Basic RAID Questions.

[tm37]

I am Getting a compaq computer that I will be using as a server. I want to have my shared docs and downloads On this computer.

My idea was to Add two 20-30 GB 7200 RPM drives to the compaq, and use a raid card to run then as one (raid 0 I think)

Currently I have all the shared stuff on my wifes comprunning Win 98 while I run XP (using NTFS) When I access that drive It take FOrever to find what I am Looking for. THe current Shared drive is a 17.2 GB 5400 RPM. It wasn't so slow until I added XP to my comp. I Plan On using a Linux based OS on the server and using it mainly for shared storage, and a router firewall.

Will using raid Dramatically increase my seek time on the shared drive? Is it worth it? I keep all my music and what not on the shared drive also downloaded patches and demos.

I am going to buy the card and drives and add it to the current set-up if it will.

How reilable is it? I have read of some of the problem with software RAID and think I may want to stay away from it.

 

[cpals]

bump for him.

 

[cleverhandle]

Well, RAID 0 might add a bit to the speed if you're transferring huge files, but I would use RAID 1 (mirroring) on a file server just to have a safe place to store things. RAID 5e would be best, of course, but that's not really a home solution. I'm guessing that the sluggishness you've got isn't the fault of the drive, but is a problem with XP or your protocol setup.

And if you're using Linux for the server, there's no reason to buy a controller card if you're only doing RAID 0 or 1 - linux software RAID is actually quite good. You could get an Escalade card if you really wanted to, but for a home server, I would say that linux software RAID 1 on a pair of D740X's should be perfectly adequate.

 

[tm37]

WHat is a D740X's ?

 

[cleverhandle]

Maxtor D740X hard drive. Good performance under server-type loads.

 

[tm37]

<< Maxtor D740X hard drive. Good performance under server-type loads. >>



Think either 20 or 30 GB model would do the trick!

 

[Elledan]

Is RAID 0+1 an option? (4 HDs).

 

[saltedeggman]

yes its an option

 

[Willoughbyva]

I heard that spanning drives kills the seek time for reading, but writing is much faster.


Will

 

[Elledan]

<< yes its an option >>

Good

RAID 0+1 will give you a higher speed than just a single HD (I believe it's somewhat slower than just RAID 0) and the safety of RAID 1.

It's worth it if you care about your data and want some increase in speed as well, IMHO.

 

[tm37]

Well as far as backups, I am unsure as to what I really am going to need I already Back up my docs, My music doesn't get backed up and I am mainly doing this as a learning process. Is there going to be A HUGE Speed increase Just using Raid 0 to run two drives as one?

 

[Elledan]

<< Is there going to be A HUGE Speed increase Just using Raid 0 to run two drives as one? >>

Seek times will be much lower (30-40%?) and transfer speeds will be higher.

So yes, there will be a huge increase in speed.

 

[tm37]

<< Seek times will be much lower (30-40%?) and transfer speeds will be higher.

So yes, there will be a huge increase in speed.
>>



But only in large File Transfers?

If I am only transfer small files 3~4 Megs it really wouldn't benifit me and I should Just GET a LARGER 7200 RPM DRIVE instead?

 

[Elledan]

<<

<< Seek times will be much lower (30-40%?) and transfer speeds will be higher.

So yes, there will be a huge increase in speed.
>>



But only in large File Transfers? >>

With seek times being much lower, especially small files will appear to load/be copied etc. much faster (almost instantaneous). Larger files will mostly benefit from the increased transfer speeds, because both drives can (depending on the set up) send data (nearly) simultaneously, decreasing transfer speeds by 25% or more.



<< If I am only transfer small files 3~4 Megs it really wouldn't benifit me and I should Just GET a LARGER 7200 RPM DRIVE instead? >>

Nope, with files of a couple of MB, say if you wanted to move them from one folder to another one, the seek time would be lower, so that the transfer starts much faster, and the transfer itself will be (nearly) instantaneous.

I do not have any benchmarks or figures, but I estimate that two 5400 rpm HDs in RAID 0 will be a lot faster than a single 7200 rpm HD.