[SOLVED] LSI sas9207-8e causing boot problems

[mcordell]

I have A Dell PowerEdge R710 running Server 2016 Datacenter with 2 LSI HBAs flashed in IT mode. One internal spinning 8 2.5" drives and one external to spin 4 potentially 8 3.5" drives in a homemade SAN.
The problem I'm having is that when the SAN is powered on Windows won't finish booting. For over an hour I get the little dots circling with the windows logo.
Neither HBA controls the boot disc. That is an SSD in one of those DVD drive adapters connected to a SATA input on the MB.
Likewise when the server is booted and I turn the SAN on, Disk Management has a hard time seeing the disks.
Does anyone have any suggestions on troubleshooting that I should do?

Thanks for any help
Mike

 

[kanewolf]

Does it boot without the external cables connected? Where did that SAS cable come from? What enclosure?
Are these SAS or SATA drives in the external enclosure?

 

[mcordell]

Hi,
Thanks for your interest. Below are two links. First is the shopping list I used on Amazon and the second is the PSU I got from Newegg.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2GWXR1TDO1JUZ?ref_=wl_share

https://www.newegg.com/fsp-group-flexguru-250w-fsp250-50fgbbi/p/1HU-0095-000H3?Item=9SIABP99PM8313
I figured links would be the best way to share.

I also forgot to mention that before I had the external HBA, I used a run of the mill PCI SATA card and long SATA cables which worked for awhile. But the original PSU I used (not the one linked above) crapped out and after replacing it the external storage would't work again. I have completely wiped/cleaned the drives.

 

[kanewolf]

Looking at your amazon list -- you have a 2m SAS cable with a 1 to 4 breakout at the end. So, about 2.5m on a SATA connection. That exceeds all SATA standards I can find. I am going to guess it is a cable issue, but I truly am guessing.

 

[mcordell]

Hey,

Thank you for your suggestion. I will order a shorter SAS cable and give it a go.
Then report back.
Mike

 

[kanewolf]

The other option would be SAS drives in the external enclosure.

 

[mcordell]

At first I really needed the length. Now not so much. Although it is hard to find a external mini sas cable shorter than 1 meter (on Amazon, I still need to look at Newegg) I have 4 of those 8tb drives and would be hard pressed to find sas drives of that size at an affordable price. These particular drives are to be used for backup purposes and don't need super fast speeds. With all the issues I was having I was seriously considering getting a Powervault and calling it a day. Cables are cheap and I appreciate the suggestion. I'll be sure to let you know how it turns out and give you credit.
Mike

 

[mcordell]

Well unfortunately the shorter cable didn't work. I also tried a 1 meter sas to sata breakout to bypass the external to internal sas adapter and stay as close to the 1 meter sata limit and no joy. I'm beginning to think maybe the backplane in the ITX enclosure got jacked when the first PSU failed. This evening I'm going to see about connecting a drive with the breakout cable and power to prove it's not the HBA or the drive.
Thanks again for your help.
Mike