New RAID set up?

[msdunkel]

Hello,

I have no RAID experience so my apologies for what will certainly be a few stupid questions.

I'm currently running a non-RAID setup but for convenience would like to set up a RAID 1. My C: drive is 1TB and it contains my OS and all my media files. Currently I manually back up my music and video files on a couple other dissimilar sized hard drives. Since I get new music and movies fairly frequently, the backup process is fairly tedious so I thought RAID 1 would be useful.

If I went to RAID 1 could I simply add another 1TB HD and would all my data automatically copy?

Or would I basically have to back up all my data from the 1TB drive, reformat, add the new drive, and perform a fresh Vista install with RAID 1 enabled, then copy everything from the backup drives to the RAID 1 array?

Thanks.

 

[pooch]

Hello,

I have no RAID experience so my apologies for what will certainly be a few stupid questions.

I'm currently running a non-RAID setup but for convenience would like to set up a RAID 1. My C: drive is 1TB and it contains my OS and all my media files. Currently I manually back up my music and video files on a couple other dissimilar sized hard drives. Since I get new music and movies fairly frequently, the backup process is fairly tedious so I thought RAID 1 would be useful.

If I went to RAID 1 could I simply add another 1TB HD and would all my data automatically copy?

Or would I basically have to back up all my data from the 1TB drive, reformat, add
the new drive, and perform a fresh Vista install with RAID 1 enabled, then copy everything from the backup drives to the RAID 1 array?

Thanks.

Hey msdunkel,

Welcome to the forum.

Firstly there are no stupid questions you are learning just like everyone else

I have never tried a Raid 1, but my advice is still the same no matter what you do back up your data on another drive It may be overkill but I would do this even with a Raid 1 setup

Take this advice and you are then free to make your raid as you want (in safety) which increases your learning and sense of achievement

 

[sidewinder]

msdunkel,

Do not think of a RAID 1 setup as a substitute for backing up your data to another device. Here is what I do:

I use Acronis TrueImage to do a full backup of my RAID 1 C: drive (my OS, programs, and data drive) to another drive every 7 days and a differential backup every night. I had to make a BART PE disc with my system's hardware-based RAID drivers though. This backup strategy, along with the RAID 1 setup, is almost perfect. I am pretty well protected for drive failure and severe data or system corruption.

Plus, if I am going to do something particularly risky to my system, I can take out one of the RAID 1 drives and experiment on the other. If things don't work out, I can boot off the drive I took out and rebuild the array.

If you can only do RAID 1 or backup your drive using a program like Acronis TrueImage to another drive, I would forego the RAID 1 setup. Why, because if you make a mistake and lose data or programs from the RAID 1 setup, the mistake happens to both drives. You have no backup to go to.

S-

 

[msdunkel]

Hmmm, I'd always thought of RAID1 as a back up substitute otherwise what's the point of it? That said, your argument makes sense so I think I'll give that software a shot and see how it goes.

Thanks

 

[sidewinder]

Hmmm, I'd always thought of RAID1 as a back up substitute otherwise what's the point of it?

RAID 1 protects you from drive failure. It provides you a backup for the moment it time that a drive fails.

Doing image backups along with regular differential or incremental backups on a regular basis keeps data around that you delete on purpose or by accident. This gives you a way to recover from drive failure and to get back data you have deleted depending on how long you keep backups.

In other words, RAID 1 won't help you if you accidentally delete a folder full of pictures you took last New Years eve. Image backups along with regular differential or incremental backups will.

S-

 

[Barman58]

Hi,msdunkel

As sidewinder has said RAID is not a backup strategy, but one for ensuring data availability, by the use of redundancy, which is very important in business' who cannot wait for the IT department to fix the customer database :D the same need may lead to the use of dual network cards, power supplies etc so that the system is "always on"

for an in depth look at raid versions, options, benefits and faults have a look here...

RAID - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

hope this helps