Re: [PLUG] Box won't boot after RAID drive swap

[Rich Freeman via plug <plug@lists.phillylinux.org>]

On Sat, Nov 5, 2022 at 1:11 PM Walt Mankowski via plug
<plug@lists.phillylinux.org> wrote:
>
> I think I must have been using device
> names instead of UUIDs in the RAID. The boot process got stuck trying
> to connect to a nonexistent /dev/sde drive.

That seems odd, but I'm not sure what you're using for an initramfs.

It is normal to configure mdadm with device names, or rather device
wildcards.  For example, here was the config I used the last time I
used mdadm:
DEVICE /dev/sd[abcdefgh][12345] /dev/hd[abcde][12345]

That just tells mdadm to scan all the partitions that fit those
permutations and look for anything that belongs in an array.

Nothing in the config files should tell mdadm which devices belong in
which array.  It just has a list of devices to scan for metadata.
Then that metadata is used to assemble arrays.

> None of these worked. I'm at a point now where the workstation is
> spontaneously powering off in the middle of the boot process.
> Sometimes it's on the BIOS screen, sometimes it gets a little
> further.

If it isn't getting to the OS then it obviously isn't an OS issue.  I
don't have much to add beyond what others have already said here.  I'd
definitely check cables.  I'd disconnect that new drive if that is
still around.  Whatever is wrong is obviously seriously wrong.

If you could boot off a flash drive you could at least do a RAM test
or something.  Plus that can be done with all the drives disconnected
in case one of those is causing an issue.  If you can't even get into
BIOS with no drives connected then you have a serious hardware problem
with power supply, cables, motherboard, CPU, GPU, or anything else
still plugged in.

-- 
Rich
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