How to Configure RAID on a Dell PERC H730
The Dell PERC H730 hardware RAID controller supports RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50, 60. This guide walks through creating a new virtual disk, assigning hot spares, and verifying the battery-backed write cache.
What You Need
- Dell PowerEdge server with PERC H730 RAID controller
- 4+ identical SAS or SATA drives
- PERC H730 BBU (battery backup unit) installed
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Enter PERC BIOS Configuration Utility
Power on the server. Watch for "Press Ctrl-R to configure RAID" prompt. Press Ctrl-R. Alternatively, enter Lifecycle Controller (F10) > Hardware Configuration > Storage > PERC > Configure.
Step 2: Verify cache battery status
In PERC CU > Properties > Battery > Status. Should show "Operational" (or "Charging" if first boot). If "Failed" or "Replace", replace the BBU before proceeding — write cache will be disabled otherwise.
Step 3: Create a new virtual disk
PERC CU > VD Mgmt > Create New VD. Select RAID level (most common: RAID 6 for 4+ drives with capacity priority, RAID 10 for performance, RAID 5 for cost). Select physical drives to include. Set Stripe Size = 256K (default, optimal for most workloads).
Step 4: Set virtual disk policies
Default Cache Policy: WriteBack (requires BBU operational). Read Policy: Read-Ahead. Default IO Policy: Cached IO. Confirm settings and click Create.
Step 5: Initialize the virtual disk
PERC will prompt for Fast Initialize (instant, no parity calculation — VD usable immediately but parity built in background) or Full Initialize (writes zeros to all sectors, takes 4-12 hours for large arrays). Most deployments use Fast Initialize for production speed.
Step 6: Assign hot spare drives
PERC CU > PD Mgmt > Make Global Hot Spare (or Dedicated Hot Spare for specific VD). Hot spares automatically rebuild failed drives without manual intervention. Best practice: 1 hot spare per 4-8 active drives in an array.
Step 7: Exit and verify in iDRAC
Press Esc, save changes, exit. Reboot. Verify in iDRAC web UI > Storage > Controller > Virtual Disks. New VD should show Ready / Online status. OS will see the new VD as a single drive after partitioning.
Frequently Asked Questions
What RAID level should I use on PERC H730?
RAID 10 for OLTP / VM datastores (high IOPS). RAID 6 for general-purpose 8+ drive arrays (best capacity efficiency + dual parity). RAID 5 only for small (3-6 drive) arrays. Avoid RAID 0 for production data.
Does PERC H730 support NVMe drives?
No — PERC H730 is SAS / SATA only. For NVMe support, upgrade to PERC H740 (R740 and newer) or PERC H750 (R750+).
How long does RAID rebuild take on PERC H730?
Depends on drive size and array load. For 8 TB SAS HDD: 24-48 hours under light load, up to 1 week under heavy production load. SSD rebuilds: 4-8 hours typical.
Need the parts?
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