Can Heterogeneous RAID Arrays Work?
Features
By
Patrick Schmid
published
Test Setup
Swipe to scroll horizontally
| System Hardware | |
|---|---|
| Processor(s) | 2x Intel Xeon Processor (Nocona core)3.6 GHz, FSB800, 1 MB L2 Cache |
| Platform | Asus NCL-DS (Socket 604)Intel E7520 Chipset, BIOS 1005 |
| RAM | Corsair CM72DD512AR-400 (DDR2-400 ECC, reg.)2x 512 MB, CL3-3-3-10 Timings |
| System Hard Drive | Western Digital Caviar WD1200JB120 GB, 7,200 U/Min, 8 MB Cache, UltraATA/100 |
| Mass Storage Controller(s) | Intel 82801EB UltraATA/100 Controller (ICH5)Promise SATA 300TX4Promise FastTrak TX4310Driver 2.06.1.310 |
| Networking | Broadcom BCM5721 On-Board Gigabit Ethernet NIC |
| Graphics Subsystem | On-Board GraphicsATI RageXL, 8 MB |
| System Hardware | |
| Performance Measurements | c’t h2benchw 3.6PCMark05 V1.01 |
| I/O Performance | IOMeter 2003.05.10Fileserver BenchmarkWebserver BenchmarkDatabase BenchmarkWorkstation Benchmark |
| System Software & Drivers | |
| OS | Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition, Service Pack 1 |
| Platform Driver | Intel Chipset Installation Utility 7.0.0.1025 |
| Graphics Driver | Default Windows Graphics Driver |
Hard Drives Used
We used three different hard drives for this article : A Samsung Spinpoint T166, Seagate’s Barracuda 7200.10 and a Western Digital WD3200JD. All of them hold 320 GB each.
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| Manufacturer | Samsung | Seagate | Western Digital |
|---|---|---|---|
| Family | SpinPoint T166 | Barracuda 7200.10 | WD Caviar SE |
| Model Number | HD321KJ | ST3320620AS | WD3200JD |
| Capacity | 320 GB | 320 GB | 320 GB |
| Rotational Speed (RPM) | 7200 | 7200 | 7200 |
| Platter | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Interface | SATA/300 | SATA/300 | SATA/150 |
| Cache (MB) | 16 | 16 | 8 |
| NCQ | yes | Yes | yes |
| Warranty | 3 years | 5 years | 3 years |
RAID Controller : Areca
Areca’s 1680ML series provide high I/O performance and very good throughput for up to six drives. Have a look at our RAID Scaling Charts for more details.
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TOPICS
1 Comment
Comment from the forums
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Typically, I'd say, run RAID-1. When it's time to upgrade, get two more identical drives, plug-em in and set up another mirror. Then, for Windows, delete your system hdd from the device manager and reboot to a Norton Ghost CD (assuming it supports your raid controller). Clone the partitions to new mirror. Power off, remove old mirror, boot to a new mirror. It will most likely re-detect the new mirror and request a re-boot, after that you're good to go on. Old drives can be wiped and sold on e-bay. Or turned into a backup volume.Reply