Does SBS 2003 have a built in RAID utility?

suprafly · 05-11-2008, 05:12 PM

If so, how do I access it? I tried using the motherboard's utility upon bootup to do a RAID 1 array and it fails after copying all the contents from disk 0 to disk 1.

johnhook · 05-12-2008, 04:08 AM

suprafly,

If your PC/Server has Hardware RAID, you need to:

1) Enable RAID in your PC's BIOS Setup, attach & configure drives that support RAID with your system's hardware.

2) Access your PC's RAID utility and establish a RAID volume based on RAID level, etc.

3) Download OS/Specific RAID drivers from your PC MFG's website and copy to a CD or diskette

4) Press F6 key when prompted to install 3rd party drivers during the Windows Server Install - then point the install to the media/drivers you obtained in step 3

This will install the hardware RAID drivers specific to your PC/Server and allow Windows to install on a RAID array.

- John

suprafly · 05-12-2008, 07:16 AM

Sounds good, but the system is already up and running on one SATA drive. I don't want to have to reinstall Windows Server and have to reconfigure anything. I want to clone what I have now and make it a RAID1. I know I've done this before on a different machine...

johnhook · 05-12-2008, 07:27 AM

suprafly,

It really depends on the make/model of your PC/Motherboard and the BIOS version it's running. Provided your motherboard HAS SATA RAID capability, you'll need to install another hard drive of the same size as your current SATA drive - then enable RAID in the BIOS Setup. Some motherboards allow you to configure and manipulate RAID arrays from BIOS, others require software utilities to do this.

Go to your PC/Motherboard's MFG support site and look for RAID drivers, utility and information about establishing RAID in the user manual.

- John

suprafly · 05-12-2008, 09:55 AM

Ok, I did all that except loading the Windows RAID drivers. All my devices appear ok in the device manager and RAID is enabled in the BIOS, even though it's not working. Could the absence of Windows RAID drivers really cause the array to fail when creating it with the motherboard utility?

johnhook · 05-12-2008, 10:57 AM

suprafly,

Quote:

Could the absence of Windows RAID drivers really cause the array to fail when creating it with the motherboard utility?

No - the Windows RAID drivers are there so Windows can access the RAID array. If you create the array via a CMOS program on the motherboard - this is happening completely outside of Windows.

- John

djaburg · 05-14-2008, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by suprafly

Ok, I did all that except loading the Windows RAID drivers. All my devices appear ok in the device manager and RAID is enabled in the BIOS, even though it's not working. Could the absence of Windows RAID drivers really cause the array to fail when creating it with the motherboard utility?

What kind of error are you getting from your RAID Utility in your BIOS during the creation? You have to make sure the drive you're copying to is AT LEAST as big as the drive you're copying from and obviously it needs to be in good repair.

05-11-2008, 05:12 PM	#1 (permalink)
suprafly Registered User Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 56 OS: WinXP	Does SBS 2003 have a built in RAID utility? If so, how do I access it? I tried using the motherboard's utility upon bootup to do a RAID 1 array and it fails after copying all the contents from disk 0 to disk 1.

05-12-2008, 04:08 AM	#2 (permalink)
johnhook Tech Hardware Team Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 810 OS: MS SBS 2003 SP2	Re: Does SBS 2003 have a built in RAID utility? suprafly, If your PC/Server has Hardware RAID, you need to: 1) Enable RAID in your PC's BIOS Setup, attach & configure drives that support RAID with your system's hardware. 2) Access your PC's RAID utility and establish a RAID volume based on RAID level, etc. 3) Download OS/Specific RAID drivers from your PC MFG's website and copy to a CD or diskette 4) Press F6 key when prompted to install 3rd party drivers during the Windows Server Install - then point the install to the media/drivers you obtained in step 3 This will install the hardware RAID drivers specific to your PC/Server and allow Windows to install on a RAID array. - John __________________

05-12-2008, 07:16 AM	#3 (permalink)
suprafly Registered User Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 56 OS: WinXP	Re: Does SBS 2003 have a built in RAID utility? Sounds good, but the system is already up and running on one SATA drive. I don't want to have to reinstall Windows Server and have to reconfigure anything. I want to clone what I have now and make it a RAID1. I know I've done this before on a different machine...

05-12-2008, 07:27 AM	#4 (permalink)
johnhook Tech Hardware Team Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 810 OS: MS SBS 2003 SP2	Re: Does SBS 2003 have a built in RAID utility? suprafly, It really depends on the make/model of your PC/Motherboard and the BIOS version it's running. Provided your motherboard HAS SATA RAID capability, you'll need to install another hard drive of the same size as your current SATA drive - then enable RAID in the BIOS Setup. Some motherboards allow you to configure and manipulate RAID arrays from BIOS, others require software utilities to do this. Go to your PC/Motherboard's MFG support site and look for RAID drivers, utility and information about establishing RAID in the user manual. - John __________________

05-12-2008, 09:55 AM	#5 (permalink)
suprafly Registered User Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 56 OS: WinXP	Re: Does SBS 2003 have a built in RAID utility? Ok, I did all that except loading the Windows RAID drivers. All my devices appear ok in the device manager and RAID is enabled in the BIOS, even though it's not working. Could the absence of Windows RAID drivers really cause the array to fail when creating it with the motherboard utility?