Enermax DynaBacker 3.5" RAID System

[Bob]

Does anyone have any experience with the

Enermax DynaBacker 3.5" RAID System, Model ES-352-B Internal IDE
Mirror Kit Based on RAID-1

http://www.enermax.com.tw/products_per2.php?Tid=3&gon=255&Gid=1&Gid2=32

I realize it is not SATA, but I do not want to get into SATA at this
time - I still have lots of life left in my WD Caviar drives.

The apparant advantage of the Enermax 352 is that it supports both
mirroring and auto backup modes, which allows building a disaster
recovery archive as well has having dynamic mirroring available.

I would appreciate any comments on RAID-1 implementations on a Win2K
or XP system.



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[Galen]

In Bob <[email protected]> had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:

Does anyone have any experience with the

Enermax DynaBacker 3.5" RAID System, Model ES-352-B Internal IDE
Mirror Kit Based on RAID-1

http://www.enermax.com.tw/products_per2.php?Tid=3&gon=255&Gid=1&Gid2=32

I realize it is not SATA, but I do not want to get into SATA at this
time - I still have lots of life left in my WD Caviar drives.

The apparant advantage of the Enermax 352 is that it supports both
mirroring and auto backup modes, which allows building a disaster
recovery archive as well has having dynamic mirroring available.

I would appreciate any comments on RAID-1 implementations on a Win2K
or XP system.

My comments aren't technical in nature for this. I've a RAID-1 with XP Pro
that I'm using as my "storage"computer. *It's not sitting on a domain but
rather tucked right in with MSHOME so I'm not sure if it qualifies for the
term SAN.* This is NOT Enermax though.

First: The quality of Enermax is fantastic. I have power supplies from them.
I have card readers from them. My current box has their system monitor/card
reader/fan control unit which supports USB 2.0, firewire, SATA etc... I've
never used their RAID devices but I'll order one soon enough I'm sure. I do
however hold their products in high regard having never had the chance to
RMA one I can't speak about their return policy. <g> Given that I tend to
burn through systems at a rather rapid pace and buy hardware more often then
I buy underclothing it's a good sign when I've never had to send something
back. In this case, without knowing the specific product, I'll still vouch
for them.

Second: The choice to not go to SATA is not one that I'd make though if
you've got plenty of space and life left on your older WD HDDs I can see
avoiding the expense at this time. If you've used a SATA drive in the past
you'll know that there's a great deal of improvement. I think that the
greatest benefit has been the usage of the pagefile in XP (I've yet to use
SATA with any other OS) being accessed as quickly as it is. I've no records
nor benchmarks to prove this but I could probably make some or dig some up.
I'm sure someone has in the past. The improvements in speed are grand and
the benefit is worth the additional expense in my opinion.

One thing I was not able to find on the page listed was the price. Assuming
the price is in your reach, the features are most of what you want or are
willing to compromise with, and it has a benefit that you need or really
want then I'd say go for it. I went to pricewatch.com and typed in es-352
and two of them popped up (different models slightly) for $172 USD which is
pretty good. I'd say go for it if it's something you want/need and will make
you happier. I'm not usually very brand specific but I've been an Enermax
fan for a while now.

Galen
--

"And that recommendation, with the exaggerated estimate of my ability
with which he prefaced it, was, if you will believe me, Watson, the
very first thing which ever made me feel that a profession might be
made out of what had up to that time been the merest hobby."

Sherlock Holmes