Steps for fresh install, help an old fella!

Hey Guys,

Re formating and starting again was never an issue with old system & XP! But now I have Vista set up in RAID 0.

I wish to reformat but not quite sure how I set up the RAID 0, once formated what do I do? I have extracted the SATA drivers on to a USB key & this seems to work, though don't know if thats relevant??

Basically do I set up RAID first before I install VISTA?? & if so how??

Thanks everyone, never thought I'd sound like a NEWBIE!

 

I had to use a floppy drive to load RAID drivers on my XP laptop; the only other way I know how to load RAID drivers is to slipstream your XP CD with them. There are various guides on the Internet on how to do that.

Unless you really need the space, I recommend RAID 1 for data security.

 

When you format your hdd's the raid volyme will still be intact. It's just to put in the vista dvd, start up the computer and install it again.

If you want to change anything...

If you press f2 during start up you enter the set up menu. there you can choose to have your hdd's in "raid" or "normal"

after you exit setup, still before the start up is complete, you will get the option to press ctrl + i. There you can easily create a raid volyme, delete the old one etc, if you want to. It's very simple just follow the instructions wich will be given to you Then save and exit..

 

Thanks guys, all very helpful !

 

I wouldn't call RAID 1 "data security" - it doesn't protect against accidental deletes, and if the cause of the HDD failure is physical (for example, dropping the laptop), there's the same chance that both of 'em will fail..
There's no replacement for a 'real' backup of your data..

 

RAID is really designed for use in servers and desktops - IMO it's not worth it to have RAID on a laptop, there is a lot of power drain. The reason I recommend RAID 1 is because even if one drive fails, the other one should still be intact. Dropping the laptop would jeopardize both drives, yes, but again there's still a chance that at least one of the drives will stay working. With RAID 0, the chances for data loss are doubled because you are depending on two drives - it is very unsafe.

I agree though, you should always do a hard backup of your data.

 

Wouldn't it just be easier to have a docking station you plunked the laptop into at night to do a nightly backup? After all, it's not a server that has to be going 24/7/365.

 

Hey Kathman,

Also keep in mind you shouldn't need any additional SATA/RAID drivers loaded onto a USB flash drive to do a fresh install of Vista, since Vista has SATA/RAID drivers already loaded in!