[ale] Hot Point RAID and Linux

[Mike Panetta]

If you want to get technical, all RAID is done in software.  In the case
of a hardware raid controller, its usually done in software that runs on
a puny processor that cant do much (unless you really want to pay the
big $$$ and get a very high end SCSI->SCSI raid controller, or similar).

In my experience Linux software raid is faster then the hardware
controller cards.  Its not necessarily as robust though.  The company I
used to work for benchmarked several different hardware cards (the 3ware
escalade with 7200RPM ata 100 drives on it, a mylex dac1100, and a
couple of AMI Megaraid cards) none of them could outperform the Linux
software raid solution.  We used the same exact drives to compare, so
its not like we were using 7200RPM drives with the Mylex ctrlr, and
15000RPM drives with linux RAID. ;)

The main advantage over the hardware controllers (other then the level
of security you have by being able to sue the manufacturer if something
breaks), is that usually they can support alot more drives then a Linux
software only solution could.


Mike

On Wed, 2002-08-14 at 07:08, Keith Hopkins wrote:
> sangell at nan.net wrote:
> > Is anyone using a Hot Point IDE RAID Controller and Linux? I am wanting to
> > set up a RH 7.3 box and would like the added performance of RAID 0. In the
> > past I have tried this with SCSI RAID Controllers and linux saw the array
> > as seperate drives, not as an array. Just wondered if it would see the
> > array under IDE or if seperate drives would still be seen. I do not want to
> > use software raid!
> > 
> 
> You mean "HighPoint", right?  Well, if you want IDE and don't want to use SW raid, guess what?  You're going to have to buy a pricey controller, like the 3Ware Escalade or the Adaptec 2400 (but not the 1200).  The HighPoint and Promice IDE "RAID" controllers ARE software raid driven.  The setup utilitiy is handled partially by the card bios and partially in sw; but the raid functionallity is complete in the software driver for the card (instead of using the "md" driver.)
> 
> IIRC (my HighPoint card from IWill flaked out 4 months ago), once configured in the Card's BIOS, and with the right patch level on the kernel, it will appear as one drive.  The HighPoint cards have some nifty sw utils.
> 
> -- 
> Lost in Tokyo,
>    Keith
> 
> 



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