C-8
Cisco UCS C240 Server Installation and Service Guide
OL-25761-01
Appendix C RAID Controller Considerations
Embedded MegaRAID Controller
Embedded MegaRAID Controller
Note
VMware ESX/ESXi or any other virtualized environments are not supported for use with the embedded
MegaRAID controller. Hypervisors such as Hyper-V, Xen, or KVM are also not supported for use with
the embedded MegaRAID controller.
Note
The embedded RAID option is available only with the SFF 16-drive backplane. It does not operate
through an expander.
This server includes an embedded MegaRAID controller with two mini-SAS connectors on the
motherboard.
•
The default setting for this embedded controller is SATA RAID 0, 1, and 10 support for up to four
SATA drives.
•
You can upgrade this to support to SAS RAID 0, 1, and 10 support for up to eight SAS drives by
installing a Storage Controller Unit (SCU) upgrade ROM chip on the motherboard. See
SCU Upgrade ROM Module For Embedded RAID SAS Support, page C-10
.
•
You can further upgrade this support by adding SAS RAID 5 support with an optional software key.
See
Installing a Software RAID Key Module for Embedded RAID 5 Support, page C-11
•
When you order the server with this controller, the controller is enabled in the BIOS. Instructions
for enabling the controller are included for the case in which a server is reset to defaults (Disabled).
See
Enabling the Embedded RAID Controller in the BIOS, page C-11
Note
You cannot downgrade from using a RAID controller card to using the embedded controller (see
Controller Migration, page C-7
). Instructions for installing upgrade modules and enabling the embedded
controller in the BIOS are included here for those upgrading a server with no RAID controller or drives.
Caution
Data migration from SW RAID (embedded RAID) to HW RAID (a controller card) is
not
supported and
could result in data loss. Migrations from SW RAID to HW RAID are supported only
before
there is data
on the drives, or the case in which there are no drives in the server (see
).
•
You can migrate from using the embedded controller to using a RAID card only
before
there is data
on the drives. In this case, you must disable the embedded controller. See
RAID Controller in the BIOS, page C-12
•
The required drivers for this controller are already installed and ready to use with the LSI SWRAID
Configuration Utility. However, if you will use this controller with Windows or Linux, you must
download and install additional drivers for those operating systems. See
Drivers For Windows and Linux, page C-12
This section contains the following topics:
•
Notes on Supported Embedded MegaRAID Levels, page C-9
•
Installing a SCU Upgrade ROM Module For Embedded RAID SAS Support, page C-10
•
Installing a Software RAID Key Module for Embedded RAID 5 Support, page C-11