Connecting Physical Disks

After installing the RAID controller, connect physical disks to the RAID controller.

To connect physical disks

1.  Select a RAID level that is best suited for your application. For information on RAID levels, see Selecting a RAID Level.

2.  Connect the required number of physical disks, as specified in Table 1, to available ports on the controller either directly or through a backplane or enclosure. Refer to the RAID controller HBA or evaluation board documentation for installation instructions.

Table 1  Minimum Number of Physical Disks

Controller

Minimum Number of Disks Required for RAID Level

 

0

1

1E

5

6

10

50

60

IO Controller (IOC)

2

2

n/a

3

n/a

4

n/a

n/a

IO Processor (IOP)

2

2

3

3

4

4

6

8

RAID-On-Chip (ROC) Controller

2

2

3

3

4

4

6

8

Note: Installing disks of similar capacity enhances RAID performance.

3.  Power-up the physical disks.

Note: To create virtual disks and arrays, only use physical disks connected to a single controller.