*************************************************
*                                               *
* FastTrak Utility Diskette Version 1.31.0.57   *
*                                               *
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====================
Contents on the disk
====================
UTIL           <DIR>    Directory that contains setup files for FastCheck
                        utility as follows:
  README   TXT          This file
  SETUP    EXE          Setup utility to install FastCheck
  LAYOUT   BIN          Setup file
  SETUP    BMP          Setup file
  DATA1    CAB          Setup file
  _SYS1    CAB          Setup file
  _USER1   CAB          Setup file
  LANG     DAT          Setup file
  OS       DAT          Setup file
  _SETUP   DLL          Setup file
  _ISDEL   EXE          Setup file
  _INST32I EX_          Setup file
  SETUP    INI          Setup file
  SETUP    INS          Setup file
  SETUP    LID          Setup file
  DATA     TAG          Setup file
  INSTALL  TXT          Text file

================
Software Version
================
FastCheck utility for Promise FastTrak  1.31 (Build 57)
FastTrak Log Service for Windows NT     1.30 (Build 48)

To install FastCheck, please use the SETUP.EXE.

==================
FastTrak Utilities
==================

The FastCheck utility is used to monitor or perform maintenance
on a FastTrak Mirrored (RAID 1) or Striped/Mirrored (RAID 0/1) 
array. Visual and audible messages are available to warn of 
possible problems with the disk array or controller. This utility
runs under Windows 95-98, Windows Millennium, Windows NT 4.0,
Windows 2000 and Windows XP.


========================
FastCheck Utility README
========================

------------
Installation
------------

Refer to the INSTALL section above for instructions on installing
the FastCheck utility.

---------------------------------------
Getting Around in the FastCheck Utility
---------------------------------------

Task Bar Icon
On the Windows 95-98/NT/ME/2000/XP taskbar, the FastCheck icon appears as a stack of disks. To launch the utility double-click on the task bar icon.
Windows NT 3.51 does not have a task bar; FastCheck will appear 
as a minimized icon on the desktop. 

Array Tab View
From the Array view, status is shown for drives in the array. On 
the left window pane, drive models are shown. On the right pane, 
array type, mapping, and size are displayed. This is followed by 
array status. The status will be either working, error, or 
degraded. If an error is found, the array needs to be synchronized.
If degraded, a disk has failed or is not responding and most likely
needs to be physically replaced followed by a data rebuild.

Controller Tab View
This view displays configuration and system resource data for the
controller. The left pane shows the actual connector Channel and 
Master/Slave ID of attached IDE drives. The right pane lists the 
PCI Slot#, IRQ, and Bus Master address.

Options Tab View
The FastCheck Utility uses pop-up text for instruction on options. 
Hover the mouse cursor for description.


-------------------------------------
Configuration and Maintenance Options
-------------------------------------

To run a maintenance operation, simply right click the icon of the 
array and choose either synchronization or rebuild array functions.

- SYNCHRONIZATION

This is a maintenance operation for Mirrored (RAID1) arrays. It 
will compare data on drives for differences.  If there are 
differences it will automatically copy data from the first disk to 
the second disk in the array. This needs to be performed 
periodically to maintain data integrity. To synchronize, choose the 
Array Tab View, right click the array, and choose "Synchronize" 
from the context menu. You can also "Schedule the array
synchronization" under the Options Tab view.

- SCHEDULED SYNCHRONIZATION

This option is configurable under the Options Tab View. An event 
can be scheduled either monthly, weekly, daily, or once every 
specified minutes. This way a synchronization can be performed on 
an off-hour when the system is not in use.

- EVENT LOG FILE

In this Options Tab View, you may keep a record of alerts and 
status reports of the FastTrak arrays. Click the "Use Log file" 
check box to enable this feature followed by a logfile name. If 
a filename is entered but the path is left blank, the default 
directory will be the same as the FastCheck utility. Typically, 
this directory would be "C:\Program Files\Promise\Fasttrak". 
Because this file must be locked while the FastCheck utility is
running, you must exit the utility in order for the log file to
be read.

- Use NT System Event Log

If this option is checked, events and errors will be written
to the Windows NT Event Log. You can view these events by 
clicking on the Start button then going to PROGRAMS -> 
ADMINISTRATIVE TOOLS (COMMON) -> EVENT VIEWER. From the Event
Viewer menu bar choose "Log", and then check "Application".
In the "Source" column, all FastCheck events will show up
with the designation "FastCheck", or "FastTrakSvc".
Double-clicking on an event will display additional
information.

- REBUILD

This user command will effectively copy/overwrite data from an 
existing data drive in the array onto a blank drive. The operation 
will be typically used when a failed drive has been replaced with 
a new drive. To perform a Rebuild, choose the Array Tab View, right 
click the array, and choose Rebuild from the context menu.

When a spare drive is installed, a rebuild will automatically be
performed from the working drive. You can disable the automatic
rebuild by turning on the "Disable Hot Spare/Auto Rebuild" option.

- REBUILD RATE ADJUSTMENT

The slider controls the priority given to a maintenance
operation on the array (such as Rebuild or Synchronize)
as compared to disk access from the OS. If you desire
higher priority for OS requests, and lesser degradation
of array performance, set the rebuild rate adjustment
to be low.

- PCI BUS UTILIZATION

There are some cases where there may be some PCI bus 
contention with other PCI devices. One known example of 
this is "glitches" while playing .AVI files with some 
brands of video capture cards. In such a case you can
decrease how long the FastTrak occupies the PCI bus while
transferring data by moving the PCI Bus Utilization slider 
bar towards "Less". Click either "OK" or "Apply". The new
setting will take effect immediately - it is not necessary 
to reboot the system.

- Disk Write Cache

Newer disk models support on board write cache, usually
between 512 KB to 2 MB. Refer to the disk drive documentation
for the details. This option allows you to enable the on-disk
cache. For performance, Enable the disk write cache. For safety,
disable the disk write cache.

- Smart Check

The FastTrak driver will periodically monitor the attached
drives for S.M.A.R.T status. (S.M.A.R.T stands for
Self Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology,
and drives having this capability are able to predict
failures). If the drive is S.M.A.R.T capable, the status
will be displayed under the Disk information. By default,
the check is disabled since it involves a performance
penalty on disk accesses.



