A8N-SLI Deluxe (sil3114 SATA RAID) setup

loki · n00b Joined: 01 Oct 2002 Posts: 36

Hello,

I am attempting to install gentoo onto my hot new computer but as the story usually go's with new hardware im running into problems. My motherboard the ASUS A8N-SLI Deluxe has a Sil3114 raid controller onboard. The goal is 2x 120gig drives in RAID0.

What iv been doing is this,

LiveCD 2004.3 for Amd64

boot with "gentoo"
modprobe sata_sil

The drive's show up individually as sda and sdb but nothing suggests that they are a raid volume. The simlinks sda and sdb are pointing to a folder with two device files in them disc0 and disc1. I can fdisk the drives. I also noticed a folder /dev/rd/ that has numbered device files in them and I can also fdisk them but I dont belive these to actually be drives.

I get a similar behavior from my knoppix cd and from my mandrake cd. The file partitioning utilitys recognize sda and sdb individually.

(sorry if this thread is redundant, but I couldn't find any info searching google/forums that was of any use to me.)

Thanks in advance,

Curtis

LordApophis · n00b Joined: 28 Apr 2004 Posts: 26 Location: Switzerland

The SIL3114 is only a Software Raid Controller with a little BIOS Support.

As I know, there are 2 ways to setting up a Raid.
You can install a Software Raid without using the Raid "function" of the controller:
- https://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic.php?t=68706
- http://gentoo-wiki.com/HOWTO_Gentoo_Install_on_Software_RAID

Or you can try dmraid so Linux can use this Bios Raid:
- https://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic.php?t=258981
- https://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic.php?t=244941
- http://tienstra4.flatnet.tudelft.nl/~gerte/gen2dmraid/

I've the same mainboard and as soon as I get my graphic card I'm going to (or try to) install Linux with dmraid.

loki · n00b Joined: 01 Oct 2002 Posts: 36

Thankyou for the advice, Ill give dmraid a try and let you know how it works. What videocard are you gettin if you dont mind my askn ?

LordApophis · n00b Joined: 28 Apr 2004 Posts: 26 Location: Switzerland

I've ordered an MSI NX6800GT-T2D256E in mid december and got it today but now I have an other problem, a defect RAM Module...

loki · n00b Joined: 01 Oct 2002 Posts: 36

Mmmmm 6800GT > my 6600GT

Ooof busted ram

madey · Posted: Wed Nov 08, 2006 1:53 pm Post subject: RAID 5 with Sil 3114

Hello
I try to install Gentoo on AMD64 with A8N-SLI Premium motherboard with SLI3114 RAID controller. I have configured my 3 Sata hardisks as one RAID5 volume at BIOS setup according to motherboard instruction. On Gentoo-wiki I have founded instruction how to use this volume with Gentoo installation:
[url]http://gentoo-wiki.com/HOWTO_Gentoo_Install_on_Bios_(Onboard)_RAID[/url]
You can find there, that this volume should be visible in /dev/mapper/ folder as block device and I should use it. The problem is that THERE IS NOTHING in this folder, only control char device.
During Install CD booting process I also should add parameter dodmraid to gentoo kernel and I did but the result is also nothing. Funny thing: there is no dodmraid param in 2006.1 install cd, so maybe it is by default (there is nodmraid param).
Does anybody knows the solution?

nixnut · Posted: Wed Nov 08, 2006 5:09 pm Post subject:

Merged above post here.

http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/handbook/2006.1/handbook-x86.xml?part=1&chap=2: