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Old 09-29-2020, 08:22 PM   #1
Skillz
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HP Proliant DL160 G6 install wont work debian raid controller B110i


I picked up a Dual Xeon 2U server recently that I'm trying to install Debian Linux on. However, it fails when I try to install the GRUB bootloader part of the automated install.

I think it has something to do with the HPE Smart Array B110i SATA RAID Controller. When I select where to install/partition Debian it list some sort of Linux Software RAID array selection. However, when it asks where I want to install the boot loader GRUB it lists all 4 of 1TB hard drives. No matter which one I select the installation fails and it asks me to try again.

I've tried to disable the RAID controller by changing it to AHCI. However, the problem is still the same. Shows a 1TB linux software raid array (only one option) when I install Debian, but when I asked where to install the boot loader GRUB it shows the 4 individual HDDs.

I do not need RAID. I am perfectly fine with installing the OS on 1 of the 1TB drives and mounting the other 3x 1TB drives to /home2, /home3 and /home4 respectively.

I did read an article about a solution for CentOS that was from 2009, but I don't understand what it's telling me to do. The guided installation doesn't have anyway to enter any commands and the commands probably aren't even the same for Debian.

The Debian image I downloaded and burned to DVD is:
debian-bullseye-DI-alpha2-amd64-DVD-1.iso

(I tried to install the image to a USB stick, but the system kept asking me to insert a CD/DVD when detecting the installation media so I used a external DVD drive w/ DVD)
 
Old 09-29-2020, 08:46 PM   #2
computersavvy
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Skillz View Post
I picked up a Dual Xeon 2U server recently that I'm trying to install Debian Linux on. However, it fails when I try to install the GRUB bootloader part of the automated install.

I think it has something to do with the HPE Smart Array B110i SATA RAID Controller. When I select where to install/partition Debian it list some sort of Linux Software RAID array selection. However, when it asks where I want to install the boot loader GRUB it lists all 4 of 1TB hard drives. No matter which one I select the installation fails and it asks me to try again.

I've tried to disable the RAID controller by changing it to AHCI. However, the problem is still the same. Shows a 1TB linux software raid array (only one option) when I install Debian, but when I asked where to install the boot loader GRUB it shows the 4 individual HDDs.

I do not need RAID. I am perfectly fine with installing the OS on 1 of the 1TB drives and mounting the other 3x 1TB drives to /home2, /home3 and /home4 respectively.

I did read an article about a solution for CentOS that was from 2009, but I don't understand what it's telling me to do. The guided installation doesn't have anyway to enter any commands and the commands probably aren't even the same for Debian.

The Debian image I downloaded and burned to DVD is:
debian-bullseye-DI-alpha2-amd64-DVD-1.iso

(I tried to install the image to a USB stick, but the system kept asking me to insert a CD/DVD when detecting the installation media so I used a external DVD drive w/ DVD)
A quick search for that model controller gives a lot of information and this caught my eye. There is a lot more info out there, and research should help you find most of what you need.
 
Old 09-29-2020, 09:18 PM   #3
Skillz
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Quote:
Originally Posted by computersavvy View Post
A quick search for that model controller gives a lot of information and this caught my eye. There is a lot more info out there, and research should help you find most of what you need.
Thanks, but I think the problem is I need to disable the controller for it to work. However, I can't seem to figure that out on my own.

According to this link: https://wiki.debian.org/HP/ProLiant

The HW RAID B110i has issues with Debian.

"Hardware RAID logical volumes are invisible to OS, physical disks are exposed to OS, Debian could be installed but has to be handled with great care upon post-installation and when upgrading! See post #3 in this thread at linuxquestions which is a rough howto for CentOS. I would suggest disabling hardware raid and setting up software raid or no raid at all until the driver makes its way on the Linux Kernel, if it ever does."

I know that's for the DL360 G6, but that's only because the DL160 G6 was using the Smart Array P410 SAS while the DL160 G6 I have has the HW RAID B110i.

As mentioned, I have tried to disable it by selecting to use AHCI in the BIOS, but it still shows up as a RAID array when installing Debian and then 4 individual hard drives when installing the GRUB bootloader.

It's almost like selecting between RAID and AHCI does nothing; other than the fact that when I do select AHCI I don't get the RAID controller menu popping up during boot to configure anything with it.
 
Old 10-30-2020, 02:21 AM   #4
Skillz
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To anyone else with a similar issue my work around was to boot into a LiveCD and install it from there. No RAID array. Just installed straight to a single disk. Worked without issues.
 
  


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