Raid0 alongside 950 Pro M.2 settings

[WB_FlashOver]

Hello,
I just installed a Samsung 950 Pro 256GB M.2 as my OS drive. I'm using an 850 Evo 500GB as my program drive. I also have a 3TB storage HDD on the system. I'm wanting to purchase another 850 Evo 500GB and move my programs/games to a Raid0 setup on the 850's. My question is on AHCI and RAID settings in BIOS. From what I gather there is only one SATA controller in the X99-A and I understand that I will need to change it from AHCI to RAID but what will this do to my 950 Pro performance? Is there enough bandwidth to make it worth running a Raid0? What would be the proper BIOS settings to make this work?

And yes, I know the wares of Raid0 and data loss. I've not had trouble in 6+ years on a still running Raid0 platter setup in an X58 Deluxe-E system. That board has two SATA controllers and makes it easy to set up Raid and AHCI.

Full system;>X99-A, 5930K, 16GB DDR4 3000, 980 Ti (4995), Liquid cooling, 950 Pro, 850 Evo, 840 Pro, Seagate HDD, Windows 10 Pro x64.>

Thanks for your help.
Roger

 

[basroil]

950pro is NVMe, so it's completely separate

As for bandwidth, generally yes, raid 0 will improve performance a bit, though the 950pro will still be faster

 

[mcnumpty23]

normally wouldnt recommend raid0 on ssds

but if you are going to be moving files between the m2 and the raid drives thats where you should see

a big performance increase

 

[WB_FlashOver]

Thanks fellas for the replies. The RAID0 will be for programs and games only. The OS and other general programs will be on the 950 Pro. I'm looking to improve load times and increase performance on my games and programs installed to this drive. If it's a 500GB 850 Evo x2 RAID0 it should be an improvement. I'm just not sure about the changes that will take place when changing from AHGI to RAID in BIOS.

Thanks again
Roger

 

[mcnumpty23]

well if you change from ahci to raid you are going to have to re-install windows

but other than that see no issue

and i have a sm951 m2 and did mess around with 2 samsung ssds in raid0 a while ago

file copy from one to the other was the main thing--it was ridiculously fast

didnt have a great effect on games though as a single ssd is so fast any way

 

[basroil]

well if you change from ahci to raid you are going to have to re-install windows

He was going to get a 950pro anyway, so he's going to have to do that anyway 😉

If you install Windows onthe 950pro and after that switch the 1x 850 EVO to 2x EVO, you do NOT need to reinstall windows, since your 950pro is not ahci to begin with!

 

[WB_FlashOver]

well if you change from ahci to raid you are going to have to re-install windows

He was going to get a 950pro anyway, so he's going to have to do that anyway 😉

If you install Windows onthe 950pro and after that switch the 1x 850 EVO to 2x EVO, you do NOT need to reinstall windows, since your 950pro is not ahci to begin with!

I have actually already installed the OS to the 950 last weekend and BIOS is set to AHCI. So I read on another forum that AHCI can be changed (on Win 10) to RAID if I switch to Safe Boot > restart to BIOS > switch to RAID > reboot and turn off Safe Boot. Does that sound correct? I'm hoping this will work as you can imagine.

Thanks
Roger

 

[basroil]

I have actually already installed the OS to the 950 last weekend and BIOS is set to AHCI. So I read on another forum that AHCI can be changed (on Win 10) to RAID if I switch to Safe Boot > restart to BIOS > switch to RAID > reboot and turn off Safe Boot. Does that sound correct? I'm hoping this will work as you can imagine.

Thanks
Roger

http://www.samsung.com/global/business/semiconductor/minisite/SSD/downloads/document/Samsung_SSD_950_PRO_White_paper.pdf

You shouldn't even need to if you're running the 950pro because it's NVMe, not AHCI

 

[WB_FlashOver]

I have actually already installed the OS to the 950 last weekend and BIOS is set to AHCI. So I read on another forum that AHCI can be changed (on Win 10) to RAID if I switch to Safe Boot > restart to BIOS > switch to RAID > reboot and turn off Safe Boot. Does that sound correct? I'm hoping this will work as you can imagine.

Thanks
Roger

http://www.samsung.com/global/business/semiconductor/minisite/SSD/downloads/document/Samsung_SSD_950_PRO_White_paper.pdf

You shouldn't even need to if you're running the 950pro because it's NVMe, not AHCI

This is interesting. A little over my head but it does indicate completely different controllers. With that in mind you may just be correct. Here's hoping so. I should have the new 850 Evo this week so I will post back my findings.

Thanks for all the replies and suggestions.
Roger

 

[WB_FlashOver]

Quick recap of system and goal.

System; Asus X99-A – 5930K – G.Skill 3000 16GB – 840 Pro 256GB (OS) – 850 Evo 500GB (programs) – Windows 10 Pro x64

Purchased Samsung 950 Pro 256GB NVMe drive and fresh installed Win 10
Two weeks later purchased a second 850 Evo 500GB to run RAID0
I needed to change SATA mode from ACHI to RAID in BIOS hopefully without reinstalling Windows.

Successful steps as follows;
In Run prompt type msconfig
On boot tab tic Safe Boot and leave Minimal set
Restart

Enter BIOS

Advanced Menu
--PCH Storage Configuration
----SATA Mode Selection [RAID]

Boot Menu
--CSM (Compatibility Support Module)
----Disable (you will get a warning, click OK)
--Secure Boot (insure set to Windows UEFI Mode)

Save & Exit. It should boot you into Safe Mode. Go to Run, type msconfig and on General tab tic Normal Startup. Now reboot. You should be up and running with SATA mode set to RAID.

Added bonus of disabling CSM is that POST no longer licks itself for 40 seconds before it starts to load Windows. Boot time is much less.