PowerEdge: How to Create a Virtual Disk Using iDRAC9
Summary:This article explains how to create a virtual disk using the iDRAC9 web management interface with PERC 9 and PERC 10.
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In the iDRAC Web Interface, go to Configuration and then click Storage Configuration.
Figure 1: Storage Configuration
The Storage Configuration tab is no longer available from iDRAC firmware version 5.10.00.00 and later versions, use the Storage menu to perform configuration actions.
Go to Storage and then click Physical Disks.
Figure 2: Physical Disks
Select the RAID controller for which you want to create the virtual disk from the Controller drop-down menu (Only for versions before 5.10.00.00).
Figure 3: Selecting a RAID controller
Check that available disks are listed in the Physical Disk Configuration section.
Figure 4: Before 5.10.00.00 Physical Disk Configuration
Figure 5: 5.10.00.00 and later Physical Disk Selection
Open the Virtual Disk Configuration menu and click the button Create Virtual Disk.
Figure 6: Before 5.10.00.00 Create Virtual Disk button.
For version 5.10.00.00 and later only, click the Create Virtual Disk button from the Physical Disks menu.
Figure 7: 5.10.00.00 and later Create Virtual Disk button.
The creator wizard appears to configure the Virtual Disk properties.
In the Capacity field, enter the size of the virtual disk. The maximum size is displayed and then updated as disks are selected. Click Add to Pending Operations when ready. You can use alphanumeric characters, spaces, dashes, and underscores in the disk name. Any other special characters that you enter are removed while creating the virtual disk.
Figure 8: Before 5.10.00.00 Create Virtual Disk Properties.
For version 5.10.00.00 and later only, if there are multiple controllers, select the controller where the disk to be added resides. Select the physical disk to be added with Next and complete the four steps.
Figure 9: 5.10.00.00 and later Create Virtual Disk Properties.
The message "RAC0685: A pending operation has been created for this Create Virtual Disk operation" appears to confirm the task creation.
To perform this creation task, go to the bottom of the page and select Apply Now. If needed, the task can be scheduled.
Figure 10: Before 5.10.00.00 Apply Now button.
Figure 11: 5.10.00.00 and later Apply Now button.
The raid configuration task starts. It is possible to monitor the status by selecting the menu Maintenance and then clicking Job Queue.
When the task is completed, the Virtual Disk is listed by selecting the menu Storage and then clicking Virtual Disks.
Figure 12: Storage Virtual Disks
The virtual disk is now ready for use and must be formatted by your operating system.
For older legacy systems with iDRAC6, iDRAC7, and iDRAC8, this option is not available. Create a virtual disk in the RAID BIOS or using Dell Open Manage Server Administrator.
Note: If your system is in the BIOS or pre-POST state, your system must be restated. It must pass the BIOS screen in order for the LifeCycle Controller to complete the task.