Intel® Server Boards Raid Options And Accessories; Hardware Raid Controller Options And Setup - Intel S5520HC Installation Manual

VMware vSphere* 4.1 Installation Guide for ESX/ESXi* 4.1
Intel® Server Boards RAID Options and Accessories
This Intel® ESAA recipe covers the setup of hardware RAID configuration for ESX* that would be used in
small business environments. Virtual Disks are setup for both the loading of the ESX Software and for
running virtual machines. Consider adding additional virtual disks for the virtual machine to run on depending
on disk I/O requirements for applications.

Hardware RAID Controller Options and Setup

Refer to the Intel® Server Configurator Tool for a specific Intel® Server Board to identify supported RAID
Controllers. The Intel® RAID Controller RS2BL080, a first-generation 6G SAS adapter incorporating LSI*
MegaRAID* technology, offers unprecedented performance with exceptional data protection and design
flexibility. Features including LSI SAS2108 6Gb/s RAID on Chip (ROC*) silicon and a native PCI Express*
Generation 2 architecture allow for significant performance gains for both 3Gb/s and 6Gb/s drive-based
solutions. Data protection and availability are enhanced by new features including Decision Feedback
Equalization for greater signal integrity, enhanced diagnostics, and more robust error reporting. Not all
servers support 6G SAS. However, there is a performance benefit when running at 3G as well. The card is
recommended for providing the best performance for virtualization platforms. The steps to configure
hardware RAID are listed below. The steps apply for both hardware RAID controllers and intelligent hardware
RAID:
1) Reboot the server and enter the RAID controller BIOS.
2) Press the <CTRL> + G keys as the server boots up.
3) Click the "Start" button.
4) Select the "Configuration Wizard" option in the left hand menu.
5) Select "New Configuration", then click "Next".
6) Select "Yes" when asked about destructive operation.
7) Select "Manual Configuration", then click "Next".
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