Drive randomly marked dead (off line) by SCSI controller.

There are many reasons why a SCSI controller or operating system marks one or more drives off line. Here is a list of common issues, likely to cause a drive to be remarked off line–dead.

It’s important to make sure the cabling, termination, and drive enclosure hardware is suitable based on SCSI specification–or as required by your configuration. Use the best quality SCSI data cable. Make sure it is certified for either Ultra SCSI or Ultra 2 or Ultra 3(Ultra 160) or Ultra 320 SCSI. Most SCSI controller vendors support a line of cables and terminators for their product.

If there is a mix of LVD (low voltage differential) and non-LVD devices on any one SCSI channel? Then Ultra SCSI (single-ended narrow) specifications apply–cables not longer than 1.5 meters, and not more than four devices supported. Both LVD cables and termination devices are available from: Granite Digital at 510-471-6267, and TMC at 415-454-5425. A distributor or computer reseller may sell LVD SCSI data cables and terminators.

Not enough SCSI Termination Power can be at fault. As a precaution, be sure the last two physical devices (hard drives) on each SCSI channel, provide Term. Power to the SCSI bus. For SCSI bus Termination Enable, we highly recommend you use either the disk array enclosure (if supported) or a system terminator at cable end. If you use LVD drives, you must use an LVD terminator. If you are using SCSI single ended devices, or mixing single-ended and LVD you must use an active terminator at cable end.

Sometimes the disk array enclosure, the drive slide trays may be defective, or there could be a problem with the SCA back-plane logic board. Try the drive in a different system–does the failure follow to another ‘known good’ platform?

The system power supply can be at fault. Under or over current will cause the drive to spin down in the name of data integrity. You will want to make sure a high quality power supply is used, and that it will meet the power needs of your system.

Software drivers and BIOS on the SCSI RAID controller can affect timing and communications. You should visit all system component and operating system manufacturer’s Web sites, to confirm that all drivers and firmware is up to date.

If you install and use a desktop edition hard drive connected to a RAID controller, the drive may not work correctly unless jointly qualified by an enterprise OEM. This is caused by the normal error recovery procedure that a desktop edition hard drive uses.

When an error is found on a desktop edition hard drive, the drive will enter into a deep recovery cycle to attempt to repair the error, recover the data from the problematic area, and then reallocate a dedicated area to replace the problematic area. This process can take up to 2 minutes depending on the severity of the issue. Most RAID controllers allow a very short amount of time for a hard drive to recover from an error. If a hard drive takes too long to complete this process, the drive will be dropped from the RAID array. Most RAID controllers allow from 7 to 15 seconds for error recovery before dropping a hard drive from an array. Western Digital does not recommend installing desktop edition hard drives in an enterprise environment (on a RAID controller).

Western Digital RAID edition hard drives have a feature called TLER (Time Limited Error Recovery) which stops the hard drive from entering into a deep recovery cycle. The hard drive will only spend 7 seconds to attempt to recover. This means that the hard drive will not be dropped from a RAID array. Though TLER is designed for RAID environments, it is fully compatible and will not be detrimental when used in non-RAID environments.

1. With the computer powered off, follow the instructions for installing the RAID controller correctly and connect both Serial ATA hard drives to the controller.
2. Boot your computer with the controller and drives already installed.
3. Watch your boot screens for a prompt that will ask you to press the Control and F keys at the same time to enter the Fastbuild utility and press those keys to enter.
4. Press the 1 key to enter Auto Setup.
5. Verify that the top of the screen says Optimize Array for: Security.
6. If the top of the screen says Performance instead of Security, highlight the word Performance and press the right arrow button to change the word to Security.
7. Press the Control and Y keys at the same time to save the array configuration.
8. Press the Y key to create and quick initialize the array.
9. You will be warned that all data on the drives will be erased, press the Y key to proceed.
10. The array is now created, press any key to reboot.

To use the array for extra data storage only:

• Install the latest service pack for your operating system to enable large drive support and use Disk Management to partition and format the array.

To use the array as your bootable system drive:

• Set your BIOS to boot to CD first and boot from your Windows 2000/XP CD to load your operating system onto the array.
• Windows will treat the array as one large drive and will install on the array just as it would on a single drive.
• When you are prompted by Windows setup to press the F6 key to install SCSI or RAID drivers, you will need to press F6 and insert the driver disk that came with your RAID controller.
• Once the drivers for the controller are installed you will be able to finish the installation of Windows 2000/XP onto the array. After the installation of Windows, please install the latest service pack for Windows to enable large drive support and avoid data corruption.

Note: Your system BIOS may require you to change the order of your boot sequence before you can boot your computer from a controller. For more information about adjusting options in your system BIOS, please contact the manufacturer of your computer or motherboard.

1. With the computer powered off, follow the instructions for installing the RAID controller correctly and connect both Serial ATA hard drives to the controller.
2. Boot your computer with the controller and drives already installed.
3. Watch your boot screens for a prompt that will ask you to press the Control and F keys at the same time to enter the Fastbuild utility and press those keys to enter.
4. Press the 1 key to enter Auto Setup.
5. Verify that the top of the screen says Optimize Array for: Performance.
6. If the top of the screen says Security instead of performance, highlight the word Security and press the right arrow button to change the word to Performance.
7. You should see that two hard drives are being used in the array and you will also see the total size of the array in MB.
8. Press the Control and Y keys at the same time to save the array configuration.
9. Press the Y key to create and quick initialize the array.
10. You will be warned that all data on the drives will be erased, press the Y key to proceed.
11. The array is now created, press any key to reboot.

To use the array for extra data storage only:

• Install the latest service pack for your operating system to enable large drive support and use Disk Management to partition and format the array.

To use the array as your bootable system drive:

• Set your BIOS to boot to CD first and boot from your Windows 2000/XP CD to load your operating system onto the array.
• Windows will treat the array as one large drive and will install on the array just as it would on a single drive.
• When you are prompted by Windows setup to press the F6 key to install SCSI or RAID drivers, you will need to press F6 and insert the driver disk that came with your RAID controller card.
• Once the drivers for the card are installed you will be able to finish the installation of Windows 2000/XP onto the array. After the installation of Windows, please install the latest service pack for Windows to enable large drive support and avoid data corruption.

Note: Your system BIOS may require you to change the order of your boot sequence before you can boot your computer from a controller. For more information about adjusting options in your system BIOS, please contact the manufacturer of your computer or motherboard.

Please verify your drive model number, serial number, and firmware revision using the Drive Detect software.

Caution: Customers utilizing RAID architectures incorporating affected products should back up all data content before upgrading drives with the firmware solution. For some arrays firmware upgrades may cause RAID management software to require an array to be rebuilt. Please consult the technical documentation and procedure recommended by the RAID controller manufacturer for your system prior to upgrading any affected product in an array. Please proceed with caution and contact Seagate Technical Support for assistance.

Barracuda ES.2 SATA Models that are affected.

Product

Model Number

Part Number

New Firmware

Part #

New Firmware

Barracuda ES.2 SATA

ST31000340NS

9CA158-301, 302, 303, 501, 502, 503

SN06

9CA158-510, 511, 512

SN16

ST3750330NS

9CA156-301, 302, 303, 501, 502, 503

SN06

9CA156-510, 511, 512

SN16

ST3500320NS

9CA154-301, 302, 303, 501, 502, 503

SN06

9CA154-510, 511, 512

SN16

ST3250310NS

9CA152-301, 302, 303, 501, 502, 503

SN06

9CA152-510, 511, 512

SN16

Note: The download utility will abort if it is not compatible with your current firmware revision. If your firmware version for these models is already SN06 or SN16, your drive does not need a firmware update. This firmware update procedure is for SATA drives attached to standard SATA controllers. The download utility, SeaFlash, may not see drives attached to RAID adapters and you may need to move the drives temporarily to a standard SATA controller to run the firmware update procedure.

For any other Barracuda ES.2 SATA part numbers not listed above, please contact your OEM for support.

The download is an ISO image which will create a bootable CD.  For instructions on how to create a bootable CD please see: How to burn an .iso image onto a CD.

Click here for the firmware update procedure.

This error happens if you installed the optional Maxtor FireSCSI Extension Set at the same time you installed the Maxtor Utilities.

At the Apple Menu choose: Control Panels / Extensions Manager. From the View menu, select as Items. Click on the Name column (near the top of the Extensions Manager window). This will lists extensions in alphabetical order. Find the following extensions and uncheck each one to disable it from loading:

• FireSCSI Expert
• FireSCSI Maxtor Enabler
• FireSCSI RBC RAID Enabler
• FireSCSI Support

Shut down your Macintosh from the Special menu in the Finder. Boot up the computer again. Your Macintosh should now start up properly.

Note: The FireSCSI extensions must be enabled if you are using the QuickStripe RAID 0 functionality of the Maxtor Utilities and may be required for other manufacturers’ FireWire devices to function properly. Do not disable the FireSCSI extensions if you have set up a FireWire RAID with the Maxtor Utilities or if the FireSCSI extensions are required by another FireWire device. As a workaround, unplug your Maxtor Personal Storage drive from the FireWire port on your Mac before starting up the computer. Turn on your Mac, wait until it has completed the startup process, and then connect the drive to the FireWire port on the computer. The drive should be recognized properly by the system.

Hard drives for RAID. Mix hard drives in a RAID array?

Most SCSI RAID controllers will accept different kinds of hard drives. The hard drives should match in capacity points and rotational (RPM) speed. At best, all drives in an array will be identical–at the same firmware revision level.

RAID can be used with any size hard drive. The smallest capacity drive will determine the largest logical volume size for all drives in the array.
Whenever possible select drives from an approved vendor drive compatibility list. This ensures that the hard drive is tested, and should function reliably with your SCSI RAID controller. Untested configurations ’should work’ too. But for best results, select only tested and compatible drives for your SCSI RAID controller. Most SCSI controller vendors publish a hard drive compatibility matrix on their Web site.
Looking for legacy hard drives? CUE Technologies Inc.

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REFERENCE TO THIRD PARTIES AND THIRD PARTY WEB SITES. Seagate references third parties and third party products as an informational service only, it is not an endorsement or recommendation – implied or otherwise – of any of the listed companies. Seagate makes no warranty – implied or otherwise – regarding the performance or reliability of these companies or products. Each company listed is independent from Seagate and is not under the control of Seagate; therefore, Seagate accepts no responsibility for and disclaims any liability from the actions or products of the listed companies. You should make your own independent evaluation before conducting business with any company. To obtain product specifications and warranty information, please contact the respective vendor directly. There are links in this document that will permit you to connect to third-party web sites over which Seagate has no control. These links are provided for your convenience only and your use of them is at your own risk. Seagate makes no representations whatsoever about the content of any of these web sites. Seagate does not endorse or accept any responsibility for the content, or use, of any such web sites.

Examples of what it does on single WD My Book drives:

• When you mouse over the WD icon, the WD Drive Manager will show you the drive status: Drive Name, Volume Letter, Percent Used, Temperature Status. If the drive is healthy, the icon is steady and dark blue.

  

• When you right-click on the Drive Manager icon, it will allow you to safely remove the drive.

  

• Left-click on the WD My Book external drive you want to safely remove.

  

• You can also left-click on About WD Drive Manager to see what version of Drive Manager you have.

  

  

Examples of what it does on dual WD My Book RAID edition drives:

• When you mouse over the WD icon, the WD Drive Manager will show you the drive status just as with the single drives, including the RAID status. The RAID status tells you what kind of RAID configuration your drive is in, and whether it’s healthy.

  

• When you right-click on the Drive Manager icon, now, it now only allows you to safely remove the drive…

  

  

• It also allows you to enter the RAID Manager.

  

• When you left-click on RAID Manager, you open up this window that allows you to change the RAID configuration.

  

What the various blinking lights mean:

• A flashing Light Blue/Dark Blue Drive Manager icon indicates that the drive may need to be formatted or has lost its partition.

  

• A flashing RED Drive Manager icon indicates that a RAID 0 configuration has gone bad. This is caused by either a failed RAID controller card, or a failed drive.

  Note: if a drive has failed in a RAID 0, data is most likely lost as there is no data redundancy.

  

• A flashing Blue icon could indicate a Degraded RAID 1. A degraded RAID 1 could be likewise caused by either a failed RAID controller card, or a failed drive.

  Note: As long as data is not corrupted, your data is most likely still intact, as RAID 1 provides data redundancy.

  

To create a RAID 0 array please follow the steps below:

1. With the computer powered off, follow the instructions for installing the RAID controller correctly and connect both Serial ATA hard drives to the controller.
2. Boot your computer with the controller and drives already installed.
3. Watch your boot screens for a prompt that will ask you to press the Control and F keys at the same time to enter the Fastbuild utility and press those keys to enter.
4. Press the 1 key to enter Auto Setup.
5. Verify that the top of the screen says Optimize Array for: Performance.
6. If the top of the screen says Security instead of performance, highlight the word Security and press the right arrow button to change the word to Performance.
7. You should see that two hard drives are being used in the array and you will also see the total size of the array in MB.
8. Press the Control and Y keys at the same time to save the array configuration.
9. Press the Y key to create and quick initialize the array.
10. You will be warned that all data on the drives will be erased, press the Y key to proceed.
11. The array is now created, press any key to reboot.

To use the array for extra data storage only:

• Install the latest service pack for your operating system to enable large drive support and use Disk Management to partition and format the array.

To use the array as your bootable system drive:

• Set your BIOS to boot to CD first and boot from your Windows 2000/XP CD to load your operating system onto the array.
• Windows will treat the array as one large drive and will install on the array just as it would on a single drive.
• When you are prompted by Windows setup to press the F6 key to install SCSI or RAID drivers, you will need to press F6 and insert the driver disk that came with your RAID controller card.
• Once the drivers for the card are installed you will be able to finish the installation of Windows 2000/XP onto the array. After the installation of Windows, please install the latest service pack for Windows to enable large drive support and avoid data corruption.

Note: Your system BIOS may require you to change the order of your boot sequence before you can boot your computer from a controller. For more information about adjusting options in your system BIOS, please contact the manufacturer of your computer or motherboard.