Diskeeper 2008 & RAID 0

[Kerry Brown]

Backup whatever data you have on either drive. Use the manufacturer's
utility software to zero or format track zero on both drives. This will
erase everything and set them back to as new from the factory. Boot into the
BIOS and setup the RAID array. Boot from a Vista DVD and install Vista to
the RAID array. You will have to supply the RAID controller driver during
the install. If Vista sees both drives in any fashion then something is
wrong. Vista should only see one large drive.

 

[Seidell23231]

So if I am in the COMPUTER MANAGEMENT/DISK MANAGEMENT, I should ONLY see one
(1) HD, Correct? As it stands now, the My Computer or Computer area shows
only 1 drive but only that drives size. CMDM shows everything. The BIOS
shows both set as RAID 0 and the total space of 670. I will now go into CMDM
and format the HD that is currently NOT and is unallocated. Do I understand
you correctly?

Thanks!

 

[Kerry Brown]

I have no idea what CMDM is. I recommend you get someone who understands
RAID to set this up for you. No offense but your questions indicate a lack
of understanding of what RAID is and how it works.

 

[bp]

Hey Ken,

Thanks for your info. How long were you running a RAID 0 environment and
what experience occured that prompted your switch?

I can tell you why I switched:
It was more trouble than it was worth. when ever I had to do restores I had
a hell of time getting the system to see the RAID set. Some utilities could
see it some couldn't some times I had to load drivers sometimes I didn't it
was just a pain and there was no difference in performance. So basically it
made life easier ti ditch it.

If i was going to do any RAID now it would be for data protection RAID 1 but
I've got better things right now to do with an extra drive than have it
mirroring another drive..

 

[bp]

I know there are camps on both sides of the fence, so I come to both with
this question:

I will be using my HP Pavillion Elite m9150f, Intel 2 Core Quad QC6600, 3GB
PC-5300, 2 HD Seagate 360GB @ 7200, to do daily work, which means a lot of
time in MS Office 2007, specifically Excel and Access. I am in the process
of writing a book, so Word will be used in a large scale. Of course daily
backups will be the norm. I will be surfing the internet of course and
finally I will be spending 3-4 hours a day in Elder Scrolls: Oblivion and
Shivering Isles with a bried visit to Neverwinter Nights 2, Mask of the
Betrayor. For those not into the gaming worls, let me give a bried
description. They are all Stand Alone Role Playing Games. Yes they can also
be played over the internet, but I just don't enjoy it as much in that venue.
They are HEAVY duty games which require the top dog CPU's and Video CPUs as
well. So, with that being the consumption of daily use, will the RAID 0 be
of benefit or not. please provide a percentage, such as 80% benefit, 20% no
benefit.

0%

As always, THANKS! Gunny

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I can tell you why I switched:
It was more trouble than it was worth. when ever I had to do restores I had
a hell of time getting the system to see the RAID set. Some utilities could
see it some couldn't some times I had to load drivers sometimes I didn't it
was just a pain and there was no difference in performance. So basically it
made life easier ti ditch it.

If i was going to do any RAID now it would be for data protection RAID 1 but
I've got better things right now to do with an extra drive than have it
mirroring another drive..

I am even more against RAID1 than I am against RAID0. The problem with
RAID1 for a home user is that almost everyone who uses it does so
because they think it's a backup solution.

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.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

0%

That's a substantial overstatement. What benefit it provides depends a
great deal on how you use your computer. For the average home user,
the benefit is very small, but not zero. Benchmarks would show a small
improvement. The reason I stopped using it is not that the benefit is
zero, but that it entails extra risk for a benefit so small that I
can't perceive it short of running benchmarks.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Extremely as a RAID 0 is just a mirror set.

Mike, I think you're mixing up RAID1 (which is a mirror) with RAID0 (a
stripe).