PM8060 UEFI RAID: Arrays, Dedicated/Global Spares, JBOD and Drive Location
This archived Inspur example shows PM8060-RAID through the PMC maxView Storage Manager UEFI/HII interface, driver 2.0.100.33263. The screenshots use different arrays and capacities across sections. Treat them as separate configuration examples, not consecutive steps on one existing array. Match the real firmware, drive identities and data requirements before creating, deleting, initializing or uninitializing drives.
1. Open the management interface
In BIOS Advanced, open PMC maxView Storage Manager. Select the intended PM8060 controller and Logical Device Configuration for array tasks. The pictured controller menu also offers Controller Settings, Disk Utilities and Administration:
2. Create the RAID0 example
Choose Create Array. Enable the intended available drives and proceed. The first selection image enables Box0:Slot4 and Box0:Slot5, each shown as 1.7TB, with Box0:Slot6 disabled. Select RAID0(Stripe)in the level menu:
Review label, stripe size, capacity and units, read/write cache and initialization. This form shows DefaultValue0, 256KB, 300GB, Read Cache Enabled, Write Cache Enable Always and Quick Init. Those are pictured settings, not blanket cache recommendations. The next all-SSD prompt explicitly says cache settings are not recommended for that case and that Enter disables all cache settings and continues; Esc goes back. Verify the supported policy and cache protection rather than assuming an earlier form proves the final setting:
The result capture shows RAID0, 299.9GB, 256KB, 512-byte blocks and Optimal, but lists two 150GB members. It does not match the earlier 1.7TB member-selection screen. Preserve that source difference; it is not evidence of a specific capacity conversion or a completed OS/data-access test:
3. Create the RAID1 example
Under Create Array, enable the two intended free members. This selection capture shows slots 4 and 5 at 1.5TB, and slot 6 at 1.7TB disabled. Choose RAID1(Mirror). In the open level menu, the field still displays RAID0 while the highlighted menu item is RAID1; complete the intended selection before proceeding:
Review all array parameters. The source form shows DefaultValue1, stripe N/A, size 1.596, unit TB, Read Cache Enabled, Write Cache Enable Always and Quick Init. Submit, then review the same all-SSD cache warning:
Check the resulting logical device. The source displays array 1 DefaultValue1, RAID1, 1.5TB, 512-byte blocks, stripe N/A, Optimal, with neither dedicated-spare nor global-spare protection at this point. Optimal alone is not verification of the stored data or backup:
Delete an array only when its data may be discarded
The deletion screenshots switch to a separate array 0 DefaultValue0, RAID1, 1.7TB. Select the intended array, choose Delete Array and review the warning that the logical drive will be deleted. Submit/Enter confirms only after target/data verification; Esc backs out. The next capture says No Array(s)Present in the controller:
4. Create the RAID5 example
Choose Create Array and enable the three intended free members. The source shows Box0:Slot4, Slot5 and Slot6, all 1.7TB. In the open level menu, RAID5 is highlighted while the field still reads RAID0; confirm the intended level before continuing:
Review name, capacity and unit, stripe, cache and initialization choices. The form shows DefaultValue0, 256KB, 2TB, Read Cache Enabled, Write Cache Enable Always and Quick Init. Submit and read the all-SSD cache warning before proceeding:
The result shows RAID5, 1.9TB, 256KB, 512-byte blocks, Optimal, and no dedicated/global spare assigned. These are source display values, not a promise of an exact OS-visible capacity or full initialization/consistency verification:
5. Configure hot spares
5.1 Dedicated spare
The spare example returns to a 1.7TB RAID1 array 0 DefaultValue0. Select that array, open Failover Assignments, then Add Spares:
Select an eligible available drive. The source marks slots 4 and 5 Drive already used and enables Box0:Slot6, 1.7TB. Choose Add and review the confirmation. No hotspare warnings detected is the pictured confirmation text; Submit continues:
Check the array properties. Protected by Dedicated spare is YES with Box0:Slot6 listed; Protected by Global spare is NO. For dedicated-spare removal, the source follows the same menu path and chooses Delete Spares instead. Removing a spare removes that standby protection; it is distinct from deleting the logical array:
5.2 Global spare
Open Global Hotspares, then Add Spares. Select the intended available drive; the source again enables Box0:Slot6 while the other two drives are already in use. Add, review the confirmation and Submit:
The next properties view has Protected by Global spare YES and lists Box0:Slot6; Dedicated spare is NO. This is a separate spare assignment example, not proof that one disk remains simultaneously dedicated and global:
To remove a global spare, the source uses the same Global Hotspares path and chooses Delete Spares. In its final menu capture, a red box identifies Delete Spares while the cursor/help still rests on Add Spares; the box is not confirmation that deletion has already occurred:
6. Source JBOD/passthrough branch
The source calls this configuring JBOD, but its actual command is Uninitialize Drives. It selects drives to remove their RAID metadata. The example enables all three Box0:Slot4, Slot5, Slot6 drives. Do not copy that selection onto live members merely to expose a disk to the OS:
The confirmation explicitly warns that uninitialization erases all array information from the selected drives and affects every array using any of them. Enter/Submit continues; Esc returns. This is a destructive configuration change, not a data-preserving migration. The source says a drive used this way must be initialized before reuse in RAID. Actual raw-drive exposure also depends on the controller operating mode; these screenshots do not show a mode change or OS verification:
7. Locate a physical drive
Open Disk Utilities and select the intended drive. The source example selects Box0:Slot4. Choose Identify Drive. The popup says Indicating the LED;Press any key when you finish. The source reports a steady blue light at the physical drive; use the exact platform’s locator indication and verify the slot. Press any key to stop identifying. Identify Drive is distinct from the adjacent Verify Disk Media and Format Disk operations:
8. A drive goes offline
The stored source supplies only a backup reminder under this heading, no replacement or rebuild sequence. It says RAID can improve resilience but does not prevent every fault; back up required data regularly. Use the matching controller/server service procedure for an actual offline member rather than inventing steps from this article.