HPE Smart Storage Administrator (SSA) is HPE's main configuration tool for SmartRAID (SR) controllers, the Smart Array family. This guide shows how to create an array and its first logical drive in the SSA GUI, either before an operating system is installed (offline, from Intelligent Provisioning) or on a running Windows or Linux server (online). It also covers the shorter UEFI System Utilities method, which HPE documents for the same controllers.
Before you start
- Confirm that the controller is an SR model, for example an SR Gen10, SR Gen10 Plus or SR Gen11 controller. HPE MR controllers (such as MR216i or MR416i) cannot be managed with SSA; for those, see Configure RAID on HPE MR Gen11 controllers.
- Only unassigned drives can be used for a new array. Check which bays are free and that none of them hold data you still need.
- Choose the RAID level in advance. See RAID levels and usable capacity.
- Have console access to the server: a local monitor or the iLO remote console.
SSA or UEFI System Utilities: which one?
The HPE SR Gen10, SR Gen10 Plus and SR Gen11 controller user guides state that both tools can configure the controller. SSA provides the full set of array features; UEFI System Utilities provides a limited set but loads faster during the first setup of a server. The table summarises the guides' comparison.
| Task | SSA | UEFI System Utilities |
|---|---|---|
| Create or delete arrays and logical drives, set RAID level, size and strip size | Yes | Yes |
| Assign or delete spare drives, set spare activation mode | Yes | Yes |
| Migrate RAID level or strip size, expand an array, extend a logical drive | Yes | No |
| Set the boot controller | Yes | No |
Step 1 — Open SSA
Offline, without an operating system
- Restart the server and press F10 during POST to start Intelligent Provisioning.
- On Gen11 servers (Intelligent Provisioning 4.x), select SR Storage Administrator from the F10 menu, or click Perform Maintenance on the Intelligent Provisioning home screen and select SR Storage Administrator. Menu labels differ between Intelligent Provisioning versions; check the guide for your version.
SSA can also be launched offline from the Service Pack for ProLiant (SPP). Some SSA features, such as setting the boot controller and boot volume, are only available offline.
Online, inside Windows or Linux
Download and install the SSA package for your OS from HPE, then:
- Windows: click Start and select Programs > Windows System > Smart Storage Administrator.
- Linux: run SSA in local mode; it opens in a browser. On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1 and later the sg (SCSI generic) driver is not loaded automatically, so load it first.
modprobe sg
ssa -localStep 2 — Check the drives against HPE's array rules
- All drives in a logical drive must be the same type: all SAS, all SATA or all NVMe, and either all hard drives or all SSDs. SSDs cannot be mixed with hard drives.
- Each drive is treated as if it had the capacity of the smallest drive in the array; extra capacity on larger drives is unused.
- The more drives an array has, the higher the chance of a drive failure in any given period, so use a fault-tolerant RAID level for data you need.
- When SED encryption is enabled, do not mix SEDs with non-SED drives, or OPAL SEDs with Enterprise SEDs.
Step 3 — Create the array and logical drive in SSA
- Open the Configure panel: select the device on the Home screen and click Configure, or open the drop-down next to the SSA icon, hover over the device and click Configure.
- Select the controller in the Controller Devices menu. The Actions panel appears. If the controller has no unassigned drives, Create Array is not offered.
- Click Create Array.
- Select the physical drives for the new array and click Create Array.
- Set RAID Level, Strip Size/Full Stripe Size, Sectors/Track and Size. Depending on the controller and drives, SSA can also show Number of Parity Groups, Parity Initialization Method, Caching and SSD Over Provisioning Optimization.
- Click Create Logical Drive, review the summary and click Finish.
What the main options mean
| Option | Guidance from the HPE guides |
|---|---|
| RAID Level | SSA lists only the levels the controller and the selected number of drives support. |
| Strip Size/Full Stripe Size | Strip size is the data stored on each drive; full stripe size is the data read or written across all drives at once. Align it with your application I/O size. Small strips (64 KiB or less) make background parity scans and rebuilds take longer. See stripe size basics. |
| Sectors/Track | 32 by default. 63 (Max Boot) lets a legacy BIOS boot drive have a larger boot partition; the guide suggests enabling it only on the boot drive. |
| Size | Defaults to the maximum. Leave space if you want more logical drives on the same array. |
| Parity Initialization Method | For parity RAID (5, 6, 50, 60). Default initializes parity in the background while the drive is usable. Rapid overwrites data and parity in the foreground, and the drive stays hidden from the OS until it finishes. Rapid is available only on supported controllers and drives. |
Note: On volumes built from SSDs, SSD Smart Path is enabled by default and controller cache is not configured for that volume. To use controller cache on an SSD volume, disable SSD Smart Path first. See Smart Array cache and the energy pack.
Step 4 — Alternative: create the array in UEFI System Utilities
- Press F9 during POST to open System Utilities.
- Select System Configuration > (your SR controller) > Array Configuration > Create Array.
- Select each drive for the array and click Proceed to next Form.
- On Set RAID Level, choose the RAID level and click Proceed to next Form.
- On Set Logical Drive Configuration, set the Logical Drive Label, Strip Size/Full Stripe Size, Size, Unit Size and Acceleration Method (controller cache or none), or keep the defaults.
- Click Submit Changes, return to the main menu, click OK to save, and reboot.
To add another logical drive to an existing array, use System Configuration > (controller) > Array Configuration > Manage Arrays > (array) > Create Logical Drive.
Step 5 — Verify and hand over to the OS
- In SSA, select the controller and confirm the new array and logical drive appear with an OK status. In UEFI, open Manage Arrays > (array) > List Logical Drives > (logical drive) > Logical Drive Details.
- From an OS shell,
ssaclishows the same information; see ssacli commands for Smart Array. - If you created the drive online, partition and format it with the OS disk management tools.
- Add a spare drive if the array needs one; see spare drives on Smart Array.
Warning: Deleting a logical drive deletes its data. Deleting an array deletes all its logical drives and their data, and if it is the only array on the controller, the controller settings return to defaults. Clear Configuration deletes all arrays and their data. Migrating the RAID level or strip size rewrites the whole logical drive. Back up first, and confirm you have selected the right controller and drives.
Frequently asked questions
Can SSA configure HPE MR controllers?
No. The HPE MR Gen11 Controller User Guide states that MR controllers are managed with HPE MR Storage Administrator, not with Smart Storage Administrator. UEFI System Utilities and StorCLI also work for MR controllers.
Can I change the RAID level after creating the logical drive?
Yes, with SSA (Migrate RAID/Stripe Size). UEFI System Utilities does not offer migration. Some migrations need extra drives or free space. The SSA CLI guide says an expansion, extension or migration takes about 15 minutes per gigabyte, and only one can run at a time on a controller.
Checklist
- Controller is an SR (Smart Array) model, not MR.
- Selected drives are unassigned, same interface and media type, and similar capacity.
- RAID level, strip size and size chosen for the workload.
- Logical drive shows OK in SSA or UEFI after creation.
- Spare drive and cache settings reviewed.
- Backup taken before any delete, clear or migration task.
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