I want to create a RAID 1 on my computer but have never done it before. I
have 2 drives which are exactly alike. They both have 2 partitions of
different sizes. So do I need to take the C drive and put it on a third hard
drive?. I need a C drive and a Data partition.(I can have as many equal
partitions on each drive which will be mirrored?) Then put the C drive back
into my Master drive and make the RAID 1? Or make the RAID 1 and then put
the C drive back? If the RAID controller fails won't I have 1 drive working
with no data lost?

I am not a hardware expert and my opinion should not count for much but I
just purchased DELL T3400 with two RAID1 SATA HDD. Vista is on C:, none of
them partitioned by me at least. The other drive has so called recovery
partition. I haven't used the D: drive at all but it is my understanding
that I can use it for any storage I want. Each is 360Gbs and my work is not
data intensive--it is computationally intensive.

It is a common knowledge that if one RAID1 drive fails you lose everything
on both. Your question pertains the controller, however. My hunch is that if
the controller fails, then most likely it will mess up one or both drives
and that will be it.


"Richard" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:TZywj.19123$(E-Mail Removed)...
>I want to create a RAID 1 on my computer but have never done it before. I
> have 2 drives which are exactly alike. They both have 2 partitions of
> different sizes. So do I need to take the C drive and put it on a third
> hard
> drive?. I need a C drive and a Data partition.(I can have as many equal
> partitions on each drive which will be mirrored?) Then put the C drive
> back
> into my Master drive and make the RAID 1? Or make the RAID 1 and then put
> the C drive back? If the RAID controller fails won't I have 1 drive
> working with no data lost?
>

Richard wrote:
> I want to create a RAID 1 on my computer but have never done it
> before. I have 2 drives which are exactly alike. They both have 2
> partitions of different sizes. So do I need to take the C drive and
> put it on a third hard drive?. I need a C drive and a Data
> partition.(I can have as many equal partitions on each drive which
> will be mirrored?) Then put the C drive back into my Master drive and
> make the RAID 1? Or make the RAID 1 and then put the C drive back? If
> the RAID controller fails won't I have 1 drive working with no data
> lost?

Forget partitions as far as RAID is concerned - they are irrelevant. Have
them or no, makes no difference. RAID 1 operates at the hardware level and
has no knowledge of the logical contents of the drives.

RAID 1 is a mirror. The two drives will be, in all respects, identical. The
second drive will be an exact copy of the original and logically invisible
to you. That is, you cannot access the second drive via the OS.

Once you establish a RAID array, the controller takes over and begins
copying the master disk to the slave. Again, this is an exact copy, byte for
byte.

Thereafter, any changes made to the master are automatically echoed to the
slave.

The purpose of all this is to protect you against catastrophic hard drive
failure. If the master drive croaks, the RAID controller seamlessly switches
to the slave (while bitching like your ex-wife that something has gone
horribly wrong - I well remember her parting words: "Fiona, you tart, you
can't have Hubert!").

To review: If you have two 80GB drives in a RAID 1 array, your total usable
disk capacity is 80GB, but you have a dynamic backup.

"AlexB" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>I am not a hardware expert and my opinion should not count for much but I
>just purchased DELL T3400 with two RAID1 SATA HDD. Vista is on C:, none of
>them partitioned by me at least. The other drive has so called recovery
>partition. I haven't used the D: drive at all but it is my understanding
>that I can use it for any storage I want. Each is 360Gbs and my work is not
>data intensive--it is computationally intensive.
>
> It is a common knowledge that if one RAID1 drive fails you lose everything
> on both. Your question pertains the controller, however. My hunch is that
> if the controller fails, then most likely it will mess up one or both
> drives and that will be it.
>
>
> "Richard" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
> news:TZywj.19123$(E-Mail Removed)...
>>I want to create a RAID 1 on my computer but have never done it before. I
>> have 2 drives which are exactly alike. They both have 2 partitions of
>> different sizes. So do I need to take the C drive and put it on a third
>> hard
>> drive?. I need a C drive and a Data partition.(I can have as many equal
>> partitions on each drive which will be mirrored?) Then put the C drive
>> back
>> into my Master drive and make the RAID 1? Or make the RAID 1 and then put
>> the C drive back? If the RAID controller fails won't I have 1 drive
>> working with no data lost?
>>
>
>

I am not a hardware expert and my opinion should not count for much

then STFU MORON.

On Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:00:32 -0700, "Richard" <(E-Mail Removed)>
wrote:

> I want to create a RAID 1 on my computer


Why? Except for large corporations, it's almost always a mistake If
you are planning to do this instead of backup, I urge you to rethink
that plan.

RAID 1 (mirroring) is *not* a backup solution. RAID 1 uses two or more
drives, each a duplicate of the others, to provide redundancy, not
backup. It's used in situations (almost always within corporations,
not in homes) where any downtown can't be tolerated, because the way
it works is that if one drive fails the other takes over seamlessly.

Although some people thing of RAID 1 as a backup technique, that
is *not* what it is, since it's subject to simultaneous loss of the
original and the mirror to many of the most common dangers threatening
your data--severe power glitches, nearby lightning strikes, virus
attacks, theft of the computer, etc. Most companies that use RAID 1
also have a strong external backup plan in place.

You can read my general advice on backup here:

http://www.computorcompanion.com/LPMArticle.asp?ID=314



> but have never done it before. I
> have 2 drives which are exactly alike. They both have 2 partitions of
> different sizes. So do I need to take the C drive and put it on a third hard
> drive?. I need a C drive and a Data partition.(I can have as many equal
> partitions on each drive which will be mirrored?) Then put the C drive back
> into my Master drive and make the RAID 1? Or make the RAID 1 and then put
> the C drive back? If the RAID controller fails won't I have 1 drive working
> with no data lost?

--
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience
Please Reply to the Newsgroup

> It is a common knowledge that if one RAID1 drive fails you lose
> everything on both. Your question pertains the controller, however. My

RAID 0, not 1! 0 is stripping, 1 is mirroring.

> hunch is that if the controller fails, then most likely it will mess up
> one or both drives and that will be it.


--
@~@ Might, Courage, Vision, SINCERITY.
/ v \ Simplicity is Beauty! May the Force and Farce be with you!
/( _ )\ (Xubuntu 7.04) Linux 2.6.24.2
^ ^ 16:39:01 up 14 days 6:39 0 users load average: 0.00 0.00 0.00
? ? (CSSA):
http://www.swd.gov.hk/tc/index/site_...ub_addressesa/

"Technologist" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>
>
> I have been using RAID1 at my home for 3+ years and love it. It has
> SAVED me twice from single hard drive failures.

I could say exactly the same thing.

ss.