Dell Dimension - Failing RAID0 HDD

bobthedambuilder

I have a Dell Dimension 9200 Desktop PC about 5 years old which came with 2 x Seagate 232GB HDD in a RAID0 configuration. A month or so ago I got a message that one of the drives (Port 0 – ref ST3250820AS) was failing, and recommended that I back up immediately. I’ve done this for all my data, and now back up any new or updated files immediately each time I’ve worked on them.

Despite this message appearing at every bootup, the computer continues to work apparently perfectly.

I’ve tried to read up on how to replace the failing drive, but it quickly gets much too technical for me. What I am coming to understand is that the RAID0 system is not failure-friendly and any replacement would be complicated. I also understand that all the OS and software currently on the machine is spread between the 2 drives, and to retain this I would need to copy literally everything on the failing drive to any replacement drive, in exactly the same partitions etc.

I have several questions:

1. Is it worth trying to repair this computer at all, or am I better off replacing the whole thing?

2. The Seagate HDD which is failing is now obsolete. What would I replace it with (specs and size etc)?. Would an exact copy of the old drive be possible on a different new drive?

3. Is it worth returning to a RAID0 setup, or would I be better off with everything on a single bigger HDD? Could I copy everything including OS + software directly across from the RAID0 drives?

banger9365

usual in raid O if one go's you lost the lot ,same has having one hdd ,its just faster with two than one,
i would say if one hdd gone replace both ,the other might go very soon

"1. Is it worth trying to repair this computer at all, or am I better off replacing the whole thing?"
if every thing else works then yes ,its just a few hdds and a bit of time

"2. The Seagate HDD which is failing is now obsolete. What would I replace it with (specs and size etc)?. Would an exact copy of the old drive be possible on a different new drive?"
if its a sata hdd them any 2.5" sata will fit ,do you have the installation disks

"3. Is it worth returning to a RAID0 setup, or would I be better off with everything on a single bigger HDD? Could I copy everything including OS + software directly across from the RAID0 drives? "
you could replace one with a ssd and the other with a normal hdd for storage if the bios allows it
the choice is yours

scheming_gypsy

Easiest way is to just replace the knackered hard drive and don't bother about RAID0. Upgrade to a bigger drive and either leave the second one in there, or whack it in an external caddy for backups / mobility etc.

mr_fishbulb

banger9365 wrote: »

"3. Is it worth returning to a RAID0 setup, or would I be better off with everything on a single bigger HDD? Could I copy everything including OS + software directly across from the RAID0 drives? "
you could replace one with a ssd and the other with a normal hdd for storage if the bios allows it
the choice is yours

Yeah if it was me I'd look into this option. OS and Program Files on the SSD, and data on the HD that still works.

I used to have RAID0 set up on my Dell at work (I was the hardware engineer so I had a monster machine with two 15000 rpm Raptors ). It was fun whilst it lasted but it's a bummer when on of your drives starts to go.

bobthedambuilder

banger9365: The Seagate HDD is SATA II but it is a 3.5". Presumably you would say replace with any other 3.5". I have the original installation disks that came with the computer. Sorry for my ignorance:o but why would I need them? Is it relevant to mention that the OS (SP) and some software came preloaded on the computer and so I don't have disks for these.

scheming_gypsy and mr_fishbulb: You're both advising replacements, but how do I transfer the OS and software on the existing RAID HDDs into the new drives? What size SSD would you suggest?

mr_fishbulb

Do you have the original installation disks that came with the Dell?

And all the installation CDs/Downloads for the additional software?

If not, it's going to be tricky. If you just do a full image of everything on your RAID, then load that image onto a single hard drive, then Windows probably wont work as it's still got all the drivers for the RAID setup.

If you do have all the original installation material then that's great. You would backup your documents (you say you're already doing this - I'm guessing it's on to external media such as a USB drive).

You would do a fresh install on the new SSD. Once that's working (and your a confident your backups are complete), set up the still-working disk from your RAID setup and a secondary disk in the BIOS and copy your data back to there.

As for what size you'll need; my Windows 7 install along with all my Program Files fits on to a 60GB partition with 40 GB to spare. That would quite easily fit on a 64GB SSD drive, but I'd get a 128GB one to future growth. Not sure how much longer you were thinking of running your current machine as you say it's 5 years old.

What are the size of your Windows and Program Files folders?

bobthedambuilder

mr_fishbulb wrote: »

Do you have the original installation disks that came with the Dell?
Yes

And all the installation CDs/Downloads for the additional software?
Not all, but I guess most of the purchased stuff. The downloads I wouldhave to do again - I don't have them backed up. Most of this will be freeware anyway, so there's no problem there.

If not, it's going to be tricky. If you just do a full image of everything on your RAID, then load that image onto a single hard drive, then Windows probably wont work as it's still got all the drivers for the RAID setup.

If you do have all the original installation material then that's great. You would backup your documents (you say you're already doing this - I'm guessing it's on to external media such as a USB drive).
Correct - that and DVD's.

You would do a fresh install on the new SSD. Once that's working (and your a confident your backups are complete), set up the still-working disk from your RAID setup and a secondary disk in the BIOS and copy your data back to there.

As for what size you'll need; my Windows 7 install along with all my Program Files fits on to a 60GB partition with 40 GB to spare. That would quite easily fit on a 64GB SSD drive, but I'd get a 128GB one to future growth. Not sure how much longer you were thinking of running your current machine as you say it's 5 years old.

What are the size of your Windows and Program Files folders?Windows about 9GB, Program files about 7GB.

Seems that a 64GB SSD is about £75, and a 120GB is about £125. The computer has a limited life so I would probably go for the smaller one, and use the remaining good HDD for data storage.

mr_fishbulb

bobthedambuilder wrote: »

Seems that a 64GB SSD is about £75, and a 120GB is about £125. The computer has a limited life so I would probably go for the smaller one, and use the remaining good HDD for data storage.

That's what I'd do. You'll probably notice a big speed increase switching to an SSD too.

What operating system do you have? Windows 7 knows how to deal with SSDs, but for XP and Vista there are things you'll need to do to stop it thrashing the drive (such as disabling defrag). SSDs have a limited number of write-cycles. It's nothing to worry about as long as you turn off the bits that continually write to it.

bobthedambuilder

mr_fishbulb wrote: »

What operating system do you have? Windows 7 knows how to deal with SSDs, but for XP and Vista there are things you'll need to do to stop it thrashing the drive (such as disabling defrag). SSDs have a limited number of write-cycles. It's nothing to worry about as long as you turn off the bits that continually write to it.

I'm running XP SP3 which I'm quite happy with (don't like Vista, never used 7).

mr_fishbulb

If you do go down the SSD route then have a look at this application for making it play nicely with XP - http://www.techspot.com/guides/246-ssd-performance-tweak-utility/

Also look for a manufacturer that has tools which specifically work with XP, such as Intel who make the SSD Toolbox - http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=Y&DwnldID=18455

bobthedambuilder

Thanks for all your advice mr fishbulb. Some serious investigation now follows. I've looked briefly at the techspot link, and it certainly refers to XP in the screenshot, although I couldn't see any ref to defrag under XP. I guess if this is disabled, you'd have to defrag the HHD manually from time to time.