Member Avatar for MervinKoops
MervinKoops 0 Newbie Poster

Hello,

I have an old IBM Netfinity 5500 M20 server that i want to use as a server for backups and other stuff

The server works but i do not have the driver for the ServeRAID-II controller i need it during the installation of Windows Home Server / Windows Server 2003 / Debian

I also need the IBM ServeRAID Support CD image but i can't seem to find the right one on the IBM site..

I hope someone here can help me find the necessary files,
i'd really like to use this server

  • 1 Contributor
  • 0 Replies
  • 83 Views

Dani AI

Generated

— practical next steps and gotchas to recover an old Netfinity 5500 M20 with a ServeRAID-II controller.

Start by identifying the exact controller and firmware string (the RAID BIOS message at boot usually shows the model). If you can boot Linux, gather vendor/device IDs so you can search for the correct driver package:

lspci -nn | grep -i raid
lspci -vv
dmesg | egrep -i 'raid|scsi|megaraid|aac|mpt'
lsmod

For Windows Server 2003 / Windows Home Server: those installers expect an F6 floppy driver during setup. If the ServeRAID-II driver package is available from IBM/Lenovo support, either use a real or virtual floppy when Setup prompts F6, or slipstream the driver into the install ISO. Check IBM/Lenovo support pages for Netfinity/ServeRAID downloads, and if the official files were removed, try the Internet Archive for older ServeRAID Support CD images.

For Debian: modern kernels sometimes include legacy RAID drivers, but if no kernel driver exists, use a live CD to work with the disks directly and consider switching to software RAID (mdadm) which is fully supported and easier to maintain long-term:

apt-get install mdadm
mdadm --create /dev/md0 --level=1 --raid-devices=2 /dev/sda /dev/sdb

Important cautions: do not initialize or reformat disks until you have a verified backup; update ServeRAID firmware only with the correct image for that exact model; and prefer official IBM/Lenovo downloads or an archived official image. Official support portals: IBM Support and . For software RAID guidance see the Debian mdadm wiki: mdadm - Debian Wiki.

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.