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Can I successfully implement a software RAID even when I use both Windows and Ubuntu? What software tools in both OSes that can help in this regard?
I have 1TB sata on ASUS m4a78T-E and I wish to implement a software RAID so if one crashes, I don't lose data.
thevikas
Posted 2010-09-27T06:42:08.193
Reputation: 331
2
Linux has support for 'dmraid', which is "basically" software RAID... it still requires a RAID card, but not a "real" hardware RAID card. You can read up about Linux support for dmraid here https://help.ubuntu.com/community/FakeRaidHowto. Dmraid has performance drawbacks, which are discussed in this article. You should generally only use dmraid when dual-boot is your goal... so it's perfect for you.
You'll still need to buy a RAID controller that is supported by Linux, but you won't have to spend nearly as much as you would on a true hardware RAID controller.
Flimzy
Posted 2010-09-27T06:42:08.193
Reputation: 4 168
1
Even for a software raid you'll need two actual harddisks. I think you are talking about a raid 1, which means that every data is stored on both harddisks, so if one fails you'll be able to boot up from the other harddisk.
A softraid on one harddisk wouldn't make any sense, because if you bug one partition also the other one would be bugged.
wurlog
Posted 2010-09-27T06:42:08.193
Reputation: 158
1
The only type of RAID worth doing is hardware-based. Software-based RAID offers up to many opportunities for data loss when things go wrong.
So, your best options would be to backup data to an external disk. SyncToy is an option for windows. You can also use Acronis True Image to boot from a CD and clone a copy of your internal drive.
Force Flow
Posted 2010-09-27T06:42:08.193
Reputation: 3 850
1
you cannot use software raid when dual booting windows and ubuntu. Or should I say you can use it but the disks allocated to it will not be usable under the non originating Operating system. there may be a driver available under linux (ubuntu) that will allow you to read and/or write to a windows based raid array. This is an area fraught with difficulty as windows uses NTFS and linux uses ext3 or ext4 as the underlying filesystem and they are not compatible.
Ron
Posted 2010-09-27T06:42:08.193
Reputation: 11
2I'd argue that software raid is still preferable to "fakeraid" provided by motherboard manufacturers. [citation needed] for "too many opportunities. Really more problematic than being forced to rebuy the same motherboard to recover a fakeraid system? – RJFalconer – 2010-11-25T20:33:47.650
"The only..." is a bad way to start any answer like this, since it assumes that everyone's needs are the same as yours. There are definitely times when software RAID makes sense. – Flimzy – 2011-09-13T03:58:50.813