Four-Socket NVMe RAID with Intel VROC: Socket Mapping and RAID0/1/5/10
These archived examples show Intel VROC with VMD Technology 6.2.0.1034 through the BIOS UEFI interface. Socket numbers, PCIe stacks, drive ports, upgrade keys and BIOS menus are platform-specific. Confirm the installed server’s lane/connector mapping and supported firmware/driver/OS before changing VMD or boot configuration. A BIOS restart or storage-controller change can interrupt access to an existing OS.
Creation, deletion, spare assignment and rebuilding are separate operations. Verify the intended available drives and protect required data first. A Normal controller state is not proof that initialization, OS boot, application access or backups have been tested. The original screenshots are already in English and retain their actual selections.
1. Enable the appropriate Intel VMD paths
The source first requires the server’s supported UEFI boot configuration. Before VMD enablement, its Device Manager lists four directly exposed Intel NVMe drives:
In BIOS Advanced, open Socket Configuration → IIO Configuration → Intel VMD Technology:
For this machine’s wiring, the source associates NVMe connector pairs 0/1 and 2/3 with Slimline1 and Slimline4 and sockets 3 and 2. The VMD menu therefore exposes Socket2 and Socket3 configuration. This is a source-specific connector map, not the layout of every four-socket server:
Open Socket2. Its example enables PStack1, then VMD ports 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D and Hot Plug Capable, while PStack0 remains Disabled. The first stack screenshot is still Disabled; the following screenshot shows the intended Enabled state:
Open Socket3. Its corresponding screenshots use PStack2, not PStack1: enable that stack and ports 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D plus Hot Plug Capable, while PStack0 stays Disabled. Match the actual board map instead of copying all stack settings indiscriminately. A Hot Plug Capable field alone does not establish that every chassis/service operation is safe to perform live:
Save and reboot. Device Manager now lists Intel Virtual RAID on CPU rather than the individual NVMe entries in that initial menu. This reflects changed enumeration, not proof that drives vanished or that OS support is ready:
2. Configure the separate RAID examples
The source shows Upgrade key Premium. Verify the actual key, compatible drives and supported OS; do not infer licensing from another system’s screenshots. Cross-VMD spanning must match the member locations and boot/data purpose. The source’s Windows confirmation warns that a volume spanning VMD controllers cannot be used as a Windows boot volume; Intel’s English guide also restricts that illustrated spanning configuration to data volumes.
2.1 RAID0
Open Intel Virtual RAID on CPU → All Intel VMD Controllers → Create RAID Volume. The available-drive list contains 3726.02GB and 931.51GB drives on CPU2/VMD1, ports 2:2 and 2:3, and two 1863.02GB drives on CPU3/VMD2, ports 3:0 and 3:1. No disks are initially selected and capacity reads 0.00:
Choose RAID0(Stripe), then select the intended drives with X through the selection menu. The source prose advises enabling spanning to use different VMD controllers, but this actual RAID0 form leaves spanning blank and selects only the first two drives on CPU2/VMD1:
The final form shows those two members, 128KB strips and 1769.86GB. Choose Create Volume. The confirmation warns that their capacity difference exceeds 10% and that space on the larger drive will be unused. Yes proceeds only for the verified new-array operation; No cancels. The result is Volume0 RAID0 1769.86GB Normal, with the other two drives still Non-RAID:
2.2 RAID1
Use the same controller/Create RAID Volume path and select RAID1(Mirror). An intermediate spanning illustration shows X while the level field still reads RAID0; the later final RAID1 form has spanning blank. Do not treat intermediate-menu pictures as a single immutable final configuration:
Select the two intended members. The final form chooses the first two CPU2/VMD1 drives, RAID1, and 884.93GB. Select Create Volume, review the greater-than 10% capacity-mismatch warning, and confirm Yes only when intended. The result is Volume0 RAID1 884.93GB Normal; the two CPU3/VMD2 drives remain unassigned:
2.3 RAID5
Choose RAID5(Parity). Enable RAID spanned over VMD Controllers when creating the illustrated volume across the two VMD domains, and mark the intended members with X. Early forms show 64KB strips and no capacity before selection:
The final source form selects all four drives across CPU2/VMD1 and CPU3/VMD2, shows 32KB strips, 2654.81GB and RWH Policy Disable. This differs from the earlier 64KB form. Select Create Volume only after reviewing the final values. The confirmation warns both that the cross-VMD volume cannot boot Windows and that the selected drive capacities differ by over 10%. Yes creates the intended data volume; the source’s result shows RAID5 2654.81GB Normal:
2.4 RAID10
Choose RAID10(RAID0+1), as this firmware labels its RAID10 option. That legacy display label is retained in the screenshot; do not use it to assume arbitrary RAID0+1 and RAID10 failure behavior is identical. The source enables spanning and indicates four members are required:
Select all four intended members. An intermediate image has the spanning selection menu open. The final form shows spanning X, all four drives selected, 64KB strips and 1769.86GB. Select Create Volume, review the Windows-spanning and capacity-mismatch warnings, and confirm Yes only for the intended data volume. The source then lists Volume0 RAID10 1769.86GB Normal:
2.5 Delete the intended volume
The deletion example switches back to the non-spanned RAID0 case: Volume0, 1769.86GB, 128KB, Bootable Yes, with the two CPU2/VMD1 members. Select the verified volume and Delete. The confirmation states that all volume data will be lost and disks reset to non-RAID. Yes confirms only after checking the real target and retained data; this is not the deletion of the preceding spanned RAID10 example:
