Raid setup help

[!TIMMY!]

Hello,

I am planning on getting a DFI X48 LT from Scan and need to find out if I can create 2 Raid 0 arrays in the Intel ICH9R chip? I have read that the JMicron JMB363 has given people problems, so would like to stay away from it. I see I have 2 options:

2 x 74gb Raptors in Raid 0 (for OS, apps & games)
2 x 500gb WD in Raid 0 (for large video editing files)
2 x DVD Writers

or

1 x 150gb Raptor (for OS, apps & games)
2 x 500gb WD in Raid 0 (for large video editing files)
2 x DVD Writers

Can anyone shed some light onto this for me please, so I can order the right hard drives.

Thanks in advance.

[BUFF]

2 x 74gb Raptors in Raid 0 (for OS, apps & games)
2 x 500gb WD in Raid 0 (for large video editing files)

I'm confused (easily done as I'm not a RAID user)
can you have a RAID 0 array without having an OS on it?

If not & you will actually have 2 RAID 0 arrays each with their own OS then you can do that, you'll just have to choose which to boot from at the boot menu.

[!TIMMY!]

I will make the Raid in the bios and then put the os on it. I just need to know if after I have done that, can I create a seperate Raid 0 with 2 more Hard drives for my data.

[SiM]

I think you need 2 RAID controllers... I think most motherboards only come with one...

[!TIMMY!]

ah so I would have to use the JMicron JMB363 to set up one Raid 0 and the Intel ICH9R to make the other Raid 0?

[SiM]

ah so I would have to use the JMicron JMB363 to set up one Raid 0 and the Intel ICH9R to make the other Raid 0?

Yup...
actually what I said before was wrong... mid-top end motherboards usually have 2 raid controllers onboard

[Steve]

Generally there shouldn't be anything other than the port count and array requirements stopping you from having multiple RAID arrays on a single controller.

All but the most expensive server motherboards have RAID implementations that are mostly implemented in software.

I'd probably go with the latter configuration just so I'd reduce my chances of my OS disappearing due to disk failure.

Although in reality I'd probably make my OS stuff RAID-1 if I wanted some form of uptime during disk breakage.

[arthurleung]

I would say install the RAID on the JMicron JMB363
I personally wouldn't trust the Southbridge for any sort of RAID as that would not mix well with overclocking.

The JMicron might be slower but at least it should be safe even in the case of your system being unstable.

Also, I suggest you not to RAID0 the two 500GB disks. It will be faster if you put your source file on one of the 500GB, and the output on another 500GB
Or perhaps just run 2 video editing sessions at the same time (one on each drive) if the program does not support multi-thread

Finally, would suggest you not to get the Raptor and the 500GBs, and get 2x 1TB Samsung / Seagate instead.
That raptor is so old the newer 1TB drives are faster, or you have the cash, WD VelociRaptor

[peterb]

Unless you have a specific reason, I wouldn't use RAID 0 at all. Under some circumstances it can slow down write performance, and the possible increase in read performance is unlikely to be noticeable in practice. If either disk fails, you lose the data on both.

[!TIMMY!]

Thanks everyone for their input it has helped me. I think I will get the 150gb Raptor and raid 0 my data drives as well as getting a bigger external esata HD.