Setting up RAID 1

[pbdr]

So after having a near heart attack with a possible HDD problem (turned out an XP repair install fixed the problem) and also because of the low price of storage these days, I want to set up a RAID 1 config in my current comp.

I have a few questions to ask before I get started.

I believe my MOBO has a built in RAID controller, so this should not be a problem.

I will order the exact drive I already have for the RAID 1, but can I set it up using that drive if it is unused (empty) to mirror my current drive? Let me rephrase that one a bit, I have a drive that I have been using for 5 months, I want to buy a second identical drive and set up RAID. How will the fact that the new drive is empty and the previous drive has stuff on it affect RAID? Will I need to clone the old drive to the new first? Or will the RAID controller do that automatically?

Lastly, I am thinking of adding a third drive, that will not be in RAID. It will be a smaller drive for Pictures and such, holding only files, no programs (SO I f I have to do an OS reformat/reinstall it won't be affected). Will this interfere with the RAID 1 config?

Thanks for any help

 

[Cleric7x9]

if an XP repair fixed your problem, RAID1 will not protect you from that in the future. any problems on one drive will just be mirrored to the other drive. RAID1 will protect you from a harddrive failure. also, 99% of RAID controllers, esp the one on your motherboard, will require you to format in order to set up the RAID. you cant just take your hdd that you have now, clone it, and magically have a RAID1.

 

[pbdr]

Thanks for the reply!

I do understand that RAID 1 would not protect me from that particular problem, but having a redundant drive can help save files in a lot of different situations....

So, you are basically saying that RAID 1 requires a reformat to set up and cannot be done using a drive with existing data without reformatting? There is no workaround for this?

 

[Cleric7x9]

as far as i know, there is not a way. but maybe somebody else knows a workaround

 

[Vipernitrox]

copy everything to another hard disk. mirror the 2 disks and then copy all the stuff back to the mirrored disks.

 

[Cromewell]

copy everything to another hard disk. mirror the 2 disks and then copy all the stuff back to the mirrored disks.

That's what I would do but some controllers might let you pick a drive to mirror when creating a RAID1 array. Read the manual to see if yours supports this.

 

[Vipernitrox]

that might work. but i'd still back up my data first. I seem to attract the bad kind of raid controllers. And somehow i always end up losing my data...