Preparing to Remove a PCIe SSD

About this task

PCIe SSDs support orderly hot swap allowing you to add or remove a device without halting or rebooting the system in which the devices are installed.
CAUTION:  The identify LED pattern (blink operation) is the same LED pattern as safe to remove. When you initiate a Prepare to Remove operation, ensure that the PCIe SSD is no longer accessible by the system before physically removing the PCIe SSD.
CAUTION:  To prevent data loss, it is mandatory that you use the Prepare to Remove task before physically removing a device.
NOTE:  Orderly hot swap is only supported when the PCIe SSDs are installed in a supported system running a supported operating system. To ensure that you have the correct configuration for your PCIe SSD, see the system-specific Owner's Manual.
NOTE:  The Prepare to Remove task for PCIe SSDs is supported on systems running the VMware vSphere (ESXi) 6.0 and above operating system. However, this task is not supported on prior versions of VMware vSphere (ESXi) operating system.
NOTE: If the background IO is in progress, "Prepare to Remove" operation for the NVMe devices might be unsuccessful.

Steps

  1. Select the Prepare to Remove task to safely remove a PCIe SSD from the system. This task causes the status LEDs on the device to blink.
  2. You can safely remove the device from the system under the following conditions after you initiate the Prepare to Remove task:
    • The PCIe SSD is blinking the safe to remove LED pattern.
    • The PCIe SSD is no longer accessible by the system.