Configuring RAID Using Oracle System Assistant

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Use Oracle System Assistant to prepare a server hard drive for an OS installation by configuring it as a RAID volume and making it bootable.

Launch Oracle System Assistant.
See Launching Oracle System Assistant.

The Oracle System Assistant System Overview screen appears.
In the System Overview screen, verify that the BIOS Mode is set to the correct boot mode (UEFI or Legacy BIOS).
Note - The BIOS boot mode used for the RAID configuration must match the mode that you use when you install the operating system. Additionally, not all supported operating systems support UEFI boot mode. For a list of operating systems that support UEFI boot mode, see UEFI BIOS.
To switch between UEFI and legacy boot modes, see the Oracle x86 Administration Guide for X5 Series Servers at http://www.oracle.com/goto/x86AdminDiag/docs.
Click the Configure Hardware button, then select the RAID Configuration tab.
The RAID Configuration screen appears. The Created Volumes list shows any existing volumes.

Note - Some drives are shipped with RAID 0 preinstalled. If your drives are already configured as RAID volumes, and you do not wish to change the configuration, you can proceed to Step 8.
In the HBA list box, select Oracle Storage 12 Gb SAS PCIe RAID HBA, Internal.
In the Select RAID Level list box, select the desired RAID level.
Oracle System Assistant supports RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, and RAID 10.
In the Available Disks table, select the storage drives that you want to add to the RAID volume, and click the Create Volume button.
The Create Volume dialog box appears.
Fill in the Create Volume dialog information:
1. (Optional) Enter the Volume Name.
  If you do not name the volume, Oracle System Assistant creates a volume without a name.
2. Select the volume Stripe Size or accept the default stripe size.
3. Click Create.
  The Creating RAID Volume information box appears.
  
  After the volume is created, it appears in the Created Volumes table.
If you plan to install an OS on the volume, set it as bootable using the following steps:
1. In the Details/Actions column of the Created Volumes table, click the Details button for the volume you want to set as bootable.
  The Volume Details dialog box appears.
2. (Optional) In the Volume Name field, enter or modify a volume name.
  If you did not enter a volume name earlier, the Volume Details dialog box gives you a second chance to do so. If you entered a volume name earlier, you can modify it here; however, you cannot delete the name entirely.
  
  Note - Naming the volume is optional. If you do not name the volume, Oracle System Assistant creates a volume without a name. Additionally, if at any time you want to change the volume name, you can do so by clicking on the Details button in the Created Volumes table; however, once a volume name is assigned, you cannot delete it.
3. Select the Set As Bootable check box.
4. Click Save & Close.
  The Set Volume For Boot confirmation dialog appears.
5. Click OK.
  The RAID Configuration screen appears and lists the RAID volume as the current boot device.
To designate one or more disks as global hot spares, perform the following steps:
1. In the Details/Actions column of the Available Disks table, click the Details button for the disk you want to set as a global hot spare.
  The Disk Details dialog box appears.
2. Select the Set as Hot Spare check box.
  Note - You can create a maximum of 256 hot spares.
3. Click Save.
  The Disk Details dialog box closes.
To delete a volume, perform the following steps:
1. Select the volume you want to delete in the Created Volumes table.
2. Click the Delete Volume button.
Do one of the following:
- To select any other Oracle System Assistant task, click the corresponding button in the left panel menu. For example, after configuring RAID, you might want to select the Install OS task and perform an operating system installation.
- To quit Oracle System Assistant, click Exit.

See Also

Set Up an Operating System and Drivers