Raid 0: a good idea?

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markwolk

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#9015 14-Aug-2006 08:23

I have 3 redundant PCs at home (The Pc Company, AMD Athlon XP 2400+, ca 3 years old) and I am confused as to what to do with them:

1) Use the bits to make one super-fast computer running Raid 0? If yes, who could assemble such a system for me?

2) Sell them (probably $700-900 all up) and use it as a deposit for a more modern, faster PC.

I have confusing advice regarding this. Any ideas?

freitasm

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#43877 14-Aug-2006 09:02

One of hte motherboards would have to support RAID 0 for this to work, otherwise buying a new motherboard would cost a bit much, in which case a new system is better - new BIOS, updated firmware for RAID, drivers, etc.

Of course you could purchase a IDE PCI RAID card or something like that, but then it would probably cost more than the money you can make from the spare parts after merging the PCs.

I'd go for a new one.

tonyhughes

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#43882 14-Aug-2006 09:50

buy new gear.... :-)

lyonrouge

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#44384 20-Aug-2006 18:25

What would you require RAID for? Think about your requirements then choose your technology, don't choose your solution until you understand your requirmeents. Remember, you can run active directory (2K) with a P166 and 64MB of RAM with and a $40.00 RAID card.

markwolk

101 posts

Master Geek

#44386 20-Aug-2006 18:51

Well, I have been buying PCs and laptops for 10 years and listening to the advice of some knowledgeable friend, consultant or shop. They all always told me that, for my type of use (mainly web design), I do not need anything particularly powerful. Yet, each new purchase is disappointing. The thing never reacts as fast as I would like. I know that it must be possible to achieve better results, so I am decided to look up better solutions for a future purchase.

So far, most opinions have been against Raid. In fact, I only had 2 opinions in favour. So, I think I will have to follow the majority on that one. My 3 redundant PCs are now for sale, that's sure; and a new system will probably not have Raid.

One person has suggested that a Raptor might be a better idea.

barf

643 posts

Ultimate Geek

#44431 21-Aug-2006 13:52

If you want to use RAID on your old PC's try out Openfiler You don't need a new motherboard or RAID controller card and in fact software RAID in Linux is faster than hardware RAID in Windows.

RAID 1 is a good place to start because it provides some redundancy, RAID 0 does not.

Sorry to give you advice that conflicts with some other advice!

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