Help with lsi sas9211-8i

[mrtom82]

I'm trying to setup a raid 0 using 4 vertex 2 ssds on a sas9211-8i card. When I try to create it in msm, most of the options are greyed out. It basically only lets me select the disks I want to use and what type of raid. I selected raid 0, but I can't even change the stripe size of the raid. Is there something I am missing??

Also, how can I update the firmware? The instructions seem complicated. I tried using the "update firmware" in msm under the controller section but it asks for a .rom file and the download I got from lsi is a .bin file. There is a folder called fcode that is included with the firmware package I downloaded which contains a .rom file but I don't know if that is what I should use.

Thanks!

[Computurd]

umm yeah that isn't a full fledged raid card. you can only make a 64k raid stripe. also, there is no cache on it, so no cache settings. i have tested the card thoroughly. all hba's have a limited amount of features. thats why you arent missing anything in the bios :)

here:
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=240574&highlight=9211

EDIT: also the firmware upgrade is different with the 9211, you cannot use the msm like you can with other lsi cards, you have to use a flash utility, if you look in the readme of the firmware file you will find it :)

[mrtom82]

Thanks! That article that explained a lot except the firmware issue, I would still appreciate help with that. I also have a new question. Does this card benefit from the intel rst drivers, or is it a completely different driver? Also, does this card setup the raid automatically or do I still need to create a virtual disk in msm (sorry if this is a stupid question, I've only used the ich10r raid)?

And one more thing. I also have a crucial 64gb ssd, it is not as fast as the vertex 2's in my raid. If I add that to my raid still it have a negative impact on performance?

[Computurd]

intel driver is a non-issue with this. it has its own driver. to update first download the latest driver off LSI then do this;

go to device manager
expand the storage controllers category
right click the device (9211)
select driver tab
update driver
browse computer for driver software
select "let me pick from a list of device..yada yada yada"
then 'have disk'
browse to your driver you downloaded. make sure it is unzipped before you do all this.

the firmware is tricky. download this installer:
there is an issue with the current firmware that tiltevros has discovered. so you might want to PM him and ask him the last good firmware version. He will help, hes cool :)
i am not sure, i sold the card to a friend a while back. if you decide to try the firmware lemme or tilt know, it is a little complicated and invovles command line interface, but if you have messenger or skype either of us will help :)
it is a scorcher, the newer firmware isnt needed to get great results.

the adding of the c300 is a tricky issue. you might have to test to see how well it works. remember, raid only works as fast as the slowest device. the c300 64gb writes much slower than the vertex 2 so you might lose some write speed, but the gain in reads will be tremendous of course. they should scale well together, i raid dissimilar hardware all the time. isnt as big an issue with ssd...i would do it and test. if you know how to image your drive it will be a quick process. or you can configure the virtual drive from another hdd and run some tests on it with benchmark utilities.

[mrtom82]

Thank you for the help. I'll probably just skip the firmware, it sounds like the hassle isn't worth the benefit. Now I know I'm on the right track so the rest shouldnt be too much trouble. I just hate the feeling of configuring this kind of thing when I have a bunch of unanswered questions. I don't feel like I'm shooting blind anymore so now I can relax and start experimenting. I really appreciate all your help. Thanks again!