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User-defined configurations

You can specify up to four unique, user-defined configurations for the integrated shared storage installed in the BladeCenter S system.

There are two ways to specify your own integrated storage configuration:
  • Through the SAS connectivity module, using either the Web-based user interface or the command-line interface.
  • Using Storage Configuration Manager.

After specifying a configuration, you can save it and export it for use in another BladeCenter S system.

To plan for a user-defined storage configuration:
  • Determine which hard disk drives in disk storage module 1 will be mapped to each of the blade servers in the BladeCenter S system.
  • Determine which hard disk drives in disk storage module 2 will be mapped to each of the blade servers in the BladeCenter S system.
  • Determine which external ports on the SAS connectivity module in I/O module bay 3 will be accessible by each of the blade servers.
  • Determine which external ports on the SAS connectivity module in I/O module bay 4 (if installed) will be accessible by each of the blade servers.

Planning considerations​

Consider the following when planning for integrated storage:
  • Map a blade server to one or more disks in each of the disk storage modules. Then you can configure the disks as a RAID array to reduce the potential for a hard disk failure causing a blade server to lose access to the storage.
    To set up and manage RAID arrays, you can choose from these options:
    • LSI Configuration Utility, which is provided on the blade server itself.
    • MegaRAID Storage Manager, which is provided on CD-ROM with the SAS expansion option. MegaRAID Storage Manager is available for Windows and Linux, and it enables you to create and manage RAID arrays.
    • ServerGuide, which you can use to install the Microsoft Windows operating system on a blade servfer.
  • Map the blade server to the same hard disks in both disk storage modules to reduce management complexity. For example, if you choose to map the blade server in blade server bay 1 to the hard disk drive in hard disk drive bay 1 of one disk storage module, map the same blade server to the hard disk drive in hard disk drive bay 1 of the second disk storage module.