Hi everyone, I am in need of help with setting up a RAID with 2 SATA drives. I have managed to set up the raid (2 x 74GB Raptors) into raid 0 configuration with a chuck size of 64K (or prehaps 32K) anyway, the problem began when i tried to install windows XP with SP2. I had already thought ahead to copy the SATA RAID drivers from my mobo CD to a floppy. However, after letting it copy the driver, set up all the other files it needs to start the install, it just powers down my PC after reaching the "Press R to repair a windows installation" screen. all that is left on, is the Power LED on the front of my case, which is a little unusual. It always happens at this point in the "installation", even if i DONT install the SATA drivers. Im now back on my IDE drive, installed from the same windows disk without any problems. Anyone got any ideas about what could be going wrong? EDIT: System Specs AMD 3200+ "Barton" ASUS A7N8X-E Mobo, 1013 BIOS nVidia GF6600GT 128MB (Currently) 80GB WD 8000RPM HD (Trying to use) 2x 74GB WD "Raptor" 10,000RPM i will be happy to supply more info if need be.
Hi Danny, welcome to the forums mate! unfortunately I don't have a clue as to why this is happening, it certainly sounds like one of those 'freak' problems. I'm sure the likes of MisterTad and others will be along soon enough with the answer though Enjoy your stay
Hi, welcome to Bit-Tech I assume that you're installing your OS to the Raptors; are you trying to run the setup with both the PATA and SATA drives plugged in? To minimise sources of error, I'd recommend unplugging your PATA WD drive during the install process and seeing if that helps.
only the Raptors are connected. after using more up to date SATARaid drivers from ASUS website.... still nothing. ive also tried running the drives of different power cables... still nothing. im going to try disconnecting all non-essential devices and PCI cards next, see what happens. Im not holding out much hope though.
I was about to recommend you remove any unneeded extras. I ended up having to removed my wireless card and Creative SB card before it let me install fully with out crashing. Granted I got a little further along the installation than it seems you have been able to do. Have you tried doing it with out raiding the drives and just installing on one drive? It's a small chance but might be worth looking into.
i have tried running memtest... and the same thing occured at 68% ive tried taking out all my modules, and testing one at a time. same thing each time. 68%, powers down, power light still on. whatever the test is that starts at 68%, that what causes the power down. I have a backup board of the same model, i will give that a try tomorrow. however, bear in mind i have been running this set since i23, almost a year ago, with not even as much as a BSOD.
If it always occurs at exactly the same percentage, then I'd be inclined to say that there's some sort of systemic error rather than overheating or driver problems. Do you have any spare RAM that you can use to test the system? It might also be worth changing the settings in your BIOS to some looser timings for diagnostics.
not solving the problem here (although perhaps bypassing it), but I would reccommend against using RAID0 array You will find that with single user access patterns (server access patterns differ) your system will be faster spreading your OS and frequently used programs between two seperate drives. I've said it before and I'll say it again - there is no place in a desktop system for a RAID0 array (you may think that your system has server access patterns, but it doesn't) As for the memtest issue, try flashing your BIOS to the latest version (or if it is the latest version, try flashing to an older one) + what hitman012 has said
Problem solved. switched to my backup motherboard, and everything was fine. No running in RAID 0, and getting some sweet loading times in BF2. great for nabbing the Commander spot. Unfortunatly, i cant return this mobo, and even if i was within the return time, OcUK would probably just send it back and charge me £20 Thanks for the advice!
