How to replace a failed drive in the array
RAID Recovery - How to replace a failed drive in the array
Identifying which drive has failed before replacing is a crucial task; one wrong step or negligence may corrupt the entire array. It is strongly recommended to double check the whole work in order to trace the affected drive before attempting to change or even touch them.
While installing drive in the array, one should note down the serial number of the drive assigned to every Operating System identifier and keep all the valuable information up to date at the time of drive replacement. Further, the system needs to be rebooted; nothing to worry about, one can go ahead, reboot and check the controller’s RAID BIOS. The BIOS will recognize the serial number of the drive and give a clue which drive needs to be replaced. The serial number of the failed drive will simplify the process to further confirm the serial number of all drives in the array. One is required to be very careful about it as the original drive has the similar serial numbers, for one can recheck the entire procedures in order to ensure the right drive has been identified.
A number of enclosure vendors have warning LEDs on their racks, especially in hot swap system. An orange or red light will help to distinguish the failed drive. Moreover, some vendor management software can identify the failed drive by its location in the tray and some error-prone identification system will even draw the whole diagram that will help making out the exact drive rack or tray. After all these warnings still one can possibly make mistake, so professional help should be taken in this case.
