180 lines
7.8 KiB
Markdown
180 lines
7.8 KiB
Markdown
# F3 Unlock Procedure — EMC CLAR200 Exos X18 via ESP32-C3
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Step-by-step to reach the Seagate **F3 service terminal** on a CLAR200-locked
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Exos X18 (ST16000NM004J, EMC fw ES2264) and reformat it to 512-byte sectors.
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> **Read first:** `~/bin/EMC_CLAR200_DRIVE_FIX_NOTES.md` (why every host-side tool
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> fails) and `docs/f3-command-reference.md` (F3 dialect + honesty about what's
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> uncertain on Exos). This file is the *physical + operational* runbook.
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---
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## ⚠️ Safety rules (non-negotiable)
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1. **Bench only. Never in the pve173 JBOD.** The target drive lives one bay away
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from the live 549 TB `tank`. Pull it and work on a bench so a slipped probe,
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a shorted pad, or a power glitch can't touch a pool disk.
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2. **3.3 V only.** The ESP32-C3 is 3.3 V native — correct for the F3 header.
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Never put 5 V on the diagnostic pins. Never connect the ESP32's VCC/3V3/5V to
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the drive — power the drive from its *own* SATA/SAS power. You share **only
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TX, RX, GND**.
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3. **Log everything.** Run the terminal under `screen -L` (or `tmux` + pipe).
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F3 sessions are unrepeatable forensics; capture every byte.
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4. **Escalation brake.** If the terminal is silent or garbled, the answer is
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*re-check wiring / sweep baud / re-check ground* — never "try a more
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aggressive format command." Destructive F3 commands are a last, deliberate
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step, not a flailing one.
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5. **One drive at a time.** Do ZRS015V7 end-to-end, document it, then ZR511KWK.
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---
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## What you need
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| Item | Have? | Notes |
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|---|---|---|
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| ESP32-C3 | ✅ on steel141 `/dev/ttyACM0` | native USB-CDC, 3.3 V, MAC 58:8c:81:ac:f0:4c |
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| 3× jumper wires (F-F) | ? | drive header → ESP32 GPIO4/GPIO5/GND |
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| Drive standalone power | ? | SFF-8482 → SATA-power adapter, a SAS dock, or PSU 5V+12V to the SAS power segment. **F3 needs only power — no SAS data link required.** |
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| Multimeter | ? | to find TX/RX/GND pads (continuity + idle-voltage) |
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| Insulating card / Kapton tape | ? | *contingency only* — for the BSY isolation trick if the terminal won't respond |
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| Bench host running `screen` | steel141 or a laptop | wherever the ESP32 USB plugs in |
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---
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## Step 1 — Flash the bridge (do this now, at the desk)
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The ESP32-C3 is already on steel141. From the repo:
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```bash
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cd ~/bin/clar200-unlock/firmware
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./flash.sh /dev/ttyACM0 # installs arduino-cli + esp32 core on first run, then builds + uploads
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```
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Sanity-check the bridge before wiring to a drive: open it and loop GPIO4↔GPIO5
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with a jumper — anything you type should echo back.
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```bash
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screen /dev/ttyACM0 115200 # Ctrl-A k to quit screen
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# jumper GPIO4<->GPIO5: typing shows characters; remove jumper: echo stops
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```
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USB-CDC baud is virtual (115200 is fine). You set the **drive** baud live inside
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the session with the escape menu: `~1`=9600 `~2`=38400 `~3`=115200 `~4`=460800.
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## Step 2 — Bench the drive
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1. Power down / pull ZRS015V7 from the pve173 JBOD. Record the bay so it goes
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back if this fails.
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2. On the bench, give it **power only** (SATA/SAS power segment). No HBA/data
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cable needed for F3.
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3. Leave it powered off until the ESP32 is wired and the terminal is open
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(Step 4), so you catch the boot banner.
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## Step 3 — Find the F3 header pinout (multimeter)
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3.5" Seagate SAS drives expose a small diagnostic UART — usually a 3- or 4-pad
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group or a tiny header near the SAS connector / on the PCB edge. Pads are **not
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labeled**. Identify them:
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- **GND:** continuity (beep) to a drive mounting screw hole / SAS connector
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shell.
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- **TX (drive→host):** with the drive powered, idles **high ≈ 3.3 V** to GND and
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twitches during boot. This is the pad you wire to ESP32 **GPIO5 (DRV_RX)**.
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- **RX (drive→in):** the remaining signal pad, usually sits near 0 V / floating.
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Wire to ESP32 **GPIO4 (DRV_TX)**.
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- A 4th pad is often N/C or a 3.3 V rail — **do not** wire a power rail.
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Photograph the PCB and pad group; save under `docs/photos/` for the next drive.
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> If you can't disambiguate TX/RX by voltage, they're swappable safely at 3.3 V —
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> if you get nothing, swap GPIO4↔GPIO5 and retry. Wrong-way TX/RX cannot damage
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> anything here.
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## Step 4 — Wire + open the terminal
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```
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drive GND ---- ESP32 GND
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drive TX ---> ESP32 GPIO5 (DRV_RX)
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drive RX <--- ESP32 GPIO4 (DRV_TX)
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```
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```bash
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screen -L /dev/ttyACM0 115200 # -L logs to screenlog.0
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```
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Power on the drive. You should see a **boot banner** (Seagate F3 firmware spew).
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- **Banner readable** → baud is right (try `~2`=38400 first; if garbage, sweep
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`~1`/`~3`/`~4` until the banner is clean ASCII).
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- **Nothing at any baud** → re-check GND first, then swap TX/RX (`~` won't help a
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wiring fault). Only if still dead consider the BSY isolation trick
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(`docs/f3-command-reference.md` §BSY).
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## Step 5 — Get the `F3 T>` prompt
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Once you see boot text (or a blank but live line):
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- Press **Ctrl-Z**. Expect the prompt: `F3 T>` (T = top level).
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- If Ctrl-Z does nothing, try Enter, then Ctrl-Z again; some firmware needs the
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boot to finish first.
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Capture the banner — it often states firmware rev and sometimes the current
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**sector size / "format corrupt"** state, which tells you what you're fixing.
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## Step 6 — Diagnose state, THEN format (drive-specific — go slow)
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> This is where the Exos X18 F3 dialect diverges from old 7200.11 recipes.
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> **Do not** paste `m0,6,2,...`-style commands blind. Map the drive first.
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1. At `F3 T>` type `?` (and at each level you enter) to list available commands.
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Record the menus. Identify the **format / translator** level and the
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**read-capacity / identify** command.
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2. Read current geometry/sector size. Confirm the hypothesis: locked at **520 B**
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sectors (EMC T10-DIF) and/or **format-corrupt (block size 0)**.
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3. Only once you've located the documented format command for *this* firmware,
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issue a **format/reinitialize to 512-byte sectors**. On Seagate F3 this is the
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format-unit / translator-regen at the format level; the exact token set comes
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from Step 6.1's `?` output, **not** from memory.
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4. Formats can run **hours** on a 16 TB drive and may print little. Don't
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interrupt. Keep power stable.
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See `docs/f3-command-reference.md` for the candidate command families and exactly
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which ones are confirmed vs. 7200.11-era-only.
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## Step 7 — Verify back on a real SAS port
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After format completes and the drive is power-cycled:
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1. Reinstall in the pve173 JBOD (or attach via the bench HBA).
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2. `smartctl -i /dev/sgX` — identity should now be the **real** Seagate
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ST16000NM004J, not "SATA-SAM SS160520 CLAR200", with the true serial.
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3. `sg_readcap -l /dev/sgX` — must report **512-byte logical** sectors and full
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~16 TB capacity (was Hardware Error before).
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4. Short self-test: `smartctl -t short`, then check pending/reallocated sectors.
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## Step 8 — Put it to work in `tank`
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Healthy 14.6 TB+ disk → fix the redundancy holes (see `~/bin/CLAUDE.md` storage
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notes and the tank diagnosis in this project's first handoff):
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- **mirror-35** (dead ZL2PNZ99 leg + dying c37f4eff): `zpool replace tank
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4450364206979169854 <newdisk>`, let it resilver, then replace/detach the dying
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leg. *Replace before detach.*
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- **ex-mirror-38** single-disk vdev (`wwn-0x5000c500c382f4ac-part1`): `zpool
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attach` a mirror partner to restore redundancy.
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Then repeat the whole procedure for **ZR511KWK**.
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---
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## If F3 fails
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Not every EMC-locked drive yields to the terminal (the firmware may refuse the
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format at the F3 level too, or the SA modules may be EMC-proprietary). Stop and
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fall back — do not escalate:
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1. **RMA / refund — ServerPartDeals.** They shipped drives still in CLAR200
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locked state = not decommissioned. Lead with the evidence in
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`EMC_CLAR200_DRIVE_FIX_NOTES.md`. Lowest effort, arguably their fault.
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2. **Decommission in a real EMC VNX/CLARiiON array** if you can borrow one.
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3. **PC-3000 SAS** (professional) — overkill for $/TB drives.
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