Software RAID, as the name suggests, is through software simulation way up RAID system requires no special hardware support, and without BIOS support. And the formation of hard RAID, you need to use RAID card or onboard RAID chip to achieve, only a few high-end gaming or desktop PC with this feature.
Because software RAID does not require specialized hardware and BIOS support, so almost all installed Windows XP or higher operating systems can be set up in the laptop system, because the operating system from Windows XP era, disk management tool provides a soft RAID function, and the formation process is very simple, does not involve too much for hardware changes. Also in the set up, the system on the hard drive capacity is also no special requirements, this is the same as RAID and hard. There is only a cost: a need for additional mechanical hard drive, such as a laptop hard drive is idle.
Formation of a simple risk-free
Software RAID can achieve RAID0, RAID1 and RAID5 disk mode, etc., and in the same system, we can use more than one hard disk partition, two hard drives of different partitions were formed into a RAID0 or RAID1 mode, which is hard RAID mode can not be achieved, since the entire hard drive hardware RAID must be fully integrated into the system in order to begin to form, especially in RAID0 mode, you must first complete the formation to begin installing the operating system. Of course, reflected in terms of stability, it is much stable than software RAID.
On Windows systems, RAID0 mode is called the striped pattern, it has the best performance; RAID 1 mirrored volumes were referred to as the model, with the best security. Of course, to speed, we sure it is set up RAID0, is striped. As for the formation of steps that can be simply summarized as three steps:
The first step: to install a hard disk in the drive position
Since the formation of soft RAID0 need to use at least two hard drives, so we can use the laptop's optical drive to expand, the method is very simple, to tear down the existing drive, with the optical drive bay hard disk conversion, the new installation of mechanical hard disk installation to drive bit. Need to remind everyone that the current hard disk drive bit 12.7mm and 9.5mm converter bracket has two thicknesses available, we need to purchase for their own laptop thickness optical drive bay hard disk conversion.
Step Two: The hard disk to a dynamic disk
As follows: Right-click on "My Computer → Properties → Disk Management" in Disk Management, right-click interface to convert the hard disk - the first is the original main hard drive, select "Convert to Dynamic Disk" option that appears to ignore "Unable to enter the operating system," the warning, the original hard transition from the basic model to the dynamic mode, if you have that you do not need to convert a dynamic disk mode. Using the same method to add an extra hard drive also convert incoming dynamic hard drive.
Here we may be worried about the system and data security. Actual situation is: we will be equipped with a hard disk Windows7 operating system after the conversion to a dynamic disk, partition, and data were intact after the restart can also enter Windows7 operating system again. But to be safe, we still recommend that you back up important data before proceeding.
In conclusion, if your system has been installed with an operating system, is able to carry out the formation of (repeat: the best backup data) without losing data are available, but the process is irreversible.
Also in the transformation process, we also found that some Windows7 operating system has been installed in the laptop hard drive can not be converted from a basic disk to a dynamic disk, right-click on the hard drive would not appear this option, then the only way is to reinstall the operating system, and the system comes with Windows partition tool partition after installing can be converted.
The third step: the formation of RAID0 mode
At this point in the disk management interface, right-click on the following a mechanical hard drive, select "New striped volume" command and select the other, a dynamic disk, select it and follow the instructions step by step operation can be. Need to remind everyone that, and set up the same way as hard RAID, striped set up after the success of capacity, the total capacity of the two partitions of two times the minimum capacity. The formation of such capacities are two partitions 931.41GB and 280.11GB, then the new partition size after the formation of soft RAID0 was generated 560.22GB.
Hard to build software RAID speed
The highest performance increase of 77%
From the test results, we will set up two hard drives become a "striped (RAID0)" mode, the hard disk read speed has been greatly improved. With the fastest 1TB mechanical hard, for example, after the formation of striped, hard AS SSD BenchMark random read speeds up to 172.86MB / s, relative to the previous speed 100MB / s or so, the performance improvement is obvious, but in the Fastcopy other tests and test projects, have been greatly speed growth, especially in the small 500MB file transfer tests, the striped 117MB / s transfer rate 77% higher than 1TB hard drive 69.27MB / s in growth.
Performance and hardware RAID close
To give you a more intuitive understanding of the performance difference between software RAID and hardware RAID, we have a laptop in a unified hardware and software platform, using laptop comes with hard RAID function was tested using the same software used in two RAID hard disk formation.
As can be seen from the test results table, and RAID0 hard compared to soft RAID0 did not show a distinct disadvantage, at least from the perspective of the prototype we tested the answer is true. In the four projects we tested, the soft RAID0 two projects are ahead of hard RAID0, especially Fastcopy test project multiple small files, RAID0 hard behind the relatively large magnitude of gall.
Editor: Idle hard to realize the value of a good choice
About Software RAID, this is not a new topic, before we tested on DIY platform by utilizing three disc set up soft RAID. But for the purposes of laptop platform but few people involved, because in the past there is little laptop will have a hard RAID functionality, so we can not evaluate the effect of soft RAID set up on the same platform. But by the above tests, the results of some presumably contrary to all expectations, soft RAID also received not less than hard RAID performance, so if we qualified, we can also try to verify this on many more platforms.
Because software RAID does not require specialized hardware and BIOS support, so almost all installed Windows XP or higher operating systems can be set up in the laptop system, because the operating system from Windows XP era, disk management tool provides a soft RAID function, and the formation process is very simple, does not involve too much for hardware changes. Also in the set up, the system on the hard drive capacity is also no special requirements, this is the same as RAID and hard. There is only a cost: a need for additional mechanical hard drive, such as a laptop hard drive is idle.
Formation of a simple risk-free
Software RAID can achieve RAID0, RAID1 and RAID5 disk mode, etc., and in the same system, we can use more than one hard disk partition, two hard drives of different partitions were formed into a RAID0 or RAID1 mode, which is hard RAID mode can not be achieved, since the entire hard drive hardware RAID must be fully integrated into the system in order to begin to form, especially in RAID0 mode, you must first complete the formation to begin installing the operating system. Of course, reflected in terms of stability, it is much stable than software RAID.
On Windows systems, RAID0 mode is called the striped pattern, it has the best performance; RAID 1 mirrored volumes were referred to as the model, with the best security. Of course, to speed, we sure it is set up RAID0, is striped. As for the formation of steps that can be simply summarized as three steps:
The first step: to install a hard disk in the drive position
Since the formation of soft RAID0 need to use at least two hard drives, so we can use the laptop's optical drive to expand, the method is very simple, to tear down the existing drive, with the optical drive bay hard disk conversion, the new installation of mechanical hard disk installation to drive bit. Need to remind everyone that the current hard disk drive bit 12.7mm and 9.5mm converter bracket has two thicknesses available, we need to purchase for their own laptop thickness optical drive bay hard disk conversion.
Step Two: The hard disk to a dynamic disk
As follows: Right-click on "My Computer → Properties → Disk Management" in Disk Management, right-click interface to convert the hard disk - the first is the original main hard drive, select "Convert to Dynamic Disk" option that appears to ignore "Unable to enter the operating system," the warning, the original hard transition from the basic model to the dynamic mode, if you have that you do not need to convert a dynamic disk mode. Using the same method to add an extra hard drive also convert incoming dynamic hard drive.
Here we may be worried about the system and data security. Actual situation is: we will be equipped with a hard disk Windows7 operating system after the conversion to a dynamic disk, partition, and data were intact after the restart can also enter Windows7 operating system again. But to be safe, we still recommend that you back up important data before proceeding.
In conclusion, if your system has been installed with an operating system, is able to carry out the formation of (repeat: the best backup data) without losing data are available, but the process is irreversible.
Also in the transformation process, we also found that some Windows7 operating system has been installed in the laptop hard drive can not be converted from a basic disk to a dynamic disk, right-click on the hard drive would not appear this option, then the only way is to reinstall the operating system, and the system comes with Windows partition tool partition after installing can be converted.
The third step: the formation of RAID0 mode
At this point in the disk management interface, right-click on the following a mechanical hard drive, select "New striped volume" command and select the other, a dynamic disk, select it and follow the instructions step by step operation can be. Need to remind everyone that, and set up the same way as hard RAID, striped set up after the success of capacity, the total capacity of the two partitions of two times the minimum capacity. The formation of such capacities are two partitions 931.41GB and 280.11GB, then the new partition size after the formation of soft RAID0 was generated 560.22GB.
Hard to build software RAID speed
The highest performance increase of 77%
From the test results, we will set up two hard drives become a "striped (RAID0)" mode, the hard disk read speed has been greatly improved. With the fastest 1TB mechanical hard, for example, after the formation of striped, hard AS SSD BenchMark random read speeds up to 172.86MB / s, relative to the previous speed 100MB / s or so, the performance improvement is obvious, but in the Fastcopy other tests and test projects, have been greatly speed growth, especially in the small 500MB file transfer tests, the striped 117MB / s transfer rate 77% higher than 1TB hard drive 69.27MB / s in growth.
Performance and hardware RAID close
To give you a more intuitive understanding of the performance difference between software RAID and hardware RAID, we have a laptop in a unified hardware and software platform, using laptop comes with hard RAID function was tested using the same software used in two RAID hard disk formation.
As can be seen from the test results table, and RAID0 hard compared to soft RAID0 did not show a distinct disadvantage, at least from the perspective of the prototype we tested the answer is true. In the four projects we tested, the soft RAID0 two projects are ahead of hard RAID0, especially Fastcopy test project multiple small files, RAID0 hard behind the relatively large magnitude of gall.
Editor: Idle hard to realize the value of a good choice
About Software RAID, this is not a new topic, before we tested on DIY platform by utilizing three disc set up soft RAID. But for the purposes of laptop platform but few people involved, because in the past there is little laptop will have a hard RAID functionality, so we can not evaluate the effect of soft RAID set up on the same platform. But by the above tests, the results of some presumably contrary to all expectations, soft RAID also received not less than hard RAID performance, so if we qualified, we can also try to verify this on many more platforms.
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