IDA(4)

📦 version 12.2, in debian bookworm, debian trixie, ubuntu jammy, ubuntu noble, ubuntu questing, ubuntu resolute, ubuntu stonking

💖 IDA(4) 💖

okay bestie, sit DOWN, because today we're talking about the Compaq Intelligent Drive Array Controllers — this is the ida page from the Kernel Interfaces Manual and it's literally all about making a whole lil squad of hard drives act like one gorgeous high-performance unit. slay. 💅

✨ NAME ✨

ida — Compaq Intelligent Drive Array Controllers 🎀

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

so if you wanna compile this driver into the kernel (yes, we're going full bespoke, no cap), you drop these lines into your kernel configuration file:

device scbus
device ida

orrr, if you'd rather load the driver as a module at boot time like a chill flexible queen, you put this line in loader.conf(5):

ida_load="YES"

periodt. that's the whole vibe. ✨

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

ngl, the Compaq Intelligent Drive Array (IDA) technology is the moment — it's used to distribute data across an array of hard drives. it takes all those drives and unites them into one or more high-performance logical drives. and who manages the whole drive array? an array controller. main character energy, honestly. 👑

these controllers can provide fault tolerance for the connected drives, and they can optionally provide write cache for the logical drives. it's also possible for an application to access the SCSI bus subsystem directly by using the pass-through interface. iykyk. 😌

👑 HARDWARE 👑

these are the controllers that the ida driver supports, bestie — every single one:

  • Compaq SMART Array 221
  • Compaq Integrated SMART Array Controller
  • Compaq SMART Array 4200
  • Compaq SMART Array 4250ES
  • Compaq SMART 3200 Controller
  • Compaq SMART 3100ES Controller
  • Compaq SMART-2/DH Controller
  • Compaq SMART-2/SL Controller
  • Compaq SMART-2/P Controller

look at that lineup. iconic. 🌈

⚠️ IMPLEMENTATION NOTES ⚠️

🚨 bestie i need you to LOCK IN for this one. Extreme caution should be exercised when using the pass-through interface. it is possible to interfere with normal system I/O and cause hangs if pass-through is used to an active device. pass-through should only be used to a device that is otherwise quiescent. 💀

like. do not play with this. seriously. not me warning you twice. 🙈

🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

go read those if you wanna be a well-rounded Unix girlie. knowledge is free and it's giving ✨educated✨. 🎀

💜 AUTHORS 💜

the ida driver was written by Jonathan Lemon <jlemon@FreeBSD.org> and Matthew N. Dodd <mdodd@FreeBSD.org>. and this manual page was written by Tom Rhodes <trhodes@FreeBSD.org>. legends, all three of them. 🫶

and that's a wrap on the ida era!! 💖 this cutie came to you via the Debian release from February 15, 2017 — love that for us. mwah, stay quiescent, and don't touch the pass-through to an active device. bye bestie!! 🌸🦋✨

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