokazywarka.pl/i/2511961/942385.jpg

So, formatting and configure/initialize helps with #4 hard drive with "Media Error: 1" ??

I go again to view/add and see #5, "Media Error: 3" , Profane word removed as per TOU>

"I do this with 18GB disc and 32GB disc in RAID1 so this is bad? For redundancy I have to use two drives with the same capacity yes?"

They don't have to be the same size, BUT if you use different sizes, ONLY the amount of the smallest disk will be used across all disks.  So, if you have an 18GB and a 36GB, ONLY 18GB of each disk will/can be used in an array.  If configured as RAID 1, that 18GB RAID 1 IS STILL REDUNDANT.  The ONLY downside is the fact that you waste half the capacity of the 36GB disk.

"So, formatting and configure/initialize helps with #4 hard drive with "Media Error: 1" ??"

It can (as can a 'media verify'), but I didn't want to get into this yet.  However, if you are hung up on this, then run a 'media verify' and 'format' on the disks to see if the media errors persist.  If you want a better indication of whether or not the drives are actually healthy enough to use, then skip the media verify and format and run bootable 32-bit Diagnostics on the drives.