NETRAID 4M multi disk RAID config, please help

[Anthony Vierra]

hi all, thanks in advance for your help! I have just purchased a netraid 4m, and 9 drives. they have yet to show up, but im getting a jump start on my config, so i can get to work the second there here. Here go's. i want to setup the card to use maxium channels to increase performance. the way i have things configed will use 3 channels, but i think that there is only 2 ports available internally, does this limit the number of channels i can use? here is the planned config (please tell me if this will work all internal)I want to do a raid 1 with 2 drives for the os on one channel. the swap file, transaction logs and temp db will go on a single drive without raid (because of space problems) hopefully on the second channel. the database will be stored on a raid 10 using 6 drives and hopefully the 3rd channel. is this possible given the fact that there is only 2 connectors internally located.. 2 connectors inside = 2 channels? Last question is this... can i set up the raid and format the drives on a test and then transfer it in a working state to the production server? Thank you for your thoughts and advice. - AnthonyV

[Marino Meloni_1]

hi


i want to setup the card to use maxium channels to increase performance.

the way i have things configed will use 3 channels, but i think that there is only 2 ports available internally, does this limit the number of channels i can use?
resp: yes this limit the internal channels to be used (max 2)


the swap file, transaction logs and temp db will go on a single drive without raid (because of space problems) hopefully on the second channel.

resp: why do not connect this to a scsi standard controller (one hdd in raid zero is like a single disk on a scsi channel)

the database will be stored on a raid 10 using 6 drives and hopefully the 3rd channel. is this possible given the fact that there is only 2 connectors internally located.. 2 connectors inside = 2 channels?

resp: You have only two internal connection, so only tho channels available internaly, but don't worry, you could reach optimal performance anyway, olso putting two logical drives on the same channel

Last question is this... can i set up the raid and format the drives on a test and then transfer it in a working state to the production server? Thank you for your thoughts and advice. - AnthonyV

resp: Yes, there is the way to capture the configuration of the hdd and transfer it to the nertaid controller, at boot time this will appear as an option.(anyway I never tried this myself)

bye
marino

[adam tekieli]

Hi,

the database will be stored on a raid 10 using 6 drives and hopefully the 3rd channel. is this possible given the fact that there is only 2 connectors internally located.. 2 connectors inside = 2 channels?

resp: I sugest you to connect one drive on chnl0 and second one on chanel1 and create mirror set for you OS.

After that from OS use Fast Utility to create Raid10. You can optimized raid10 for channel performance and after that each raid1 member that will be span to raid10 is on both channels 0 and 1

Last question is this... can i set up the raid and format the drives on a test and then transfer it in a working state to the production server? Thank you for your thoughts and advice. - AnthonyV

resp: Yes it works fine beacuse no config info is stored on controller but on each HD. You must install all drives at one time before booting on productive system, otherwise you will get missing members errors.