In addition:
It would appear that DP_MassStorage_wnt5_x86-32_1209\D\M\L
does not actually conflict with VEN_8086&DEV_2826&SUBSYS_84EF1043
as that specific HWid is not present in MegaSR.inf.
Not even with the updated files in DP_MassStorage_wnt5_x86-32_1212b2
(under constuction - MegaSR now WHQL'ed for 2k3, XP-OK though non-WHQL'ed;
DriverVer=08/11/2012,15.00.0811.2012).
"==================
Known Restrictions
==================
1. Intel(R) ESRT2 based on Intel(R) C600 chipset does not support UEFI functionality. A UEFI driver is planned/expected to be made available post-launch, but there will be no GUI available in UEFI for configuring arrays.
2. The on-board SATA/SAS Capable Controller does not support ODD devices.No Optical Devices should be connected to the SATA/SAS controller at any time (ODD devices are not supported in any mode), but the onboard AHCI capable ports do support ODD devices (in all modes).
3. RAID 5 feature is enabled only if the appropriate Intel(R) RAID C600 Upgrade Key is present in the system.
4. A RAID 5 logical drive can recover from a single drive failure by reconstructing missing data from the data and parity contained on the remaining drives. The assumption underlying this ability is that the data in the remaining drives is consistent. This assumption becomes invalid if there is a power loss during write operation(s). If there is a loss of power during a write operation, data inconsistencies may occur because data and parity writes may have completed only partially. After subsequent reboot the logical drive has inconsistent data on that particular stripe. If a drive were to fail at this point, missing data (for the inconsistent stripe alone) cannot be reconstructed from remaining drives. To correct an inconsistency, the drivers starts a back ground initialization (BGI) at reboot. While BGI is in progress, the inconsistent stripe(s) are vulnerable to drive failure. One way to avoid this window of vulnerability is to run check consistency on the logical drive using the BIOS utility. Another way is to prevent an unplanned shutdown (e.g. using UPS).
5. The LITE-ON SH S752K model CD/DVD ROM device does not respond to 0x55 & 0x51 MMC commands properly. The device hangs when these commands are issued multiple times. The driver resets the device when it hangs; but the reset adversely affects DVD burning. This behavior can be consistently observed using K3B DVD burning software. K3B aborts DVD writes when 0x55 is failed and device is reset.
6. RAID 5, by its very nature, cannot tolerate double failures. The double failure can be a combination of a single drive failure and either additional drive failures or an unplanned power failure in the RAID system. Unplanned power failures can include but be not limited to, loss of power source or an unusual system shutdown. Unplanned power failures while there are medium errors on the drives is also considered as a double failure condition.
7. Multiple drive failures would result in a data loss condition. A single drive failure combined with any additional unplanned failure can cause loss of data integrity. To avoid loss of data integrity for the power failure case, it is highly recommended to provide an uninterrupted power supply to the server to protect the RAID 5 subsystem during the event of a degraded or rebuilding state. Medium errors on the disks, combined with an unplanned power failure can also cause loss of data integrity, but this occurrence would be very unlikely.
8. Hotplug limitation in runtime
If the user pulls out or plugs in a drive when the Intel(R) ESRT2 OpROM has completed its execution, and before the OS driver is loaded (like DOS shell, or AHCI?Ctrl-M screen, etc), the OpROM's runtime code displays a message and force reboot the system to avoid configuration losses or data corruption.
9. Maximum two storage controllers supported
If the user tries to enable SATA/SAS Capable Controller and AHCI Capable SATA Controller in Intel(R) ESRT2 mode concurrently, and then inserts any external storage controller (for example, a Hardware RAID adapter), the last controller in the boot sequence might not be able to POST.
10. Windows installation limitation in RAID Mode:
If Windows installation is done on a drive connected through the AHCI capable SATA Controller, make sure SATA/SAS Capable Controller is disabled in BIOS. After completion of installation, the SATA/SAS Capable Controller can be enabled in BIOS. If both controllers are enabled in Intel(R) ESRT2 mode, the installation may fail.
11. BIOS communicates the presence/absence of specific Intel(R) RAID C600 Upgrade key (RKSATA4R5, RKSATA8R5, RKSAS4R5 and RKSAS8R5) using configuration data on disk (DDF) and through device registers from BIOS. If driver does not read a valid DDF, it will disable R5 creation. The driver may not see valid DDF if (A) user does not configure using BIOS Ctrl+M; or (B) if no drives were present at the boot time and all the drives were hot-inserted after OS is booted. In both cases, the user must create an initial configuration using BIOS Ctrl+M utility."
Quoted from http://downloadmirror.intel.com/20963/e … Readme.TXT
I only posted that to aid my wondering if the ven_8086&dev_2826&cc_0104 hardware/drivers have similar limitations.
If i see similar notes for that, i will post it.
The driver in I4 is restricted in MS.ini to 2k3 only. Is that the real issue?
Would unrestricting XP textmode for that driver be another solution, despite being an RSTe driver?
ASUS does claim that your hardware is designed to be able to run RSTe (and RST as you have noted).
I will proceed based upon that deduction.
It would be interesting to see if the "BIOS" does indeed contrain the necessary modules and versions of modules to properly support this, as noted by Fernando.
Last edited by TechDud (2012-12-09 13:37:09)