Nvidia MediaShield User Manual

ForceWare Software

MediaShield User’s Guide

Version 4.0

NVIDIA Corporation March 24, 2006

NVIDIA Applications MediaShield User’s Guide Version 4.0

Published by NVIDIA Corporation 2701 San Tomas Expressway Santa Clara, CA 95050

Notice

ALL NVIDIA DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS, REFERENCE BOARDS, FILES, DRAWINGS, DIAGNOSTICS, LISTS, AND OTHER DOCUMENTS (TOGETHER AND SEPARATELY, “MATERIALS”) ARE BEING PROVIDED “AS IS.” NVIDIA MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESSED, IMPLIED, STATUTORY, OR OTHERWISE WITH RESPECT TO THE MATERIALS, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF NONINFRINGEMENT, MERCHANTABILITY, AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Information furnished is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, NVIDIA Corporation assumes no responsibility for the consequences of use of such information or for any infringement of patents or other rights of third parties that may result from its use. No license is granted by implication or otherwise under any patent or patent rights of NVIDIA Corporation. Specifications mentioned in this publication are subject to change without notice. This publication supersedes and replaces all information previously supplied. NVIDIA Corporation products are not authorized for use as critical components in life support devices or systems without express written approval of NVIDIA Corporation.

Tradem arks

NVIDIA, the NVIDIA logo, MediaShield, 3DFX, 3DFX INTERACTIVE, the 3dfx Logo, STB, STB Systems and Design, the STB Logo, the StarBox Logo, NVIDIA nForce, GeForce, NVIDIA Quadro, NVDVD, NVIDIA Personal Cinema, NVIDIA Soundstorm, Vanta, TNT2, TNT, RIVA, RIVA TNT, VOODOO, VOODOO GRAPHICS, WAVEBAY, Accuview Antialiasing, the Audio & Nth Superscript Design Logo, CineFX, the Communications & Nth Superscript Design Logo, Detonator, Digital Vibrance Control, DualNet, FlowFX, ForceWare, GIGADUDE, Glide, GOFORCE, the Graphics & Nth Superscript Design Logo, Intellisample, M-BUFFER, nfiniteFX, NV, NVChess, nView, NVKeystone, NVOptimizer, NVPinball, NVRotate, NVSensor, NVSync, the Platform & Nth Superscript Design Logo, PowerMizer, Quincunx Antialiasing, Sceneshare, See What You've Been Missing, StreamThru, SuperStability, T-BUFFER, The Way It's Meant to be Played Logo, TwinBank, TwinView and the Video & Nth Superscript Design Logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of NVIDIA Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Other company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated.

Intel, Indeo, and Pentium are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation. Microsoft, Windows, Windows NT, Direct3D, DirectDraw, and DirectX are trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. OpenGL is a registered trademark of Silicon Graphics Inc.

Other company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated.

NVIDIA Applications MediaShield User’s Guide v4.0

Table of Contents

1.About NVIDIA® MediaShield™. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

System Requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Hardware Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Operating System Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

RAID Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

RAID 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

RAID 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

RAID 0+1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

RAID 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

JBOD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Summary of RAID Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

NVIDIA MediaShield Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Additional RAID Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Features and Benefits Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

2.Setting Up Your RAID Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Setting Up a Non-Bootable RAID Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Setting Up the BIOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Installing the NVIDIA MediaShield Software Under Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Using RAID Arrays Under Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Setting Up a Bootable RAID Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Setting Up the BIOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Configuring the NVIDIA RAID BIOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

Installing the RAID Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

3.Using the NVIDIA MediaShield RAID Management Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

About the MediaShield RAID Management Utility. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

Viewing RAID Array Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

Setting Up a Spare RAID Disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

Assigning a Free Disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

Assigning a Dedicated Disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Removing a Dedicated Disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

Creating RAID Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43

Using the MediaShield Create Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

Creating a Striped Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

Creating a Mirrored Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51

Creating a Stripe Mirroring Array. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54

Creating a Spanning Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58

Creating a RAID 5 Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62

Deleting a RAID Array. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66

Migrating From One RAID Array to Another. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

General Migrating Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

Migrating Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71

Hot Plug Array. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Hot Plug Array with System Shutdown. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Hot Plug Array with System Running . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

4.Initializing, Rebuilding, and Synchronizing RAID Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Initializing a RAID Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

Rebuilding a RAID Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Rebuilding Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

More About Rebuilding Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

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NVIDIA Applications MediaShield User’s Guide v4.0

Synchronizing a RAID Array. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

5.Using Disk Alert. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

About Disk Alert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Disk Alert Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Example of All Good Drives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Example of a Degraded Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

Example of a Failed Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

6.MediaShield RAID Frequently Asked Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Basic RAID Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

RAID ROM Setup Questions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Rebuilding Arrays Questions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Dedicated Disk Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Array Migrating Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Windows RAID Application. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

7.MediaShield Application Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Windows 2000 Limitation with Bootable RAID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Installing the NVIDIA IDE Driver in Windows 2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Using GHOST with NVIDIA RAID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

How to Build a Slipstream XP-SP2 CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

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C HAPTER

BOUT

NVIDIA brings Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) technology—which is used by the world’s leading businesses—to the common PC desktop. This technology uses multiple drives to either increase total disk space or to offer data protection.

RAID techniques were first published in 1988 by a multivendor consortium—the RAID Advisory Board. RAID techniques were divided into different categories or levels. Originally, RAID levels focused on improving resiliency or data availability. As additional RAID levels were defined, one was introduced for improving performance. For all levels, RAID techniques optimize storage solutions by using multiple disks grouped together and treating them as a single storage resource.

This chapter describes NVIDIA MediaShield in the following sections:

NVIDIA® M

EDIASHIELD

™

• “System Requirements” on page 2.

• “RAID Arrays” on page 4 describes the RAID levels supported by NVIDIA MediaShield.

• “NVIDIA MediaShield Features” on page 10 describes additional features offered by NVIDIA MediaShield.

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C About NVIDIA® MediaShield™

System Requirements

Hardware Support

NVIDIA MediaShield supports the following NVIDIA® nForce™ versions:

• NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI

• NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI

• NVIDIA nForce 570

• NVIDIA nForce 550

• NVIDIA nForce 430

• NVIDIA nForce 410

• NVIDIA nForce4

• NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra

• NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra Intel Edition

• NVIDIA nForce4 SLI

• NVIDIA nForce4 SLI Intel Edition

• NVIDIA nForce4 SLI X16

• NVIDIA nForce4 SLI XE Intel Edition

• NVIDIA nForce4 Professonal IO-4

• NVIDIA nForce4 Professonal Pro

• NVIDIA nForce4 Professonal Pro SLI

• NVIDIA nForce3 Pro250

• NVIDIA nForce3 250Gb

• NVIDIA nForce3 Ultra

• NVIDIA nForce3 250

• NVIDIA nForce3 150

• NVIDIA nForce2 MCP2S

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Operating System Support

NVIDIA MediaShield supports the following operating systems:

About NVIDIA® MediaShield™

HAPTER 1

•Windows

XP Home Edition

• Windows XP Professional Edition

• Windows 2000 Professional

• Windows Server 2003

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C About NVIDIA® MediaShield™

RAID Arrays

This section describes the following types of RAID arrays that MediaShield supports:

• RAID 0

RAID 0 defines a disk striping scheme that improves the disk read and write times for many applications.

• RAID 1

RAID 1 defines techniques for mirroring data.

• RAID 0+1

RAID 0+1 combines the techniques used in RAID 0 and RAID 1 arrays.

• RAID 5

RAID 5 provides fault tolerance and better utilization of disk capacity.

• JBOD

JBOD provides a method for combining drives of different sizes into one large disk.

Note: Not all nForce platforms provide support for all the RAID levels listed.

1. RAID 5 is supported on select boards only. Please check with your motherboard manufacturer to determine whether RAID 5 is supported for the type and model of your motherboard.

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RAID 0

How RAID 0 Works

About NVIDIA® MediaShield™

In a RAID 0 array, the controller ʺstripesʺ data across multiple drives in the RAID subsystem. RAID 0 breaks up a large file into smaller blocks and then performs disk reads and writes across multiple drives in parallel. The size of each block is determined by the stripe size parameter, which you set during the creation of the RAID 0 set. Performance of applications running with a RAID 0 can vary greatly depending on the stripe size configured when creating the array. The default stripe size is 64K, but 32K or 16K may be more efficient if the application issues many smaller I/O operations. Some amount of trial and error may be appropriate to find the optimum stripe size.

HAPTER 1

Figure 1.1

RAID 0 is ideal for applications that require high bandwidth but do not require fault tolerance. RAID 0 has the best performance and capacity of any RAID level, but the lowest availability (no fault tolerance). If one drive fails, the entire array fails because part of the data is missing with no way to recover it other than restoring from a backup.

RAID 0 Array Diagram

Summary of Features and Benefits

• Benefits: Provides increased data throughput, especially for large files.

• Drawbacks: No fault tolerance—all data is lost if any drive in the array fails.

• Uses: Intended for non-critical data requiring high data throughput, or any environment that does not require fault tolerance.

• Drives: Minimum: 1. Maximum: Up to 8, depending on the platform.

• Fault Tolerance: No.

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RAID 1

How RAID 1 Works

In a RAID 1 array, every read and write is carried out in parallel across two disk drives. The mirrored—or backup—copy of the data can reside on the same disk or on a second redundant drive in the array. RAID 1 provides a hot-standby copy of data if the active volume or drive is corrupted or becomes unavailable due to a hardware failure. RAID 1 techniques can be applied for high-availability solutions, or as a form of automatic backup that eliminates tedious manual backups to more expensive and less reliable media.

Figure 1.2

RAID 1 provides complete data redundancy, but at the cost of doubling the required data storage capacity, resulting in 50% capacity utilization. Performance is roughly the same as for a single drive, although in some instances the dual write may be somewhat slower.

RAID 1 Array Diagram

Summary of Features and Benefits

• Benefits: Provides 100% data redundancy. Should one drive fail, the controller switches to the other drive.

• Drawbacks: Requires two drives for the storage space of one drive. Performance is impaired during drive rebuilds.

• Uses: RAID 1 is ideal for small databases or any other application that requires fault tolerance and minimal capacity.

• Drives: Minimum, 2. Maximum, 2.

• Fault Tolerance: Yes

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RAID 0+1

How RAID 0+1 Works

About NVIDIA® MediaShield™

RAID 0 drives can be mirrored using RAID 1 techniques, resulting in a RAID 0+1 solution for improved performance plus resiliency.

HAPTER 1

Figure 1.3

The controller combines the performance of data striping (RAID 0) and the fault tolerance of disk mirroring (RAID 1). Data is striped across multiple drives and duplicated on another set of drives.

RAID 0+1 Array Diagram

Summary of Features and Benefits

• Benefits: Optimizes for both fault tolerance and performance, allowing for automatic redundancy. May be simultaneously used with other RAID levels in an array, and allows for spare disks.

• Drawbacks: Requires twice the available disk space for data redundancy, the same as RAID level 1.

• Drives: Minimum: 4. Maximum: 6 or 8, depending on the platform.

• Fault Tolerance: Yes

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RAID 5

How RAID 5 Works

RAID 5 stripes both data and parity information across three or more drives. It writes data and parity blocks across all the drives in the array. Fault tolerance is maintained by ensuring that the parity information for any given block of data is placed on a different drive from those used to store the data itself.

Figure 1.4

RAID 5 Array Diagram

Summary of Features and Benefits

• Benefits: An ideal combination of good performance, good fault tolerance, and high capacity and storage efficiency.

• Drawbacks: Individual block data transfer rate same as a single disk. Write performance can be CPU intensive.

• Uses: RAID 5 is recommended for transaction processing and general purpose service.

• Drives: Minimum, 3

• Fault Tolerance: Yes

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JBOD

How JBOD Works

JBOD stands for “Just a Bunch of Disks”. Each drive is accessed as if it were on a standard SCSI host bus adapter. This is useful when a single drive configuration is needed, but it offers no speed improvement or fault tolerance.

About NVIDIA® MediaShield™

HAPTER 1

Figure 1.5

JBOD Array Diagram

Summary of Features and Benefits

• Benefits: JBOD provides the ability to combine odd size drives using all of the capacity of the drives.

• Drawbacks: No additional fault tolerance or performance relative to individual disks.

• Uses: JBOD works best if you have odd sized drives and you want to combine them to make one big drive.

• Fault Tolerance: No

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Summary of RAID Configurations

Table 1.1

RAID Configuration Summary

Array Uses Advantages Drawbacks

RAID 0

RAID 1

RAID 0+1

RAID 5

JBOD

Non-critical data requiring high performance.

Small databases or any other small capacity environment requiring fault tolerance.

Critical data requiring high performance.

Critical data and reasonable level of performance.

Combining odd size drives into one big drive.

High data throughput. No fault tolerance. multiple None

100% data redundancy.

Allows spare disks

Optimized for both 100% data redundancy and performance.

Allows spare disks.

Fault tolerance and better utilization of disk space.

Combines and uses the capacity of odd size drives.

Requires two drives for the storage space of one drive.

Requires two drives for the storage space of one drive—the same as RAID level 1.

Decreased write performance due to parity calculations.

Requires at least three drives.

Decreases performance because of the difficulty in using drives concurrently or to optimize drives for different uses.

NVIDIA MediaShield Features

# Hard Disks

2Yes

4+ Yes

3+ Yes

multiple No

Fault Tolerance

Additional RAID Features

NVIDIA MediaShield offers the following additional features:

• Free Disk and Dedicated Spare Disk

A Free Disk or Dedicated Disk can be automatically used in case one drive of a faulttolerant array fails. NVIDIA MediaShield defines a fault-tolerant array as either RAID 1, RAID 0+1, or RAID 5. A free disk can be used by any available fault-tolerant array, while a dedicated disk can be used only by the array to which it is assigned.

•Bootable RAID

This allows you to install the operating system onto the RAID volume.

• Migrating

Migrating is the ability to convert from one RAID mode to another RAID mode. This allows the user to upgrade their current disk or array for better performance, higher security, and increased capacity. More importantly, this is accomplished without

10 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

having to go through multiple steps. The migrating feature gives the user an upgradeable option to manage storage easily.

• Hot Plug Array

A nice flexibility feature is the ability to move MediaShield RAID arrays from one nForce system to another. Since most nForce systems support SATA hot plug capability, you can add/remove a RAID array even while the system is running. This is done using the Hot Plug Array wizard.

Features and Benefits Summary

Features Benefits

Spare Drive and Dedicated Drive Support

Bootable RAID

About NVIDIA® MediaShield™

• Allows the user to dedicate a "spare" disk as a hot standby in the event of a array failure.

• Offers additional protection in case of a failure in a mirrored array.

• Supports the use of a RAID drive for loading the operating system at power up for optimal performance

HAPTER 1

Migrating

Disk Failure Identification

Hot Plug Array

• Allows the user to upgrade for more performance, security, and capacity.

• Allows the user to change the current state of a disk/ array to another array with a one step process called "migrating", without losing any data during the configuration change.

• Notifies the user when a disk fails and indicates which one to replace

• Allows the user to safely add a drive to the array when needed.

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12 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

ETTING

This chapter provides instructions for:

• Setting Up a Non-Bootable RAID Array

• Setting Up a Bootable RAID Array

UP Y

OUR

RAID C

Setting Up a Non-Bootable RAID Array

C HAPTER

ONFIGURATION

RAID arrays can be created/deleted using both MediaShield RAID BIOS and the MediaShield RAID Manager from Windows. This section only covers basic BIOS setup required for non-bootable array.

• See the section ʺSetting Up a Bootable RAID Array” for instructions on configuring the RAID array in BIOS.

• See “Creating RAID Arrays” on page 43 for instructions on how to create a RAID array for your unused SATA storage devices.

• See “Using the NVIDIA MediaShield RAID Management Utility” on page 33 for details on configuring non-bootable RAID from Windows.

Setting Up the BIOS

1 Start your computer, then press Delete to enter the BIOS setup.

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C Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

The BIOS CMOS Setup Utility window appears.

Phoenix - Award BIOS CMOS Setup Utility

Standard CMOS Features

Advanced BIOS Features

Advanced Chipset Features

Integrated Peripherals

Power Management Setup

PnP / PCI Configurations

Esc : Quit F10 : Save & Exit Setup

Figure 2.1

BIOS CMOS Setup Utility Main Window

Onboard IO, IRQ, DMA Assignment ...

Load Fail-Safe Defaults

Load Optimized Defaults

Set Supervisor Password

Set User Password

Save & Exit Setup

Exit Without Saving

: Select Item

2 Use the arrow keys to select Integrated Peripherals (see Figure 2.1), then press Enter.

The Integrated Peripherals window appears.

Phoenix - Award BIOS CMOS Setup Utility

Integrated Peripherals

RAID Config OnChip IDE Channel0 Primary Master PIO Primary Slave PIO Primary Master UDMA Primary Slave UDMA OnChip IDE Channel1 Secondary Master PIO Secondary Slave PIO Secondary Master UDMA Secondary Slave UDMA IDE Prefetch Mode Init Display First OnChip USB USB Keyboard Support USB Mouse Support Serial - ATA SATA Spread Spectrum AC97 Audio

[Press Enter]

[Enabled] [Auto] [Auto] [Auto] [Auto] [Enabled] [Auto] [Auto] [Auto] [Auto] [Enabled] [PCI Slot] [V1.1 - V2.0] [Disabled] [Disabled] [Enabled] [Disabled] [Auto]

Item Help

Menu Level

:Move Enter:Select +/-/PU/PD:Value F10:Save ESC:Exit F1:General Help F5: Previous Values F6: Fail-Safe Defaults F7: Optimized Defaults

Figure 2.2

Integrated Peripherals Window

3 Use the arrow keys to select the RAID Config (see Figure 2.2), then press Enter.

14 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

The RAID Config window appears.

Phoenix - Award BIOS CMOS Setup Utility

RAID Config

Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

HAPTER 2

RAID Enable

SATA 1 Primary SATA 1 Secondary SATA 2 Primary SATA 2 Secondary SATA 3 Primary SATA 3 Secondary

:Move Enter:Select +/-/PU/PD:Value F10:Save ESC:Exit F1:General Help F5: Previous Values F6: Fail-Safe Defaults F7: Optimized Defaults

Figure 2.3

RAID Config Window

[Enable]

RAID [Enabled] RAID [Enabled] RAID [Enabled] RAID [Enabled] RAID [Disabled] RAID [Disabled]

Item Help

Menu Level

4 From the RAID Config window, globally enable RAID, then enable the SATA ports

with disks that you want to use for RAID.

If RAID is enabled globally but not enabled on the individual SATA port, disks on that port can only be used for non-RAID applications.

In the example in Figure 2.3, four SATA ports are enabled, so the non-bootable RAID array can include up to four SATA disks. If there is a disk connected to ʺSATA 3 Primary” or “SATA 3 Secondaryʺ, it can not be used for RAID.

5 Press F10 to save the configuration and exit.

The PC reboots.

NVIDIA Corporation 15

HAPTER 2

C Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

Installing the NVIDIA MediaShield Software Under Windows

This section describes how to run the setup application and install the RAID software1.

1 Start the nForce Setup program to open the NVIDIA Windows nForce Drivers page.

Figure 2.4

nForce Driver Installation Window

2 Select the modules that you want to install.

Make sure that the “NVIDIA IDE Driver” is selected.

You must install the NVIDIA IDE driver in order to enable NVIDIA MediaShield. If you do not install the NVIDIA IDE driver, NVIDIA MediaShield will not be enabled.

3 Click Next and then follow the instructions.

4 After the installation is completed, be sure to reboot the PC.

5 After the reboot, initialize the newly created array as described in the next section.

1. See the application note “Installing the NVIDIA IDE Driver in Windows 2000” on page 150 for infor- mation on how to install the NVIDIA IDE Driver under Windows 2000.

16 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

Using RAID Arrays Under Windows

After rebooting the PC, initialize the newly created array under Windows as follows:

1 Launch Computer Management by clicking Start Æ Settings Æ Control Panel then

open the Administrative Tools folder and double click on Computer Management.

2 Click Disk Management (under the Storage section).

The Initialize and Convert Disk Wizards appears.

Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

HAPTER 2

Figure 2.5

NVIDIA Corporation 17

Initialize and Convert Disk Wizard

HAPTER 2

C Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

3 Click Next.

The Select Disks to Initialize window appears.

Figure 2.6

Select Disks to Initialize Page

The disks listed depend on how many arrays you have configured

4 Click Next.

The Select Disks to Convert window appears.

Figure 2.7

Select Disks to Convert Page

18 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

HAPTER 2

5 Check the disk in the list if you want to make the array a dynamic disk, then click Next.

The Completing the Initialize and Convert Disk Wizard window appears.

Figure 2.8

Completing the Initialize and Convert Disk Wizard Page

NVIDIA Corporation 19

HAPTER 2

C Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

6 Click Finish.

The Computer Management window appears.

Figure 2.9

Computer Management Window

The actual disks listed will depend on your system. In Figure 2.9, there is a 111 GB unallocated partition (which is the total combined storage of two 60 GB HD). You must format the unallocated disk space in order to use it.

7 Format the unallocated disk space.

• Right click “Unallocated space”, select “New Partition…” and follow the Wizard

instructions.

• After the drive has been formatted, it is ready for use. See “Using the NVIDIA

MediaShield RAID Management Utility” on page 33 for instructions on how to

create and configure RAID arrays.

20 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

Setting Up a Bootable RAID Array

This section explains how to configure a bootable RAID array.

Setting Up the BIOS

1 Start your computer, then press Delete to enter the BIOS setup.

The BIOS CMOS Setup Utility screen appears.

Phoenix - Award BIOS CMOS Setup Utility

Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

HAPTER 2

Standard CMOS Features

Advanced BIOS Features

Advanced Chipset Features

Integrated Peripherals

Power Management Setup

PnP / PCI Configurations

Esc : Quit F10 : Save & Exit Setup

Figure 2.10

BIOS CMOS Setup Utility Main Screen

Onboard IO, IRQ, DMA Assignment ...

Load Fail-Safe Defaults

Load Optimized Defaults

Set Supervisor Password

Set User Password

Save & Exit Setup

Exit Without Saving

: Select Item

2 Use the arrow keys to select Integrated Peripherals (see Figure 2.10), then press Enter.

NVIDIA Corporation 21

HAPTER 2

C Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

The Integrated Peripherals screen (or a screen similar to it) appears.

Phoenix - Award BIOS CMOS Setup Utility

Integrated Peripherals

:Move Enter:Select +/-/PU/PD:Value F10:Save ESC:Exit F1:General Help F5: Previous Values F6: Fail-Safe Defaults F7: Optimized Defaults

Figure 2.11

Integrated Peripherals Screen

[Press Enter]

[Enabled] [Auto] [Auto] [Auto] [Auto] [Enabled] [Auto] [Auto] [Auto] [Auto] [Enabled] [PCI Slot] [V1.1 - V2.0] [Disabled] [Disabled] [Enabled] [Disabled] [Auto]

Item Help

Menu Level

3 Use the arrow keys to select the RAID Config (see Figure 2.11).

4 Press Enter.

22 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

The RAID Config screen appears.

Phoenix - Award BIOS CMOS Setup Utility

RAID Config

Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

HAPTER 2

RAID Enable

SATA 1 Primary SATA 1 Secondary SATA 2 Primary SATA 2 Secondary SATA 3 Primary SATA 3 Secondary

:Move Enter:Select +/-/PU/PD:Value F10:Save ESC:Exit F1:General Help F5: Previous Values F6: Fail-Safe Defaults F7: Optimized Defaults

Figure 2.12

[Enable]

RAID [Enabled] RAID [Enabled] RAID [Enabled] RAID [Enabled] RAID [Disabled] RAID [Disabled]

RAID Config Screen

Item Help

Menu Level

5 From the RAID Config window, globally enable RAID, then enable the SATA ports

with disks that you want to use for RAID.

If RAID is enabled globally but not enabled on the individual SATA port, disks on that port can only be used for non-RAID applications.

In the example in Figure 2.12, four SATA ports are enabled, so the non-bootable RAID array can include up to four SATA disks. If there is a disk Connected to ʺSATA 3 Primary” or “SATA 3 Secondaryʺ, it cannot be used for RAID.

6 Press F10 to save the configuration and exit.

The PC reboots.

7 Enter the RAID BIOS Setup by pressing F10 when prompted, and proceed to set up the

RAID BIOS as described in the next section.

NVIDIA Corporation 23

HAPTER 2

C Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

Configuring the NVIDIA RAID BIOS

The NVIDIA RAID BIOS setup lets you choose the RAID type and which hard drives you want to make part of the array.

Entering the RAID BIOS Setup:

1 Wait until you see the RAID software prompting you to press F10.

The RAID prompt appears as part of the system POST and boot process prior to loading of the OS. You have a few seconds to press F10 before the screen disappears.

2 Press F10.

The NVIDIA MediaShield Utility—Define a New Array screen appears (Figure 2.13).

Media Shield Utility

- Define a New Array -

RAID Mode:

Free Disks Loc

1.0.M

1.1.M

Disk Model Name

ST380023AS ST380023AS

Mirroring

[ ] Add

Striping Block:

Array Disks Loc

Disk Model Name

Optimal

[ ] Del

[F6] Back [F7] Finish [TAB] Navigate [ ] Select [ENTER] Popup

Figure 2.13

NVIDIA MediaShield Utility

By default, RAID Mode is set to Mirroring and Striping Block is set to Optimal.

24 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

Understanding the Define a New Array Window

Use the Define a New Array window to

• Select the RAID Mode

• Set up the Striping Block

• Specify which disks to use for the RAID Array

The SATA ports are called channels and they are associated with adapters. The first digit in the Location field defines the adapter that the port is associated with. The 2nd digit defines the channel. (The ʺMʺ field,which used to specify Master or Slave, is obsolete.)

1.0.M

(Obsolete) Channel

Adapter

Figure 2.14

Loc Column Information

Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

HAPTER 2

In Figure 2.14, 1.0. means the hard drive is attached to Adapter 1, Channel 0.

The location, disk model and capacity fields should allow you to identify disks. It may be useful to try attaching a SATA hard drive to the ports provided with your platform and determine which location IDs are associated with SATA ports on your motherboard.

Using the Define a New Array Screen

If necessary, press the tab key to move from field to field until the appropriate field is highlighted.

• Selecting the RAID Mode

By default, this is set to Mirroring. To change to a different RAID mode, press the down arrow key until the mode that you want appears in the RAID Mode box—either Mirroring, Striping, Spanning, Stripe Mirroring or RAID 5.

Note: Not all RAID levels are supported on all platforms.

• Selecting the Striping Block Size

Striping block size is given in kilobytes, and affects how data is arranged on the disk. It is recommended to leave this value at the default Optimal, which is 64KB, but the values can be between 4 KB and 128 KB (4, 8, 16, 32, 64, and 128 KB)

NVIDIA Corporation 25

HAPTER 2

C Setting Up Your RAID Configuration

Assigning the Disks

The disks that you enabled from the RAID Config BIOS setup page appear in the Free Disks block. These are the drives that are available for use as RAID array disks.

To designate a free disk to be used as a RAID array disk,

1 Tab to the Free Disks section.

The first disk in the list is selected

2 Move it from the Free Disks block to the Array Disks block by pressing the right-

arrow key (Æ).

The first disk in the list is moved, and the next disk in the list is selected and ready to be moved.

3 Continue pressing the right-arrow key (Æ) until all the disks that you want to use as

RAID array disks appear in the Array Disks block.

Figure 2.15 illustrates the Define a New Array screen after two disks have been

assigned as RAID1 array disks.

MediaShield Utility

- Define a New Array -

RAID Mode

Free Disks Loc

[F6] Back [F7] Finish [TAB] Navigate [ ] Select [ENTER] Popup

Figure 2.15

Mirroring

Striping Block:

Array Disks

Disk Model Name

[ ] Add

Loc

1.0.M

1.1.M

[ ] Del

MediaShield Utility—Array Disks Assigned

Optimal

Disk Model Name

ST380023AS ST380023AS

26 MediaShield User’s Guide – Version 4.0

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