[plug] thrashing hard disks

[Ben Jensz]

Craig Ringer wrote:

>I've done similar things - when testing our current core server at the
>POST, I spent a happy week unplugging RAID disks unexpectedly, thrashing
>it in an attempt to get disks to misbehave, etc.
>
>Had I had the option, I would've /gladly/ screwdrivered a disk just to
>make sure the controller could handle it.
>
>  
>
aha... I'm not about to do that in a hurry, even with the drives being 
just over $400 / drive.  I did do the whole "lets hot unplug a drive and 
see if it does in fact use the hot spare like its supposed to" when I 
first installed the system and everything seemed to be fine.

Looks like Bonnie++ did what I wanted it to do.  Gave it enough disk 
usage to cause it to stop working again.  Same system I was having 
problems with last week... said drives were failed.  Basically recreated 
the RAID arrays and it said a couple of different disks were stuffed... 
but the ones that it previously said were stuffed were okay.  Now it 
failed with "input/output" errors again whilst running bonnie++ and the 
system doesn't make it past the RAID card initializing stage of boot 
now.  Suspected it might've been the RAID card....

Good thing IBM have already sent another drive and a new RAID controller 
to test with (hopefully here sooner rather than later).


/ Ben