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New drive. Best configuration help

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On Friday I ordered a new 240GB Sandisk ssd in the sales.

Currently I have a 120GB Corsair neutron GTX and a 2TB Seagate Barracuda.

I'd like to set up some kind of array where I can take advantage of the 2 SSDs, and then back up on the HDD.

I guess that RAID 0 with the 2 SSDs is the best way to go, then set up the backup to the HDD separately.

However, I don't really want to lose the extra 120GB of space on the new drive by "RAIDing" it with the smaller drive.

So I have a few questions:

  1. Can I RAID the 2 SSDs and still use the other 120GB which will be "free" on the new SSD?
  2. Is RAIDing 2 SSDs of different makes/capacities a good idea?
  3. Is there a solution other than RAID which will allow me to do what I wanna do?
  4. What's a good way to regularly back up the data from the SSDs to the HDD?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Let me know if there's any further information you need :)

 

1. No

2. No, it adds instability to the mix (Not to mention different controllers)

3. You might check out storage spaces, drivepool, FlexRAID, and other software RAID solutions. I personally would keep both drives separate (Use one for OS and the other for programs / games).

4. Sorry, I don't know much about backup software.

On Friday I ordered a new 240GB Sandisk ssd in the sales.

Currently I have a 120GB Corsair neutron GTX and a 2TB Seagate Barracuda.

I'd like to set up some kind of array where I can take advantage of the 2 SSDs, and then back up on the HDD.

I guess that RAID 0 with the 2 SSDs is the best way to go, then set up the backup to the HDD separately.

However, I don't really want to lose the extra 120GB of space on the new drive by "RAIDing" it with the smaller drive.

So I have a few questions:

  1. Can I RAID the 2 SSDs and still use the other 120GB which will be "free" on the new SSD?
  2. Is RAIDing 2 SSDs of different makes/capacities a good idea?
  3. Is there a solution other than RAID which will allow me to do what I wanna do?
  4. What's a good way to regularly back up the data from the SSDs to the HDD?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Let me know if there's any further information you need :)

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On Friday I ordered a new 240GB Sandisk ssd in the sales.

Currently I have a 120GB Corsair neutron GTX and a 2TB Seagate Barracuda.

I'd like to set up some kind of array where I can take advantage of the 2 SSDs, and then back up on the HDD.

I guess that RAID 0 with the 2 SSDs is the best way to go, then set up the backup to the HDD separately.

However, I don't really want to lose the extra 120GB of space on the new drive by "RAIDing" it with the smaller drive.

So I have a few questions:

  1. Can I RAID the 2 SSDs and still use the other 120GB which will be "free" on the new SSD?
  2. Is RAIDing 2 SSDs of different makes/capacities a good idea?
  3. Is there a solution other than RAID which will allow me to do what I wanna do?
  4. What's a good way to regularly back up the data from the SSDs to the HDD?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Let me know if there's any further information you need :)

 

1. No

2. No, it adds instability to the mix (Not to mention different controllers)

3. You might check out storage spaces, drivepool, FlexRAID, and other software RAID solutions. I personally would keep both drives separate (Use one for OS and the other for programs / games).

4. Sorry, I don't know much about backup software.

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The only SSDs I would ever RAID 0 are Intel 730 and 750 SSDs, because they offer similar performance and legendary reliability. You could RAID by striping only and use RAID 0, but RAIDing 2 SSDs of different makes is a really bad idea (you may run into striping problems). You could just use one drive for OS and key applications and set the other as a storage device, or you could use hardware RAID to mirror the two SSDs (RAID0), then use software RAID (in the operating system) to RAID1.

"Not breaking it or making it worse is key."

"Bad choices make good stories."

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1. No

2. No, it adds instability to the mix (Not to mention different controllers)

3. You might check out storage spaces, drivepool, FlexRAID, and other software RAID solutions. I personally would keep both drives separate (Use one for OS and the other for programs / games).

4. Sorry, I don't know much about backup software.

1. YES, it's called RAID0.

"Not breaking it or making it worse is key."

"Bad choices make good stories."

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1. YES, it's called RAID0.

 

Any RAID level will limit you the size of the smallest drive, RAID0 included.

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1. No

2. No, it adds instability to the mix (Not to mention different controllers)

3. You might check out storage spaces, drivepool, FlexRAID, and other software RAID solutions. I personally would keep both drives separate (Use one for OS and the other for programs / games).

4. Sorry, I don't know much about backup software.

The only SSDs I would ever RAID 0 are Intel 730 and 750 SSDs, because they offer similar performance and legendary reliability. You could RAID by striping only and use RAID 0, but RAIDing 2 SSDs of different makes is a really bad idea (you may run into striping problems). You could just use one drive for OS and key applications and set the other as a storage device, or you could use hardware RAID to mirror the two SSDs (RAID0), then use software RAID (in the operating system) to RAID1.

Thanks, I thought this would probably be the case.

I'll keep them both separate.

Your help is much appreciated :)

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