Replace a failed HDD in a raid 1 configuration?

[Maxxi]

I installed windows 7 on 2 Seagate hard drives using a Raid 1 configuration.(motherboard Gigabyte GA-P55M-UD4)
Because of a failure, I had to replace one of my 2 hard drives by a identical new one.
Now when I boot, windows 7 is still working but the bios said the Raid 1 is "degraded".
I can't find an option in the bios to reconstruct the second hard drive in order to retrieve the Raid 1 configuration as before without erasing the datas.
the bios just said the new hard drive is not a Raid HDD but if I want
to make it as a raid HDD, the bios proposes only to delete both HDD Which i don t want.
So is there an option to rebuilt my raid 1 configuration without reformating everything?
Thanks
Olivier

 

[treefrog07]

Install and Use Intel Matrix Storage Manager (it may have a new name, but it is here) in Windows to add a HDD to a RAID volume and repair the array.

 

[saint19]

The option "repair array" only work with RAID 5.

 

[treefrog07]

I've been using it on RAID1 for more than two years on multiple arrays in several systems.

 

[saint19]

^I use RAID 1 and RAID 5 with 8th server in hot spare disk with server 2003 and 2008. Also i'm Microsoft Certified Professional, Microsoft Certified IT Professional and in my little experience i'm 100% that a RAID 1 array can't be fixed.

 

[Maxxi]

Thanks both for your answer. I installed Intel Matrix Storage Manager. There is an option to reconstruct a Raid 1 with a new HD. But when I tried it said "the replacement hard drive lacks capacity to be used for rebuilding the volume". The new hard drive is exactly the same! any thought?
I was wondering also if making a physical copy from the first HD to the second HD might work?

 

[Guest]

Odd. Have you installed the new HDD as a drive in windows? If so it might have taken some space to use for recovery etc. Try deleting any partions that exist on the drive and have another go. Other than that (and the sure and certain knowledge that a RAID 1 array can be fixed) i'm scoobied.

 

[uh_no]

The option "repair array" only work with RAID 5.

Please do some research on raid levels.

While raid 5 does of course support the rebuilding of an array (because the parity data for each sector is stored, causing the loss in the size of the array), nearly ever raid level EXCEPT raid 0 supports the rebuilding of an array (in fact....raid stands for REDUNDANT array of independent disks)

raid level 1 is known as mirroring, this means that the data stored on every drive is identical, meaning the rebuilding of the array consists of just copying all the data. It also means that the total array size is equal to the size of 1 disk, because the data is the same across all disks

 

[treefrog07]

Thanks both for your answer. I installed Intel Matrix Storage Manager. There is an option to reconstruct a Raid 1 with a new HD. But when I tried it said "the replacement hard drive lacks capacity to be used for rebuilding the volume". The new hard drive is exactly the same! any thought?
I was wondering also if making a physical copy from the first HD to the second HD might work?

Before you try that, try this:

1) You've apparently already added the replacement HDD, so now remove or disconnect the bad HDD from your computer (first disconnect power cord, ground yourself, remove the power and data cables from the bad HDD, then re-connect the power cord to the computer), and power-on the computer, and boot to windows.

2) Open Intel Matrix Storage Manager - advanced view.

3) Verify that Array_0000>Volume> NAME of YOUR Volume is present and shows the one good HDD.

4) Verify that the new HDD shows as Non-RAID Hard Drive.

5) Go to Menu>Actions, select "Create RAID volume from existing Hard Drive"

6) The Wizard will open, follow the instructions to select the source HDD (the good HDD in the volume to be rebuilt), and the target HDD (the new HDD you added).

Let us know the results.

 

[Maxxi]

Thx treefrog07,
I ve already tried that and still the same error message. I tried also to format the HDD with NTFS or remove the volume, still the same. I m gonna try a physical copy overnight although my HDDs are 1 To, it s gonna be a bit too long I guess...

 

[treefrog07]

I've been using DFI boards for a while (xp, xpx64, win7rc1, and win7rc1x64), and I have rebuilt RAID1 several times on two different machines. I can usually do it inside windows, but I have done it through the BIOS by deleting the array - with all the warnings that I would lose all my data - I did not lose anything:
-- saved and exited the BIOS,
-- re-started, entered BIOS, created a new RAID1 volume using the good HDD and the new HDD,
-- saved and exited BIOS, restarted,
-- booted to windows, opened Intel Matrix Storage Console, added the new HDD to the volume I just created in the BIOS.

To use this method, you must know the HDD model numbers, serial numbers, and the respective ports to ensure you are creating the new array with the good HDD (add first) and the new HDD. You can find that data using the Intel Matrix Storage Console.

The reason I didn't suggest this before is the warning that deleting an array will cause you to lose all your data. While I got the warning and I did not lose anything, I have no idea if that would be the case with your board.

 

[Maxxi]

Treefrog07,
,As a last chance, I tried your solution but it didn t work, it really erased my data. Fortunately, I had a backup. So I had to resinstall everything. Thanks anyway for helping ;0

 

[treefrog07]

I'm glad you backed it up first. Maybe I was just lucky, but I've deleted and recreated RAID1 at least 3 times on my two DFI boards, and never lost the data. When I was setting up the E8600, I kept re-thinking partition sizes and configs for 3 OSes on 4 HDDs in two RAID1 volumes. That's when I discovered I didn't lose data deleting a volume, and immediately creating a new volume with one of the HDDs. I've also rebuilt RAID volumes on both boards within the OSes with Intel Matrix Storage Manager - both with bad HDDs re-marked as normal, and by adding new HDDs and rebuilding the volumes to them.

 

[saint19]

Yea, finally he had to break the RAID and created again, but yes, is strange that lost of his data

 

[GlacierDotCom]

Yea, finally he had to break the RAID and created again, but yes, is strange that lost of his data

LOL