question of smart start cd

[James Rudley]

Ok, I have a ml350 g4 with 3 scsi drives. I am planning on making a raid 5 setup. Now, NOT using the smart start cd, would I pick the 3 drives, choose raid 5 and initialize the new raid set. This is where i am lost. If I put the win2k3 cd and boot off it, will it just show my 1 logical drive where I can partition it from there?

Or, am I better off using this smartstart cd. I am not a guru with this raid (I am learning)

My alst question is, if I have 3 drives as 1 logical in raid 5, I create 1 partition for the o/s and another for data, would that work? Basically, if my o/s is corrupt, my data is still there on the other partition? So, if I had to reinstall my o/s, I could just install back on to that o/s partition and my data partition will still be there?

Sorry, but I am new to this and learning as I go!

Thanks

[Prashant (I am Back)]

Hi,

You can configure raid using Smartstart or Using the Option ROM Configuration for Arrays utility. As shown in the screen the way you can do it.

Secondly.
Yes you can do so as you want and you have described.

Regards,
Prashant S.

[Oleg Koroz]

You can make partition for O/S and DATA; it still would be RAID 5

RAID 5 setup for three drives, Partitions they are insight of Logical Drive.

Some fundamentals
http://h18004.www1.hp.com/products/servers/proliantstorage/software-management/acumatrix/index.html

[Morcos · Accepted solution]

Hi,
You can configure Raid5 by using Rom configuration by pressing F8 --> create logical drive. If you don't want to use smart cd you can download the driver for the smart array put it on a floppy, put the floppy and boot using the w2k3 cd and press F6.
For the other question you can reinstall the os as you said. One more thing because of using Raid5, if you have any bad disk you can replace it with a new one, and automatically it will be rebuilt.

Good luck
Ziad

[Steven Clementi]

James:

One thing to consider while creating your Logical unit is... insteads of creating just 1 Logical Unit and partitioning it with windows, it might be better for you in the long run to create 2 logical drives. the first for your C: drive (System/OS partition) and the second LUN for your Data.

What this buys you is easier expansion in the future. It is harder to expand a a data partition that resides on the same drive as your system partition. Though there is software out that that can do it, Microsoft;s free utility work great, but will not extend a partition if the system partition is on the same logical drive.

Configuing 2 logical drives would better protect your data as well. You do not lose any space this way and you have greater control over your disk management.

Just my opinion...

Steven

[James Rudley]

thanks for your help! I gave points too!

[James Rudley]

found the solution in this thread!