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Installing Drives

Dell™ PowerEdge™ 2850 Systems Installation and Troubleshooting Guide

  SCSI Interface Cables

  SCSI Configuration Information

  External SCSI Tape Drive

  SCSI Hard Drives

  Optical and Diskettes Drives

  Activating the Integrated RAID Controller

  Installing a RAID Controller Card

  Installing a SCSI Backplane Daughter Card

  Configuring the Boot Device


Your system contains up to six 1-inch SCSI hard drives. An optional optical drive and an optional diskette drive are mounted on separate trays that slide into the front panel and SCSI backplane board. This section contains instructions for replacing those drive devices.

SCSI Interface Cables

SCSI interface connectors are keyed for correct insertion. Keying ensures that the pin-1 wire in the cable connects to pin 1 in the connectors on both ends. When you disconnect an interface cable, take care to grasp the cable connector, rather than the cable itself, to avoid stress on the cable.

SCSI Configuration Information

Although SCSI devices are installed in essentially the same way as other devices, their configuration requirements are different. To configure an external SCSI device, follow the guidelines in the following subsections.

SCSI ID Numbers

Each device attached to a SCSI host adapter must have a unique SCSI ID number from 0 to 15.

Set the tape SCSI ID using the jumper and switch settings on the drive to prevent conflict with any other device IDs on the bus. For default SCSI ID settings, refer to the tape drive documentation.

NOTE: There is no requirement that SCSI ID numbers be assigned sequentially or that devices be attached to the cable in order by ID number.

Device Termination

SCSI logic requires that termination be enabled for the two devices at opposite ends of the SCSI chain and disabled for all devices in between. For internal SCSI devices, termination is configured automatically. For external SCSI devices, you should disable termination on all devices and use terminated cables. See the documentation provided with any optional SCSI device you purchase for information on disabling termination.

External SCSI Tape Drive

This subsection describes how to configure and install an external SCSI tape drive.

Installing an External SCSI Tape Drive

NOTICE: See "Protecting Against Electrostatic Discharge" in the safety instructions in your Product Information Guide.
  1. Turn off the system, including any attached peripherals, and disconnect the system from the electrical outlet.

  2. Prepare the tape drive for installation.

Ground yourself by touching an unpainted metal surface on the back of the system, unpack the drive (and controller card, if applicable), and compare the jumper and switch settings with those in the drive documentation.

See "SCSI Configuration Information," for information on setting the drive's SCSI ID number and enabling termination (if required). Change any settings necessary for your system's configuration.

  1. Connect the tape drive's interface cable to the external SCSI connector on the controller card.

  2. Reconnect the system to its electrical outlet and turn the system on, including any attached peripherals.

  3. Perform a tape backup and verification test with the drive as instructed in the software documentation that came with the drive.

Installing an Internal SCSI Tape Drive

NOTICE: See "Protecting Against Electrostatic Discharge" in the safety instructions in your Product Information Guide.
  1. Turn off the system, including any attached peripherals, and disconnect the system from the electrical outlet.

  2. Prepare the tape drive for installation.

Ground yourself by touching an unpainted metal surface on the back of the system, unpack the drive (and controller card, if applicable), and compare the jumper and switch settings with those in the drive documentation.

See "SCSI Configuration Information," for information on setting the drive's SCSI ID number and enabling termination (if required). Change any settings necessary for your system's configuration.

  1. Insert the tape drive into hard drive bay number 5 (top right).

Hard drives bays are numbered 0 through 5 starting at the lower leftmost drive bay.

  1. To use the integrated SCSI controller, connect the tape drive's SCSI interface cable to either the SCSI A or SCSI B connector on the riser board. See Figure A-4 or Figure A-5. To use an optional SCSI controller card, connect the tape drive's SCSI interface cable to the card's SCSI connector.

  2. Connect the tape drive power cable to the tape drive power connector on the backplane. See Figure A-6.

  3. Reconnect the system to its electrical outlet and turn the system on, including any attached peripherals.

  4. Perform a tape backup and verification test with the drive as instructed in the software documentation that came with the drive.

SCSI Hard Drives

This subsection describes how to install and configure SCSI hard drives in the system's internal hard-drive bays.

Before You Begin

Before attempting to remove or install a drive while the system is running, see the RAID documentation and ensure that the system is configured correctly to support hot-pluggable drive removal and insertion.

SCSI hard drives are supplied in special drive carriers that fit in the hard-drive bays.

NOTE: You should only use drives that have been tested and approved for use with the SCSI backplane board.

You may need to use different programs than those provided with the operating system to partition and format SCSI hard drives. See "Installing and Configuring SCSI Drivers" in the User's Guide for information and instructions.

NOTICE: Do not turn off or reboot your system while the drive is being formatted. Doing so can cause a drive failure.

When you format a high-capacity SCSI hard drive, allow enough time for the formatting to complete. Long format times for these drives are normal. For example, an exceptionally large drive can take over an hour to format.

SCSI Backplane Board Configuration

The hard-drive bays provide space for up to six 1-inch SCSI hard drives. The hard drives connect to a controller on the system board or a RAID controller card through the SCSI backplane board.

The system provides several options for hard drive configurations:

See "Installing a SCSI Backplane Daughter Card."

See Figure A-6 to locate the connectors on the SCSI backplane board.

Installing a SCSI Hard Drive

NOTICE: When installing a hard drive, ensure that the adjacent drives are fully installed. Inserting a hard-drive carrier and attempting to lock its handle next to a partially installed carrier can damage the partially installed carrier's shield spring and make it unusable.
NOTICE: Not all operating systems support hot-plug drive installation. See the documentation supplied with your operating system.
  1. Remove the bezel. See "Removing the Bezel" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  2. Open the hard-drive carrier handle. See Figure 7-1.

Figure 7-1. Installing a SCSI Hard-Drive

NOTICE: Do not insert a hard-drive carrier and attempt to lock its handle next to a partially installed carrier. Doing so can damage the partially installed carrier's shield spring and make it unusable. Ensure that the adjacent drive carrier is fully installed.
  1. Insert the hard-drive carrier into the drive bay. See Figure 7-1.

  2. Close the hard-drive carrier handle to lock it in place.

  3. Replace the bezel. See "Replacing the Bezel" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  4. Install any required SCSI device drivers. See "Installing and Configuring SCSI Drivers" in the User's Guide for information.

  5. If the hard drive is new, run the SCSI controllers test in system diagnostics.

Removing a SCSI Hard Drive

NOTICE: Not all operating systems support hot-plug drive installation. See the documentation supplied with your operating system.
  1. Remove the bezel. See "Removing the Bezel" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  2. Take the hard drive offline and wait until the SCSI hard-drive indicator codes on the drive carrier signal that the drive may be removed safely. See Table 2-3.

If the drive has been online, the drive status indicator will blink green two times a second as the drive is powered down. When all indicators are off, the drive is ready for removal.

See your operating system documentation for more information on taking the hard drive offline.

  1. Open the hard-drive carrier handle to release the drive. See Figure 7-1.

  2. Slide the hard drive out until it is free of the drive bay. See Figure 7-1.

If you are permanently removing the hard drive, install a blank insert.

  1. Replace the bezel. See "Replacing the Bezel" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

Optical and Diskettes Drives

An optional optical drive and an optional diskette drive are mounted on trays that slide in the front panel and connect to the controllers on the system board through the SCSI backplane board.

Removing the Optical Drive or Diskette Drive Tray

CAUTION: Only trained service technicians are authorized to remove the system cover and access any of the components inside the system. See your Product Information Guide for complete information about safety precautions, working inside the computer, and protecting against electrostatic discharge.
  1. Turn off the system, including any attached peripherals, and disconnect the system from its electrical outlet.

  2. Remove the bezel. See "Removing the Bezel" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  3. Open the system. See "Opening the System" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  4. To remove the optical drive or diskette tray, press forward on the blue tray release tab and slide the drive tray out of the system. See Figure 7-2.

Figure 7-2. Removing and Installing the Optical Drive or Diskette Drive Tray

Installing the Optical Drive or Diskette Drive Tray

  1. Align the optical drive or diskette drive tray with its appropriate opening in the front panel.

The optical drive opening is above hard-drive slots 2 and 3 and the diskette drive opening is above hard-drive slots 0 and 1 (the hard-drives slots are identified by labels on the front panel of the system).

  1. Slide in the drive tray until the tray snaps into place. See Figure 7-2.

  2. Close the system. See "Closing the System" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  3. Replace the bezel. See "Replacing the Bezel" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  4. Reconnect your system and peripherals to their electrical outlets, and turn on the system.

Activating the Integrated RAID Controller

CAUTION: Replace the battery only with the same or equivalent type recommended by the manufacturer. Discard used batteries according to the manufacturer's instructions. See the Product Information Guide for additional information.
CAUTION: Only trained service technicians are authorized to remove the system cover and access any of the components inside the system. See your Product Information Guide for complete information about safety precautions, working inside the computer, and protecting against electrostatic discharge.
NOTICE: To avoid possible data loss, back up all data on the hard drives before changing the mode of operation of the integrated SCSI controller from SCSI to RAID.
  1. Turn off the system, including any attached peripherals, and disconnect the system from the electrical outlet.

  2. Remove the bezel. See "Removing the Bezel" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  3. Open the system. See "Opening the System" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  4. Push the ejectors on the RAID memory module connector down and outward to allow the memory module to be inserted into the connector. See Figure 7-3.

See Figure A-4 or Figure A-5 to locate the RAID memory module connector on the expansion-card riser board.

  1. Align the memory module's edge connector with the alignment key, and insert the memory module in the connector. See Figure 7-3.

The memory module connector has an alignment key that allows the memory module to be installed in the connector in only one way.

NOTE: The RAID controller memory module must be a 256MB, registered DDR2 (PC3200) memory module, rated to run at 400 MHz or faster.
  1. Press on the memory module with your thumbs while pulling up on the ejectors with your index fingers to lock the memory module into the connector.

Figure 7-3. Installing the RAID Controller Memory Module

  1. Lift up the memory airflow shroud and locate the RAID hardware key connector on the system board. See Figure A-3.

  2. Push the ejectors on the RAID hardware key connector down and outward to allow the key to be inserted into the connector. See Figure 7-4.

  3. Insert the RAID hardware key into its connector on the system board and secure the key with the latches on each end of the connector. See Figure 7-4.

  4. Gently press on the hardware key with your thumbs while pulling up on the ejectors with your index fingers to lock the hardware key into the connector.

  5. Lower the memory airflow shroud.

Figure 7-4. Installing the RAID Hardware Key

  1. Gently pull and hold open the RAID battery compartment tab, route the RAID battery cable through the bottom opening, and then lower the RAID battery into the compartment. See Figure 7-5.

  2. Route the battery cable through the battery-cable securing clip and connect the battery cable to the RAID battery cable connector on the expansion-card riser board. See Figure 7-5.

See Figure A-4 or Figure A-5 to locate the RAID battery cable connector on the expansion-card riser board.

Figure 7-5. Removing and Installing the RAID Battery

  1. Close the system. See "Closing the System" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  2. Reconnect the system to its electrical outlet and turn on the system, including any attached peripherals.

  3. Enter the System Setup program and verify that the setting for the SCSI controller has changed to reflect the presence of the RAID hardware. Change settings of the SCSI controller to enable RAID mode. Restart the system and press y to confirm the changes. See "Using the System Setup Program" in your User's Guide.

  4. Install the RAID software.

See the RAID documentation for more information.

Installing a RAID Controller Card

CAUTION: Only trained service technicians are authorized to remove the system cover and access any of the components inside the system. See your Product Information Guide for complete information about safety precautions, working inside the computer, and protecting against electrostatic discharge.

Follow these general guidelines when installing a RAID controller card. For specific instructions, see the documentation supplied with the RAID controller card.

  1. Unpack the RAID controller card and prepare it for installation.

For instructions, see the documentation accompanying the card.

  1. Turn off the system, including any attached peripherals, and disconnect the system from the electrical outlet.

  2. Open the system. See "Opening the System" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  3. Install the RAID controller card. See "Installing an Expansion Card" in "Installing System Options."

  4. Connect SCSI interface cables supplied with the card to the SCSIA and/or SCSIB connectors on the SCSI backplane board.

NOTE: Cables can be connected from the RAID controller card to SCSIA and/or SCSIB backplane board connector(s). A backplane board connector that is not attached to the RAID controller card uses the integrated SCSI controller or optional integrated RAID controller if it is attached to the riser board.

To identify the connector on the RAID controller card, see documentation for the card. See Figure A-6 to locate the SCSI controller connectors on the SCSI backplane board.

Route the SCSI cables over the SCSI backplane board to the expansion-card cage.

  1. Connect the external SCSI devices to the card's external connector on the system's back panel.

If you are attaching multiple external SCSI devices, daisy-chain the devices to each other using the cables shipped with each device.

  1. Close the system. See "Closing the System" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  2. Reconnect the system to its electrical outlet and turn the system on, including any attached peripherals.

  3. Install any required SCSI device drivers. See "Installing and Configuring SCSI Drivers" in the User's Guide.

  4. Test the SCSI devices.

Test a SCSI hard drive by running the SCSI Controllers test in the system diagnostics.

Installing a SCSI Backplane Daughter Card

CAUTION: Only trained service technicians are authorized to remove the system cover and access any of the components inside the system. See your Product Information Guide for complete information about safety precautions, working inside the computer, and protecting against electrostatic discharge.

To operate the SCSI backplane in a 2/4 split backplane configuration, you must install a daughter card.

  1. Unpack the SCSI backplane board daughter card kit.

  2. Turn off the system, including any attached peripherals, and disconnect the system from the electrical outlet.

  3. Open the system. See "Opening the System" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  4. Disconnect the control panel cable from its backplane connector. See Figure 7-6.

The SCSI backplane daughter card connector and card guide are located in the compartment below the control panel cable.

  1. The daughter card fits between the sides of the card guide. To install the daughter card in the card guide and to connect it to the backplane connector, performing the following steps:

    1. Ensure that the retention lever is in the open position.

    1. Hold the daughter card by its edges with the card connector facing the SCSI backplane board and the card's retention peg facing the retention lever. See Figure 7-6.

    2. Lower the card into the card guide.

    3. Close the retention lever to slide the daughter card into the SCSI backplane connector and lock the card into place. See Figure 7-6.

  2. Reconnect the control panel cable to its backplane connector. See Figure 7-6.

Figure 7-6. Installing a SCSI Backplane Daughter Card

  1. Reconfigure the SCSI cable connections to the SCSI backplane as necessary to operate the backplane as a 2/4 split backplane:

See Figure A-6 to locate the connectors on the SCSI backplane board.

  1. Close the system. See "Closing the System" in "Troubleshooting Your System."

  2. Reconnect your system and peripherals to their electrical outlets, and turn on the system.

Configuring the Boot Device

If you plan to boot the system from a hard drive, the drive must be attached to the primary (or boot) controller. The device that the system boots from is determined by the boot order specified in the System Setup program.

The System Setup program provides options that the system uses to scan for installed boot devices. See your system's User's Guide for information about the System Setup program.

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