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Thread ID: 138046	2014-09-28 08:05:00	Issue setting up HDDs in RAID0 with OS on SSD	smithinator (15240)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
1384897	2014-09-28 08:05:00	Hi I'm trying to setup a RAID0 array using my two 500GB HDDs with my OS (Windows 8) installed on a Samsung 840 pro . I set the SATA mode to RAID in my ASUS VII Hero BIOS, created the array and installed Windows on the SSD (without formatting the RAID array) . As far as I'm aware this setup should be possible as the Samsung SSD is not part of the array which, if I'm not mistaken, should mean it would run in AHCI mode, however in the Samsung Magician software it has the following error: "Magician cannot communicate with the below Samsung SSD(s) please check with other compatible storage drivers and try again" It also says AHCI mode is disabled (which I thought wouldn't be the case as it is not part of the array) and it will not let me activate RAPID or use the Performance Optimization/Firmware Update options . It also seems to think I have a second identical SSD installed (which is listed as unallocated just like my array so I'm assuming it's that) . I'm not really sure where I went wrong but I'm thinking I may have to re-install windows using some different settings, how would I go about doing this so that everything will be setup how I want it to be? Any help would be greatly appreciated . P . s I was thinking if this didn't/couldn't work I could just create the array in Windows rather than try and set it up in the BIOS, but I would prefer to do it the way described above if possible .	smithinator (15240)
1384898	2014-09-28 10:40:00	You probably need to install the RAID drivers when setting up windows despite the SSD not being in an array. An alternative is to just use AHCI mode and set up a software RAID array from windows. It does add a liittle overhead to using the drives but it's so minimal as to be insignificant on most modern PC's. The cheap controllers on add in cards or built onto motherboards still use resources anyway, they are not like the expensive proper RAID controllers. Do you really need to use RAID 0 though? do you need the speed for some reason? for storage drives it's just an unnecessary complication. I understand if you are using a small SSd and want to install some applications to the RAID array and want them to launch fast, or need fast workspace for something, but if you are just storing files save yourself the headache and don't use RAID.	dugimodo (138)
1384899	2014-09-28 21:58:00	You probably need to install the RAID drivers when setting up windows despite the SSD not being in an array. An alternative is to just use AHCI mode and set up a software RAID array from windows. It does add a liittle overhead to using the drives but it's so minimal as to be insignificant on most modern PC's. The cheap controllers on add in cards or built onto motherboards still use resources anyway, they are not like the expensive proper RAID controllers. Do you really need to use RAID 0 though? do you need the speed for some reason? for storage drives it's just an unnecessary complication. I understand if you are using a small SSd and want to install some applications to the RAID array and want them to launch fast, or need fast workspace for something, but if you are just storing files save yourself the headache and don't use RAID. It's going to be used for general storage as well as software such as MS Office/Adobe CS6 and most of my games etc. My 256GB SSD doesn't take much to fill up especially after I install a couple of my most heavily used games. I probably don't need the speed of RAID0 however it would be nice for some of my larger applications. I had the two drives at the time and I thought "why not" however in hindsight that wasn't the best choice :) I have been doing a bit more digging and found reports of Samsung Magician having issues with the SSD if it is setup in RAID mode, I ran a speed test and it seems to be running at full speed despite this (Read: 556MB/s, Random Read: 97280 IOPS, Write: 531MB/s, Random write: 88652 IOPS) so I'm starting to think it may actually be working, even if it doesn't show in the software (and from what I've been reading it wont unless I switch to AHCI and use a Windows array). Seeing as I already setup the PC would my best option be to just uninstall Samsung Magician and pretend that never happened or is there some other performance detriment I'm not seeing yet (such as not having access to RAPID or the performance increase part of the software)? How much of a decrease in speed would a Windows array be in comparison to the array I have setup now? if the difference is minimal then I would probably just create it in Windows and save myself the problems.	smithinator (15240)
1384900	2014-09-29 00:20:00	I don't think you'll notice the difference between windows RAID and what you have now and it does make things easier. That said if everything is working except for magician I'd just check TRIM is working and not worry about it. The magician software is quite good but you don't need it. When installed on an SSD windows automatically sets itself correctly so all the magician software can do is minor tweaks at best. run (as admin) fsutil behavior query DisableDeleteNotify If the result is '0' TRIM is enabled.	dugimodo (138)
1384901	2014-09-29 02:38:00	I ran the command and TRIM is enabled so I'll just uninstall Samsung Magician. Thank you very much for all of your help :)	smithinator (15240)
1384902	2014-09-29 03:28:00	A controversial tip, I prefer to set the swap file to be on my storage drive and not the SSD to save space and some wear on it. Some argue that you want the swap file on the SSD for performance reasons. I find with 8GB or more of RAM swap file usage has very little or no impact on performance when set on another drive and I prefer the space to be available for other things. Also you don't want to completely fill an SSD as it needs some space for trim commands and garbage collection/wear leveling to do it's thing properly. One thing the Magician does let you do (depending on what model SSD) is set some space aside for over provisioning - basically hiding some drive space so there is always room for the functions I mentioned. As long as you never get too full though it's not needed. I like SSD's so much I just bought 2 more for my other machines.	dugimodo (138)
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