RAID 5 Arrary Failure

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BHURST

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Dec 22, 2013
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10,510
I have a Calvary 4x1TB Hard Drive Bay that is configured for RAID 5. All of a sudden it starts saying it needs to be reformatted. The drive indicator lights on the bay are all green, indicating the individual drives are working (I assume).

I tried replacing the eSATA interface card in my PC and the eSATA cable, but no difference. So I am guessing the problem is with the electronics in the Calvary box.

When I reboot by PC, the bootup sequence "sees" the RAID array, but after bootup, the array does not show up in Windows Explorer or in the Windows 7 Disk Management utility. Not sure how I can use any of the data recovery software if the OS does not "see" the array at all.

I have an identical Calvary 4x1TB Drive Bay (RAID 5) that I have not been using. If I temporarily transfer the drives from the failed bay into the unused one, might this allow me to retrieve my data? Pros? Cons?

Thanks!
 
Solution
N
There is no raid controller in the box. It is a simple port multiplier: http://www.siliconimage.com/solutions/pc/port-multiplier/ plus the host controller in you PC. All the raid is done by software. Check the status of your raid array in the raid manager software and it might tell you what the problem is.
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BHURST

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Dec 22, 2013
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I failed to say that I have connected the previously unused RAID drive bay and it works fine, so I assume the driver and software are okay. I just ordered a new hard drive so that I have somewhere to put the recovered data if the drive switch works, so I guess I need to wait for that.

 
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noidea_77

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Jul 28, 2012
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If the bios sees the array, it is most likely a software problem. Keep in mind, that this is a pure software raid. If the driver or the raid management software doesn't work, windows sees nothing. Do you get any related errors in event viewer?
 
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BHURST

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Dec 22, 2013
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10,510




Since the other, previously unused Cavalry RAID 5 bay is working, I assume the interface, drivers and software on my PC ARE working. If it is hardware or software, I am again assuming that it is the hardware or software in the Cavalry box. My understanding is that with the Cavalry box, the RAID controller is in the external box, not in my PC. That is why I am waiting for a new drive to offload the data to before I try transferring the individual drives from the old box into the new, previously unused Cavalry box.

The good news is that most of the data on the bad box (at home) exists on my system at work. We'll see in a few days. For now, the bad box is offline.
 
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noidea_77

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Jul 28, 2012
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There is no raid controller in the box. It is a simple port multiplier: http://www.siliconimage.com/solutions/pc/port-multiplier/ plus the host controller in you PC. All the raid is done by software. Check the status of your raid array in the raid manager software and it might tell you what the problem is.
 
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Solution
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BHURST

Honorable
Dec 22, 2013
16
0
10,510
I opened the RAID Manager and it tells a different story. Even though the box indicators show all four drives "green," the manager shows one of the drives as an "orphan." Does this mean the drive is probably defective? Will replacing this drive allow the array to rebuild. How exact a match would the replacement drive need to be? Here's a screen cap of the manager.

http://www.mediafire.com/download/iti3a8z341xvkff/CavalryRAID5_Issue.jpg

Thanks so much for your help.
 
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