Move array from server A to server B

[smortier]

Hello,

I have 2 HP Proliant ML350 Gen8, with HP Smart Array P410i.

On each server, I have 4 HD 300Gb 10Krpm (RAID 5)

When I try to move the raid array from server A to server B, server B doesn't recognize the array anymore and isn't able to boot.. (0 logical drive)

I think that server B keeps something of the previous setup in memory.

What are the correct steps to successfully handling this ? Should I delete something in the smart array's memory ?

Thank you for your help !

[scharchouf]

if you move HDD from server A to server B you need to creat a new logical array on server B

because the information of RAID is on smart array card not on HDD

[smortier]

If I create a new logical array on server B with disk array of server A, will I lose all datas ?

I absolutely need to keep OS and all datas safe during the move !

On this post : https://community.hpe.com/t5/proliant-servers-ml-dl-sl/move-raid-disks-including-data-between-dl380g2-amp-g4/m-p/5749065

I found that the RAID information is not stored on the controller, it is kept in the RIS area on each disk.

Is it not true ?

Thank you for your help !

[Moderator edit: Updated the link]

[scharchouf]

If you continue readind the rest of reply you can see that someone try to move HDD from server to another and the result is failed

you need to know that always the information of Logical drive is stored on Smart Controller Card

[smortier]

I'm sorry but I don't understand..

Imagine that server A have a major failure (motherboard or smart array controller), I don't have any possibities to restore my disks array on another server (server B for example) ?

I think that it's incredible !

[scharchouf]

if ther's an issue on motherboard you don"t lose any data :)

if you have an issue with controller card and disque is OK (all disks ) the replacement of the same controller enable automatic replication

So in your case you need to move HDD from server A to server B with same controller card

the both server need to have same reference of smart array controller card

for example in server A you have P400 under server B you need to have P400 card also

[gdegraeve]

Hello scharchouf,

I'm a collegue of smortier and looking for the same information.

As you can see on the first post, we have 2 HP Proliant ML350 Gen8, with HP Smart Array P410i.
On each server, we have 4 HD 300Gb 10Krpm (RAID 5)

This is the same smart array controller card.

On server B, we have to extract the 4 disks, and replace them by the 4 disks of the server A. Bay 1 to 4.
On boot, the controller doesn't detect the logical drive. :-(

[scharchouf]

Ok, have the possibility to send me in private message the AHS log for 2 servers in order to check them

[scharchouf]

if you change disks from one server to another should always keep the same order, if it not work, or even a loss of data

[Jimmy Vance]

---

scharchouf wrote:

if you move HDD from server A to server B you need to creat a new logical array on server B

because the information of RAID is on smart array card not on HDD

---

That is not a correct statement. The RAID information for the array is stored in what is known as the "RIS" area on each hard disk. The array configuration is NOT stored on the Smart Array controller itself.


What the original poster needs to verify is that the Smart Array controller firmware is at the same version. If the machine being moved too has an older version of firmware there is a good chance it might not recognise the array. If the machine the disks are being moved to has the same or a newer version of firmware the controller should recognise the array and boot the system

[Jimmy Vance]

---

scharchouf wrote:

if ther's an issue on motherboard you don"t lose any data :)

if you have an issue with controller card and disque is OK (all disks ) the replacement of the same controller enable automatic replication

So in your case you need to move HDD from server A to server B with same controller card

the both server need to have same reference of smart array controller card

for example in server A you have P400 under server B you need to have P400 card also

---

You can move arrays between different controllers. There are some stipulatons, basically you can move disks from an older controller to a newer controller, but not the other way around.

[Torsten.]

---

@Jimmy Vance wrote:

That is not a correct statement. The RAID information for the array is stored in what is known as the "RIS" area on each hard disk. The array configuration is NOT stored on the Smart Array controller itself.
________________________________

Is this correct now? Not entirely, I think.

The RAID information is stored in the RAID information sector (RIS) on the disks AND in the NVRAM of the controller.

For moving such array (called ROAMING) you need to power off both servers, pull all disks that belong to a RAID and insert them to the other server, then boot this server.

Only this ensures all drives have the same information is RIS.

If the controller AND several disks have different information, you will see 0 logical drives.But if all disks have the same set of information, the controller will accept the RAID. This works within the same controller models and even between several models, as Jimmy wrote. The firmware versions should be the same level.

See also

http://h20565.www2.hp.com/portal/site/hpsc/template.PAGE/public/psi/mostViewedDisplay?javax.portlet.begCacheTok=com.vignette.cachetoken&javax.portlet.endCacheTok=com.vignette.cachetoken&javax.portlet.prp_efb5c0793523e51970c8fa22b053ce01=wsrp-navigationalState%3DdocId%253Dmmr_kc-0112214-3%257CdocLocale%253Den_US&javax.portlet.tpst=efb5c0793523e51970c8fa22b053ce01&sp4ts.oid=374803&ac.admitted=139574...

[Moderator edit: Removed the broken. Please refer to https://support.hpe.com]

[waaronb]

Ditto what others said... the array information is stored on the controller NVRAM *and* on the disks themselves.

You can tell this is true because if you remove all disks from a system and try to boot, the array controller gives errors about missing disks... the controller knows what the array config *should* look like.

Similarly, you CAN move disks from one server to another (same or newer controllers only... don't try to downgrade without checking if that's allowed).

You *MUST* move disks when both servers are powered off. Don't try to do it with either system running or the new system is likely to see the newly inserted drive as a blank one, available for adding to existing arrays.

I've moved disks from older systems to newer ones, or across the same model, many times with no issues.

If you move disks and the old array is not recognized, try not to panic... move the drives back to the original system and boot into the ACU just to make sure everything is still there.

Do not, under any circumstance, try to recreate the array configuration with the same # of disks and same RAID level... you will lose your data. If it doesn't auto-detect the array from the drives themselves, then something's wrong... move the disks back before you lose any important bits and bytes.

It helps to move the drives so they're in the same bays as on the old system, but the controller is able to see when drives have simply moved around. I wouldn't recommend it though... for a 2 drive RAID 1 it's probably not an issue, but if you have a RAID 50 with 6 or more drives across different channels of the controller, then you're asking for trouble if you lose track of which drive goes where. It might figure it out, but why risk it?

[brianbonham]

Had some major problems with my server(spectra) , moving from A to B which runs on my cPanel. Glad I sorted it myself on how to the the configuration when doing transfer.

[AlexKous]

Moved my drives one by one so as to ensure they stayed in the same layout, but the new server could not recognise the array at all and had a seizure, saying that the drives had moved location.

[Sunitha_Mod]

Hello @AlexKous,

Thank you for posting! 

You might want to consider creating a new topic by utilizing the "New Discussion" button, as this will not only enhance visibility compared to the old topic but also boost your chances of receiving responses from experts.