Raid setup on abit KR7A-RAID+2 IBM HD

[rookie]

Hi all,finally got my new mobo but where am i going wrong!?? i have a few question please..

1) if i plug the 2* 30G GXP75 ibm (or whatever i can't remember) into the IDE1 and IDE2 ,on bootup it doesn't see them..
2) if i plug them into ide3,4 and followed abits instructions to create the raid stipe and everything,i get as far as fdisk
3) when in fdisk,i either see only ONE (30g ) drive or i get 'unable to access drive 2' (or 1 i cant remember!)
4) i have set in the bios part as instructed by abit to raid133 in all three devices..

help ,is 1 or BOTH hds dead?? i'm thinking about low level formatting them? is that easy to do,any other good suggestions? am i doing somrthing wrong? i have used raid on the promise fasttrack (hacked ultra) so raid is not new to me-or am i just getting old! im doing th on the new mobo BUT using just ONE 6.4 G fujitsu on the ide3 channle as the ide1,2 doesn't seem to work ...help

rookie

[AFroDYme]

well i will not recommend to use those ibm's in raid setup !!!!!!!!!

i had just the same
and i lost my raid setup a couple months ago
(1 died) (still not replaced)
i keep the other one

the other want died last month ( laying on my desk now :-( )

those drives had probs from the beginning !!!!! and i am not the only one

the last thing i red about it was that someone started a trail agaist ibm for the high failure rate of those drives !!

[sptw]

Hi rookie.

Let's try to chek step by step ok?

Put your 2* 30G GXP75 ibm on IDE3 and IDE4 as master each one.Go to the bios and on CMOS Setup Utility, check for first boot device as Floppy, second boot device as ATA100/ATA133 raid, third boot device as ATA100/ATA133.Next, go to Integrated Peripherals and check for ATA/133RAID IDE controller as enabled.Take <a href="http://www.storage.ibm.com/hdd/support/download.htm">Disk Manager 2000 (version 3.10.14)</a>.Choose "DownLoad Windows Diskette Version".Extract it to a floppy and boot using this diskette.Choose the first option and run a diagnostic program.Please, run the quick test, or it will take a long time.Check for both two hds.Check for the Error Code and first aid for your drive <a href="http://service.boulder.ibm.com/storage/hddtech/dft32ug.pdf">here</a>.If the cause of failure is due to a media error (for
example a bad write) then you will be presented with a screen as shown below giving the opportunity to run Erase Disk.NOTE – Erase Disk WILL delete all the data on your disk and it take a loooonnnng time :D.To make a partition and format your disks on Raid0 setup, choose the second option on this Windows Diskette Version.It's so easy to do.Forget Fdisk and format commands.

I hope this help you.

[rookie]

thanks guys, i'll give it a try spwt as one of the drive is still down at my local store where i got them-he said it passed the ibm diagostic check or whatever and there is nothing wrong with them!!! BUT i'll definetly give it a try ..my feeling are ,if i cant get them to in strip mode may be i'll use mirror mode.as security is very important -but then 30G of backup seems a lot of wasted space??!!!!
let u guys know next week how this turns out,oh any 1 got a cheap duron with HS ?? cash waiting....ta

[rostron1]

I'd certainly advise checking out some of IBM's hard drive utilities - follow sptw's link to IBM. They are faster, more user friendly (and safer) than FDisk. They've certainly solved a lot of problems for me!

[rookie]

Hi guys, im think of 2 things! 1) destroy these IBM HDS or begging my mates / brothers to swap their single Hd so i can find a matching pair of HDs..

Thnaks very much for your help -especially Sptw ,i did all that and it all seems A OK but it just wouldn't format. i tried Avanced Option where i set my own partition sizes AND the easy option too. BUT each time the formatting partition 1 hangs!?? sometimes it stops and the progress icon [/] stops with a blob and sometimes it just carries on for ever! i had it overnite and still its formatting parrtition 1 :o(... am i doing anything wrong here??

im now using just 1 drive -oh i did a low level format too (who cares if it dies!) that went ok BUT when i did a zero fill ,that hangs again!!! oh well,any1 suggest other brands? any other ideas....

thanks for reading and sharing these with me ...

[Oddjob]

Just as a matter of interest read this article I found about IBM HD's. I've got 2 30g in a Raid Array and haven't had a failure since I started cooling them. It may also be worth putting a small heatsink on the chip mentioned. If it avoids you having to RMA a drive in the future any step is worth while doing.
http://www.tweaktown.com/document.php?dType=article&dId=180

Oddjob

[sptw]

Hi rookie.

It is a media surface failure.I had the same problem with an IBM 75GXP a few months ago.I got a bad cluster, did a erase disk option, and when i tried to do a format operation, surprise, bad cluster again.The weird thing was that the DFT test showed the Hd was OK.To tell you the truth, this "Erase Disk" option, is not a "Low Level Format Operation", it only fills your Hd with 0(zero).I had to do the erase disk option twice.In the second time, i was able to do a format operation on disk.To check this, choose fast format when doing a format operation.If it pass, sure it is a bad cluster again, because in this way, the format command don't check for media surface.In my opinion you have a defective device.You have 3 options:
-Look for your warranty, and try to do a RMA on it.
-Try to do an Erase Disk option again, and don't forget,Don't use fast format operation, use normal format operation, instead.If it doesn't works, goes to the first option.RMA on it.
-If you lose your warranty, put it on a trash(sorry) and buy Maxtor or Western Digital.Sorry for this last option, but 75GXP and 60GXP have a serious issues.

I hope this help you rookie.

[rookie]

Hi guys! i returned the doggy ibm and nearly 1 month later i got one send back to me from Malaysia! im glad to say that it wasn't my old 1 phew!(it would have to go from Holland then to malaysia -starting from UK 1st of cos!)

but anyway, i'll be keeping you guys posted -or asking for more help more like :o) ! RAID here i come again....yeeeha