Upgrade Order (SSD + Backup)

[jage]

This crosses a couple of subcategories so I'm posting in General. Windows 7 64bit OS

Temporarily I've been running a new computer with 2x 1TB HD in Raid1. My backup drive is 500GB, thus Raid1 choosing redundancy over performance in the short term.

Now I am ready to change to the following configuration:
SSD boot drive/OS
2x 1TB in Raid0
3TB backup drive
Fresh OS install (win7/64bit)

I have all the hardware; The question is, what order do I do my upgrades in?

For example, can I just install the SSD drive, boot and install the OS from CD, or do I need to remove the OS from the 1TB hard drives.

Should I, for example, remove one of the mirrored drives, set up the entire system (formatting the other 1TB drive) and then readd the original drive once I no longer need to return to it as a boot/data in case something goes wrong?

Should I windows backup to the 3TB drive, format the existing 1TB drives, set them to Raid0, add the SSD and then restore?

I can see about a dozen ways to carve this turkey, but I'm not entirely clear what will work and what will get me a fresh OS without losing anything.

Thoughts or suggestions?

 

[bliq]

So first of all, I guess you have a typo as RAID 0 is striped. I assume you mean RAID 1.

You can install the SSD, boot and install OS from the CD. You will be given a choice. No need to erase the OS on the array. And the OS on the array won't get erased (unless you do so).

then add the 3TB drive, assign letter, format. Then do windows backup configuration with that drive as the target.

 

[jage]

So first of all, I guess you have a typo as RAID 0 is striped. I assume you mean RAID 1.

No; I currently have a Raid1 which is mirrored identical drives
I am switching to a Raid0 which is striped since I will have the 3tb for backup and no longer need redundancy in the drives.

 

[jage]

Best answer selected by jage.