Install WindowsXp and Gentoo on RAID 0 Serial ATA

barbagalli_busgrago · n00b Joined: 20 Jan 2005 Posts: 3

I've got a problem since I decided to use RAID. I bought 2 HD Maxtor 10 200GB to have more space and so I thought RAID 0 was the best way to speed the system.

First I installed WindowsXP using the raid drivers given with my MB and everything has gone well. :wink:

The system is estremely stable and fast. :lol:

Windows XP treat both HDs as one using a great level of trasparency, unbelievable.

Second I decided to try to re-install Gentoo on another partition in the same RAID, but I've got some problem.

The partition table was create during the installation of windows XP of the whole raid is made so and using "fdisk -l /dev/sda" this is the situation:

/dev/sda1 (c

20 GB *
/dev/sda2 (d

25 GB without fs -> to mount /
/dev/sda3 (e

2 GB without fs -> to swap
/dev/sda4 (?) 350 GB logical partition
* not the real output, but the partition table for "/dev/sda" is the one I used to configure the raid during Windows Installation "/dev/sda4" is a extended partition with 170GB+10GB+170GB.

"/dev/sda" should be the first disc of the raid and "/dev/sdb" should be the second.

The command "fdisk -l /dev/sdb" gives no answer.

This is the first problem, because while reading the handbook and a lot of forums I have noticed that to use the raid I would need two disc with their own partition table, but I have access to one partition table in one HD only that describes the situation of the raid I want to create.

The first partition, "/dev/sda1 (20GB)" in the partition table, shuld be equally divided (10GB+10GB) between "/dev/sda" and "/dev/sdb"

During the installation I tried to install the kernel module for my SATA controller Sil3512, the module for the serialATA, the module for software raid 0. These operations were all OK.

I tried to use mkreiserfs /dev/sda2 and no error occurred. I had full access to hd.
I created a complete gentoo-2004.3 stage1 installation and no error occurred. When I tried to install grub I could not do it.
Then I shutdown the PC and run Windows the first 170GB in the extended partition is completely lost and unusable. Windows tries to repair it (no possibility of interaction) and so the gentoo stage1 complete installation is gone. :evil:

I have understood perfectly why, but It remains the problem to activate the raid on the whole discs to view them as one. Has anybody some advice?

Arainach · l33t Joined: 08 Jul 2004 Posts: 609

Linux + Your motherboard's crappy software RAID = probably not working. Drivers for those things are weak and inefficient, and for Linux, usually nonexistant. I reccomend Installing Windows XP to something that's NOT a RAID (other partitions or something) and using md software RAID for Linux.
_________________
Gentoo: Stage3 w/ NPTL & udev, gcc 3.4.4 full rebuild
Kernel: 2.6.15-gentoo-r1 w/ 1G-Lowmem Patch
System: Athlon XP 2.2Ghz/1GB Corsair Value/160GB, 250GB WD IDE/128MB GeForce 6800/Sony 17" Trinitron G200 @ 1280x1024x75Hz

lee-jun · n00b Joined: 20 Jan 2005 Posts: 17

I can't give you the answer to your question off-hand as I am fairly new to gentoo myself. I did have to learn some new things with gentoo myself as I just got a new dual xeon with SCSI hdd. The only reason I am posting then is to say, Ignore the previous post. Rather than telling as guy to give up and do something else (before he has had a chance to get some other input), try to help. I will try to search for something a bit more helpful and post it. In the meantime, search these forums. Almost everything is here, You just have to find it

good trick for searching these forums (if the forum search does not turn anything up) is to try using google. Enter your search, followed by the site you want to specifically search in the search field. Example:

RAID 0 + winXP + gentoo site:forums.gentoo.org

Enlight · Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2005 3:40 pm Post subject:

lee-jun · n00b Joined: 20 Jan 2005 Posts: 17

I didn't read this entire thread, but the title looked promising.

https://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic.php?t=68706
_________________
Dual Pentium4 Xeon 1.7GHz
1Gb ECC PC800 RDRAM
GeForce 5700LE 256 mb
28 Gb Ultra160 15k SCSI hdd

dual boot -- WinXP/Gentoo on grub

barbagalli_busgrago · n00b Joined: 20 Jan 2005 Posts: 3

barbagalli_busgrago · n00b Joined: 20 Jan 2005 Posts: 3

I didn't try to install gentoo on the raid0 because I was scared

to lose the window partition again, so I'm compiling using a 80GB Maxtor. I'm having problems to download because mirrorselect give me dead servers so I must choose the mirrors by hand but It takes me some more time more than I thought.

The raid is 400 GB and now 200GB are not partitioned. While using fdisk I've noticed that only one of the HDs have a partition table an that is calculated as the HD were a single HD of 400 GB.

I must learn how to mount the existing partitions in linux. Any advices?

I have to try tho boot the raid with grub (I'll install it in /dev/hda). Any advices?