PERC 4/DC and RHAS 2.1

Question

After dealing with 6 weeks of intermittent crashes, I have given up on the PERC 4/DC. These controllers just don't seem to work well in my configuration. Dell support has not helped as they continue to refer to my unsupported configuration (multiple RAID controllers).

As I need fast IO (PERC 3/DC's are slow), I have ordered an IBM system to take it's place. The IBM RAID controllers run a true RAID 10, and IBM will support a system with multiple RAID controllers running, dell does not. All fine and well, but this experience does leave me with three questions:
1) Why would Dell sell a machine marketed as scalable with 11 PCI slots, but not support a configuration where more than one RAID controller is installed?
2) Why would Dell benchmark the server with Mylex RAID cards instead of the cards they sell and support?
3) Anyone want to buy some PERC 4/DC RAID controllers? Of course dell will not take these back.

Gabacho · Answer

I've just spent about three weeks off and on the phone with Dell regarding my PERC 4s (came with a PowerEdge 6650). I kept getting SES communication lost errors with the PERC card that was connected to our PowerVault 220. After about two weeks of replacing parts (every part in the 220 was replaced until only the chasis remained) I finally got upgraded to a hardware support guy. The guy had me look at some labels on the PERC 4 DC cards themselves. One was a white sticker placed on the left side of the DIMM on the PERC. The other number was actually written on the DIMM chips themslves. Apparently if the character sequence on the white sitkcer ended in SMF and the character sequence on the DIMM chip ended in 1H, you're going to have problems. The Dell guy explained to me that PC 100 DIMMs had been mistakenly put in a few of the PERC 4 cards where they were expecting PC 133 DIMMs. So check your numbers and see if you won the PERC lottery like we did. Changing the PERC 4s to the newer models with the right DIMMs in them seems to have fixed the problem.

johnsedwards · Answer

You must have the patience of a saint. All three of my PERC4's match the indicators you describe, and this makes sense. I replaced the PERC4's with the older PERC3's and the problems went away, but so did the performance.

I wish dell was the sort of company which would be proactive and contact the buyers of the bad parts - but no.

Thank you for posting. I am contacting Dell and I hope at least they will admit there is a problem with the PERC4's. In earlier dialogues with Dell support, they were blaming the configuration, and did not want to hear the problems existed on another system with only one controller installed.

Message Edited by johnsedwards on 12-14-2004 08:32 PM

PowerVault

PERC 4/DC and RHAS 2.1

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