System Administration Guide: Basic Administration

Chapter 33 Administering Disks (Tasks)

This chapter contains disk administration procedures. Many procedures described in this chapter are optional if you are already familiar with how disks are managed on systems running the Solaris release.

For information on the procedures associated with administering disks, see Administering Disks (Task Map).

For overview information about disk management, see Chapter 32, Managing Disks (Overview).

Administering Disks (Task Map)

Task 

Description 

For Instructions 

Identify the disks on a system 

If you are not sure of the types of disks on a system, use the format utility to identify the disk types.

How to Identify the Disks on a System

Format the disk 

Determine whether a disk is already formatted by using the format utility.

How to Determine if a Disk is Formatted

 

In most cases, disks are already formatted. Use the format utility if you need to format a disk.

How to Format a Disk

Display slice information 

Display slice information by using the format utility.

How to Display Disk Slice Information

Label the disk 

Create the disk label by using the format utility.

How to Label a Disk

Examine the disk label 

Examine the disk label by using the prtvtoc command.

How to Examine a Disk Label

Recover a corrupted disk label 

You can attempt to recover a disk label that was damaged due to a system or power failure. 

How to Recover a Corrupted Disk Label

Create a format.dat entry

Create a format.dat entry to support a third-party disk.

How to Create a format.dat Entry

Automatically configure a SCSI disk 

You can automatically configure a SCSI disk with the SCSI-2 specification for disk device mode sense pages even if the specific drive type is not listed in the /etc/format.dat file.

How to Automatically Configure a SCSI Drive

Repair a defective disk sector  

Identify a defective disk sector by using the format utility.

How to Identify a Defective Sector by Using Surface Analysis

If necessary, fix a defective disk sector 

Fix a defective disk sector by using the format utility.

How to Repair a Defective Sector

Identifying Disks on a System

Use the format utility to discover the types of disks that are connected to a system. You can also use the format utility to verify that a disk is known to the system. For information on using the format utility, see Chapter 36, The format Utility (Reference).

How to Identify the Disks on a System

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Identify the disks that are recognized on the system with the format utility.


    # format
    

    The format utility displays a list of disks that it recognizes under AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS.

Examples—Identifying the Disks on a System

The following format output is from a system with one disk.


# format
Searching for disks...done


AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
       0. c0t0d0 <ST34321A cyl 8892 alt 2 hd 15 sec 63>
          /pci@1f,0/pci@1,1/ide@3/dad@0,0
Specify disk (enter its number): 

The format output associates a disk's physical and logical device name to the disk's marketing name, which appears in angle brackets <>. See the example below. This method is an easy way to identify which logical device names represent the disks that are connected to your system. For a description of logical and physical device names, see Chapter 30, Accessing Devices (Overview).

The following example uses a wildcard to display the disks that are connected to a second controller.


# format /dev/rdsk/c2*
AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
       0. /dev/rdsk/c2t10d0s0 <SUN9.0G cyl 4924 alt 2 hd 27 sec 133>
          /sbus@3,0/SUNW,fas@3,8800000/sd@a,0
       1. /dev/rdsk/c2t11d0s0 <SUN9.0G cyl 4924 alt 2 hd 27 sec 133>
          /sbus@3,0/SUNW,fas@3,8800000/sd@b,0
       2. /dev/rdsk/c2t14d0s0 <SUN18G cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@3,0/SUNW,fas@3,8800000/sd@e,0
       3. /dev/rdsk/c2t15d0s0 <SUN18G cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@3,0/SUNW,fas@3,8800000/sd@f,0
Specify disk (enter its number): 

The following example identifies the disks on a SPARC based system.


# format
0. c0t3d0 <SUN2.1G cyl 2733 alt 2 hd 19 sec 80>
   /iommu@0,10000000/sbus@0,10001000/espdma@5,8400000/esp@5,8800000/sd@3,0
Specify disk (enter its number): 

The format output identifies that disk 0 (target 3) is connected to the first SCSI host adapter (espdma@...), which is connected to the first SBus device (sbus@0...). The output also associates both the physical and logical device name to the disk's marketing name, SUN2.1G.

The following example shows how to identify the disks on an x86 based system.


# format
AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
  0. c0d0 <DEFAULT cyl 615 alt 2 hd 64 sec 63>
     /pci@0,0/pci-ide@7,1/ata@0/cmdk@0,0
  1. c0d1 <DEFAULT cyl 522 alt 2 hd 32 sec 63>
     /pci@0,0/pci-ide@7,1/ata@0/cmdk@1,0
  2. c1d0 <DEFAULT cyl 817 alt 2 hd 256 sec 63>
     /pci@0,0/pci-ide@7,1/ata@1/cmdk@0,0
Specify disk (enter its number):  

The format output identifies that disk 0 is connected to the first PCI host adapter (pci-ide@7...), which is connected to the ATA device (ata...). The format output on an x86 based system does not identify disks by their marketing names.

Where to Go From Here

Check the following table if the format utility did not recognize a disk.

Disk Problem 

To Solve the Problem 

Disk is newly added and you didn't perform a reconfiguration boot 

Go to Chapter 34, SPARC: Adding a Disk (Tasks) or Chapter 35, x86: Adding a Disk (Tasks).

Disk is a third-party disk 

Go to Creating a format.dat Entry.

Label was corrupted by a system problem, such as a power failure 

Go to How to Label a Disk.

Disk is not properly connected to the system 

Connect the disk to the system by using your disk hardware documentation. 

Formatting a Disk

Disks are formatted by the manufacturer or reseller. They usually do not need to be reformatted when you install the drive.

A disk must be formatted before you can do the following:


Caution – Caution –

Formatting a disk is a destructive process because it overwrites data on the disk. For this reason, disks are usually formatted only by the manufacturer or reseller. If you think disk defects are the cause of recurring problems, you can use the format utility to do a surface analysis. However, be careful to use only the commands that do not destroy data.


How to Determine if a Disk is Formatted

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Invoke the format utility.


    # format
    
  3. Type the number of the disk that you want to check from the list displayed on your screen.


    Specify disk (enter its number): 0
    
  4. Verify that the disk you chose is formatted by noting the following message.


    [disk formatted]

Example—Determining if a Disk Is Formatted

The following example shows that disk c1t0d0 is formatted.


# format /dev/rdsk/c1*
AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
       0. /dev/rdsk/c1t0d0s0 <SUN18G cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@2,0/QLGC,isp@2,10000/sd@0,0
       1. /dev/rdsk/c1t1d0s0 <SUN18G cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@2,0/QLGC,isp@2,10000/sd@1,0
       2. /dev/rdsk/c1t8d0s0 <SUN18G cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@2,0/QLGC,isp@2,10000/sd@8,0
       3. /dev/rdsk/c1t9d0s0 <SUN18G cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@2,0/QLGC,isp@2,10000/sd@9,0
Specify disk (enter its number): 0
selecting /dev/rdsk/c1t0d0s0
[disk formatted]

How to Format a Disk

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Invoke the format utility.


    # format
    
  3. Type the number of the disk that you want to format from the list displayed on your screen.


    Specify disk (enter its number): 0
    

    Caution – Caution –

    Do not select the system disk. If you format your system disk, you delete the operating system and any data on this disk.


  4. To begin formatting the disk, type format at the format> prompt. Confirm the command by typing y.


    format> format
    Ready to format.  Formatting cannot be interrupted
    and takes 23 minutes (estimated). Continue? yes
    
  5. Verify that the disk format is successful by noting the following messages.


    Beginning format. The current time Tue ABC xx xx:xx:xx xxxx
    
    Formatting...
    done
    
    Verifying media...
            pass 0 - pattern = 0xc6dec6de
       2035/12/18  
    
            pass 1 - pattern = 0x6db6db6d
       2035/12/18  
    
    Total of 0 defective blocks repaired.

Example—Formatting a Disk

The following example shows how to format the disk c0t3d0.


# format
Searching for disks...done
AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
  0. c0t1d0 <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
     /iommu@f,e0000000/sbus@f,e0001000/espdma@f,400000/esp@f,800000/sd@1,0
  1. c0t3d0 <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
     /iommu@f,e0000000/sbus@f,e0001000/espdma@f,400000/esp@f,800000/sd@3,0
Specify disk (enter its number):1
Selecting c0t3d0
[disk formatted]
format> format
Ready to format. Formatting cannot be interrupted
and takes 23 minutes (estimated). Continue? yes
Beginning format. The current time is Thu Dec  6 09:54:40 2001
Formatting ...
done
Verifying media...
        pass 0 - pattern = 0xc6dec6de
   2035/12/18  

        pass 1 - pattern = 0x6db6db6d
   2035/12/18  

Total of 0 defective blocks repaired.
format>

Displaying Disk Slices

You can use the format utility to check whether a disk has the appropriate disk slices. If you determine that a disk does not contain the slices you want to use, use the format utility to re-create them and label the disk. For information on creating disk slices, see SPARC: How to Create Disk Slices and Label a Disk or x86: How to Create Disk Slices and Label a Disk.


Note –

The format utility uses the term partition instead of slice.


How to Display Disk Slice Information

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Invoke the format utility.


    # format
    
  3. Type the number of the disk for which you want to display slice information from the list displayed on your screen.


    Specify disk (enter its number):1
    
  4. Select the partition menu.


    format> partition 
    
  5. Display the slice information for the current disk drive.


    partition> print
    
  6. Exit the format utility.


    partition> q
    format> q
    #
  7. Verify the displayed slice information by identifying specific slice tags and slices.

    If the screen output shows that no slice sizes are assigned, the disk probably does not have slices.

Examples—Displaying Disk Slice Information

The following example displays slice information for disk with a VTOC label.


# format
Searching for disks...done
Specify disk (enter its number):1
Selecting c0t0d0
format> partition
partition> print
Current partition table (original):
Total disk cylinders available: 8892 + 2 (reserved cylinders)

Part      Tag    Flag     Cylinders        Size            Blocks
  0       root    wm    1110 - 4687        1.61GB    (0/3578/0) 3381210
  1       swap    wu       0 - 1109      512.00MB    (0/1110/0) 1048950
  2     backup    wm       0 - 8891        4.01GB    (0/8892/0) 8402940
  3 unassigned    wm       0               0         (0/0/0)          0
  4 unassigned    wm       0               0         (0/0/0)          0
  5 unassigned    wm       0               0         (0/0/0)          0
  6 unassigned    wm       0               0         (0/0/0)          0
  7       home    wm    4688 - 8891        1.89GB    (0/4204/0) 3972780
partition> q
format> q
#

For a detailed description of the slice information in these examples, see Chapter 32, Managing Disks (Overview).

The following example shows the slice information on a disk with an EFI label.


# format
Searching for disks...done
Specify disk (enter its number): 9
selecting c4t1d0
[disk formatted]
format> partition
partition> print
Current partition table (original):
partition> q
format> q
Part      Tag    Flag     First Sector          Size          Last Sector
  0       root    wm                34       300.00GB           629145633
  1        usr    wm         629145634       300.00GB           1258291233
  2 unassigned    wm                 0            0                0    
  3 unassigned    wm                 0            0                0    
  4 unassigned    wm                 0            0                0    
  5 unassigned    wm                 0            0                0    
  6        usr    wm        1258291234       628.77GB           2576924637
  8   reserved    wm        2576924638         8.00MB           2576941021    

Creating and Examining a Disk Label

The labeling of a disk is usually done during system installation or when you are creating new disk slices. You might need to relabel a disk if the disk label becomes corrupted (for example, from a power failure).

The format utility attempts to automatically configure any unlabeled SCSI disk. If the format utility is able to automatically configure an unlabeled disk, it displays a message like the following:


	c0t0d1: configured with capacity of 4.00GB

Tip –

For information on labeling multiple disks with the same disk label, see Label Multiple Disks by Using the prtvtoc and fmthard Commands.


How to Label a Disk

You can use the following procedure to label at disk with a VTOC label or a disk greater than 1 terabyte with an EFI label. If you want to put an EFI label on disk smaller than 1 terabyte, see Example—Labeling a Disk Less Than 1 Terabyte with an EFI Label.

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Invoke the format utility.


    # format
    
  3. Type the number of the disk that you want to label from the list displayed on your screen.


    Specify disk (enter its number):1
    
  4. Select one of the following.

    1. If the disk is unlabeled and was successfully configured, go to step 5 to label the disk.

      The format utility will ask if you want to label the disk.

    2. If the disk is labeled and you want to change the disk type, or if the format utility was not able to automatically configure the disk, follow steps 6-7 to set the disk type and label the disk.

  5. Label the disk by typing y at the Label it now? prompt.


    Disk not labeled. Label it now? y
    

    The disk is now labeled. Go to step 10 to exit the format utility.

  6. Enter type at the format> prompt.


    format> type
    

    The Available Drive Types menu is displayed.

  7. Select a disk type from the list of possible disk types.


    Specify disk type (enter its number)[12]: 12
    

    Or, select 0 to automatically configure a SCSI-2 disk. For more information, see How to Automatically Configure a SCSI Drive.

  8. Label the disk. If the disk is not labeled, the following message is displayed.


    Disk not labeled. Label it now? y
    

    Otherwise, you are prompted with this message:


    Ready to label disk, continue? y
    
  9. Verify the disk label.


    format> verify 
    
  10. Exit the format utility.


    partition> q
    format> q
    #

Example—Labeling a Disk

The following example shows how to automatically configure and label a 1.05-Gbyte disk.


# format
	c1t0d0: configured with capacity of 1002.09MB
 
AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
	  0. c0t3d0 <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
     /iommu@f,e0000000/sbus@f,e0001000/espdma@f,400000/esp@f,800000/sd@1,0
	  1. c1t0d0 <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
     /iommu@f,e0000000/sbus@f,e0001000/espdma@f,400000/esp@f,800000/sd@1,0
Specify disk (enter its number): 1
Disk not labeled.  Label it now?  yes
format> verify
#

Example—Labeling a Disk Less Than 1 Terabyte with an EFI Label

The following example shows how to use the format -e command to label a disk less than 1 terabyte with an EFI label. Remember to verify that your layered software products will continue to work on systems with EFI-labeled disks. For general information on EFI label restrictions, see Restrictions of the EFI Disk Label.


# format -e
Searching for disks...done
AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
       1. c1t0d0 <SUNW18g cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@2,0/QLGC,isp@2,10000/sd@0,0
       2. c1t1d0 <SUNW18g cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@2,0/QLGC,isp@2,10000/sd@1,0
       3. c1t8d0 <SUNW18g cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@2,0/QLGC,isp@2,10000/sd@8,0
       4. c1t9d0 <SUNW18g cyl 7506 alt 2 hd 19 sec 248>
          /sbus@2,0/QLGC,isp@2,10000/sd@9,0
Specify disk (enter its number): 4
selecting c1t9d0
[disk formatted]
format> label
[0] SMI Label
[1] EFI Label
Specify Label type[0]: 1
Ready to label disk, continue? yes
format> quit

How to Examine a Disk Label

Examine disk label information by using the prtvtoc command. For a detailed description of the disk label and the information that is displayed by the prtvtoc command, see Chapter 32, Managing Disks (Overview).

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Display the disk label information.


    # prtvtoc /dev/rdsk/device-name
    

    device-name is the raw disk device you want to examine.

Examples—Examining a Disk Label

The following example shows the disk label information for disk with a VTOC label.


# prtvtoc /dev/rdsk/c0t0d0s0
* /dev/rdsk/c0t0d0s0 partition map
*
* Dimensions:
*     512 bytes/sector
*      63 sectors/track
*      15 tracks/cylinder
*     945 sectors/cylinder
*    8894 cylinders
*    8892 accessible cylinders
*
* Flags:
*   1: unmountable
*  10: read-only
*
*                          First     Sector    Last
* Partition  Tag  Flags    Sector     Count    Sector  Mount Directory
       0      2    00    1048950   3381210   4430159   /
       1      3    01          0   1048950   1048949
       2      5    00          0   8402940   8402939
       7      8    00    4430160   3972780   8402939   /export/home

The following example shows the disk label information for disk with an EFI label.


# prtvtoc /dev/rdsk/c3t1d0s0
* /dev/rdsk/c3t1d0s0 partition map
*
* Dimensions:
*     512 bytes/sector
* 2479267840 sectors
* 2479267773 accessible sectors
*
* Flags:
*   1: unmountable
*  10: read-only
*
*                          First      Sector       Last
* Partition  Tag  Flags    Sector     Count        Sector  Mount Directory
       0      2    00          34      262144      262177
       1      3    01      262178      262144      524321
       6      4    00      524322  2478727100  2479251421
       8     11    00  2479251422       16384  2479267805

Recovering a Corrupted Disk Label

Sometimes, a power or system failure causes a disk's label to become unrecognizable. A corrupted disk label doesn't always mean that the slice information or the disk's data must be recreated or restored.

The first step to recovering a corrupted disk label is to label the disk with the correct geometry and disk type information. You can complete this step through the normal disk labeling method, by using either automatic configuration or manual disk type specification.

If the format utility recognizes the disk type, the next step is to search for a backup label to label the disk. Labeling the disk with the backup label labels the disk with the correct partitioning information, the disk type, and disk geometry.

How to Recover a Corrupted Disk Label

  1. Boot the system to single-user mode.

    If necessary, boot the system from a local CD-ROM or the network in single-user mode to access the disk.

    See Chapter 13, SPARC: Booting a System (Tasks) or Chapter 14, x86: Booting a System (Tasks) for information on booting the system.

  2. Relabel the disk.


    # format
    

    At this point, the format utility attempts to automatically configure any unlabeled SCSI disk. If the format utility is able to configure the unlabeled and corrupted disk, it will display:


    cwtxdy: configured with capacity of abcMB

    The format utility then displays the list of disks on the system.

  3. Type the number of the disk that you need to recover from the list displayed on your screen.


    Specify disk (enter its number): 1
    
  4. Select one of the following to determine how to label the disk.

    1. If the disk was configured successfully, follow steps 5 and 6. Then go to step 12.

    2. If the disk was not configured successfully, follow steps 7-11. Then go to step 12.

  5. Search for the backup label.


    format> verify
    Warning: Could not read primary label.
    Warning: Check the current partitioning and 'label' the disk or 
    use the 'backup' command.
    Backup label contents:
    Volume name = <        >
    ascii name  = <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
    pcyl        = 2038
    ncyl        = 2036
    acyl        =    2
    nhead       =   14
    nsect       =   72
    Part      Tag    Flag     Cylinders        Size            Blocks
      0       root    wm       0 -  300      148.15MB    (301/0/0)   303408
      1       swap    wu     301 -  524      110.25MB    (224/0/0)   225792
      2     backup    wm       0 - 2035     1002.09MB    (2036/0/0) 2052288
      3 unassigned    wm       0               0         (0/0/0)          0
      4 unassigned    wm       0               0         (0/0/0)          0
      5 unassigned    wm       0               0         (0/0/0)          0
      6        usr    wm     525 - 2035      743.70MB    (1511/0/0) 1523088
      7 unassigned    wm       0               0         (0/0/0)          0
  6. If the format utility was able to find a backup label and the backup label contents appear satisfactory, use the backup command to label the disk with the backup label.


    format> backup
    Disk has a primary label, still continue? y
     
    Searching for backup labels...found.
    Restoring primary label

    The disk label has been recovered. Go to step 12.

  7. If the format utility was not able to automatically configure the disk, specify the disk type by using the type command.


    format> type
    

    The Available Drives Type menu is displayed.

  8. Select 0 to automatically configure the disk, or select a disk type from the list of possible disk types.


    Specify disk type (enter its number)[12]: 12
    
  9. If the disk was successfully configured, reply with no when the format utility asks if you want to label the disk.


    Disk not labeled.  Label it now?  no
    
  10. Use the verify command to search for backup labels.


    format> verify
    Warning: Could not read primary label.
    Warning: Check the current partitioning and 'label' the disk
    or use the 'backup' command.
    .
    .
    .
  11. If the format utility was able to find a backup label and the backup label contents appear satisfactory, use the backup command to label the disk with the backup label.


    format> backup
    Disk has a primary label, still continue? y
    Searching for backup labels...found.
    Restoring primary label

    The disk label has been recovered.

  12. Exit the format utility.


    format> q
    
  13. Verify the file systems on the recovered disk by using the fsck command.

    For information on using the fsck command, see Chapter 43, Checking UFS File System Consistency (Tasks).

Adding a Third-Party Disk

The Solaris environment supports many third-party disks. However, you might need to supply either a device driver, a format.dat entry, or both for the disk to be recognized. Other options for adding disks are as follows:

If the third-party disk is designed to work with standard SunOS-compatible device drivers, then creation of an appropriate format.dat entry should be enough to allow the disk to be recognized by the format utility. In other cases, you need to load a third-party device driver to support the disk.


Note –

Sun cannot guarantee that its format utility will work properly with all third-party disk drivers. If the disk driver is not compatible with the Solaris format utility, the disk drive vendor should supply you with a custom format program.


This section discusses what to do if some of this software support is missing. Typically, you discover that software support is missing when you invoke the format utility and find that the disk type is not recognized.

Supply the missing software as described in this section, and then refer to the appropriate configuration procedure for adding system disks or secondary disks in Chapter 34, SPARC: Adding a Disk (Tasks) or Chapter 35, x86: Adding a Disk (Tasks).

Creating a format.dat Entry

Unrecognized disks cannot be formatted without precise information about the disk's geometry and operating parameters. This information is supplied in the /etc/format.dat file.


Note –

SCSI-2 drives do not require a format.dat entry. The format utility automatically configures the SCSI-2 drivers if the drives are powered on during a reconfiguration boot. For step-by-step instructions on configuring a SCSI disk drive automatically, see How to Automatically Configure a SCSI Drive.


If your disk is unrecognized, use a text editor to create an entry in format.dat for the disk. You need to gather all the pertinent technical specifications about the disk and its controller before you start. This information should have been provided with the disk. If not, contact the disk manufacturer or your supplier.

How to Create a format.dat Entry

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Make a copy of the /etc/format.dat file.


    # cp /etc/format.dat /etc/format.dat.gen
    
  3. Modify the /etc/format.dat file to include an entry for the third-party disk by using the format.dat information that is described in Chapter 36, The format Utility (Reference).

    Use the disk's hardware product documentation to gather the required information.

Automatically Configuring SCSI Disk Drives

The format utility automatically configures SCSI disk drives even if that specific type of drive is not listed in the /etc/format.dat file. This feature enables you to format, create slices for, and label any disk driver that is compliant with the SCSI-2 specification for disk device mode sense pages.

Other options for adding disks are:

The following steps are involved in configuring a SCSI drive by using automatic configuration:

After the reconfiguration boot, invoke the format utility. The format utility will attempt to configure the disk and, if successful, alert the user that the disk was configured. For step-by-step instructions on configuring a SCSI disk drive automatically, see How to Automatically Configure a SCSI Drive.

Here's an example of a partition table for a 1.3-Gbyte SCSI disk drive that was displayed by the format utility.


Part    Tag    Flag     Cylinders     Size        Blocks
   0     root    wm       0 -   96    64.41MB      (97/0/0)
   1     swap    wu      97 -  289   128.16MB     (193/0/0)
   2   backup    wu       0 - 1964     1.27GB    (1965/0/0)
   6      usr    wm     290 - 1964     1.09GB    (1675/0/0)

For more information on using SCSI automatic configuration, see Chapter 36, The format Utility (Reference).

How to Automatically Configure a SCSI Drive

  1. Become superuser or equivalent role.

  2. Create the /reconfigure file that will be read when the system is booted.


    # touch /reconfigure
    
  3. Shut down the system.


    # shutdown -i0 -gn -y
    

    -in

    Brings the system down to init level 0, the power-down state. 

    -g30

    Notifies logged-in users that they have n seconds before the system begins to shut down.

    -y

    Specifies that the command should run without user intervention. 

    The ok prompt is displayed after the system is shut down.

  4. Turn off the power to the system and all external peripheral devices.

  5. Make sure that the disk you are adding has a different target number than the other devices on the system.

    You will often find a small switch located at the back of the disk for this purpose.

  6. Connect the disk to the system and check the physical connections.

    Refer to the disk's hardware installation guide for installation details.

  7. Turn on the power to all external peripherals.

  8. Turn on the power to the system.

    The system boots and displays the login prompt.

  9. Log back in as superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  10. Invoke the format utility and select the disk that you want to configure automatically.


    # format
    Searching for disks...done
    c1t0d0: configured with capacity of 1002.09MB
    AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
    0. c0t1d0 <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
       /iommu@f,e0000000/sbus@f,e0001000/espdma@f,400000/esp@f,800000/sd@1,0
    1. c0t3d0 <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
       /iommu@f,e0000000/sbus@f,e0001000/espdma@f,400000/esp@f,800000/sd@3,0
    Specify disk (enter its number): 1
    
  11. Type yes to the prompt to label the disk.

    Typing y causes the disk label to be generated and written to the disk by SCSI automatic configuration.


    Disk not labeled. Label it now? y
    
  12. Verify the disk label.


    format> verify
    
  13. Exit the format utility.


    format> q
    

Repairing a Defective Sector

If a disk on your system has a defective sector, you can repair it by following procedures in this section. You might become aware of defective sectors when you do the following:

How to Identify a Defective Sector by Using Surface Analysis

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Unmount the file system in the slice that contains the defective sector.


    # umount /dev/dsk/device-name
    

    For more information, see mount(1M).

  3. Invoke the format utility.


    # format
    
  4. Select the affected disk.


    Specify disk (enter its number):1
    selecting c0t2d0:
    [disk formatted]
    Warning: Current Disk has mounted partitions.
  5. Select the analyze menu.


    format> analyze
    
  6. Set up the analysis parameters by typing setup at the analyze> prompt.

    Use the parameters shown here:


    analyze> setup
    Analyze entire disk [yes]? n
    Enter starting block number [0, 0/0/0]: 12330
    Enter ending block number [2052287, 2035/13/71]: 12360
    Loop continuously [no]? y
    Repair defective blocks [yes]? n
    Stop after first error [no]? n
    Use random bit patterns [no]? n
    Enter number of blocks per transfer [126, 0/1/54]: 1
    Verify media after formatting [yes]? y
    Enable extended messages [no]? n
    Restore defect list [yes]? y
    Create defect label [yes]? y
    
  7. Use the read command to find the defect.


    analyze> read
    Ready to analyze (won't harm SunOS). This takes a long time,
    but is interruptible with Control-C. Continue? y
            pass 0
       2035/12/1825/7/24
            pass 1
    Block 12354  (18/4/18), Corrected media error (hard data ecc)
       25/7/24
    ^C
    Total of 1 defective blocks repaired.

How to Repair a Defective Sector

  1. Become superuser or assume an equivalent role.

  2. Invoke the format utility.


    # format
    
  3. Select the disk that contains the defective sector.


    Specify disk (enter its number): 1
    selecting c0t3d0
    [disk formatted]
    format> 
  4. Select the repair command.


    format> repair
    
  5. Type the defective block number.


    Enter absolute block number of defect: 12354
       Ready to repair defect, continue? y
       Repairing block 12354 (18/4/18)...ok.
    format>

    If you are unsure of the format that is used to identify the defective sector, see How to Identify a Defective Sector by Using Surface Analysis for more information.

Tips and Tricks for Managing Disks

Use the following tips to help you manage disks more efficiently.

Debugging format Sessions

Invoke format -M to enable extended and diagnostic messages for ATA and SCSI devices.

In this example, the series of numbers under Inquiry: represent the hexadecimal value of the inquiry data that is displayed to the right of the numbers.


# format -M
Searching for disks...done
AVAILABLE DISK SELECTIONS:
  0. c0t1d0 <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
     /iommu@f,e0000000/sbus@f,e0001000/espdma@f,400000/esp@f,800000/sd@1,0
  1. c0t3d0 <SUN1.05 cyl 2036 alt 2 hd 14 sec 72>
     /iommu@f,e0000000/sbus@f,e0001000/espdma@f,400000/esp@f,800000/sd@3,0
 
Specify disk (enter its number): 0
selecting c0t3d0
[disk formatted]
format> inquiry
Inquiry:
00 00 02 02 8f 00 00 12 53 45 41 47 41 54 45 20     ........NAME....
53 54 31 31 32 30 30 4e 20 53 55 4e 31 2e 30 35     ST11200N SUN1.05
38 33 35 38 30 30 30 33 30 32 30 39 00 00 00 00     835800030209....
00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00     ................
00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00     ................
00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00     ................
00 43 6f 70 79 72 69 67 68 74 20 28 63 29 20 31     .Copyright (c) 1
39 39 32 20 53 65 61 67 61 74 65 20 41 6c 6c 20     992 NAME    All 
72 69 67 68 74 73 20 72 65 73 65 72 76 65 64 20     rights reserved 
30 30 30                                            000
Vendor:   name 
Product:  ST11200N SUN1.05
Revision: 8358
format> 

Label Multiple Disks by Using the prtvtoc and fmthard Commands

Use the prtvtoc and fmthard commands to label multiple disks with the same disk geometry.

Use the following for loop in a script to copy a disk label from one disk and replicate it on multiple disks.


# for i in x y z
> do
> prtvtoc /dev/rdsk/cwtxdysz | fmthard -s - /dev/rdsk/cwt${i}d0s2
> done

Example—Labeling Multiple Disks

In this example, the disk label from c2t0d0s0 is copied to four other disks.


# for i in 1 2 3 5
> do
> prtvtoc /dev/rdsk/c2t0d0s0 | fmthard -s - /dev/rdsk/c2t${i}d0s2
> done
fmthard:  New volume table of contents now in place.
fmthard:  New volume table of contents now in place.
fmthard:  New volume table of contents now in place.
fmthard:  New volume table of contents now in place.
#