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Raid on PowerEdge T430
Hello,
after years on HP servers we are planning to purchase a Dell PowerEdge T430 with 8 hot-swap 3.5" HDD slots.
I have a couple of doubts:
1. HP's servers are really "close" and they get problems if you use not certified components from HP, i.e. HDD, ram, etc.
Are the Dell servers more "open" about that?
2. we are interesting to create 2 separate RAID volume, maybe 1 for Raid5 plus 1 for Raid1 using the 8 internal HDD bays.
But reading the T430 owners manual I found:
"Systems with x8 hard-drive backplanes configured for software RAID support only four hard drives. The remaining hard-drive slots are pre-installed with the four-slot hard-drive blank, and are not available for software RAID"
What this means?
How we can manage all 8 HDD by Raid card?
It comes with PERC H330 card. It is better to add PERC H730 instead?
It i sbetter to look at the bigger brother PE T630?
thanks to all for your suggestions.
theflash1932
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May 25th, 2015 10:00
1. Dell servers can take some third-party components, as long as you adhere to the supported specs. You can use any make/model of RAM that meets the supported specs for the processor and the system (timings, speed, layout can all be important). You need to be careful with other components like storage controllers, and most video cards won't work. If using Dell controllers, you should use Dell drives - Enterprise-class at a minimum (desktop/laptop/NAS drives are not good choices).
2. Just make sure you get the H730 RAID controller, then you don't have to worry about the limitations of software RAID.
mrcfzz
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May 26th, 2015 00:00
Thank you for your answer.
So it it would not be a good idea to have a Raid 5 using (i.e.) 3 or 4 Samsung SSD drives?
The H730 RAID controller does not support them?
Why you mention that desktop/laptop/NAS drives are not good choices?
theflash1932
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May 27th, 2015 09:00
I'm saying do your homework before trying them, UNLESS you are one of those who don't mind the troubleshooting and headaches from unforeseen issues. Search the forums - some makes/models of SSD's have issues on PERC controllers, some work fine.
Enterprise controllers have high expectations and requirements of the drives they manage, and if the drives are not programmed to meet those expectations, it can cause havoc with them. Some drives may not show up at all, some may work sporadically, some may work "mostly" ok, and others may run without issue. Desktop/laptop drives are designed for FAR less usage than enterprise drives. The recovery algorithms often cause timeouts, causing the controller to force it offline. Many have power-saving features that do the same thing - cause the controller to think they have gone missing.