Dell PowerEdge RAID Controller 12 User’s Guide PERC H965i Adapter, PERC H965i Front, PERC H965i MX, and PERC H965e Adapter

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Boot-time errors

The following table lists error messages, probable causes, and recommended response action to resolve the issue.

Table 1. Boot-time issues and corrective actionsBoot-time issues and correctiv actions when using PERC 12
Description	Error Message	Probable Cause	Recommended Corrective Action
Removed or Missing Device	Some configured disks have been removed from the system or are no longer accessible. Check the cables and ensure all drives are installed in the slots.	Some configured drives are removed. Else, they may not be accessible anymore. Or, the cables from PERC to the backplane may be improperly connected.	Check the cables and ensure all drives are installed in the slots. If there are no cable related issues, restart the server.
Removed or Missing Device	The following VDs are missing <VD Names>. If you proceed or continue to start the Configuration Utility, these VDs will be removed from the configuration. To use VDs at a later time, you must import them.	Because some configured drives are removed. Else, they may not be accessible anymore. Or, the cables from PERC to the backplane may be improperly connected.	Check the cables and ensure all drives are installed in the slots. If there are no cable related issues, restart the server.
Removed or Missing Device	The following VDs are missing <VD Names> complete spans. If you proceed or continue to start the Configuration Utility, these VDs will be removed from the configuration. To use VDs at a later time, you must import them.	Because some configured drives are removed. Else, they may not be accessible anymore. Or, the cables from PERC to the backplane may be improperly connected.	Check the cables and ensure all drives are installed in the slots. If there are no cable related issues, restart the server.
Removed or Missing Device	All drives associated with the previous configuration are no longer associated with the configuration.	Because some configured drives are removed. Else, they may not be accessible anymore. Or, the cables from PERC to the backplane may be improperly connected.	Check the cables and ensure all drives are installed in the slots. If there are no cable related issues, restart the server.
Offline VD	The following VDs have missing PDs: <VD_Names>. If you continue or start the Configuration Utility, these VDs will be identified as Offline, and may become inaccessible.	Some configured drives are either removed or have stopped functioning, resulting in the VDs to be identified as Offline.	Check the cables and ensure all drives are installed in the slots. If there are no cable related issues, restart the server.
VD in write-through mode	The write-back VDs are temporarily running in write-through mode.	The controller energy pack may have low voltage or may not be functional. It can also be because the energy pack or super capacitor being charged is either missing or not in good health state.	Ensure that the cable connection to the energy pack cable is correct. Ensure the battery (Energy Pack) health status is good. If you are using an energy pack, please allow the energy pack to charge for 24 hours before evaluating the energy pack for replacement. You can evaluate the health of the energy pack or super capacitor by using the appropriate utility within the operating system or within POST.
Preserved Cache	Some VDs with preserved cache are either offline or not installed.	VDs had dirty cache during a server boot operation.	Insert the missing drives and restart the server. Check the cables and ensure all drives are installed in the slots.
The Foreign Configuration Import operations did not import any drives.	The Foreign Configuration Import operations did not import any drives.	Either the Foreign Configuration is incompatible with this controller or the Foreign Configuration is incomplete.	Make sure that either the drives necessary for this configuration are installed or remove the incompatible configuration.
Cache Discarded	Some memory or energy pack issues were detected. An unexpected power loss has occurred. The adapter has been recovered, but the controller cache was lost.	The battery (Energy Pack) may be not in good state or has low voltage during the AC cycle of a server that has dirty cache.	Contact the Dell Technical support team.
Cache Discarded	The controller cache was discarded because of an unexpected power-off or reboot operation during a write operation, but the adapter has recovered. Or, some memory or energy pack issues were detected. An unexpected power loss has occurred. The adapter has been recovered, but the controller cache was lost.	The battery (Energy Pack) may be not in good state or has low voltage during the AC cycle of a server that has dirty cache. The DDR4 device on the server may be moving to a nonfunctional state.	Contact the Dell Technical support team.
Cache Discarded	An issue is observed in restoring the offloaded cache. The data cache is lost.	The battery (Energy Pack) may be not in good state or has low voltage during the AC cycle of a server that has dirty cache.	Contact the Dell Technical support team.
Cache Discarded	After resetting, the Onboard Controller Memory (OCM) data restore operation is unsuccessful.	The onboard controller memory may either have an issue or moved to a bad state.	Contact the Dell Technical support team.
Cache data lost because of Bad or Low Voltage Energy Pack	Cache Offload was not sustainable. This could be caused by bad or low voltage energy pack or battery. Write journals could have been possibly lost with parity-based arrays (RAID 5, 6, 50, or 60).	Energy pack is not charged fully.	Wait for the energy pack to charge back before enabling the WB/AWB cache. If issue persists, replace the energy pack.
Multi-Bit ECC errors detected	Multi-bit ECC errors were detected on the RAID controller.	The DDR4 device on the server may be moving to a nonfunctional state.	Controller may need to be replaced. Contact Dell Technical support team.
Single-Bit ECC errors detected	Single-bit ECC errors were detected during the previous boot operation of the RAID controller.	The DDR4 device on the server may be moving to a nonfunctional state.	Controller may need to be replaced. Contact Dell Technical support team.
Too many bad block to support data backup	The Non-Volatile Cache storage capacity is too low to support data backup. The write-back VDs will be converted to write-through. Or, Non-Volatile Cache has gone bad.	The Open NAND Flash Interface (ONFI) flash used for DDR backup is not functioning.	Contact the Dell Technical support team.
Non-Volatile Cache Degraded	The data backup capacity of the Non-Volatile Cache device is degraded.	The Open NAND Flash Interface (ONFI) flash used for DDR backup is not functioning.	Consider replacing the device or contact the Dell Technical support team.
Factory Setting Corrupt	The non-volatile data validation operation is unsuccessful.	The factory settings of the controller may have been corrupted.	Upgrade the firmware by using the correct NV Data. Or, contact the Technical Support team.
Factory Setting Corrupt	Unable to read the MPB file of the personality, OEM ID, or Profile ID. The controller is switching to Safe Mode.	The factory settings of the controller may have been corrupted.	Contact the Dell Technical support team.
Factory Setting Corrupt	The NVRAM layout is either corrupted or has a mismatch, and therefore, is reinitialized.	The factory settings of the controller may have been corrupted, and therefore, reinitialized.	Upgrade the firmware by using the correct NV Data. Or, contact the Technical Support team.
Enclosure/Backplane Count exceeded	The number of enclosures or backplanes connected to the connector <connectorName> has exceeded the maximum number.	Backplanes or enclosures connected to the connector are more than the maximum allowed.	Power off the server and remove the backplanes or enclosures to ensure that the number is less than the maximum value.
Physical Disk Count exceeded	The number of PDs connected are more than the supported value of <number> drives.	The installed PDs are more than the maximum allowed.	Power off the server and remove the PDs to ensure that the number is less than the maximum value.
Topology Error	An invalid SAS topology is detected in <name>.	Either a non-functional or corrupted PD is inserted in the server.	Remove any recently inserted PDs from the server.
Discovery Error	Unable to discover the controller: <%s>.	The controller could not be discovered within 120 seconds. Cables from the PERC to the backplane might be improperly connected.	Check the cable connection between PERC and server. Power cycle the server and all attached enclosures.
Unable to communicate with Key management server	Unable to communicate with the SEKM Server. If you continue, there will be a drive security key error and all the secured configurations will be marked as foreign. Please check the connection with the SEKM server, reboot the machine to retry switching to EKM.	Connection Information between iDRAC and the Key Management Server (KMS) may have changed. Or, An iDRAC controller discovery issue may have occurred preventing the key exchange within the timeout period.	See the iDRAC User's Guide of the relevant version on the support site, ensure that the KMS communication is successful, and then restart the server.
Safe Mode entered	The controller booted in the safe mode.	An internal issue forced the controller to boot in the safe mode.	View the server screen to get information about why the controller booted to a safe mode, and then take the recommended corrective action.
Safe Mode Exited	The controller has exited the safe mode.	Not applicable.	No response action is required.