Re: Running HGST's DFT utility from a flash drive
On Wed, 21 Oct 2020 14:06:55 -0400
Dan Ritter <dsr@randomstring.org> wrote:
> Celejar wrote:
> > On Wed, 21 Oct 2020 13:00:11 -0400
> > Dan Ritter <dsr@randomstring.org> wrote:
> >
> > > Celejar wrote:
> > > > On Wed, 21 Oct 2020 11:15:40 -0400
> > > > https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Flashing_BIOS_from_Linux#Using_a_FreeDOS-provided_Disk_Image_+_USB_stick_on_Linux
> > > >
> > > > and made a FreeDos installer USB stick and put DFT on it. It actually
> > > > runs (although it skips the opening menu that comes up when booting the
> > > > disk image itself (via PXE or the UBCD image)), but it fails to find
> > > > any disks on the system :(. I don't know if that's a problem with
> > > > the way I'm running it, or some problem with my system configuration
> > > > (UEFI / BIOS, etc.) I tried changing the SATA controller mode from RAID
> > > > to IDE, but it didn't help.
> > >
> > > A disk behind a weird SATA controller that sometimes thinks it's
> > > a RAID controller? That's going to be problematic.
> >
> > This is an HP Z440 workstation. I don't know much about these things,
> > but this is apparently standard HP design:
> >
> > https://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c02961221#AbT1
> > http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c04823811 (p. 108)
>
> OK, it's an Intel FakeRaid. This will work optimally with Debian
> in AHCI mode.
>
> But I suspect that we now know why the DFT utility can't see it:
> because DOS can't see it, because DOS doesn't have any SATA
> support. The best that can be done is providing a virtualized
> interface, and that won't let you interrogate the disk.
Ah, okay. Well, the BIOS does offer an IDE mode for the controller, but
even that doesn't allow DFT to work. Are you suggesting that that's
because it's not "real" IDE, but some kind of virtualized interface?
> > > Let's go back to: what are you trying to accomplish? Do you have
> > > a new disk that you're trying to qualify in some way, or an old
> > > disk that may have failed and you want to send in for warranty
> > > replacement, or what?
> >
> > A "refurbished" HGST Ultrastar, almost certainly a server pull,
> > purchased on eBay. Originally, I just wanted to verify the health of
> > the disk, and to do so "by the book" (I can always just run badblocks
> > and call it a day), but now I'm intrigued, I suppose, by the
> > challenge ;/
>
> I think you've come to the end of this road. Do run badblocks
> and check it out that way. And have smartctl run a long test.
Makes sense - I'll do that. Thanks.
Celejar
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