Cisco RAID in Egypt
On Cisco UCS, the storage controller is the bridge between your drives and the OS, and choosing it correctly decides whether you get hardware RAID with cache protection, plain JBOD pass-through for software-defined storage, or boot-optimised M.2 mirroring. Each UCS server generation has its own validated controller and HBA options. ICD supplies genuine Cisco UCS RAID controllers and SAS HBAs from Cairo, matched to the exact PID and server model, so a controller swap in a Smart Village or New Administrative Capital rack restores the array cleanly instead of importing foreign-config faults.
Cisco UCS controllers and HBAs available to order
Coverage runs from 12G SAS RAID controllers with flash-backed write cache to 12G/24G tri-mode HBAs and M.2 boot controllers. Common parts include the Cisco 12G SAS RAID Controller for M5 and the Cisco 12G SAS RAID Controller for C220 M6 with 4GB FBWC and Supercap.
| PID | Type | Cache | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| UCSC-RAID-M5 | 12G SAS RAID | FBWC | UCS C-Series M5 |
| UCSC-RAID-220M6 | 12G SAS RAID | 4GB FBWC + Supercap | UCS C220 M6 |
| UCSC-SAS-M5HD | 12G SAS HBA | None (JBOD) | UCS C-Series M5, 26 drives |
| M2-NVRAID | M.2 NVMe RAID | Boot-optimised | Mirrored boot |
RAID controller vs SAS HBA — and the M5/M6 boundary
The first decision is RAID controller or HBA. A RAID controller (e.g. UCSC-RAID-M5/M6) does hardware RAID 0/1/5/6/10 and carries flash-backed write cache (FBWC) with a Supercap to protect in-flight writes on power loss — the right choice for traditional volumes. A SAS HBA in pass-through/JBOD mode (e.g. UCSC-SAS-M5HD or the M6 equivalent) exposes raw disks for software-defined storage such as vSAN or HyperFlex, where the hypervisor manages redundancy. The second decision is generation: M5, M6 and M7 controllers are not cross-compatible, so a C220 M6 needs the 220M6 part, not an M5 controller. Tri-mode 24G controllers add native NVMe alongside SAS/SATA on the newest nodes. Boot is a separate concern — the M.2 RAID controller mirrors two M.2 SSDs so the OS volume is not exposed to a data-array rebuild.
Supply in Egypt
As ICD’s home market, controllers ship from Cairo, close to your racks, and our Cairo team’s daily import handling means a failed controller is replaced before a degraded array is left running on a single path. We supply serial-traceable, warranty-backed Cisco controllers and can confirm the exact validated option for your UCS generation.
Before you order
- Decide hardware RAID vs JBOD/HBA based on your storage architecture.
- Match the controller to the exact UCS generation (M5 / M6 / M7).
- For RAID volumes, confirm FBWC + Supercap is present for write protection.
- Use the M.2 RAID controller for mirrored boot, separate from data.
- Note your drive count and interface mix (SAS/SATA/NVMe).