R930 raid 6 how long?

Hi,

Setting up a RAID 6 array with 24 drives (each 1.2TB) on an R930 server can indeed take a significant amount of time, especially if the RAID controller is performing a full initialization or background initialization. However, the behavior you're describing—where the system is unresponsive with only a cursor on the screen and no progress—is not normal. Here's what might be happening and what you can do:

Possible Issues and Steps to Resolve:

1. RAID Initialization Time:

   • RAID 6 involves dual parity calculations, which can be computationally intensive, especially with 24 drives. Initialization can take several hours to a day or more, depending on the controller and drive speeds.
   • However, the system should remain responsive during this process, and you should see progress indicators.

2. System Hang or Freeze:

   • If the system is completely unresponsive (no keyboard/mouse input, no progress updates), it may have frozen or encountered an error.
   • Action: Try pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete or restarting the server. If the RAID controller supports it, the initialization should resume after reboot.

3. RAID Controller Issues:

   • The 730P RAID controller might be overwhelmed or encountering a firmware/driver issue.
   • Action:
     • Check the RAID controller's status lights or logs (if accessible via BIOS or a management interface).
     • Update the RAID controller firmware if possible.

4. Drive or Connection Issues:

   • Only 4 drives showing a single green light could indicate a problem with the other drives or their connections.
   • Action:
     • Ensure all drives are properly seated and connected.
     • Check the RAID controller's interface to see if all drives are detected.

5. Temperature Concerns:

   • High ambient temperatures (90°F+) can exacerbate hardware issues, especially during intensive tasks like RAID initialization.
   • Action:
     • Ensure the server has adequate cooling.
     • Monitor temperatures using the server's management tools (e.g., iDRAC for Dell servers).

6. Alternative Setup:

   • If the RAID initialization is stuck, you may need to:
     • Abort the current process (if possible) and restart.
     • Consider using a faster RAID level (e.g., RAID 10) if performance is critical, though this reduces usable capacity.

Immediate Steps:

1. Restart the Server:

   • If the system is unresponsive, a hard reboot may be necessary. After rebooting, check the RAID controller's status to see if the initialization resumes.

2. Monitor Progress:

   • If the initialization continues, monitor it closely. If it stalls again, there may be an underlying hardware issue.

3. Check Logs:

   • Use the RAID controller's management interface (e.g., PERC BIOS or iDRAC) to review logs for errors.

4. Verify Drives:

   • Ensure all 24 drives are detected and healthy. Replace any faulty drives if necessary.

Long-Term Recommendations:

• Firmware Updates: Ensure the RAID controller and drives have the latest firmware.
• Cooling: Improve server cooling to handle high ambient temperatures.
• RAID Configuration: If time is critical, consider using a faster RAID level or splitting the array into smaller groups.

Originally it said that one percent was in charge of 12 disks. I took that to mean it was handling half the disks and the second perc would handle the other half. Is that assumption wrong? 

Thanks for the quick reply!

OK, now Im feeling really dumb. Here's what I found. I that I misunderstood the whole process. I was trying to go back and assign a raid to the other perc and the other 12 drives. All I had to do was click next.

However, I do have four hdd's that only have one solid green light which lead me to believe that they werent done being written to. 

Im a nube, but Im getting somewhere with all this learning. Thanks for all the help and support, y'all are the best.

For anyone with similar issues, disks 2,3,4,5 only have the top led light on. At first I pulled disk 2 out it hadn’t been running, re-installed it and the other 3 drives started flashing like crazy. Eventually though they went right back to having only the top led. 
Also only 3 drives show up in disk manager. Still baffled by that one.