HP Proliant DL180 G5 server treats 3-TB SATA disks as 750-GB ones

I have this HP Proliant DL180 G5 server, running with the embedded RAID controller (no Smart Array); with this configuration, it only supports 4 SATA disks. Fine.

The server has 2 250-GB SATA disks; I bought two 3-TB SATA disks and I added them to the server; but now, upon booting, it shows 2 250-GB disks and 2 750-GB disks.

I already updated the server's BIOS to the latest one, but this didn't change anything.

This looks like a size limit problem... but why does it only see 750 GB? If there actually is a limit on disk size, shouldn't it be 1 or 2 TB (which at least makes some sense when bits are concerned)?

How can I make this server use the full capacity of those 3-TB disks?

Solution 1:

The embedded G5 disk controller just doesn't support >2.2TB disks sorry, you'll need to use one that does, there's no workaround.

Solution 2:

Are you seeing the ~750GB size in the RAID storage manager? BIOS? In the OS?

I feel like you're running into a SATA compatibility issue. Assuming the 3TB drives are relatively new (and have 6G interfaces), I just don't think the onboard controller has kept pace. The controller for that server is located on the system board's SouthBridge, so the most recent firmware for the system (December 2010) predates the introduction of 3TB disks by 6 months.

Your best bet at this point is you get a dedicated HBA that can accommodate the drives. At the very least, that removes the dependency on the manufacturer (HP) for storage system firmware.