O, all the things that can go wrong when replacing a failing NVMe card with a new one in the server. Based on that I wrote this poem, all by myself of course, not using AI (*not*). The poem below was written by the gpt-oss (20b) model running on my RTX 3090 which still worked after reenabling Intel VT-d. Somehow, I feel a bit like ‘Brave Sir Robin’ from Monty Python.
For some time now, the NVMe disk in the server the root filesystem was giving some smart errors, so I finally decided to replace it. To prepare, I copied the filesystem to the RAID array (running on two regular 12TB disks) and used a USB boot stick for booting, thus bypassing the, soon to fail, NVMe disk. I prepared tha new NVMe disk for booting by copying the root file system on it together with the boot and EFI partition.
That part for booting the system worked fine. UEFI is easy compared to the old-style boot method, see also this post for example. But it doesn’t help if you accidentally put the original NVMe disk back instead of the replacement, and if because of power loss, the BIOS is reset, disabling intel VT and VT-d. Perhaps I should also replace the battery next? Replaced that as well.
In the humming chamber where silicon breathes,
I knelt beside the tower, a quiet breeze of heat.
An NVMe card, a silent heart,
Had grown too weary, its promise obsolete.
I slid the old one out, a hiss of freed air,
Placed the new one with reverent care.
Yet in that fleeting moment, a careless glance—
The card slipped back into itself, my own mistake, a glance.
So I laughed, then cursed, a tiny dance of doom,
The server’s eyes went dark, a blinking gloom.
I lifted the chassis, the firmware fled,
All BIOS settings vanished, a cloudless dread.
The screen glowed “Boot Error”, “Configure Now?”
Intel VT and VT‑D, gone, erased somehow.
I pressed the keys, a frantic typing storm,
Re‑enabling virtualization, a hero’s reform.
Solder‑welded patience, a BIOS reset,
I wove through menus, a code‑tangled set.
The lights returned, the fans whirred once more,
The server sang a low, metallic score.
And as the RAID array came alive,
I saw the blinking, my triumph thrive.
For every misstep, I steadied the helm—
A warrior in data, an unseen realm.
Now I write this ode from the command line,
A hero who battled firmware and design.
Though the card was replaced by its twin at first,
I triumphed, restored, my servers rehearse.
So let the logs record: “Fixed by Hand”—
A humble savior of silicon land.
In the echo of the fans, I hear the praise,
For I, the server‑hero, won the maze.