1. R101840.EXE Driver
2. perc4dc-IA64-351S-A05.txt File Contents

perc4dc-IA64-351S-A05.txt Driver File Contents (R101840.EXE)

Dell PowerEdge Expandable RAID Controller 4/DC Firmware Update for IA-64 systems.

Version: 351S

Criticality:
	Recommended

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 Introduction
2.0 Performing the Firmware Upgrade
3.0 Important Information 
4.0 Fixes
5.0 Enhancements


1.0   Introduction

This update package is intended to update the firmware for your PERC 4/DC RAID adapter for
IA-64 systems.

Component		Current Version		Previous Version
Firmware		351S			350O
BIOS			1.10			1.09
Ctrl-M			U827			U821
Boot Block		1.7.7Dell		1.7.6Dell


2.0 Performing the Firmware Upgrade

Installation:

To update the firmware for your PERC 4/DC adapter, perform the following steps:
 1. Extract the contents of the firmware package to your hardrive.
 2. Copy the contents of the package to a formatted floppy disk, USB key, or
    CD-ROM.
 3. Power on the server. From the EFI Boot Manager Menu, select EFI Shell.
 4. Insert the media which contains the firmware update files from step 2.
    This may be a USB key, floppy diskette (a USB floppy drive may be used), or
    CD-ROM.
 5. At the Shell> prompt, type 'map -r' to view all mounted devices. Locate the device
    which contains the firmware update files - it will be enumerated as fs0, fs1, ect.
 6. To change to the proper device, type 'fs1:'
    NOTE: Your device may have a different file system number.
 7. From the fs1:> prompt type 'percupd.nsh' to initiate the firmware update.
 8. Follow the instructions from the EFI update tool to complete the firmware
    upgrade.
 9. You will need to restart your system for the new firmware to take effect.


3.0 Important Information

Firmware upgrade while controller is doing background I/O task:
The firmware upgrade may fail if any of the RAID controllers in the system are
performing an I/O background task. (ie. check consistency, background initialization,
rebuild, or reconstruction).  Allow the background task to complete before attempting
to upgrade the firmware.  Patrol Read tasks will not affect a firmware upgrade.  
Current RAID configuration will not be modified or cleared during the Firmware
Upgrade process.

The program will stop at the "Flash Download" screen with the following message: 
"Consistency Check of logical drive(s) in progress for adapter-X. Failed Writing 
Image on Adapter X with Baseport ...".

Universal CTRL-M:
Multiple adapters can be configured from CTRL-M, but the adapter must be selected
using "Select Adapter" and should be verified before performing any configuration
changes.

Applying Factory Defaults on Clustered Configs:
When the factory default settings are applied for a PERC controller in clustering
mode, the card will remain in cluster mode, but BIOS will be enabled.  BIOS should
be disabled after applying factory default settings to avoid any system boot issues.

Drive Migration:
When hard drives are moved from one controller to another, the target controller 
configuration must be cleared to ensure a configuration mismatch does not occur.
Any ongoing hard drive operations, such as a rebuild or reconstruction, should 
be completed before migrating drives to the new controller.

Verifying Cache Integrity:
When there is data in cache from an improper shutdown, the system may take up to sixty
seconds to verify that the data in the cache is correct and does not contain any
errors.  The delay may appear to be a system hang, but this behavior is normal and
is required to confirm the integrity of the data.


4.0 Fixes

1. Fixed an issue that optimized cache flush algorithms while switching between no
   read-ahead to read-ahead cache modes.
2. Modified the Fast Initialization function to delete all operation system partition
   table information.
3. Fixed an issue where a Seagate hard drive model M3637 was not negotiating
   correctly with PERC 4 adapters.  
4. Fixed a SES Timeout error caused by a media error recovery defect in cluster
   mode on a PERC4/DC and a PERC3/DC.
5. Modified Ctrl-M to clear physical drive media error count upon drive replacement.  
   Note: System must be powered on during the drive replacement in order for media
   errors to be cleared.
6. Modified caching algorithms to not switch from Write-back to Write-through 
   during a battery fast charge. 
7. Fixed a performance degradation issue when using RAID 10 virtual disks, when
   configured to use no read ahead or write caching and direct IO on PERC4 controllers.


5.0 Enhancements

1. Added Patrol Read feature.  Patrol Read involves the review of the system for
   possible hard drive errors that could lead to drive failure, then action to 
   correct the errors. The goal is to protect data integrity by detecting physical
   drive failures before the failures can damage data. Patrol Read adjusts the amount 
   of RAID controller resources dedicated to Patrol Read operations based on outstanding
   disk I/O.
2. Added Rebuild Checkpoint feature.  The Dell PERC firmware has a feature to resume a 
   rebuild on a physical drive in case of an abrupt power loss or if the server 
   rebooted in the middle of a rebuild operation.
3. Enhanced write algorithms to increase I/O performance for RAID 5 and RAID 50 
   virtual disks using four or more disks that are configured to use write-through 
   write cache mode.

6.0 Known Limitations

During the firmware upgrade process, the user is prompted with the message:
    
    ‘Do you want to flash a PERC Controller (yes/no/all)?’

Answering ‘all’ to this prompt does not begin the firmware upgrade. The user is presented
with the same message again.

Type ‘yes’ in order to initiate the firmware upgrade.  If more than one PERC controller is
in the system, the user is prompted to flash each controller.