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How do I check the RAID BIOS of my HPE ProLiant G9 server with a HPE Smart Array P440 RAID controller?

To check the RAID BIOS of an HP ProLiant G9 server (e.g. HP Proliant DL160 G9), when it has a HPE Smart Array P440 Controller installed, you should first have either a KVMoIP device attached to the server or a remote console with the server opened. Please see our FAQ section on how to request a KVM or how to open an iLO remote console.

Once you have either a KVMoIP or remote console session open, you now need to reboot the server. Please note that this means that the server and everything it is currently hosting will go offline, and will remain offline throughout the duration of this process. Also, the decision to reboot the server must be your own. iomart and any company within the iomart group are not responsible for any effects rebooting your server may have.

Once you have rebooted your server, you will need to wait for the option to enter the System Utilities to appear, and then press F9 to enter it. Please note, depending on the BIOS settings of your server, your screen may look slightly different to the one below.

After the Systems Utilities menu appears, select System Configuration, then select the Smart Array P440 Controller option, then finally select the Exit and launch HP Smart Storage Administrator (HPSSA) option.

The HPE Smart Storage Administrator will now load; this can take a couple of minutes. Once it has loaded, you can use this menu to check the current status of the server’s storage. When checking the status of a server’s storage, you should check the status of the server’s Arrays and the Physical Drives.

First, select the RAID controller of your server within the left hand side panel. In my example below, you can see that I have two controllers. One is the on-board, integrated RAID controller - the Dynamic Smart Array B140i RAID - and the other is a PCI-e RAID controller - the Smart Array P440. The storage of my server is currently only utilising the PCI-e RAID controller; which will be the case of most servers which display both; however, you should check every controller present for arrays and drives.

Once you have clicked onto the RAID controller, press Configure.

Now press Logical Devices on the left hand side panel.

You will now be presented with a list of Arrays configured on this controller and a list of the drives configured within this array. You can use this page to identify the current status of your server’s storage.

If there are any errors with either an array or with a drive, there will be one of two warning symbols next to the device’s symbol. There are two warning symbols within the HPESSA; the symbol represents a critical error which needs urgent attention, while the symbol represents a less crucial error which you should address as soon as possible. In my example below, you can see that one array and one drive within this array have errors.

If you do encounter an error, you can click on the device and then press View more Details, to identify what the error is and to see more details about this device.

The device details will now appear at the top of the window appears, while the Status Message appears at the bottom of this window. This will provide you with more information on the error.

If you do identify a drive with an error and wish for it to be replaced, you will need to supply the following information about the failed drive to our technicians in a support ticket, so that our technicians can identify the drive correctly and replace it:

  1. Capacity (Size)

  2. Drive Type

  3. Drive Model

  4. Drive Serial Number

You can use the ‘View more details’ page to identify this information; as demonstrated below.

If you wish for a drive to be replaced you can also turn on the Identify Device function. Turning on the Identify Device will set the LED lights on the drive bay to blink, allowing the local technicians to identify the drive bay with greater ease. To do this, click close on the ‘View more details’ window and then click Identify Device while the drive you wish to be swapped is still selected under the list of devices.

Then select how long you wish for the drive bay to blink for or when you wish for it to turn off. We would suggest setting the LED to stop blinking after 4 hours. Then press OK and then Finish.

If you do set the drive bay to blink, please let our technicians know in the support ticket. Once you have supplied the above information and set the drive bay to blink, our support team will be happy to help get your drive replaced.

If you have any more questions about the storage of your server or your RAID BIOS menu, please read through our FAQ section or raise a support ticket, and we will be happy to help.

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