Promise Technology 150TX2 user manual About RAID Levels, Striping RAID

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Chapter 5: Disk Array Concepts

About RAID Levels

Striping (RAID 0)

Reads and writes sectors of data interleaved between multiple drives. When any disk member fails, it affects the entire array. Performance is better than a single drive since the workload is balanced between the array members.

This array type is for high performance systems. Identical drives are recommended for performance as well as data storage efficiency. The disk array data capacity is equal to the number of drive members times the smallest member capacity. For example, one 100 GB and three 120 GB drives will form a 400 GB (4 x 100 GB) disk array.

Stripe Size – A value can be set from 16KB to 128KB sector size. The size can directly affect performance. In the FastBuild BIOS, the default is 64KB.

Data

Stripe

12

34

56

78

Disk Drives

53

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Contents Fasttrak S150 TX2PLUS Copyright TrademarksImportant Data Protection Information Contents Page FastTrak S150 TX2plus IntroductionPromise Array Management Utility PAM Features Benefits Key Features and BenefitsCompatibility Unpacking Your FastTrak Card InstallationInsert the FastTrak card into an open PCI slot Installing the FastTrak CardInstalling the Hard Drives FastTrak S150 TX2plus card Creating Your Disk Array Creating a Performance Array Creating a Security Array with New Drives Page Creating a Security Array with an Existing Data Drive Seagate S380023AS Installation Creating a Security Array with Quick Initialization Installation Page Viewing FastTrak S150 TX2plus Bios Screen Using FastBuild Configuration UtilityUsing the Main Menu Navigating the FastBuild Setup MenuCreating Arrays Automatically Optimize Array forPerformance Security and Performance SecurityUsing a Hot Spare Drive Creating Multiple Arrays Viewing Drive AssignmentsManually Creating an Array Selecting Stripe Block Selecting Array TypeGigabyte Boundary Creating a Striped Array Assigning Drives to ArrayCreating a Mirrored Array Using New Drives Adding Fault Tolerance to an Existing Drive Drive Model Capacity MB Page Creating a Hot Spare Drive for Mirrored Arrays How FastTrak S150 TX2plus Orders ArraysHow FastTrak S150 TX2plus Saves Array Information Deleting an Array Array Stripe 160048 Rebuilding a Mirrored Array 80024 Page Procedure Number Installing Software DriversWindows XP Installation Confirming Windows XP Driver Installation Existing Windows XP InstallationNew Windows 2000 Installation Confirming Windows 2000 Driver Installation Existing Windows 2000 InstallationNew Windows ME Installation Confirming Windows ME Driver Installation Existing Windows ME InstallationNew Windows NT4.0 Installation Removing Driver from Windows NT4.0 Existing Windows NT4.0 InstallationNew Windows 98 Installation Confirming Windows 98 Driver Installation Existing Windows 98 InstallationPage FastBuild Auto Menu Setup About Adapter BiosAbout FastTrak S150 TX2plus Reserve SectorDisk Array Terms RAID Level Performance Fault Capacity No. Tolerance DrivesDisk Array Description Disk Array MemberStriping RAID About RAID LevelsData Mirror Disk Drives Mirroring RAIDDisk Array Concepts Striping / Mirroring RAID 0+1 Configuring PCI IRQ resources Motherboard IssuesIntermittent data problems Freeing additional IRQ resourcesUsing an Onboard IDE Card with FastTrak S150 TX2plus System Cmos IssuesCritical Array Status Error Reported during Boot Drive-Related ErrorsDrive cannot be formed into an array System Cmos displays C or D drive failure during StartupUnable to Partition or Format Array Cannot Rebuild Mirrored RAID 1 Array Promise Windows driver does not appear in Device Manager Operating System-Related IssuesTroubleshooting & Tips Optimize Array for Performance Performance TipsChange Setting of PCI Bus Utilization Page Pre-Installation Appendix a Frequently Asked QuestionsRAID 0 Stripe RAID 1 MirrorRAID 0+1 Stripe + Mirror Drive Issues Page Post-Installation Installation IssuesPage Technical Support Services USA Tech Support CenterEuropean Tech Support China Office Pacific Rim Sales OfficeDisclaimer of other warranties Limited WarrantyYour Responsibilities Returning Product for Repair