Adding and Replacing Hard Disks

The following procedures explain how to add or replace conventional hard disks in the NetWare server and how to load or replace disk drivers.

If you have a hot plug bus and if your hardware supports hot plug devices (such as hard disks that can be added or removed without downing the server), see Contents > HotPlug Hardware Management.


Adding a Hard Disk to the NetWare Server


Prerequisites


Procedure

Use the following procedure to install an additional hard disk in a functioning NetWare server.

  1. Follow the instructions that came with your hard disk to install the disk and associated hardware, such as a disk adapter and cable. If necessary, configure the computer to recognize the new disk

    Refer to the documentation that came with the computer for more information about configuration methods and requirements.

  2. Start the server.

    Change to the boot directory (usually c:\nwserver) and type the following at the prompt:

    SERVER

  3. At the server console prompt, enter

    [LOAD] NWCONFIG

  4. Use NWCONFIG to load a disk driver, if needed.

    You must load a driver if you have installed a new disk adapter along with the hard disk.

    For more information about loading drivers, see Loading Disk Drivers.

  5. Use NWCONFIG to partition the disk, creating at least one NetWare partition.

    If you need help, see Creating NetWare Partitions.

  6. Go to one of the following sections:

    1. To mirror or duplex the partitions, see Mirroring and Duplexing Partitions.

    2. To create a new NetWare volume, see Contents > Traditional File Services > Setting Up > Setting Up Volumes > Creating a Volume.

    3. To create NSS volumes, see Contents > Novell Storage Services (NSS).

    4. To add the partition to an existing volume, see Contents > Traditional File Services > Managing > Managing Volumes > Changing Volume Size.


Replacing a Hard Disk

If a hard disk becomes unreliable or unusable, follow this procedure to remove the disk from the network.

If you have been backing up your data consistently and verifying its integrity, you will be able to reload data for the volumes affected by the disk failure.

WARNING:  Some buses support hard disks (called hot plug devices) that can be removed while the system is running. See Contents > HotPlug Hardware Management.

If you replace a mirrored hot-plug disk while the system is running, execute SCAN FOR NEW DEVICES as soon as the disk is removed. This command lets the system know that the disk is gone. Failure to execute this command could cause the new disk to mirror over the existing disk, thus erasing all data on the existing disk. See Unmirroring Partitions and Reference > Utilities Reference > Utilities > SCAN FOR NEW DEVICES.


Procedure

  1. If the bad disk was mirrored, check the sys$log.err file to see which disk in the mirrored set failed.

    The error log contains a message stating that a device has been deactivated due to a device error. It includes the device name, which is a series of letters and numbers within brackets. See Device Names.

  2. If possible, make a backup copy of the data on the hard disk.

    Make sure the backup copy contains uncorrupted versions of all files and directories on the hard disk.

  3. If the disk is mirrored, dismount the volumes that reside on the disk.

    Enter the following command for each volume on the disk:

    DISMOUNT [ volume_name]

  4. Unmirror the hard disk if it is mirrored.

    See Unmirroring Partitions.

  5. At the server console, bring down the server by entering

    DOWN

  6. Turn off the system containing the hard disk to be replaced.

  7. Remove the hard disk and install the replacement.

    Use the instructions that came with the hard disk.

  8. Turn on power and restart the server.

    If the failed disk contained the only copy of the server operating system, refer to your backup software to determine whether you can restore NetWare and the file system from a backup or whether you must reinstall NetWare.

    If you use Storage Management ServicesTM (SMSTM) as your backup application, you must reinstall NetWare, then restore files from a backup. See Backup and Restore.

    If another disk contains the server operating system, so that the server is functional, continue with the remaining steps.

  9. At the server console prompt, enter

    [LOAD] NWCONFIG

  10. Use NWCONFIG > Driver Options > Configure Disk and Storage Device Drivers to load a disk driver, if needed.

    You must load a driver if you have installed a new disk adapter along with the hard disk.

    For more information about loading drivers, see Loading Disk Drivers.

  11. If the replacement disk has been used before, use NWCONFIG to delete any existing partitions on the replacement disk.

    See Deleting NetWare Partitions.

    WARNING:  Deleting disk partitions makes all data on the partitions inaccessible. Be sure you delete the partitions on the replacement disk, not an existing disk.

  12. Use NWCONFIG to create new partitions on the replacement disk.

    See Creating NetWare Partitions.

  13. Complete one of the following steps:

    1. If the partitions on the old disk were not mirrored, create the NetWare volumes that previously resided on the hard disk and restore the data from a backup.

      See Contents > Traditional File Services > Setting Up > Setting Up Volumes > Creating a Volume.

    2. If the partitions on the old disk were mirrored or duplexed, remirror or duplex the new partitions.

      See Mirroring and Duplexing Partitions.

    3. If the NSS file system existed on the old disk, create the NSS storage groups and volumes that previously resided on the hard disk and restore the data from a backup.

      See Contents > Novell Storage Services (NSS).


Loading Disk Drivers

After you add or replace a hard disk adapter on your NetWare server, you must load the corresponding disk driver.

Loading a disk driver enables communication between the disk controller and the server's CPU.

Load the disk driver once for each disk adapter you want to support.

Most NetWare disk drivers have a help file that appears on the screen as you highlight the driver. Refer to these descriptions to determine which driver to load.

  1. At the server console prompt, enter

    [LOAD] NWCONFIG

  2. Select Driver Options > Configure Disk and Storage Device Drivers.

  3. If you want NWCONFIG to find the drivers compatible with your disk, select Discover and Load Additional Drivers. Otherwise, go to Step 4.

    If NWCONFIG finds only one driver compatible with your disk adapter, it loads the driver automatically. Press Alt + F10 to exit NWCONFIG.

    If NWCONFIG finds either more than one driver or no driver compatible with your disk adapter, it displays a message listing the hardware it detected. Press Enter to see a list of drivers to choose from and go to Step 5.

  4. To load a driver manually, select Load an Additional Driver.

  5. Select the disk driver you want to load and press Enter.

    You can also press Ins to load a driver from diskette.

    IMPORTANT:  Some drivers do not have a description file (a configuration file that's appended to the driver). These drivers have to be loaded manually at the system console. To load these drivers, follow the screen prompts or press F1 for help.

  6. If a parameter window appears, you can select Select/Modify Driver Parameters to modify the defaults. When parameter values are correct, select Save Parameters and Load Driver.

    The system displays a message asking if you want to select an additional driver.

  7. If you want to load an additional driver, select Yes and repeat Steps 5 and 6; otherwise select No.

    You can load the same driver more than once if you have additional disk controller boards of the same type. (Remember to check controller board settings for conflicts.)

  8. To exit NWCONFIG, press Alt + F10.

For general information about .cdm and .ham modules, see Drivers for Host Adapters and Storage Devices.


Replacing Disk Drivers

The conventional way to replace a disk driver is to unload the driver, thus dismounting all the volumes, then load the new driver and remount the volumes. If you are following this process, be sure you replace a driver only when users won't need to access the volumes.

You can replace one instance of a driver that has been loaded multiple times by using the REMOVE STORAGE ADAPTER command. See Contents > Reference > Utilities Reference > Utilities > REMOVE STORAGE ADAPTER.

NetWare also supports hot replace disk drivers that can be replaced without dismounting volumes or otherwise interrupting the server's operation. If you are replacing such a driver, simply load the new driver at the server console prompt. The server loads the new driver immediately and unloads the old driver without dismounting volumes or otherwise interrupting service.

If you aren't sure whether your disk driver is a hot replace driver, try loading the new driver without unloading the existing driver. You will receive an error message if the driver can't be replaced without first unloading the old driver and dismounting volumes.