Member
Are you guys using the validated drives with Adaptec controllers? They have a list of validated drives. If you're having problems, you should be able to report it to Adaptec and seek help from them....
Dun scare me, all I heard was Adaptec should be the choice if you're running serious enterprise stuff....
Whizz Kid
till this day I have problems with the ES2 drives.
and YES we purchased HW that was on the HCL. I have problems with ES2 drives using Areca controllers AND Adaptec controllers.
all of these controllers suffer with major issues. I'd rather go software raid if RAID10 was available.
Member
What problems were you having with the ES2 drives and Areca controllers? We have a 12TB Raid 1+0 array running off them, and I want to keep a lookout for any similar problems.Originally Posted by enealDC
Whizz Kid
Well, with the areca controllers, make absolute sure that you have the LATEST FIRMWARE. That's v1.46, but NOT JUST ANY VERSION 1.46!!! You MUST have the latest version, which has released January 2009. If it's before that, then it you might have a problem with time-out issues (i.e. a drive will fail out of an array under high load because it doesn't return data to the controller in time). This is a problem with some SAS drives (I think the 1TB 7200 RPM seagate ones), and might also be a problem with the ES.2 drives under the arc-1680 raid cards.
Bottom line is make sure your areca raid cards have the latest firmware. There's an older version of 1.46 and a newer version. Make sure you have the NEWER one that was released after January 2009!
If you DO have two drives fail in a RAID 5 under Areca, DON'T PANIC! There are ways to get your RAID functional again, as long as your drives aren't COMPLETELY toast. A lot of times you have a drive fail, the drive will still work, but it just timed out so it was dropped from the array.
Also, make sure you have firmware sn06 or later on your ES.2 drives.
Member
Okay, I had made sure I had the latest and greatest firmware before our array went hot. About the only thing is that we have version SN05 on all our drives. The array has been running without fail for months now, so I'm tentative to apply a new firmware when we've had no indication of a failure. Here's hoping!
Whizz Kid
Well, you should be fine, then. But, if you ever want to reformat your array for another reason, you might consider updating the firmware. But, you shouldn't bother bringing down a production system for a hard-drive firmware update if you aren't having problems.
BUT DO UPDATE THE ARECA FIRMWARE!!!!!! AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! If you are dropping lots of drives from your raidsets under areca and high loads, it is likely because your areca firmware is old and has the time-out bug.
Whizz Kid
BTW, it's really the SN04 firmware on the barracudas that has all the issues.
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