Set up Raid 1 on Existing Windows 7 installation?

peoplearebusy · 21 Apr 2010

My current setup is 1 WD 640gb drive that is partioned and I am dual booting windows7 64bit and server2008 64bit(educational purposes). I bought another drive...same exact one. I want to setup a Raid 1 array but I am unsure of how to do this and what my options are. I was wondering if software raid (through win7) in this case is just as good or if I should use hardware raid(through motherboard). I really do not want to re-install windows7 but I do not care if I need to reinstall server. Thank you

Dark Nova Gamer · 21 Apr 2010

peoplearebusy said:

My current setup is 1 WD 640gb drive that is partioned and I am dual booting windows7 64bit and server2008 64bit(educational purposes). I bought another drive...same exact one. I want to setup a Raid 1 array but I am unsure of how to do this and what my options are. I was wondering if software raid (through win7) in this case is just as good or if I should use hardware raid(through motherboard). I really do not want to re-install windows7 but I do not care if I need to reinstall server. Thank you

Hello, I am new to the RAID world although I'll try to help you as much as I can.

It'd probably be best if you set up a RAID1 via your BIOS, although this will in all likely hood wipe both the drives you intend to RAID with. So be prepared to reinstall Windows.

thx1139 · 21 Apr 2010

You should wait until someone more learned than I confirms or overturns what I say, but I think that a motherboard [chip] controlled RAID would need Windows to be reinstalled for sure, whereas that might not be the case if you do it from within Windows.

Transferring RAID disks between controllers also wipes a RAID in the majority of cases, even if it's the same controller, at least that's what I heard and in my own limited experience (only did it once). But maybe that doesn't apply if Windows 7 is controlling the RAID?