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Does anyone have happy experiences of adding extra SATA HDDs and converting your original non-RAID drive to be part of a new RAID 5 array? In particular for a P35/ICH9R combination (the mobo is a MSI P35 Neo2-FR).
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Uhh... well, you're not hoping to KEEP your data, are you? My experience with that has been a bit iffy. If you're just going to reformat and reinstall on RAID, you should be fine. Keeping your data is another story altogether.Originally posted by Fat Tone View PostThe Internet - where men are men, women are men, and teenage girls are FBI agents!
I'm the least you could do
If only life were as easy as you
I'm the least you could do, oh yeah
If only life were as easy as you
I would still get screwed -
To build the array your data will likely be deleted from the drive. I have heard of "UNRAIDs" that can do it, but a RAID 5 will require the drive to be wiped to be added to the array, afaik.“Inside every sane person there’s a madman struggling to get outâ€
–The Light Fantastic, Terry PratchettComment
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I was wondering if it was possible to keep the data (I found a couple of positive experiences mentioned with nvidia raid controllers) but was rather sceptical.FT.Comment
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when configuring or redoing a RAID NEVER EVER assume the data will be retained even if you're using a method that 'may' handle it. If your adding additional disks or putting in a replacement drive... yeah that will 90%+ likely work just fine. Adding a new drive into the mix and adding it's data into it as well? I've never heard of that working.. if it can.. awesome but I wouldn't trust it. That and Raid isn't a true backup method as we all know. Better than nothing but still doesn't take the place of a backup.
Is the existing drive the same model/size of the new ones? Do you have three new drives? You can make the Raid5 with 3 new ones (minimum for raid5), transfer over the data from the new one and then add it as a fourth disk.Wikipedia and Google.... the needles to my tangent habit.
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That special feeling we get in the cockles of our hearts, Or maybe below the cockles, Maybe in the sub-cockle area, Maybe in the liver, Maybe in the kidneys, Maybe even in the colon, We don't know.Comment
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In my Q6600 system I have a 500GB HGST SATA II drive, configured as 100GB (98GB in practice) C: and 400GB (368GB, maybe I should sue
) D:, both NTFS. C: is an XP boot, ~20GB used. D: is ~90GB used.
I now have an additional pair of identical drives - the aim was always to build the RAID 5 array for this machine but funds were limited when I built it. Also I tested the drives in a NAS box*.
I could get a 160GB IDE drive temporarily and I also have a 250GB USB drive, or there's ~300GB free on the server (gigabit link).
*I bought a Thecus N299 NAS with the idea of either using it on my home network or selling it on for backup use in a SBS2003 network if it would actually work there. It has a fantastic feature set, especially for the price tag, but sadly mine was essentially DOA. I've gone for a refund rather than replacement because the hard drives got way too hot for my liking. There's one small fan at the rear of the case and no forward ventillation. Damn shame.FT.Comment
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Glad you're using identical drives. Yeah.. you're going to have to have a spare drive to transfer data to. Running XP from that Raid also might be problematic. As long as it's a hardware raid and Windows can see the partitions with or without drivers (or at least just as easily as it can with/without sata drivers) then you should be fine. Software Raid and your boot partition generally doesn't fly though. Good luck.Wikipedia and Google.... the needles to my tangent habit.
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That special feeling we get in the cockles of our hearts, Or maybe below the cockles, Maybe in the sub-cockle area, Maybe in the liver, Maybe in the kidneys, Maybe even in the colon, We don't know.Comment
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OK thanks, I'll start from scratch then. I'm running a RAID5 array on my work machine which is very simillar except it is an ASUS mobo (P5K3 deluxe). It needs the lastest Intel drivers at F6 time, and works flawlessly.FT.Comment
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I have nvidia raid,(nforce 4 pro) I have been able to go from a single disk to raid 0 and then to raid 5 and back again without reformating or reinstalling(even the OS drive).. but still it can be a hairy process and you should back up everything importantComment
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I've seen it happen. It all depends on how the controller handles the conversion. Many early "hardware assisted" SATA raids rebuilt on the fly, so if you had data on one and then striped to the other, your data was more or less secure. But there is NEVER any guarantee, and frankly you should be doing a "break, rebuild, reformat" anyway to get optimal performance/protection out of your array.The Internet - where men are men, women are men, and teenage girls are FBI agents!
I'm the least you could do
If only life were as easy as you
I'm the least you could do, oh yeah
If only life were as easy as you
I would still get screwedComment
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