Has anyone installed Clear Linux on a Intel Rapid Storage Technology RAID 0 drive configured in the bios?

General Discussion
1

I booted the clear-41610 ISO to see if it would recognise the IRST RAID0 drive configured in the bios. Unfortunately, the installer recognised it as two separate drives, which I used to configure the RIAD0. So, Windows 11 continues to reside there for now :smile:. With all that speed, Windows is still slower to boot and shut down than Clear Linux on a non-raid NVME (and it shows ads too, lol).

(base) indy@mlrig~ $ sudo lshw -class disk -class storage
Password: 
  *-raid                    
       description: RAID bus controller
       product: Volume Management Device NVMe RAID Controller Intel Corporation
       vendor: Intel Corporation
       physical id: e
       bus info: pci@0000:00:0e.0
       version: 00
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: raid msix pciexpress pm bus_master cap_list
       configuration: driver=vmd latency=0
       resources: iomemory:480-47f iomemory:480-47f irq:0 memory:4804000000-4805ffffff memory:80000000-81ffffff memory:4806000000-48060fffff
  *-usb
       description: Mass storage device
       product: SanDisk 3.2 Gen1
       vendor: SanDisk
       physical id: 2
       bus info: usb@4:2
       logical name: scsi10
       version: 1.10
       
       capabilities: usb-3.20 scsi emulated
       configuration: driver=usb-storage maxpower=896mA speed=5000Mbit/s
     *-disk
          description: SCSI Disk
          product: SanDisk 3.2 Gen1
          vendor: SanDisk
          physical id: 0.0.0
          bus info: scsi@10:0.0.0
          logical name: /dev/sdc
          version: DL17
        
          size: 116GiB (125GB)
          capabilities: removable
          configuration: ansiversion=6 logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512
        *-medium
             physical id: 0
             logical name: /dev/sdc
             size: 116GiB (125GB)
             capabilities: partitioned partitioned:dos
             configuration: signature=1ca7c8ed
  *-sata
       description: SATA controller
       product: ASM1062 Serial ATA Controller
       vendor: ASMedia Technology Inc.
       physical id: 0
       bus info: pci@0000:07:00.0
       version: 02
       width: 32 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: sata msi pm pciexpress ahci_1.0 bus_master cap_list
       configuration: driver=ahci latency=0
       resources: irq:151 ioport:4050(size=8) ioport:4040(size=4) ioport:4030(size=8) ioport:4020(size=4) ioport:4000(size=32) memory:84800000-848001ff
  *-nvme
       description: Non-Volatile memory controller
       product: P5 Plus NVMe PCIe SSD
       vendor: Micron/Crucial Technology
       physical id: 0
       version: 00
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: nvme pm msix pciexpress nvm_express bus_master cap_list
       configuration: driver=nvme latency=0
       resources: irq:0 memory:80000000-80003fff
  *-sata
       description: SATA controller
       product: Intel Corporation
       vendor: Intel Corporation
       physical id: 17
       version: 11
       width: 32 bits
       clock: 66MHz
       capabilities: sata msi pm ahci_1.0 bus_master cap_list
       configuration: driver=ahci latency=0
       resources: irq:155 memory:80300000-80301fff memory:80302800-803028ff memory:80302000-803027ff
  *-nvme
       description: Non-Volatile memory controller
       product: NVMe SSD Controller S4LV008[Pascal]
       vendor: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
       physical id: 0
       version: 00
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: nvme pm msi pciexpress msix nvm_express bus_master cap_list
       configuration: driver=nvme latency=0
       resources: irq:0 memory:80100000-80103fff
  *-nvme
       description: Non-Volatile memory controller
       product: NVMe SSD Controller S4LV008[Pascal]
       vendor: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
       physical id: 0
       version: 00
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: nvme pm msi pciexpress msix nvm_express bus_master cap_list
       configuration: driver=nvme latency=0
       resources: irq:0 memory:80200000-80203fff
  *-scsi
       physical id: b
       bus info: pci@0000:e0:17.0
       logical name: scsi6
       logical name: scsi8
       capabilities: emulated
     *-disk:0
          description: ATA Disk
          product: Samsung SSD 860
          physical id: 0
          bus info: scsi@6:0.0.0
          logical name: /dev/sda
          version: 4B6Q
        
          size: 232GiB (250GB)
          capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
          configuration: ansiversion=5 guid=8d205be6-f966-4ede-aba8-04bb51bfcf99 logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512
     *-disk:1
          description: ATA Disk
          product: WDC WD20EZRX-00D
          vendor: Western Digital
          physical id: 1
          bus info: scsi@8:0.0.0
          logical name: /dev/sdb
          version: 0A80
         
          size: 1863GiB (2TB)
          capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
          configuration: ansiversion=5 guid=08356317-a572-485b-90e9-e8a95fcb2d5f logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=4096
  *-nvme0
       description: NVMe device
       product: CT2000P5PSSD8
       physical id: 1
       logical name: /dev/nvme0
       version: P7CR403
     
       configuration: nqn=nqn.2014-08.com.micron:nvme:nvm-subsystem-sn-23113F5D599B state=live
     *-namespace:0
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 0
          logical name: hwmon2
     *-namespace:1
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 2
          logical name: /dev/ng0n1
     *-namespace:2
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 1
          bus info: nvme@0:1
          logical name: /dev/nvme0n1
          size: 1863GiB (2TB)
          capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
          configuration: guid=9ac7a7ad-deab-47c4-8d84-0b2d106873b7 logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512 wwid=eui.000000000000000100a075233f5d599b
  *-nvme1
       description: NVMe device
       product: Samsung SSD 990 PRO 2TB
       physical id: 2
       logical name: /dev/nvme1
       version: 4B2QJXD7
       
       configuration: nqn=nqn.1994-11.com.samsung:nvme:990PRO:M.2:S6Z2NJ0TB29715T state=live
     *-namespace:0
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 0
          logical name: hwmon1
     *-namespace:1
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 2
          logical name: /dev/ng1n1
     *-namespace:2
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 1
          bus info: nvme@1:1
          logical name: /dev/nvme1n1
          size: 1863GiB (2TB)
          capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
          configuration: guid=23db208f-9205-4b07-a631-9beac57e6b08 logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512 wwid=eui.0025384b21415d68
  *-nvme2
       description: NVMe device
       product: Samsung SSD 990 PRO 2TB
       physical id: 3
       logical name: /dev/nvme2
       version: 4B2QJXD7
       
       configuration: nqn=nqn.1994-11.com.samsung:nvme:990PRO:M.2:S7DNNJ0WC82785N state=live
     *-namespace:0
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 0
          logical name: hwmon0
     *-namespace:1
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 2
          logical name: /dev/ng2n1
     *-namespace:2
          description: NVMe disk
          physical id: 1
          bus info: nvme@2:1
          logical name: /dev/nvme2n1
          size: 1863GiB (2TB)
          capabilities: gpt-1.00 partitioned partitioned:gpt
          configuration: guid=3c574a52-68b6-4326-a17d-2995e5ebf624 logicalsectorsize=512 sectorsize=512 wwid=eui.0025384c31446882
2

This seems like a good starting point:
https://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/white-papers/rst-linux-paper.pdf
The instructions below got me to mount the RST RAID:

(base) indy@mlrig~ $ sudo IMSM_NO_PLATFORM=1 mdadm --assemble --scan --verbose
mdadm: looking for devices for further assembly
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc2
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdb1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdb
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sda1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sda
mdadm: no recogniseable superblock on /dev/nvme0n1p2
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/nvme0n1p1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/nvme0n1
mdadm: no RAID superblock on /dev/nvme2n1p2
mdadm: no RAID superblock on /dev/nvme2n1p1
mdadm: /dev/nvme1n1 is identified as a member of /dev/md/imsm0, slot 0.
mdadm: /dev/nvme2n1 is identified as a member of /dev/md/imsm0, slot 1.
mdadm: added /dev/nvme2n1 to /dev/md/imsm0 as 1
mdadm: added /dev/nvme1n1 to /dev/md/imsm0 as 0
mdadm: Container /dev/md/imsm0 has been assembled with 2 drives
mdadm: looking for devices for further assembly
mdadm: looking for devices for further assembly
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc2
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdb1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdb
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sda1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sda
mdadm: no recogniseable superblock on /dev/nvme0n1p2
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/nvme0n1p1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/nvme0n1
mdadm: /dev/nvme1n1 is busy - skipping
mdadm: no recogniseable superblock on /dev/nvme2n1p2
mdadm: no recogniseable superblock on /dev/nvme2n1p1
mdadm: /dev/nvme2n1 is busy - skipping
mdadm: looking in container /dev/md/imsm0
mdadm: found match on member /md127/0 in /dev/md/imsm0
mdadm: /dev/md/Volume1_0 has been assembled with 2 devices and started.
mdadm: looking for devices for further assembly
mdadm: /dev/nvme1n1 is busy - skipping
mdadm: /dev/nvme2n1 is busy - skipping
mdadm: looking in container /dev/md/imsm0
mdadm: member /md127/0 in /dev/md/imsm0 is already assembled
mdadm: looking for devices for further assembly
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/md126p4
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/md126p3
mdadm: no recogniseable superblock on /dev/md126p2
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/md126p1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/md/Volume1_0
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc2
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdc
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdb1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sdb
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sda1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/sda
mdadm: no recogniseable superblock on /dev/nvme0n1p2
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/nvme0n1p1
mdadm: Cannot assemble mbr metadata on /dev/nvme0n1
mdadm: /dev/nvme1n1 is busy - skipping
mdadm: no recogniseable superblock on /dev/nvme2n1p2
mdadm: no recogniseable superblock on /dev/nvme2n1p1
mdadm: /dev/nvme2n1 is busy - skipping
mdadm: looking in container /dev/md/imsm0
mdadm: member /md127/0 in /dev/md/imsm0 is already assembled

And then;

(base) indy@mlrig~ $ sudo mdadm --query --detail /dev/md127
Password:
/dev/md127:
Version : imsm
Raid Level : container
Total Devices : 2

Working Devices : 2

 Member Arrays : /dev/md/Volume1_0

Number   Major   Minor   RaidDevice

   -     259        0        -        /dev/nvme2n1
   -     259        3        -        /dev/nvme1n1

Credits to;
https://askubuntu.com/questions/1239082/reassemble-intel-rst-raid-on-another-mainboard

1 Like
3

Unfortunately, neither the GUI nor CLI installer could recognise the drive. I 'dd’d a CL drive from a normal nvme drive and chrooted to get the clr-boot-manager to update but ended up with a lot of error messages.

I appear to be pressing sensitive buttons in Intel technologies. I feel like a monkey with a loaded gun :rofl:

For your information, I booted the OpenSUSE Tumbleweed ISO, and it detected the RAID0 straight away and recommended that I install the OS in it. I am blown away by the disk benchmarks. Here is a comparison of non-raid v raid0 disk benchmarks using the Gnome Disks app.

non-raid-nvme
non-raid-nvme656×616 56 KB

RAID0
RAID0656×616 56 KB

4

This may work for CL, but I have not tried it. It works for Pop_OS for sure, as I am using it. So, there is no need to configure the raid array in the bios; do it with mdadm as per the tutorial below.

Pop!_OS 22.04 LTS on mdadm Linux Raid How-To