Adding and Replacing Hard Disks

The following procedures explain how to add or replace conventional hard disks in the NetWare server and how to load or replace disk drivers.


Adding a Hard Disk to the NetWare Server


Prerequisites


Procedure

Use the following procedure to install an additional hard disk in a functioning NetWare server.

  1. Follow the instructions that came with your hard disk to install the disk and associated hardware, such as a disk adapter and cable. If necessary, configure the computer to recognize the new disk

    Refer to the documentation that came with the computer for more information about configuration methods and requirements.

  2. Start the server.

  3. From ConsoleOneTM, click Media > Devices > Scan for Devices.

    You must load a driver if you have installed a new disk adapter along with the hard disk. For instructions on loading drivers, see Loading Disk Drivers.

    After you install the new hard disk you can use ConsoleOne to configure the disk. For more information about configuring the disk, see Setting Up and Configuring Novell Storage Services in the Novell Storage Services Administration Guide.


Replacing a Hard Disk

If a hard disk becomes unreliable or unusable, follow this procedure to remove the disk from the network.

If you have been backing up your data consistently and verifying its integrity, you will be able to reload data for the volumes affected by the disk failure.

  1. If the bad disk was mirrored, check the sys$log.err file to see which disk in the mirrored set failed.

    The error log contains a message stating that a device has been deactivated due to a device error. It includes the device name, which is a series of letters and numbers within brackets. See Device Names.

  2. If possible, make a backup copy of the data on the hard disk.

    Make sure the backup copy contains uncorrupted versions of all files and directories on the hard disk.

  3. From ConsoleOne, click Media Traditional Volumes or Logical Volumes depending on which volumes you have on the disk.

  4. Select a volume that is on the disk you are replacing, click Dismount.

    Repeat this step for all volumes on the disk.

  5. Click Media > Partitions.

  6. Select a partition that is on the disk you are replacing, click Mirror.

  7. Select a partition, click Remove.

    This removes the partition from the mirror group. Repeat steps 6 and 7 for each partition that is on the disk you are replacing.

  8. Remove the hard disk and install the replacement.

    Use the instructions that came with the hard disk.

  9. Turn on power and restart the server.

    If the failed disk contained the only copy of the server operating system, refer to your backup software to determine whether you can restore NetWare and the file system from a backup or whether you must reinstall NetWare.

    If you use Storage Management Services (SMS) as your backup application, you must reinstall NetWare, then restore files from a backup. See Restoring Data from a Server in the Storage Management Services Administration Guide.

    After you install the new hard disk you can use ConsoleOne to configure the disk. For more information about configuring the disk, see Setting Up and Configuring Novell Storage Services in the Novell Storage Services Administration Guide.


Loading Disk Drivers

If you add or replace a hard disk adapter on your NetWare server, you must load the corresponding disk driver.

Loading a disk driver enables communication between the disk controller and the server's CPU.

Load the disk driver once for each disk adapter you want to support.

Follow the instructions that accompany the driver. Most NetWare disk drivers have a help file that appears on the screen as you highlight the driver. Refer to these descriptions to determine which driver to load.

IMPORTANT:  Some drivers do not have a description file (a configuration file that's appended to the driver). These drivers have to be loaded manually at the system console. To load these drivers, follow the screen prompts or press F1 for help.

For general information about .cdm and .ham modules, see Drivers for Host Adapters and Storage Devices.


Replacing Disk Drivers

The conventional way to replace a disk driver is to unload the driver, thus dismounting all the volumes, then load the new driver and remount the volumes. If you are following this process, be sure you replace a driver only when users won't need to access the volumes.

You can replace one instance of a driver that has been loaded multiple times by using the REMOVE STORAGE ADAPTER command at the server console.

NetWare also supports hot replace disk drivers that can be replaced without dismounting volumes or otherwise interrupting the server's operation. If you are replacing such a driver, simply load the new driver at the server console prompt. The server loads the new driver immediately and unloads the old driver without dismounting volumes or otherwise interrupting service.

If you aren't sure whether your disk driver is a hot replace driver, try loading the new driver without unloading the existing driver. You will receive an error message if the driver can't be replaced without first unloading the old driver and dismounting volumes.



Previous | Next