RAID utility does not show P8Z68 Pro

[powercroat783]

Hello, I am a noob. This is the first computer I have ever built, so excuse the fact that I may not call things by their proper name and for my all around nubishness.

I will make this short, I have a P8Z68 Pro Mobo as well as a 60gb SSD and will soon be getting two 500gb HDD. I wanted to set up the two HDDs in RAID0 and then set up the SSD in JBOD. I go into the BIOS and set the Sata Config To RAID. I then restart the computer, and I the Intel RAID Array Utility/Config Thing does not show up, and I am smashing on Ctrl+I the entire time.

The Bios has been flashed and the CMOS cleared many times, please help.

 

[jaquith]

Welcome to Tom's Forum!

First you don't want to RAID 0 your data drive, this is bad because: 1. either HDD fails = poof all data goes bye-bye, 2. RAID fails or gets moved = poof & ditto. edit: have the HDD(s) as JBOD or better in RAID 1 {mirrored}; in RAID 1 if one drives fails then the mirror has the the data. In any case, it's still best to use a HDD to periodically back-up/snap shot of your data. Reason if there's a total corruption then you have a mirrored copy of the 'total corruption' and the backup would be the only way to retrieve your data.

Assuming the SSD is the primary {Gray SATA3} and the HDD is formatted on {Blue SATA2} or both are on the {Gray SATA3} ports RAID won't work. Only the Intel SATA2 ports offer RAID and if nothing or 1 drive is connected then Ctrl+I won't work.

A. Assuming you have ASUS P8Z68-M PRO - http://usa.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8Z68M_PRO/#specifications

Only the 'Blue' SATA2 (3Gb/s) can RAID on your MOBO.
Intel® Z68 chipset :
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), gray

4 x SATA 3Gb/s port(s), blue
Support Raid 0, 1, 5, 10
Support Intel® Smart Response Technology on 2nd generation Intel® Core™ processor family

ASMedia® PCIe SATA controller : *2
1 x eSATA 6Gb/s port(s), red
1 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), navy blue

B. Assuming you have ASUS P8Z68-V PRO - http://usa.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8Z68V_PRO/#specifications

Only the 'Blue' SATA2 (3Gb/s) can RAID on your MOBO.
Intel® Z68 chipset :
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), gray

4 x SATA 3Gb/s port(s), blue
Support Raid 0, 1, 5, 10
Support Intel® Smart Response Technology

Marvell® PCIe SATA 6Gb/s controller : *2
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), navy blue

JMicron® JMB362 controller : *2
1 x eSATA 3G port(s), red

 

[powercroat783]

OK Thank You very much, this is very informative.

But I have another two questions, since I always get mixed responses on google. Can I use Sata 3 Cables in Sata 2 ports, and do I get increased Read performance when using RAID1?

And yes it is the p8z68-V pro, sorry I did not know there was an M and a V so I did not specify that far.

 

[powercroat783]

Best answer selected by powercroat783.

 

[jaquith]

Cables - In reality there no such a thing as a SATA2 vs SATA3 'cables' they're 100% identical. I use the 90 degree elbows for the ODD(s) and the straight for SSD/HDD and other than color they're same. No doubts.

RAID performance - RAID 1 is as fast as the slowest HDD, as large as the smallest HDD, and so if the HDD(s) are identical {best option} then there's no gains and smige slower.

I use SSD {Primary: OS, Apps & Working Data}, RAID 1 {Data & Storage}, and in my case NAS at work and Windows Server at Home. Remember the backup statement above.

Good Luck!

 

[powercroat783]

Wow, Thank You very much I appreciate the help. I hope one day I can know as much as you and do the same for others on this website.

 

[ngoy]

I don't know why so many people have a fixation with RAID 0. Can we find whomever that person is that keeps pushing it and shoot them twice? AS jaquith says, RAID 0 is fail, unless you you are doing RAID 10, or you don't mind losing everything on two or more drives for no particular reason.

SATA 3 cables are supposed to be made for tighter tolerances so far as EMI interference, higher speed transfer, etc....but it is doubtful you will see a performance difference unless it is on the SSD.

Some controllers support reading from both drives when they are mirrored, but typically this is reserved for higher priced controllers. I doubt the built in one on your motherboard supports it.

 

[powercroat783]

Well, I know which RAID you want depends on needs. Since everything going into that RAID array I wanted is easily downloadable from the internet or reloaded from a DVD, I dont think I will mind using RAID0 instead.

And I just wanted to know if the SATA cables are backwards compatable. Since it is very hard to have a SATA 2 cable be the bottleneck anyways, there is not much of a point to SATA 3 except for SSDs.

But I dont know what he means by the RAID being moved into another computer and poof gone. We use RAID0 in my company (Yes, I am in charge of building computers and making them work, although there are superiors that are supposed to train me but they are not here today on sick leave, so this is why i posted on Toms.) And I pull RAID0 using 4 HDD out of a computer and put it into another computer, just making sure that the 4 HDD are lined up correctly (new chipset, processor, everything pretty much) and it still works fine. We have everything backed up so if a HDD does fail we put in a new one and just Copy and Paste and let it sit over night.

 

[jaquith]

On a short patch cable - all of them 'today' are built to the same spec and the cables that come with your MOBO will work exactly the same for SATA2/3.

I have seen this argument come-up so much that I was just waiting for 'some' response. Every benchmark done on 'case' SATA cables came-up the same no difference. No EMI errors, no degrading in signal - the last test I saw on a OCZ Vertex 3 had ZIP difference.

You can bore yourself with this -> http://www.serialata.org/documents/SATA-6-Gbs-The-Path-from-3gbs-to-6gbs.pdf ; see pages 5~6.

 

[powercroat783]

Jaquith = Win

And Thanks Again.

 

[powercroat783]

To anyone that reads this, the SATA 3 ports on the motherboard support RAID functions.

 

[hbottjer]

In line with this thread, I am confused by something I read in the P8Z68-V Pro Manual. It states that when setting a RAID config. "when set any of STAT ports to RAID mode, all STAT ports run at RAID mode together."

I wanted to install a RAID system (at first I was RAID 0, but now want RAID 5) for photos and videos, an SSD drive with OS and App files, a third 300 GB for swap and "office" files, but am not sure about this now. 3 drives needed for RAID 5 (i.e., 3 SATA ports), 1 SATA for SSD, 1 for DVD. Can this work?

Much information is appreciated

 

[powercroat783]

Yes this can work, As during boot, a screen will show up asking for ctrl-I to enter the RAID utility. You can set up certain drives to be RAID Member disks, and other drives to be non-member disks. In other words, not all of you drives have to be part of a RAID set up.

HOWEVER there is a catch.

Excuse me for not using probably the correct terminology, but this is pretty much what is going to happen.

If you had any disks in non-RAID and switch them over to RAID format, they will not longer work and the data will be corrupted. For instance if you installed Windows 7 on a HDD or SSD on AHCI or IDE and then switched over to RAID, it would crash when trying to boot into Windows 7. So your data is going to be lost unless you can back it all up from some external point first.

Feel free to ask questions if I didn't make something clear.

 

[hbottjer]

Thanks for the clarifications. I am fortunate that I am creating a new PC; any data is on existing PCs and will be moved to an external NAS device. I will need to get a 3rd matching drive for RAID 5, but all other components are in place:

ASUS P8Z68-V Pro
i7 3.4ghz processor
1000W Corsair PS
8GB RAM
80GB OCZ SSD
300GB WD Velociraptor Drive
2x 1TB Hitachi SATA Drives
EVGA 560Ti Video

Any pointers beore assembly are welcome, particularly in HD arrangement.

Thanks!

 

[powercroat783]

Yeah, what makes you think you have to spend so much money on a 1000 watt power supply? Unless you are going to make serious upgrades in the future, I think you will be fine. I have a very close set-up to you, and I am using a 650 watt.

 

[hbottjer]

Yes, the PS is overkill, even if I do upgrade later (e.g., bigger video). The WD velociraptor does not fit well in 650D case, I may need to install in 5 1/4 drive bay. Still deciding about partitions & swap drives.

 

[logun0]

Assuming the SSD is the primary {Gray SATA3} and the HDD is formatted on {Blue SATA2} or both are on the {Gray SATA3} ports RAID won't work. Only the Intel SATA2 ports offer RAID and if nothing or 1 drive is connected then Ctrl+I won't work.

B. Assuming you have ASUS P8Z68-V PRO - http://usa.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8Z68V_PRO/#specifications

Only the 'Blue' SATA2 (3Gb/s) can RAID on your MOBO.
Intel® Z68 chipset :
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), gray

4 x SATA 3Gb/s port(s), blue
Support Raid 0, 1, 5, 10
Support Intel® Smart Response Technology

Marvell® PCIe SATA 6Gb/s controller : *2
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), navy blue

JMicron® JMB362 controller : *2
1 x eSATA 3G port(s), red

Hi sorry for the older bump but I am doing a build using the same motherboard - ASUS P8Z68-V Pro and the above does not match whats in the manual.

Page 2-21:
Internal connectors
1. Intel Z68 Serial ATAT 6.0 Gb/s Connectors (7-pin SATA6G_1/2 [gray])
These connectors connect to Serial ATA 6.0Gb/s hard disk drives via Serial ATA 6.0 Gb/s signal cables

If you installed Serial ATA hard disk drives, you can create a RAID 0, 1, 5 and 10 configuration with the Intel Rapid Storage Technology through the onboard Intel Z68 chipset


Does that not mean I can create a RAID0 with a couple SATA III SSD's on these two 6Gb/s ports?

 

[powercroat783]

Yes, you can make a RAID0 Array with the SATA III ports. In fact, you can RAID one drive plugged into the SATA III and one drive plugged into the SATA II slot. (if you really wanted to) So you do not have to worry about it. The only Items that cannot be used in RAID are the Marvell Controller ones. Also, if you have drives that you do not want in a RAID array, just leave them as a non member disk. However, they will show up as a RAID volume in the OS (At least for Windows 7, anyways).

 

[logun0]

yes all drives would show up as a raid volumn because you need to set the sata item to RAID in the BIOS and when you set that it labels all ports as RAID even though some would be non-members

 

[Omi3D]

P8Z68-V Pro -

The on board Marvell SATA III controller does support RAID also. You only have to have the Marvell RAID driver software installed first before the drive setup. Recommended for a new OpSys install only.

The performance on the Intel controller for RAID setups is said to be superior however to the Marvell implementation of their RAID. I never bothered to research why (I used the Intel controller).

It may be the mobo design for the sharing of interrupts or the throughput data chunk. ???

I would stick to the Intel controller for RAID setups since that is an controller on-chip provision feature.

 

[multiSingularity]

To anyone that reads this, the SATA 3 ports on the motherboard support RAID functions.

Yes, I've got the P8Z68-M Pro m/b and my manual certainly says this too. However, I can't find any way to access a RAID configuration utility. There's nothing in the BIOS to specify whether it's RAID 0/1/5, and I tried the ctrl-I option you mentioned during boot but it didn't do anything. I've got two drives connected to the two grey SATA3 ports.

How the heck do I configure RAID on this thing?

 

[powercroat783]

Hmmm first you need to open up the regular bios, and go to the advanced Tab. There should be something in there that says SATA configuration. The default at the top is AHCI, make sure it is changed to RAID. Then go to the Boot Tab and make sure Option ROM Messages is set to Force BIOS (You can change it back for quicker boots after you configure your RAID settings). Then save changes and reboot. You should get a prompt at some point to enter the RAID configuration with ctrl+I

 

[hbottjer]

Thank you all for your posts. Now, I am unfortunately confused by Intel SRT and the P8Z68Z-PRO-V MB. Moved to 128gb SSD, 3x2TB HDD, 1xDVD, also have 40gbSSD and 60gbSSD (which i don't trust).I have a bounty, and ignorance. Nothing installed, but will be Win7

 

[nikorr]

This topic has been closed by Nikorr.