Intel ICH5/6/7 SATA RAID and Linux
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Wayne
Apr 7, 2009, 4:33:27 PM4/7/09
to Reno Linux Users Group
I have a Dell Studio 540 (8GB, Intel Quad-Core, 2x 640GB drives) and
it has the Intel SATA RAID chipset (I'm told it's sometimes refered to
as 'fakeraid'). The two disks are configured as a software RAID at
the BIOS level. I get a single 1.2TB drive. (presumably faster) I
was not able to install recent versions of OpenSuse or Fedora Core
onto these disk; at least, I could not figure out how to, and the
data on the windows system was valuable enough that I didn't want to
risk it.
Is there some means to put linux on this system as it is configured,
or will I just need to migrate everything off, and set the BIOS to
plain SATA?
Thanks,
Wayne
it has the Intel SATA RAID chipset (I'm told it's sometimes refered to
as 'fakeraid'). The two disks are configured as a software RAID at
the BIOS level. I get a single 1.2TB drive. (presumably faster) I
was not able to install recent versions of OpenSuse or Fedora Core
onto these disk; at least, I could not figure out how to, and the
data on the windows system was valuable enough that I didn't want to
risk it.
Is there some means to put linux on this system as it is configured,
or will I just need to migrate everything off, and set the BIOS to
plain SATA?
Thanks,
Wayne
Adam Crum
Apr 7, 2009, 4:42:52 PM4/7/09
to ren...@googlegroups.com
Have you tried installing other versions of Linux such as Ubuntu? I know
that like Windows, some linux distros can't see more than a certain ammount
of disk space. Also, what format (fat, ntfs, etc.) are the drives in? That
could make a difference.
Adam Crum
Machine Mechanic
EE Technologies
9455 Double R Blvd.
Reno, NV 89511
(775) 355-9191 x1180
Confucius say: "Grease monkey who go to bed without bathing wake up oily in
the morning."
that like Windows, some linux distros can't see more than a certain ammount
of disk space. Also, what format (fat, ntfs, etc.) are the drives in? That
could make a difference.
Adam Crum
Machine Mechanic
EE Technologies
9455 Double R Blvd.
Reno, NV 89511
(775) 355-9191 x1180
Confucius say: "Grease monkey who go to bed without bathing wake up oily in
the morning."
Grant Kelly
Apr 7, 2009, 4:58:43 PM4/7/09
to ren...@googlegroups.com
I would get another hard drive for the system if you want to dual boot
windows and linux.
Install linux on the new drive, and only install GRUB (the boot
loader) on this drive. Leave the existing RAID drive alone. Then, in
your BIOS, set the new drive as the primary boot disk. GRUB can be
configured to boot either drive. This way, if you ever remove the new
linux drive, you will still be able to boot windows hassle free.
As a side note, if you have really valuable data on a RAID 0 stripe,
you actually increase your chances of losing data. The chances that
one of the two drives will fail is greater than just a single drive
failing. Because you are relying on 2 separate hard drives to provide
a single drive to the OS, if one fails, they essentially both fail as
far as the OS is concerned.
If you are trying to make a system more reliable, use RAID 1 mirroring.
As always, the moral of the story is be sure to have a working backup system.
-Grant
windows and linux.
Install linux on the new drive, and only install GRUB (the boot
loader) on this drive. Leave the existing RAID drive alone. Then, in
your BIOS, set the new drive as the primary boot disk. GRUB can be
configured to boot either drive. This way, if you ever remove the new
linux drive, you will still be able to boot windows hassle free.
As a side note, if you have really valuable data on a RAID 0 stripe,
you actually increase your chances of losing data. The chances that
one of the two drives will fail is greater than just a single drive
failing. Because you are relying on 2 separate hard drives to provide
a single drive to the OS, if one fails, they essentially both fail as
far as the OS is concerned.
If you are trying to make a system more reliable, use RAID 1 mirroring.
As always, the moral of the story is be sure to have a working backup system.
-Grant
Reggie Darden
Apr 7, 2009, 5:26:09 PM4/7/09
to ren...@googlegroups.com
I would ditch the RAID setup and just install Windows on one drive and
Linux on the other. A lot less hassle than dealing with the whole RAID
setup. Install Windows first and then Linux. All the major distros
will see Windows and set up Grub accordingly.
Linux on the other. A lot less hassle than dealing with the whole RAID
setup. Install Windows first and then Linux. All the major distros
will see Windows and set up Grub accordingly.
Bob Tregilus
Apr 7, 2009, 8:22:44 PM4/7/09
to ren...@googlegroups.com
If it comes to ditching the RAID and you're interested in drive RW speed you might consider solid state drives. Follow this link for one user's recent experience: http://tinyurl.com/c9yrf9
It seems SSD tech has matured.
Be well,
Bob Tregilus
Co-chair -
Alternative Transportation Club &
Electric Auto Association of Northern Nevada
http://ElectricNevada.org
775 826-4514
---
--- On Tue, 4/7/09, Reggie Darden <reg...@evil-monkey.org> wrote:
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