WebGUI Installation

HighPoint offers three ways to configure the RocketRAID 3120: (1) BIOS, (2) GUI, and (3) WebGUI. Using the BIOS is probably the simplest and most unintuitive way to set up an array, due to an overall lack of context for controls. I've chosen to use the WebGUI for setup and configuration, as it seems most likely to be the most usable out of all three methods. What's better than being able to manage a RAID array remotely?

HighPoint offers the WebGUI software from its website. The software package comes in the form of an RPM, which seems a little outdated for my tastes. Granted, many distros still use RPM package managers, but I was never a fan. On top of this, Gentoo's package manager doesn't handle RPMs, which throws a nice little issue at me called RPM hell.

The RPM package manager doesn't know what packages I have on my system, so the typical rpm -i filename is quite an option for me. However, it is a start. The output of the command shows what the package's dependencies are. After making sure they were all installed, I forced the package to be installed with rpm -i filename --nodeps.

Another downside is that the RPM expects you're running an RPM distribution of Linux, where init and rc scripts are held in /etc/rc.d. Gentoo uses /etc/init.d for these scripts, so the service wasn't installed for me. However, a desktop shortcut to the server itself was (provided the service is started).

Before starting the server, I had to edit /etc/hptcfg and simply type hptiop to make sure the service was configured for the right card. All that was left was to manually start the server using hptsvr.

Installation wasn't the simplest for the WebGUI, especially on a distribution that doesn't utilize an RPM package manager by default. However, once installed, it's easy enough to utilize. I wrote a custom RC script for Gentoo that will maintain the service for me. Let's look at what the WebGUI offers.

WebGUI Usage

Between Mac OS X, FreeBSD, Linux, and Windows, HighPoint's WebGUI remains the same. The default location is https://localhost:7402, but this can be changed in the configuration itself if needed. When first connecting, I was greeted by a login prompt.

After logging in, I was shown both physical and logical devices. By default, the drives were configured as individual drives.

Before creating an array, I had to first initialize the disks. When this was completed, I was able to select what type of array to create. While the WebGUI supports up to RAID5, the RR3120 only supports up to two devices, so I was stuck with RAID1, RAID0, and JBOD.

After creating the array, I checked the event log, and saw that the drives had been initialized successfully, and my RAID 0 array was functional.

The WebGUI also allowed me to schedule health inspections on the array and disks. I'm a bit psychotic when it comes to protecting my data, so I select a weekly check.

The last major feature of the WebGUI is the settings page. Here, I can change the password, webserver port, and even configure e-mail alerts. If I wanted to, I could have an e-mail sent to my phone's email address if the RR3120 issue any alerts or if one of my drives failed.

Overall, HighPoint's WebGUI is simple but effective. It has a very intuitive interface, using few graphics but just enough text. There is also a help page available from the menu for further explanation of features. Installation was a little difficult, but nothing someone who uses Linux regularly should have trouble with. The ability to have e-mails sent when there's an alert or error is a fantastic feature.

I'd like to see the ability to easily change the style of the page, or the ability to add multiple users with different permissions for remote administration.