# Promise RAID once again :-(

## akb

I've read nearly all topics about the Promise RAID Controller (Onboard @ msi K7T Turbo -R), but didnt find a solution yet. Maybe someone can help me, I hope so  :Smile: 

Well, I compiled the kernel with all necessary options and also build the modules ataraid and pdcraid. But first there wasn't the /dev/ataraid tree, so I used the makedev-script for ATARAID, which was mentioned somewhere in here.

So far so bad... now I've got the ataraid tree in my listed, but still cannot insmod the pdcraid. Whenever I want to insmod it, it tells me "no such device" or something. Then I had the idea to have a look at the bootlog and that first gives me a "skipping promise raid" or something while looking for harddisks and at the end of the log file it tells me that there wasnt a raid defined.

But the 2 HDs I want to use are perfectly working with XP, so they are already correctly built and so on. Since XP puts it into SCSI-tree, each harddisk a single scsi-disk, its not installed as normal ide, but as single-drive stripe.

Well... does anyone know hot to solve this nasty problem?  :Sad: 

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## slott_hansen

I also have trouble getting my new kernel to find my ATARAID promise raid controller. When I boot with the CD I can do the "modprobe ataraid pcdraid" and get it to show up in my device list.

I really don't know what the   :Twisted Evil:  %&""#¤  :Evil or Very Mad:   is wrong, but so far I have spendt 4 days and several hours on the phone talking to experts without solving the problem...

So if there is anyone out there with a gentoo linux system runnign with a promise raid 20376 controller I would like to get in contact with you ASAP.

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## akb

got it work  :Smile: 

had to use the newer kernel (upgrade 2.4.19 -> 2.4.20) and now all's fine with this... but now my soundcard doesnt work any more  :Very Happy: 

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## Gnufsh

There is a bug in the 2.4.19 kernels, something about an ifdef and ifndef being switched, basically a typo... try using the 2.4.20 vanilla kernel, works great for me.

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## akb

The vanilla didnt work, because i have to root an xfs-fs @ /

the xfs-kernels work great, but with the vanilla kernels i didnt get it work, even with all xfs-options that were available.

but now, as i already mentioned, the 2.4.20-xfs works with ataraid, but not with my soundcard  :Very Happy:  the problem is something about the combination of es1371 and gameport. if i disable gameport support it works. but i need this nasty little port  :Sad:  *lol*

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## slott_hansen

I tried with the latest 2.4.21 kernel from A.C., but still no luck finding my promise RAID 20376. However now I got it working with software instead (makeraid /dev/md0 etc. etc.) and it works great. 

The drawback of this is of curise the CPU overhead in maintaining the mirroing and the *2 overhead in writing (which would have been handled by the hardware).

But to all of you who made a working kernel with promise 20376 - PLEASE post your kernel settings!!!! Or send me the kernel settingsfile to

msh@onliners.dk

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## akb

Well... I tried lots of 2.4.20 kernels and each of them got my promise raid correctly! Vanilla via emerge, 2.4.20-xfs_pre6, 2.4.20 via ftp.kernel.org... no problem with 2.4.20 i think. I just put in whats called (ata)raid and/or promise and it worked *lol*

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## Zeeland

 *akb wrote:*   

> Well... I tried lots of 2.4.20 kernels and each of them got my promise raid correctly! Vanilla via emerge, 2.4.20-xfs_pre6, 2.4.20 via ftp.kernel.org... no problem with 2.4.20 i think. I just put in whats called (ata)raid and/or promise and it worked *lol*

 

Yes I have also a promise RAID controller working, but thats old promise on a MSI K7T266 Pro mainboard. But the new one on my A7v8x, which is a promise 20376 won't work.

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## rbonthond

I have it working, but compiled in the kernel, not via modules. Modules did not work for me.

kernel: 2.4.19-gentoo-r10

dmesg gives the following information:

```

Kernel command line: root=/dev/ataraid/d0p3 hda=ide-scsi hdc=ide-scsi

PDC20276: IDE controller on PCI bus 02 dev 60

PCI: Found IRQ 11 for device 02:0c.0

PCI: Sharing IRQ 11 with 02:07.1

PDC20276: chipset revision 1

PDC20276: not 100% native mode: will probe irqs later

PDC20276: (U)DMA Burst Bit ENABLED Primary MASTER Mode Secondary MASTER M

ode.

    ide2: BM-DMA at 0xa400-0xa407, BIOS settings: hde:pio, hdf:pio

    ide3: BM-DMA at 0xa408-0xa40f, BIOS settings: hdg:pio, hdh:pio

 ataraid/d0: p1 p2 p3

Drive 0 is 76319 Mb (33 / 0)

Drive 1 is 76319 Mb (34 / 0)

Raid0 array consists of 2 drives.

Promise Fasttrak(tm) Softwareraid driver for linux version 0.03beta

Linux Kernel Card Services 3.1.22

  options:  [pci] [cardbus]

md: linear personality registered as nr 1

md: raid0 personality registered as nr 2

md: md driver 0.90.0 MAX_MD_DEVS=256, MD_SB_DISKS=27

md: Autodetecting RAID arrays.

md: autorun ...

md: ... autorun DONE.

```

following things where compiled in my kernel:

```

#

# Multi-device support (RAID and LVM)

#

CONFIG_MD=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_MD=y

CONFIG_MD_LINEAR=y

CONFIG_MD_RAID0=y

#

# IDE, ATA and ATAPI Block devices

#

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDE=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDEDISK=y

CONFIG_IDEDISK_MULTI_MODE=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDECD=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDESCSI=m

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDEPCI=y

CONFIG_IDEPCI_SHARE_IRQ=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDEDMA_PCI=y

CONFIG_IDEDMA_PCI_AUTO=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDEDMA=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_PIIX=y

CONFIG_PIIX_TUNING=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_PDC202XX=y

CONFIG_PDC202XX_BURST=y

CONFIG_PDC202XX_FORCE=y

CONFIG_IDEDMA_AUTO=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_IDE_MODES=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_ATARAID=y

CONFIG_BLK_DEV_ATARAID_PDC=y

```

Last edited by rbonthond on Mon Mar 03, 2003 10:34 pm; edited 1 time in total

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## slott_hansen

Tried the lates version of the AC kernel - still no go.

Can you guys find the raid by typing modprobe ataraid  ????

I really don't get this!!!

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## Zeeland

 *rbonthond wrote:*   

> I have it working, but compiled in the kernel, not via modules. Modules did not work for me.
> 
> 

 

Which promise RAID controller do you have working?

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## rbonthond

 *Zeeland wrote:*   

>  *rbonthond wrote:*   I have it working, but compiled in the kernel, not via modules. Modules did not work for me.
> 
>  
> 
> Which promise RAID controller do you have working?

 

I have just editted my post... is that enough information to help you ?

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## Martigen

The Promise 20276 is the ATA RAID solution, for which the kernel's ATARAID drivers will work. The Promise 20376 is the new SATA version of the 20276, and currently does not have any support in the kernel.

Software RAID using MD is the way to go, is faster, and no more CPU intensive than using the firmware Promise RAID solution (calling it hardware RAID is a misnomer).

Mart

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## slott_hansen

It might not be CPU intensive but all WRITE operations are TWICE as slow since the write has to be called TWICE. The RAID hardware automatically generates the second write when running in mirror 1 mode.

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## Totophe

So, i'm like a newbie... Sorry.

I have an A7V8X with Raid Promise 20376 Controler.

I have on it a IBM HDD, in single drive (I used it on it because no place on my standart IDE controler. Fucking 4 devices limits !!!, and it is all no HDD thinks i can't put on the raid...)

So, if i understand (because I don't speak english very well, as you see), we can do working the Promise 20376 with Linux, with a Software program ? 

My question is : How to do that ? (Lil' explains needed.. Thanks..)

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## slott_hansen

Since I couldn't get my server working with the hardware RAID I was forved to use the built in software solution found in LINUX. 

Simpley use the mkraid command and off you go!!!!

Enjoy!

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