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From: ~~Alan~~ on 24 Jan 2010 13:03
I have a Vostro 220 and want to add a second hard drive and configure a
Raid-1 array. When I do this the process will wipe both hard drives to
create the mirror. So before I do this, I will back up my system by
creating an image, probably with Norton Ghost or Windows 7 backup.

Will I be able to restore the image to by mirrored array and have everything
as it was before, or will I have to reinstall everything and restore my
data?

~alan

From: Jonathan Eales on 25 Jan 2010 04:55

"~~Alan~~" <a.shepro_NoSpam(a)gmail.com> wrote in message
news:hji223$8v4$1(a)speranza.aioe.org...
>I have a Vostro 220 and want to add a second hard drive and configure a
>Raid-1 array. When I do this the process will wipe both hard drives to
>create the mirror. So before I do this, I will back up my system by
>creating an image, probably with Norton Ghost or Windows 7 backup.
>
> Will I be able to restore the image to by mirrored array and have
> everything as it was before, or will I have to reinstall everything and
> restore my data?
>
> ~alan
>

Firstly I'd still do the image backup, just in case.

However, you don't need to wipe all your data and software from the hard
disk. Just install the second hard disk. Then run the Intel Matrix Storage
Management console and tell it to make a mirrored RAID with the extra disk.
Wait a couple of hours. You can even use the system when this happens.

The second hard disk has to be roughly the same capacity as the C: drive and
doesn't even have to be the same make or model. DELL deliver the systems
with the BIOS set to RAID-compatible AHCI for the hard disk controller and
the Intel Matrix Storage Management changes this to RAID 1 (mirror).

I've done this on many new Vostro 220MT systems either with the extra hard
disk delivered from DELL or just by adding my own. I call them 'DELL's data
saviours'.

Remember RAID 1 Mirror is NOT a replacement of a regular backup of your
system, just insurance if one hard disk fails.




From: ~~Alan~~ on 25 Jan 2010 19:06
I am so religious about backups as the Pope is on Sundays.

Thanks for the information about the Intel Matrix Storage Management
console. I thought I had to go through the BIOS to set RAID.

Most people think of RAID as a form of backup. If a file is written to one
disk, it is backed up to the other. What they forget is that is a file is
deleted or altered on one disk, it is deleted and altered on the other and
just as fast. RAID-1 is a mirror.

~alan


"Jonathan Eales" <jon.eales(a)virgin.net> wrote in message
news:cUd7n.83577$4N3.75036(a)newsfe06.ams2...
>
> "~~Alan~~" <a.shepro_NoSpam(a)gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:hji223$8v4$1(a)speranza.aioe.org...
>>I have a Vostro 220 and want to add a second hard drive and configure a
>>Raid-1 array. When I do this the process will wipe both hard drives to
>>create the mirror. So before I do this, I will back up my system by
>>creating an image, probably with Norton Ghost or Windows 7 backup.
>>
>> Will I be able to restore the image to by mirrored array and have
>> everything as it was before, or will I have to reinstall everything and
>> restore my data?
>>
>> ~alan
>>
>
> Firstly I'd still do the image backup, just in case.
>
> However, you don't need to wipe all your data and software from the hard
> disk. Just install the second hard disk. Then run the Intel Matrix
> Storage Management console and tell it to make a mirrored RAID with the
> extra disk. Wait a couple of hours. You can even use the system when this
> happens.
>
> The second hard disk has to be roughly the same capacity as the C: drive
> and doesn't even have to be the same make or model. DELL deliver the
> systems with the BIOS set to RAID-compatible AHCI for the hard disk
> controller and the Intel Matrix Storage Management changes this to RAID 1
> (mirror).
>
> I've done this on many new Vostro 220MT systems either with the extra hard
> disk delivered from DELL or just by adding my own. I call them 'DELL's
> data saviours'.
>
> Remember RAID 1 Mirror is NOT a replacement of a regular backup of your
> system, just insurance if one hard disk fails.
>
>
>
>
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