Why am I getting "Input/output error during read on /dev/sda" during a CentOS text-mode installation?
Solution 1:
The HP ProLiant DL380 G5 should have an internal Smart Array P400 RAID controller. That controller uses the CCISS block driver under Red Hat/CentOS 5.x. This would present your logical devices to the OS as /dev/cciss/c0dXpY, where X is the controller number and Y is the partition number. For most systems, look for /dev/cciss/c0d0.
You may be selecting the wrong device to install to. Is there a USB device plugged into the server? There aren't any other devices in a standard DL380 G5 that would register as SCSI. The CD drive in that system would be /dev/hda.
Watch the BIOS messages as you boot the system, though. There is an option to enter the ORCA BIOS configuration utility for the P400 controller. Press F8. There needs to be at least one logical drive available for you to install to.
In the CentOS installation screen, it should show you the type of device you're installing to. Where in the process does this error surface?
Note: newer HP controllers, such as the Smart Array P410, use the new HPSA driver on current operating systems. They would show up using the /dev/sdX scheme, e.g /dev/sda1.
Solution 2:
- Try the disk in another server.
- Check cables.
- Check Smart, do tests
- check for badblocks