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Resolving smartctl "Open Device Failed" on Dell MegaRAID Controllers
When disks are connected to a hardware RAID controller (Dell PERC H330, H730P, H740P, or LSI MegaRAID series), the controller aggregates physical disks into logical Virtual Disks (VDs). The OS kernel driver (e.g., megaraid_sas ) presents only the VD as a standard SCSI block device – /dev/sda . Resolving smartctl "Open Device Failed" on Dell MegaRAID
smartctl -d megaraid,2 --all /dev/sda
The standard smartctl command expects direct ATA/SCSI passthrough. A RAID controller intercepts these commands. Without special instructions, the controller cannot know which physical disk behind the virtual drive you want to query. 0 = success 1 = partial success (some
If you know disk sizes differ, you can try: 3. Dell PERC = LSI MegaRAID
You need to identify which physical slot number corresponds to your drive. Use the MegaRAID management tool (like ) to list physical drives: # If using MegaCli sudo MegaCli -PDList -aALL | grep "Device Id" # If using perccli (common on newer Dell servers) sudo perccli /c0 /eall /sall show Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard Look for the "Device ID" "Slot Number" 2. Run the Smartctl Command Once you have the ID (e.g., sudo smartctl -x -d megaraid,0 /dev/sda Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard 3. Handling SATA Drives
Resolving smartctl "Open Device Failed" on Dell MegaRAID Controllers
When disks are connected to a hardware RAID controller (Dell PERC H330, H730P, H740P, or LSI MegaRAID series), the controller aggregates physical disks into logical Virtual Disks (VDs). The OS kernel driver (e.g., megaraid_sas ) presents only the VD as a standard SCSI block device – /dev/sda .
smartctl -d megaraid,2 --all /dev/sda
The standard smartctl command expects direct ATA/SCSI passthrough. A RAID controller intercepts these commands. Without special instructions, the controller cannot know which physical disk behind the virtual drive you want to query.
If you know disk sizes differ, you can try:
You need to identify which physical slot number corresponds to your drive. Use the MegaRAID management tool (like ) to list physical drives: # If using MegaCli sudo MegaCli -PDList -aALL | grep "Device Id" # If using perccli (common on newer Dell servers) sudo perccli /c0 /eall /sall show Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard Look for the "Device ID" "Slot Number" 2. Run the Smartctl Command Once you have the ID (e.g., sudo smartctl -x -d megaraid,0 /dev/sda Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard 3. Handling SATA Drives
