Dell 745N Troubleshooting Hardware-RAID NAS Systems, Hardware-RAID NAS System Hard-Drive Failures

NOTICE: Do not use the following procedures to recover and restore a software-RAID or external- storage NAS system. If your NAS system uses software RAID, see "Software-RAID Recovery and Restoration Procedures." If your NAS system uses an external storage configuration, see "External Storage Configuration Recovery and Restoration Procedures." For instructions on how to determine the configuration of your NAS system, see "Determining a NAS System's Configuration" in "NAS Manager."

This section provides instructions on how to recover the hardware-RAID NAS system if the operating system or a hard drive fails. Additionally, this section provides information for possible solutions that do not require restoring the operating system or hard drives.

Because your NAS system is designed to have redundancy, it can recover from certain hardware and software failures. In some situations, it can recover automatically, and in others, you must have administrator privileges and manually intervene to recover the NAS system.

Use the following methods in the order listed to restore your hardware-RAID NAS system:

1.Check all of the items in "Troubleshooting Hardware-RAID NAS Systems."

2.Check the procedures in "Hardware-RAID NAS System Hard-Drive Failures."

Troubleshooting Hardware-RAID NAS Systems

This section provides checks and solutions to try before you reinstall your operating system or replace a hard drive. Some of the checks require you to observe the LEDs on the front and back of the NAS system. For more information about the LEDs, see your Installation and Troubleshooting Guide.

•Does the power LED show that the NAS system is turned on?

Ensure that the power cable is connected to the NAS system and a power source and that the NAS system is turned on.

•Are the link LEDs on the back of the NAS system and any network switches to which it may be connected illuminated?

Ensure that the Ethernet cable is securely connected to the NAS system and a functioning Ethernet jack.

•Are you using a standard Ethernet cable to connect to the network?

Do not use a crossover cable.

•Have you allowed enough time for the NAS system to boot?

The NAS system typically takes several minutes to boot.

•Does the NAS system boot completely?

Connect a keyboard, mouse, and monitor to the NAS system, and observe the boot process.

•Are the LEDs for all four hard drives on the NAS system lit?

If the LEDs are not all lit, you may have a failed hard drive. See "Hardware-RAID NAS System Hard-Drive Failures."

Hardware-RAID NAS System Hard-Drive Failures

Your hardware-RAID NAS system uses RAID 5 parity-redundancy functions to recover the operating system and data in most cases. Depending on how many drives fail, use one of the procedures in Table 6-2 to recover from a hard-drive failure.

Table 6-2. Hardware-RAID NAS System Hard-Drive Recovery Procedures

Hard Drive That Failed	Necessary Action
Hard drive 0, 1, 2, or 3	Replace the failed hard drive. See "Replacing One Hardware-RAID NAS System Hard Drive."
Two or more hard drives fail	Replace the failed hard drives. See "Replacing Two or More Hardware-RAID NAS System Hard Drives."