New
#1
RAID 1 from Bios or in software?
I always had my main data on a RAID 1 (mirror) and used the Bios RAID (see my system spec). I know i still need to back up... this is more an instant backup before i do my hourly backup to a different disk.
now I'm retiring my 2x750 GB because I ran out of space and will use 2x2Tb disks to use in same RAID 1 setup. now i wonder if using the BIOS Raid is better, or if i should use the Windows RAID (in Computer Management). Since Mirroring really does nothing for performance, and doesn't strip data apart it shouldn't really matter, right?
One of the good things of RAID 1 is, i cna jsut take one disk and plug it into a totally different PC and get to my data. no dependence on the RAID controller algorithm etc. I also was told, the cheap Bios RAId is just a glorified software RAID. so then why not just use Windows RAID. an advantage of software RAId would be int he future i son't need to buy MB with RAID (not sure if that matters since most better ones have RAID anyway)
One thing I encountered in Bios RAID, the software for HDD testing doesn't see the HDD in the Bios RAID. I'm not sure if that will be the same in Windows RAID? Being able to test the HDD every once a while would be good. On the other hand the Bios RAID uses the Intel Storage software that lets me verify the data (I assume it compares if data on both disks still are the same), which I think is neat. My new HDDs are HGST Deskstar 7K400 and i like to use the WinDFT tool from HGST (which tests the HDD for errors).
So I wonder what the pros and cons are to cheap Bios RAID or windows RAID and what would be better for my situation?