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October 31st, 2011 13:00
Non-Dell HD compatibility with PERC6
Hey folks, I have a T300 with a Perc6 controller. Server is used for non-demanding applications (AD, DFS, LDP Printing, WSUS, etc).
At this point I am running out of space on our DFS file share. After some evaluation, I have considered to upgrade the 3 SATA 500 GB HD that came included with it to 3 SATA 2 TB HD. Everything seemed dandy until I just talked to Dell LA this morning. Dell LA informed me that due to supply conditions, they were unable to offer me any HD for my server.
After being panicing I decided to search for other HD, and was able to secure three WD Caviar Green. The full specifications would be:
WD Caviar Green WD20EARS - disco duro - 2 TB - SATA-300, Form factor: 3.5" x 1/3H, Interface: Serial ATA-300, data transfer; 300 MBps, Bufer size: 64 MB.
Are these disks compatible with my T300? In general, how compatible are non-Dell HD with the Perc6?
Thanks
theflash1932
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October 31st, 2011 19:00
The PERC 6 never "blocked" non-certified hard drives. Originally, the newer PERC H700 did - the lock was later lifted via firmware update to the controller. So, talking about the PERC 6, there is no (and was never any) code to prevent non-certified drives from being used, but consider a couple of things:
Certified drives are recommended - and the only supported drives by Dell - because they are loaded with a firmware that allows them to communicate seamlessly with Dell controllers. This is not specific to Dell - all OEM's do it - so as to allow them to claim this or that for reliability and/or performance over another brand, and so that they can guarantee a certain level of performance/reliability when used with their hardware. Without the correct firmware, the controller may make a request of the drive that the drive doesn't understand, can't respond to, or does not respond to in an appropriate amount of time.
Even if using non-certified drives, you should at least be using Enterprise-class drives. Desktop drives are not designed for the usage they will see in a server, are not programmed with Enterprise-class commands (use on RAID controllers), and are generally unsuitable for server use. Technically, as SATA drives, they will connect and be recognized by the controller, but there are many potential problems you could encounter using Desktop drives in a server environment. If you do choose this route, you better make sure you have a rock-solid backup and recovery plan.
download.intel.com/.../enterprise_class_versus_desktop_class_hard_drives_.pdf