PowerEdge T320. How to set up a system drive?

Question

Hi all.

I am a hobbyist. I got a free (!) PowerEdge T320 without any drives, but with 8 Hot Swap bays and a hard drive backpanel. (There are 4 with cartridges and 4 without). Everything should be working, according to the benefactor.
I cannot find out how to set up a system drive to start installing any OS. I also cannot figure out whether the system has a RAID controller or not.

The AI says to put a drive in a hot swap bay and use that as system disk. But doing this, I cannot see any disk in BIOS or during boot or in any other pre-os system. I also tried "Lifecycle Managemet" (F11 during boot). This confirms no hard drive. During boot, I cannot see any signs of a RAID controller. The server is currently not connected to any network. Do I need to connect it to a network and try to enter iDRAC?

I have 3 drives in total. I was thinking of setting up RAID, but if that is not an option, any drive that can support an OS is ok.
I think all the drives I am using is far newer than the server itself, if that matters.

I have tried looking in the user manual or owner's guide without any success.

DELL-Erman O · Answer

Hi, Thank you for your feedback. Using non‑Dell certified drives can definitely lead to issues. These drives do not contain Dell‑specific firmware, which means the server may not be able to correctly read their health status, performance data, or error reporting. As a result, you may see problems such as: Inaccurate drive identification Missing or incorrect SMART data Unexpected warnings or drive failures Compatibility issues with RAID controllers Reduced performance or instability Without that firmware, the server can’t fully manage or monitor the drive, which is why non‑certified drives can cause unpredictable behavior.   Hope that helps!

DELL-Charles R · Answer

Hello,

Have you confirmed the hard drives are good? Do you see any LED activity on the drives?

Are they validated for the T320?

You can check Specifications here: https://www.dell.com/support/manuals/en-us/poweredge-t320/t320ownersmanual/technical-specifications?guid=guid-e8bdfcc6-3ab0-4ca0-ae9b-d1c76a959dcc&lang=en-us

Typically you would get into <F10> for LifeCycle Controller (LCC) on POST and use the OS deploy wizard to install your operating system. The wizard can help you make your virtual disk and install OS.

https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000130160/how-to-install-the-operating-system-on-a-dell-poweredge-server-os-deployment#LCC

If you cannot set up a virtual disk then you need to find out what controller you have.

You can see validated operating system listed here:

https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us/drivers/SupportedOS/poweredge-T320

You may find this useful

PowerEdge: How to Install the Operating System

https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000130160/how-to-install-the-operating-system-on-a-dell-poweredge-server-os-deployment

You may also try our Dell Systems Build and Update Utility, v2.4 Boot utility to create your array and install the OS.

https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us/drivers/driversdetails?driverid=yh0gx&oscode=ws8r2&productcode=poweredge-t320

You may want to bookmark the support page for your T320:

https://www.dell.com/support/product-details/en-us/product/poweredge-t320/resources/manuals

T-2 · Answer

Thanks for this, Charles R.

I believe the hard drive - the first I have tested so far - is good. It is a 2TB Seagate FireCuda. I tested it in another computer and it showed up. Also, when I used the ODD1 SATA, the drive showed up (as device F).

I also then realized I could switch from AHCI mode to RAID, and apparently I have an onboard RAID controller? This resulted in the PERC S110 RAID appearing in the POST information. From there I could enter the RAID setup.
But again, this is using the ODD1 SATA for the optical drives, and there are only 2 ODD SATAs. Not much to build a RAID upon.

With the drive in the hot swap bay, it does not appear anywhere. The "Lifecycle Controller" also confirms no hard drive. Also no LED.

I also saw this error in the front LCD:

"HWC 2003 storage BP1 SAS A cable or interconnect failure"

So, to answer your questions:
• The hard drive I so far have tested is good (with 99% confidence). It is a 2TB Seagate FireCuda.
• I don't know whether the drive is supported. I cannot find any documentation in the links on what drives this server supports, or what is required of the drive for it to be hot swappable. But it is previously used in a server environment, so I believe it should be good. It also shows up in AHCI mode (on the ODD sata cable).
• No LED is blinking when in hot swap tray.

Thanks also for the links showing how to set up an OS.
I have scanned through the specs and the owner's manual without getting much wiser so far.

I appreciate any further suggestions.

DELL-Young E · Answer

Hello,

If it’s a Dell certified drive, you will find a PPID for it.

How to Find Your Dell PPID: Locate Component Serial Numbers | Dell US

You could take a picture of the label so that we can see.

You can also send your service tag by DM

‎Direct Messaging | DELL Technologies

Respectfully,

T-2 · Answer

Thanks for your answer. Here are my drives. All tested and working in another computer. (I have so far tested only the 2TB drive in my Dell server: no LED).

PowerEdge Hardware General

PowerEdge T320. How to set up a system drive?

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