Garysfootprint

Q: why is xserve raid limited to 1tb drives can i fit larger drives

I have bought a xserve raid array A1009 with an xserve i am looking to create a home media system storage for videos photos music & docs all in one place in a rack cabinet.


I would like to increase the storage capacity in the raid & have been looking online and found i am limited to 1tb drives is there a way around this so i can install 4tb drives or even 8tb drives.


I am looking to connect 2 mini macs 2 imacs and a mac pro tower and maybe a pro mac G5.


any help would be appreciated i have a little knowledge in computers and macs but very little in networks so any guidance would be a great help.

Xserve

Posted on Jul 30, 2015 4:12 PM

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Q: why is xserve raid limited to 1tb drives can i fit larger drives

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  • by Camelot,

    Camelot Camelot Jul 30, 2015 9:27 PM in response to Garysfootprint
    Level 8 (47,285 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 30, 2015 9:27 PM in response to Garysfootprint

    There is no way around it - at least not officially.

     

    The firmware in the XServe RAID - that is, the actual code that deals with interacting/reading/writing to the drives - was specifically tuned to the drives that shipped in the XServe RAID - namely 250GB, 400GB, 500GB and, ultimately, 1TB, which was the largest drive in common use when the XServe RAID was discontinued. As such, the device doesn't know how to talk to larger drives.

     

    That said,you could try putting in a larger drive and seeing if it works, but I wouldn't hold out much hope. I certainly would not run the RAID with different sized drives (or even drives from different vendors).

     

    At the end of the day, if you want more space, look for other options, or find another XServe RAID and chain them together.

  • by Garysfootprint,

    Garysfootprint Garysfootprint Jul 31, 2015 1:34 AM in response to Camelot
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Servers Enterprise
    Jul 31, 2015 1:34 AM in response to Camelot

    thank you Camelot for your answer it was helpful i have only just started doing this and i am learning as i go so your help is very much appreciated i hope you don't you mind if i ask you a question? you might be able to help me and save me looking a complete fool when i fail

    If i was to put say 4tb drives in the raid and then partition them it into 1tb partitions do you think that would work?

     

    i was thinking of adding another raid when i can afford one and the try to learn how to link them together that why i got the xserve hoping they would match up easily.

  • by Camelot,

    Camelot Camelot Jul 31, 2015 10:37 AM in response to Garysfootprint
    Level 8 (47,285 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 31, 2015 10:37 AM in response to Garysfootprint

    If i was to put say 4tb drives in the raid and then partition them it into 1tb partitions do you think that would work?

     

    No. I'm absolutely sure it would not.

     

    The problem is far more low-level than that - think of it more as the RAID controller having no idea how to talk to a 4TB drive - it expects 1TB drives at most.

     

    Additionally, the RAID controller expects to talk to the drive directly, and doesn't understand partitions (partitions are just logical, not physical constraints). Assuming you could partition the drive (which you can't, because the UI doesn't support it), the two outcomes would be 1) the RAID ignores the partition map, or b) it uses the first partition it finds. Hard to say which is more likely since you don't have an option to partition the drives anyway

     

    But even if I am wrong (it does happen occasionally ) and it recognizes the partitions, the RAID controller still only expects 14 drives (partitions), and isn't likely to build an array over 56 partitions.

  • by Garysfootprint,

    Garysfootprint Garysfootprint Aug 1, 2015 1:09 AM in response to Camelot
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Servers Enterprise
    Aug 1, 2015 1:09 AM in response to Camelot

    Thank you for explaining it to me i really appreciate your advice now at least i know what is limiting the size of drive i can fit to the raid.  it just shows how much i have to learn.

    I know this might seem a stupid question but is there any way to increase the size of drives the raid controller will talk recognize?

  • by Camelot,

    Camelot Camelot Aug 1, 2015 4:21 PM in response to Garysfootprint
    Level 8 (47,285 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 1, 2015 4:21 PM in response to Garysfootprint

    I know this might seem a stupid question but is there any way to increase the size of drives the raid controller will talk recognize?

     

    Well, yes - that's what the firmware does. each time the XServe RAID has supported larger drives there has been a corresponding firmware update to include that support. The issue is that the firmware code is proprietary and owned by Apple, so no one else (least of all you or me) can make the necessary changes.  Apple could do it but the chances of that are... well, let's just say it's not high

  • by Garysfootprint,

    Garysfootprint Garysfootprint Aug 3, 2015 3:23 PM in response to Camelot
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Servers Enterprise
    Aug 3, 2015 3:23 PM in response to Camelot

    thank you for your explanation i now know why i am limited to 1tb drives i will have to live with that, i had hoped to use bigger drives.

    i will just have to look into other options later to increase storage space many thanks for your help and expertise in helping me to understand

  • by Garysfootprint,

    Garysfootprint Garysfootprint Aug 7, 2015 6:38 PM in response to Garysfootprint
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Servers Enterprise
    Aug 7, 2015 6:38 PM in response to Garysfootprint

    am i restricted to the number of raid arrays i can connect to my xserve?

  • by Camelot,

    Camelot Camelot Aug 9, 2015 1:24 PM in response to Garysfootprint
    Level 8 (47,285 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 9, 2015 1:24 PM in response to Garysfootprint

    You are limited only ny the number of fiber channel ports. If you have a quad-port card you can connect two XServe RAIDs. If you have a fiber channel switch you can connect any number (up to the number of ports on the switch)