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Upgrading the DIMM : Dell PowerEdge Expandable RAID Controller 2 Installation Guide Back to Contents Page

Upgrading the DIMM

The Daughter Card houses the DIMM which increases the performance of the PERC 2 by offering read and write cache memory. The PERC 2 can be used with a 32, 64, or 128 MByte DIMM. To order DIMMs or to get further information, contact a Dell sales representative at www.dell.com .

For a list of battery holdover times, see Specifications.

Caution: The PERC 2 cache may become corrupted if a short occurs! Avoid any contact between the PERC 2 components and any metal objects. Also, do not remove or change any jumpers on the PERC 2 daughter card other than the battery jumper (which you remove and then replace after you upgrade the DIMM).

Follow these instructions to upgrade the DIMM on your board:

Shutdown and then power OFF your system. Note that a shutdown causes the controller to flush any data in the cache to disk.
Caution: Do not simply power-off your system without first shutting it down. If you elimnate the shutdown and simply power- off your system, the controller will hold data in cache.
Disconnect any SCSI devices from the PERC 2
Remove the four screws from the Daughter Card. Grasp the Daughter Card along its longer edge, directly above and below the 200-pin connector joining the Daughter Card to the PERC 2. Gently rock the Daughter Card back and forth to separate the connector pins and remove the Daughter Card as shown in Figure 1. Be careful not to bend or damage any of the connector's pins.

Figure 1. Removing the Daughter Card.
If you are replacing or upgrading a DIMM on a PERC 2 that has been in service, remove the battery jumper prior to removing the old DIMM so that no power is going ot the DIMM.

To locate the battery power jumper, see Figure Daughter Card Components.
Caution: Do not remove or change any jumpers on the PERC 2 daughter card other than the battery jumper.
Remove the Existing DIMM as shown in Figure 2.
Note: You may need to lift the leftmost handle over card components in order to open the slot.

Figure 2. Removing the Existing DIMM

Install the new DIMM in the nonvolatile memory socket, as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3. Installing the DIMM in the Memory Socket
Ensure that the battery jumper is installed on the daughter card prior to assembling the daughter card to the main card. Note that if you are installing a new PERC 2 controller in your system, the daughter card may have been shipped with the battery jumper only partially installed.

To locate the battery power jumper, see Figure Daughter Card Components.
Install the Daughter Card as follows:
1. Line up the 200-pin connectors on the Daughter Card and the PERC 2. Hold the assembly with both hands so that your fingers are pinching both cards together at either end of the connector. Once you confirm that the pins are seated properly, apply firm even pressure to reseat the Daughter Card.
2. Secure the Daughter Card with the four screws provided, as shown in Figure 2.
  
  Figure 4. Installing the Daughter Card on the PERC 2

You are now ready to reinstall the PERC 2 card into your system. See Daughter Card Components.

Note: Certain Dell systems require that the controller's extender be removed in order for the controller to fit into the system. In those cases, standoffs replace the extender depicted in Figure 4

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