I've got an ancient Dell server with 4 disks in RAID 5. One has become faulty and needs to be replaced. I ordered an identical model drive but when it arrived it is slightly smaller. The RAID controller of course doesn't like that and is refusing to rebuild because it is a smaller drive. They're both Seagate ST3600057SS drives, with the 3 old ones clocking in at 572325 MB and the new one at 560208 MB.
Do I have any options here aside from getting yet another drive?
Best Answer
If the logical disk spans the entire capacity then you can't use a disk that's just a single block smaller.
Usually, RAID controllers don't use the exact full capacity of the disks but some do and some users even override this to full capacity. No go.