Windows 7: ASUS P6T Deluxe - not using RAID

Hi

I bought a PC with a ASUS P6T Deluxe motherboard a month or so ago and installed Windows 7 Ultimate to a SATA drive.

When the machine boots up it goes through the process of initialising the onboard RAID controller then looking for drives to boot from RAID - of which there aren't any.

Also in Device Manager I have a RAID controller showing under Other Devices as 'not installed'.

Can I disable RAID in the BIOS to speed up booting as I don't need it at present (or do I???)?

If so how?

Thanks in advance



manky

It sounds like you need (want) to switch from RAID to AHCI mode for SATA. You can't just switch it AFTER the OS is installed - you would not be able to boot into Windows afterward.

Can you go into the BIOS and tell us what the settings are for the Storage Configuration? (Don't change anything yet) It will be the MAIN tab > Configure SATA As:
Can you post a screen shot of the device manager with all the hard drive related items expanded?

This tutorial shows you how to switch the SATA mode after the OS is installed:
AHCI : Enable in Windows 7 / Vista

Before the switch it is usually necessary to uninstall the RAID drivers first. But because the RAID controller shows up as an other device and not installed I suspect the drivers were never installed in the first place.

Before doing the switch you will need to back up all your important data. You should prepare as though you were going to wipe the drive and install everything fresh - because worst case is that is what you may need to do. That said, the above method works without a hitch most times.

EDIT: I assume there is only one Hard drive in your computer?
Please fill out your "My System Specs" for better help!

Thanks for your reply

Answer: MAIN tab > Configure SATA As: IDE

I am slightly confused - the tutorial you point me too tells me to modify msachi but another one I read tells me to modify iaStorv or msachi in the registry.

I assume it doesn't matter which one?

Anyway - I haven't done anything yet.

My system specs are filled in and I posted an image of Device Manager here

The two SAMSUNG HDDs are not mine and are just plugged in for now as I'm recovering some data from them.

Thanks again

Based on the additional information you've given it seems my original guess as to the cause of your problem was wrong. I was expecting to see the Storage Configuration SATA As: RAID. Yours is on IDE and that is OK. You do not need to change to AHCI, as that will do nothing to solve your issue.

Moving on:
Please check what is under "Storage Controllers" in Device Manager. For the P6T it would be the JMicron JMB36X Controller Device. The P6T-D might have a different brand here. Check to see that "The Device is Working" and that there is a driver installed.

Also, back in the BIOS, navigate to the Advanced Tab > Onboard Devices Configuration > JMicron ESata/PATA Controller > and note what the Controller mode is set to (IDE - AHCI - or RAID) and post back. Once again, don't make any changes to the BIOS at this time.

This is to determine the possibility that the Secondary Storage Controller is the one looking for RAID at boot.

I have a P6T Deluxe (Version 1) myself. It has two disk controllers: the Intel ICH10R, and a Marvell 88SE3620. The Marvell controller is SAS (serial attached SCSI), but they are backwards compatible with SATA. (The SAS controller isn't present on Version 2 of the board.) The SAS ports are the two orange ones next to the red Intel ones at the rear of the board.

If you're not using the SAS ports, you may disable that controller in the BIOS setup. (There is a second Marvell controller, for the IDE and eSATA ports. Make sure to turn off the right one, or both if you're not using IDE devices or the eSATA ports.) That will save time at startup.

I have two devices under 'Storage Controllers'

- AJ6ZU4BL IDE Controller - Working
- Marvell 61xx RAID Controller - Working

Under 'Other Devices' I have

- Raid Controller - No drivers installed

In the BIOS - I have:

Marvell Storage Controller - Enabled
Marvell Storage Boot Rom - Enabled

Marvell SAS - Enabled
Marvell SAS Boot rom - Enabled

As for the two SAS Orange Ports - I do occasionally use them.

Very confused!!

I just wanted to stop RAID trying to initialise at boot...

Well you've got some options:

First, you could just disable the Marvell Controllers and SAS as bobkn suggested. But then you could not use the ports.

Or, you could go to Advanced Tab > Onboard Devices Configuration > Marvell SAS Controller > and change the mode (that I am assuming is presently set on RAID) to IDE.

Or, if you want hot-swapping capability you could change the Marvell mode to AHCI.

To run the controller in either AHCI or RAID mode you may need to install the Marvell SATA drivers. You will find the driver on your motherboard Installation DVD, or you can download them from the ASUS website.

When you boot there will be a brief delay as the Marvell Controller is initiated (about 1.5 sec), but you will eliminate the delay as the computer searches for the non-existent RAID driver.

Sorry if my descriptions of the BIOS setup is different from yours. I am running an older P6T and my hardware is different than yours. Just post any differences.

Your problem is an easy one to fix. Just make sure there are no storage devices (hd, cd, dvd, etc.) plugged into the orange sata plugs on the motherboard. You can use these for other things like front panel connections. If you plug a storage device in those plugs the system will try to setup a raid. Make sure all storage devices are plugged into the red sata plugs. I made the same mistake and it took me awhile to figure it out.