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majuntax
Contributor
Contributor

Does VSAN have other configuration requirements for the raid card in passthrough mode?

I/T - Initiator and Target mode, that is, pass-through mode, without any RAID function, SAS HBA card works in this mode, such as N2215, N2225

     I found that the pass-through mode card also has a write cache. Do you need to close it?

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peetz
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Hello and welcome to the forums!

the controller must be in pass-through mode, and the write cache must be disabled.

Other than that you just make sure that the controller is on the vSAN HCL.

Andreas

Twitter: @VFrontDe, @ESXiPatches | https://esxi-patches.v-front.de | https://vibsdepot.v-front.de
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TheBobkin
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Hello majuntax

Alternative to disabling cache is setting it to 100% Read.

Also ensure you are using the correct (and preferably latest) driver and firmware combination from the vSAN-HCL - the standard ESXi HCL generally has drivers+firmware on it that are not supported for vSAN. This tool my colleague created is very handy for checking these for vSAN components:

https://hcl.captain-vsan.com/index.php

Bob

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majuntax
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Contributor

N2215 is in the compatibility list. In the official VMware documentation, I only see that it is necessary to turn off the write cache in RAID 0 mode.

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TheBobkin
Champion
Champion

Hello majuntax,

Can you please link the documentation to which you refer? Potentially it is outdated and I this I would trust Duncan Epping over that:

"Let it be clear that with vSAN you are required to disable the write cache at all times."

Disk controllers for vSAN with or without cache? - Yellow Bricks

Bob

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