jaquestraw Posted July 14, 2006 Posted July 14, 2006 I have just built my first rig with the components listed in my sig minus one of the HDD's. It's been up and running well for about a month now thanks to this site! Now I want to add another drive in raid 0. My question is what is the best way of going about this. Should I reformat my current drive first or let Windows handle it on re install. Do I need to bother with updating my BIOS to the new one dated 4/6/2006 (my current is 11/14/2005)? I'm also wondering if the install disk's that came with the board are up to snuff. LanParty utility CD nF4 ver. 003 and the FDD- SATA RAID driver disk nVIDIA nF4 Silicon image 3114 Rev.1.0. I plan on following Angry's RAID tutorial but I'm a bit unsure of driver and BIOS versions. Any guidance will be appreciated! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Munson Posted July 14, 2006 Posted July 14, 2006 To switch from Single drive to RAID 0 or 1 even you will need to reinstall as all the disks in the array need to be formatted. I used my driver disk to load RAID drivers so it's up to snuff.... You should not need a bios reflash. Munson Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaquestraw Posted July 14, 2006 Posted July 14, 2006 Hi Munson, I am aware that I have to re install my OS and driver disks, just want to make sure that the ones that came with the board are current enough for a good 3 GB/s SATA install. Another question I had was, what is the difference between the NF4 floppy RAID drivers and the SI3114 drivers. Are they both on the floppy that came with my mobo? Little confused with that issue. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
red930 Posted July 14, 2006 Posted July 14, 2006 Read the RAID Tutorial... http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8790 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
old_geekster Posted July 14, 2006 Posted July 14, 2006 Welcome to the "Street". Here is a link that will help you with your RAID questions: http://www.angrygames.com/nf4raid-1.htm I absolutely knew nothing about RAID when I setup my system. I followed this guide and it made things very easy. Good luck! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ukiyo-e Posted July 14, 2006 Posted July 14, 2006 the ultra-d doesn't have the silicon image chip. use the nvidia. the nvidia drivers on the floppy are perfectly fine. might want to update bios to get the most recent raid bios. the dfi(diamond flash installer?) program works very nicely to update. the fun part is deciding whether to install the nividia sw driver when you install the 6.70 drivers. i didn't see any improvemnt so i stuck with the drivers on the floppy. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaquestraw Posted July 14, 2006 Posted July 14, 2006 Ok, I think I'll stick with the stock BIOS and drivers that came with the board last month unless someone can tell me why I shouldn't. Does anyone have any advice on the best way of wiping the HDD clean that I'm using now before adding the new HDD and re installing the OS in raid 0. And last but not least, I can't get a handle on striping block size. Can someone explain and give any advice. Thanks for the responses! I'd be lost without this forum. Hobby is turning into obsession! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanDude05 Posted July 14, 2006 Posted July 14, 2006 When you reinstall the OS, choose the longer format and you should be fine. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
old_geekster Posted July 15, 2006 Posted July 15, 2006 Here is a link that should help you understand "striping block": http://www.lostcircuits.com/hdd/hdd7/2.shtml Read the entire article for a full understanding. I followed H_G's lead and went with 16k blocks, since I had no idea what I was doing in the first place. It works great! "Google" is your friend! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaquestraw Posted July 15, 2006 Posted July 15, 2006 Thanks! Good article, just what I was looking for. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
old_geekster Posted July 16, 2006 Posted July 16, 2006 Thanks! Good article, just what I was looking for. You are entirely welcome! I am glad to help. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaquestraw Posted July 16, 2006 Posted July 16, 2006 Done deal! Thanks to everyone for the advice. I didn't bother with the MB BIOS but did go with the updated RAID drivers (1.0.0.16). What a difference! RAID 0 is the .!! Thanks again... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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