Formatting Issue with Maxtor HD

[Joseph Clark]

I have a Maxtor hard drive that refuses to format. In the original configuration, it was in a different slot, where it had no problem formatting. I changed the slot number and now it won't format, after several attempts. It reports no error, just that it is unformatted.

 

Any ideas?

 

[Billped]

Connection?  Data cable?  Power cable?

 

 

Bill

[bubbaQ]

PATA or SATA or SCSI?

 

If PATA, make sure jumpers for slave/master/cableselect are correct.

[Joseph Clark]

Methinks there is a serious bug here.

 

I have two UnRaid systems. In each case, the last drive (disk 15) will not format. I have an IDE drive in one system, SATA in the other. In both systems, I've just added disks 15 and 16. Last drive will not format. So, I switched disk 14 with disk 15 in both systems. Same results - last drive reports it is not formatted, though each drive was formatted just a couple of minutes earlier as the next to last disk. So, I switched them back to their original positions. Same results - last drive again will not format.

 

Bug! Ugly bug!

 

[Billped]

MBug! Ugly bug!

 

 

You have not completely eliminated hardware as the cause.

 

Try removing (or just removing cables from) disks 2-10 (or similar) and try again.  This *could* be an issue of insufficient power.  16 drives is an awful lot of power for even the beefiest PS's to handle.

 

 

Bill

 

 

[Joseph Clark]

Thanks, Bill, but I don't think that's it. I have two power supplies in each system. In one case, I had 4 middle drive slots unoccupied, with the final drive positions exhibiting the problem. That didn't change in any way, after I added the final 4 drives. I think this is too big a coincidence to be anything other than a bug. (Of course, I've been wrong before.) The systems are completely different - mobo, CPU, drives (IDE and SATA mix in one, all SATA in the other), even flash drives, etc. The only constant is that no matter which drive I put in the final position, it won't format, despite the fact that the same drive formats and works just fine in any other position.

 

[danielparker]

I think I have the same problem..

 

I am using three power supplies, and have checked jumpers and swapped cables..

 

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=863.0

 

 

[Joseph Clark]

That's it, Daniel. Exactly what I've run into. That final drive position simply will not format. It's not the drives or the cabling or the power. Four different IDE/SATA drives, in two different systems, work fine as drive 14 and will not format as drive 15, no change at all in power or cabling.

 

Bug! Big bug! Kill it.

 

[Joe L.]

I agree... sounds like a basic "off-by-one" programing error.

It should be easy for Tom to squash this bug now that it is identified.

[limetech]

Yes, silly bug (must always write a script to test everything, even the simple stuff).

 

The problem is there's no mount point on the Flash for disk15 (the 16th disk).  To fix this, add the following line to the 'go' file (in 'config' directory on the Flash):

 

mkdir  /mnt/disk15

 

So 'go' should look like this:

 

#!/bin/bash
mkdir /mnt/disk15
# Start the Management Utility
/usr/local/sbin/emhttp &

[Joseph Clark]

Thanks for the fix, but remember that I'm a Linux dummy.  Can I do this from within Windows? The contents of the flash are invisible to Windows Explorer. If not, how do I do it in Linux?

 

Can I just create a Notepad text file and place it in the Config folder? I don't want to screw up my array.

 

 

Edit: I got a message from Tom with the "Go" file attached and simply dragged that into the "Config" folder in Windows. I rebooted both UnRaid boxes and the last drive is there and ready for use in each system.

 

I reported the bug yesterday and today there's a fix. What great support from Limetech!! Thanks, Tom.

 

[limetech]

If you set the 'flash' share to be exported on the System Management Utility Shares page, then it should appear under My Network Places where you can navigate to the 'go' file and edit it directly using notepad (same with other config files).

[Joseph Clark]

Thanks.