do i need a pci raid controller?

beerowjrbeerowjr
edited March 2005 in Hardware
well heres the deal i just got 2 120 gig sata drives and my mobo is gigabyte but im not not sure if it is capable of doing raid or if i need the raid controller
im just not sure what to look for please help

Comments

  • TheBaronTheBaron Austin, TX
    edited March 2005
    thats nice that your mobo is made by gigabyte, but you're going to need to tell us what mobo it is. im talking model number here, such as 7N400 or 8IK1000
  • beerowjrbeerowjr
    edited March 2005
    TheBaron wrote:
    thats nice that your mobo is made by gigabyte, but you're going to need to tell us what mobo it is. im talking model number here, such as 7N400 or 8IK1000


    oh im sorry the model number is GA-8IPE1000pro g
  • FlintstoneFlintstone SE Florida
    edited March 2005
    From what I see on Gigabyte's site for that board, there is no mention of raid capability. If it was capable, it would say so in your manual (RT_M)and it would suggest how you would accomplish this with both drives. I say you need a PCI controller card if you're after a raid array.

    Good Luck,
    Flint
  • FlintstoneFlintstone SE Florida
    edited March 2005
    here's something else from the comparison page at Gigabyte:

    Page 1 , Others: 1 |
    Model GA-8IPE1000 Pro-G
    CPU Type Socket 478
    FSB 800/533/400 MHz
    Chipset Intel 865PE
    Memory type DDR 400/333/266
    Memory socket DDR*4
    Max. Memory 4 GB
    Graphics interface AGP 8X*1
    PCI-Express X16 (X8)
    PCI-Express X1 (X2,X4)
    PCI 5
    ISA slot 0
    AMR/CNR 0/0
    VGA N/A
    RAID Function N/A
    LAN Marvell 8001 (GbE)
    Audio Realtek ALC850
    Codec channel 8
    IDE ATA 2*Serial ATA, 2*PATA
    USB 1.1 Same as USB 2.0
    USB 2.0 8 (4 by cable)
    DualBIOS Yes
    PCB size 30.5 X 23.0 CM
    Form Factor ATX
    IEEE 1394 Yes
    Remark

    You can see that raid is listed as "N/A"
  • TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
    edited March 2005
    Beyond the posts here the gigabytes have really sucky raid anyway. If I had a gigabyte with raid I would disable it and get a raid controller. Unless you really enjoy lost data and recovering lost data and such. I have really lost any old joy I had in doing such things. I just want it to work every day when its turned on.

    That and gigabytes are almost mutualy exclusive terms in general. They produced some of the worst and most problematic onboard raid controllers of recent memory. Trust me.. Be GLAD you do not have oboard raid. Your data is to valuable to be trusted with thier onboard raid.

    Tex
  • floppybootstompfloppybootstomp Greenwich New
    edited March 2005
    Believe Tex, he knows what he's talking about. You're really lucky, beerowjr, to have someone so knowledgable offering you advice (deja vu here Tex? I can provide a link if you like).

    I have a Gigabyte GA700N Pro 2 board with onboard RAID controller, I've run two WD 120Gb SATA drives in a RAID 0 config flawlessly for almost a year now, same original install, no probs. Latest Bios.

    Having said that, since using a few other boards, particularly my DFI board, I've come to realise just how limited - and indeed sucky - Gigabyte boards are.

    I don't think I'll be buying another one in a hurry.

    And yes, you'll need a RAID controller card if you really want to go that route.
  • TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
    edited March 2005
    floppybootstomp wrote:
    I have a Gigabyte GA700N Pro 2 board with onboard RAID controller, I've run two WD 120Gb SATA drives in a RAID 0 config flawlessly for almost a year now, same original install, no probs. Latest Bios.

    You must be living right floppy. The gods have smiled on you. (grin) Would you mind picking me out some lottery numbers? I think you would have more luck then I at the venture.

    Cheers! Best of Luck to ya always.

    Tex
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited March 2005
    Another advantage of using a PCI RAID card is that when you switch boards you can take your OS with you. If moving to a similar chip mobo it will pretty much switch with few problems. But if you go from say a VIA KT880 to a Nvidia NF4 you will just need to do a repair install of windows and all your stiff will still be there. Buy a quality controller card and not a cheapie though!
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