RAID set up incorrectly?

[Grave Scrooge]

First off, thanks to all who've been helping me from the very beginning. :) I have finally gotten to the point where Vista is in and everything seems to be working. But, I don't think my RAID 1 is set up correctly.:(

Info:
-I have built the high end i7 build verbatim.

-I recently installed Vista and all the drivers/software that came with all the hardware.

-During the Vista install both HD's seemed to be spinning and felt like they were writing.

-In my CMOS set up utility ( intergrated perhipherals/ SATA RAID/ AHCI mode ) it says" RAID"

-Under Standard CMOS Features it shows IDE Channels 0 through 3 as NONE. Channel 4 Master is NONE and Channel 4 Slave is SAFE. Channel 5 Master is my DVD Burner and Channel 5 Slave is none.

-When I select the Channel 4 Slave ( SAFE ) it shows only one HD

-Boot priority is Channel 4 (SAFE)

-In Vista the Intel Matrix Storage Controler states "No serial ATA sevices detected on the RAID Controller. If I go to the advanced view it shows all ports as being unused. If I try to "create raid volume" or "create raid volume from existing drive" I get an error message with several prossible problems including: not enought RAID hd's , not enough internal hd's, not enought available RAID hd's, not enough space on existing array...ect...

Where did I go wrong and can I fix it without having to uninstall vista and all the drivers I've installed thus far?

[The Wise Monkey]

Did you install the RAID drivers during the Vista installation?

In theory, you should be able to just plug the hard drive in, create the array, and go for it as it should copy everything across. But it depends on your motherboard, and driver setup, as to whether this will work or not.

Does you motherboard manual say anything about plugging the hard drives into specific ports on the board in order to use RAID?

[Grave Scrooge]

Ah, I think you are onto something there. I changed the ports...both HDs are now recognized in vista under my computer.

I went to the Intel Matrix Storage Console and followed the directions for RAID. It says all HDs are okay and a RAID volume is migrating user files.

It says it's going to take over 3 hours.

Does this sound correct so far? Are both HD going to be identical now since I think RAID wasn't in effect when I installed Vista and other drivers?

[The Wise Monkey]

It should work correctly, but you may need to re-install using the RAID drivers during setup.

That is the great thing about RAID 1 - the drives are kept bit-for-bit identical, so if anything goes wrong you can just swap a drive out and the RAID array will re-create all the data.

[Grave Scrooge]

Do you mean uninstall vista and then reinstall? How do I find or access the raid drivers?

Thanks.

[The Wise Monkey]

If you check your motherboard manufacturer's website, you should be able to find all the latest drivers on there. The RAID drivers will need to be copied to a USB stick or floppy drive, and you will need to add these in during the original Vista install - this guide is fairly comprehensive:

http://vistasupport.mvps.org/installing_raid_sata_drivers.htm

[Grave Scrooge]

If I am understanding you clearly, I have to uninstall vista, get drivers download from another pc onto a disc and then at some point upload these drivers while vista is being installed?

Do you think the drivers are on teh mobo disk?

At what point do I add them..when you install vista it just seems to go and not stop for any chance to add anything.

[The Wise Monkey]

OK:

1. Download the Intel ICH9R/ICH10R Driver (Preinstall driver) from this website:
http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/Motherboard/Driver_Model.aspx?ProductID=2958&ost=windows+vista+x64+%2864-bit%29#anchor_os
This is the driver you will need to add during installation (I assumed that you have the Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 and Vista 64-bit)
2. Extract the downloaded files onto a USB stick
3. Boot from the Vista DVD
4. Proceed through the setup until it asks you where you would like to install the OS. There should be an option at the bottom to load drivers
5. Insert the USB stick, and select the driver when prompted. This will now be used for the Vista installation.
6. You should now be able to carry on with the install as before.

Make sure the RAID array has been created before re-installing Vista.

[Grave Scrooge]

Thanks I'll keep this mind for the future. As far as I can tell, it looks like it's set up correctly.