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General information
Troubleshooting
General information
System requirements for configuring RAID
In order to configure your system for RAID, it must meet the following requirements.
Desktop board
Must be one of the following:
| Chipset |
Intel® Desktop Board |
| X79 |
DX79SI, DX79TO |
| Z68 |
DZ68ZV, DZ68DB, DZ68BC |
| Q67, P67, H67 |
DQ67EP, DQ67OW, DQ67SW, DP67DE, DP67BG, DP67BA, DH67VR, DH67GD, DH67CL, DH67CF, DH67BL |
| X58 |
DX58SO2, DX58SO, DX58OG |
| H57, Q57 |
DH57JG, DQ57TM, DQ57TML, DH57DD |
| P55 |
DP55KG, DP55SB, DP55WG, DP55WB |
| X48 |
DX48BT2 |
Q45,
P45,
G45 |
DQ45CB, DQ45EK, DG45FC, DG45ID, DP45SG |
| P43 |
DP43BF (DP43BFL does not support RAID) |
| X38 |
DX38BT |
| P35, Q35 |
DP35DP, DQ35JO, DQ35MP |
| G33 |
DG33TL |
| 5400XS |
D5400XS |
| 975 |
D975XBX2, D975XBX |
| 965 |
DQ965WC, DQ965GF, DQ965CO, DG965WH, DG965PZ, DG965OT, DG965MQ |
| 955 |
D955XCS, D955XBK |
| 945 |
D945PVS, D945GTP (D945GTPLKR and D945GTPLR SKUs only) , D945GPM, D945GNT (D945GNTLKR and D945GNTLR SKUs only) , D945GCZ (D945GCZLKR and D945GCZLR SKUs only) , D945GBO |
| 925 |
D925XECV2, D925XEBC2, D925XHY, D925XCV, D925XBC |
| 915 |
D915PBL |
| 875 |
D875PBZ |
| 865 |
D865PERL (D865PERLL or D865PERLK SKUs only) | |
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Operating system
- Microsoft Windows 7*
- Microsoft Windows Vista*
- Microsoft Windows XP* (Home, Professional, Media Center Edition, Professional x64 Edition)
- Microsoft Windows 2000*
Configuration software
Intel® Rapid Storage Technology, Intel® Matrix Storage Manager or Intel® Application Accelerator RAID Edition version 4.0 (depending on board model), available on the driver CD that came with the Intel® Desktop Board or downloadable from Intel’s Download Center.
| Note |
There are no RAID drivers available for Linux* or Microsoft Windows 2003 Server* for Intel® Desktop Boards. | |
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Where to find the latest RAID drivers
You can download the most current RAID drivers for your Intel® Desktop Board from Intel’s Download Center.
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RAID properties
| RAID Level |
Performance1 |
Size2 |
Data Security |
Hard Drives Required |
| RAID 0 |
Fastest read
Fastest write |
Combined capacity of all hard drives |
None |
2, 3 or 43 |
| RAID 1 |
Better read
Slightly degraded write |
Capacity of 1 hard drive |
Yes |
2 |
| RAID 10 |
Fast read
Slightly degraded write |
Combined capacity of 2 hard drives |
Yes |
43 |
RAID 5
with write-back cache |
Fast read
Fast write |
Combined capacity of all hard drives minus 1 |
Yes, parity |
3 or 43 |
RAID 5
without write-back cache |
Fast read
Non-optimized write |
Combined capacity of all hard drives minus 1 |
Yes, parity |
3 or 43 | |
1 Performance as compared to single hard drive performance
2 Assumes all hard drives are of the same capacity. If drives are not the same capacity, then the size will equal that of the smaller drive.
3 RAID 0, 5 or 10 configuration with more than two drives requires an Intel® Desktop Board with ICH7R.
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Supported RAID levels
Intel® Desktop Boards support the following RAID levels:
| Connector/Controller |
Intel® Desktop Boards |
|
Blue SATA 6Gb/s connectors
(Intel® RAID controller)
- RAID 0
- RAID 1
- RAID 5
- RAID 10
|
- DX79TO, DX79SI
- DZ68ZV, DZ68DB, DZ68BC, DQ67EP, DQ67OW, DQ67SW, DP67DE, DP67BG, DP67BA, DH67VR, DH67SM, DH67JV, DH67GD, DH67CL, DH67CF, DH67BL
|
|
Black SATA 3Gb/s connectors
(Intel® RAID controller)
- RAID 0
- RAID 1
- RAID 5
- RAID 10
|
- DX79TO, DX79SI
- DZ68ZV, DZ68DB, DZ68BC, DQ67EP, DQ67OW, DQ67SW, DP67DE, DP67BG, DP67BA, DH67SM, DH67JV, DH67GD, DH67CL, DH67CF, DH67BL
- DX58SO2, DX58SO, DX58OG, DQ57TM/DQ57TML, DH57JG,DH57DD,DP55KG, DP55SB, DP55WG, DP55WB
- DX48BT2, DQ45EK, DQ45CB, DP45SG, DG45ID, DG45FC, DP43BF
- DX38BT, DQ35MP, DQ35JO, DP35DP, DG33TL
- D5400XS
- D975XBX2, D975XBX
- DQ965WC4, DQ965GF4, DQ965CO4, DG965WH4, DG965PZ4, DG965OT4, DG965MQ4
- D955XCS, D955XBK
- D945PVS, D945GTP, D945GPM, D945GNT, D945GCZ, D945GBO
|
Black SATA 3Gb/s connectors
(Intel® controller)
|
- DH61ZE, DH61WW, DH61SA, DH61DL, DH61CR, DH61BE, DH61AG
|
|
Blue SATA connectors
(Marvell* RAID controller)
|
- DX58SO2, DX58SO, DX58OG, DP55KG, DP55SB, DP55WG
- DZ68BC
|
|
Red eSATA connectors
(Marvell* RAID controller)
|
|
|
Blue SATA connectors
(Marvell* RAID controller)
|
|
|
Blue SATA connectors
(Silicon Image* RAID controller)
|
|
|
Black SATA connectors
(Intel® RAID controller)
|
- D925XECV2, D925XEBC2, D925XHY, D925XCV, D925XBC
- D915PBL
- D875PBZ
- D865PERL
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4 For boards using SNB PCH, ICH7R, ICH8R, ICH8DH or ICH8DO chipsets, a maximum of 4 drives can be used in a single RAID 0 or RAID 5 array. A maximum of 2 drives can be used in a single RAID 1 array. The other SATA connectors can be used for single drives or to create another RAID array.
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Enabling RAID in the BIOS
The RAID option must be enabled in BIOS before the system can load the Intel® RAID Option ROM code.
- During boot, enter the BIOS setup by pressing F2.
- Go to Advanced > Drive Configuration.
- Depending on your board model, the option to enable RAID may be either of the following:
- Set Configure SATA As to RAID.
- Set Drive Mode to Enhanced and set the RAID option to Enabled. (Terminology can differ by board model, may show as SoftRAID or Intel® Matrix Storage Technology.)
- Press F10 to save setting and exit the BIOS Setup program.
If you do not find settings in the BIOS to turn on RAID, double check your desktop board model to make sure it is supported.
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SATA modes (AHCI, Hot Swap)
The SATA controller has three modes of operation:
- IDE mode - no AHCI, no RAID
- SATA mode (sometimes called AHCI mode) - AHCI enabled, no RAID
- RAID mode - AHCI enabled, RAID enabled
AHCI mode also allows for hot swapping drives.
Switching SATA modes in the BIOS after installing the operating system is not recommended when a SATA drive is the boot drive. Switching modes may cause an immediate blue screen with an 0x0000007b error code, followed by a reboot.
For complete information on the SATA Mode, refer to changing and/or choosing SATA modes.
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Configuring RAID on a new PC
You can configure your new system for RAID and install the Intel® Rapid Storage Technology driver during the Microsoft Windows* operating system installation. Refer to the User’s Manual for complete steps.
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Configuring RAID on an existing PC
Intel’s RAID configuration utilities offer the flexibility to upgrade from a single Serial ATA (SATA) hard drive to a two drive RAID 0 or RAID 1 configuration when an additional SATA hard drive is added to an existing PC. With Intel® Rapid Storage Technology, you can also migrate to a 3 or 4-drive RAID 5 or a 4-drive RAID 10 configuration on ICH7R systems.
Refer to the User’s Manual for complete steps.
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Unattended installation instructions under Microsoft Windows XP*
For instructions on doing an unattended installation with the Intel® Rapid Storage Technology software under Microsoft Windows XP*, refer to unattended installation instructions under Microsoft Windows XP.
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Troubleshooting
Ctrl-I option to open RAID configuration utility does not appear
After configuring the BIOS for Intel® Rapid Storage Technology, upon reboot you will see the Option ROM status message on the screen: Press <CTRL-I> to enter RAID Configuration Utility.
If the BIOS setting for Addon ROM Display Mode is disabled, the CTRL-I message may not appear. To resolve this:
- Enter the BIOS Setup by pressing F2 during boot.
- Go to the Boot menu.
- Enable Addon ROM Display Mode.
- Save and exit the Bios Setup.
| Note |
If you are in AHCI mode or have only a single SATA hard drive installed, the Option ROM will not load and you will not be able to enter the RAID Configuration Utility. | |
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Nothing happens when pressing F6 during Microsoft Windows* XP setup to load 3rd party RAID driver
If you have enabled RAID, at the beginning of Microsoft Windows* Setup, you’ll see a prompt to “Press <F6> to install a third-party SCSI or RAID driver”. When you press F6, it may appear as if nothing happened as a dialog box will not appear and you will not immediately see a prompt. You likely will not see any sort of dialog box appear at the time you press F6. Instead, later during Microsoft Windows Setup, however, you will be prompted to insert the RAID driver floppy disk that came with the desktop board.
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Serial ATA drives disappear from RAID array
Refer to the Troubleshooting chapter in the User’s Manual for complete steps in troubleshooting failed drives.
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USB floppy drive does not work to install mass storage drivers
This issue may occur if the USB floppy disk drive is not supported for use during Microsoft Windows XP* installation. For more information, refer to Microsoft Article ID 916196.
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AHCI support on H61-based boards
Intel® Desktop Boards with the H61 chipset support AHCI only; they do not support RAID. AHCI drivers are available on Download Center for these boards.
Related Topics:
Troubleshooting disk drive problems
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