Juggling Storage: Dismount VMFS eSATA RAID5, remount as USB 3.0, pass through to VM, then reformat as NTFS
Yes, the title pretty much says it all, with no ESXi 5.0 reboots required, of course.
After watching this video, you will see exactly how to properly dismount and disconnect an eSATA device from an ESXi 5.0 host*
*the ASRock motherboard BIOS settings have been set to allow hot eject of SATA devices, discussed here.
*if you're using Intel Core i7, you need the 2600 (not the 2600K) and a motherboard that supports VT-d, described at:
TinkerTry.com/vmdirectpath
TinkerTry.com/bestintelcpuforvirtualization
This is an updated and improved version of my original post here:
TinkerTry.com/hotejectsata, see also VMware's [unpresenting a LUN in ESXi 5.x](http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=2004605 ) kb 2004605 article.
A 4-drive-bay, ~$200 USD external RAID5 array was used for this test, the Mediasonic HFR2-SU3S2 enclosure, which I use for storage of daily PC backups.
Eject the
- Datastore Unmount, right-click, "Unmount", seen at this spot in the video
- Device Detach, right-click the , "Detach", seen at this spot in the video
- Remove the eSATA cable.
- Map the RocketU 1144A 4 port USB 3.0 PCI-E card's 4 ASMedia controllers to the VM (pass through), reboot the VM
- Install the ASMedia USB 3.0 device drivers (ASRock mobo and HighPoint PCI card share the same) on the Windows 2008 based VM.
- The array is now recognized, then formated as one big 5.5TB drive, ready to handle large sets of daily PC backups (not bootable).
Here's a list of closely-related articles:
TinkerTry.com/vzillastoragereasoning
TinkerTry.com/beyond2tbvmdisksizemaximum
TinkerTry.com/usb3speed
Here's the step-by-step video:
