AMITY UNIVERSITY, RAJASTHAN

Amity School of Engineering

Submitted by: Renu Sharma

RAID

Class: B.Tech (CSE), 3rd Sem

Session: 2015-2019

Broad Area: Computer Hardware & Software, Data Storage, Network Servers

ABSTRACT
RAID stands for (Redundant Array of Independent) or Inexpensive Disks. It involves the
configuration (setting up) of two or more hard disk drives in combination for fault tolerance and
performance. RAID disk drives originally were only used on servers in enterprise locations. Now
with the advent of gaming and videos, RAID systems are found in home and office personal
computers.
RAID is a method of creating one or more stores of data storage space from several hard drives. It
can offer fault tolerance and higher throughput levels than a single hard drive or group of
independent hard drives. You can build a RAID configuration with IDE (parallel ATA), SATA
(Serial ATA) or SCSI hard disks. Dell is shipping computers pre-configured with RAID 0 arrays
for high output gaming and video applications. The problem with RAID 0 is if one drives goes,
thats it! The data is lost. RAID 0 data recovery is the absolute toughest data recovery situation.
The exact meaning of RAID has been much debated and much argued. The use of Redundant
is, in itself, a contentious point. That several manufacturers have deviated from accepted RAID
terminology, created new levels of disk arrangements, called them RAID, and christened them
with a number has not helped. There are even some single disk RAID configurations! Double
parity, RAID 1.5, Matrix RAID etc., are examples of proprietary RAID configurations. One of the
key players in NAS devices SNAP has a very proprietary system of RAID. SNAP OS is also a
unique operating system. While based on Free BSD, it is still a very complex recovery.
Data can be distributed across a RAID array using either hardware, software or a combination
of the two. Hardware RAID is usually achieved either on-board on some server class
motherboards or via an add-on card, using an ISA/PCI slot. Newer motherboards that use SATA
technology have RAID controllers on board.
A RAID 0 (also known as a stripe set or striped volume) splits data evenly across two or more
disks (striped) with no parity information for redundancy. It is important to note that RAID 0 was
not one of the original RAID levels and provides zero data redundancy. RAID 0 is normally used
to increase performance, although it can also be used as a way to create a small number of large
virtual disks out of a large number of small physical ones.
A RAID 1 creates an exact copy (or mirror) of a set of data on two or more disks. This is useful
when performance read or reliability are more important than data storage capacity. Such an array
can only be as big as the smallest member disk. A classic RAID 1 mirrored pair contains two
disks (see diagram), which increases reliability exponentially over a single disk. Since each

member contains a complete copy of the data, and can be addressed independently, ordinary
wear-and-tear reliability is raised by the power of the number of self-contained copies.
A RAID 5 uses block-level striping with parity data distributed across all member disks. RAID 5
has achieved popularity due to its low cost of redundancy. Generally, RAID 5 is implemented
with hardware support for parity calculations. A minimum of 3 disks is generally required for a
complete RAID 5 configuration (A RAID 5 two disk set is possible, but many implementations do
not allow for this. In some implementations a degraded disk set can be made (3 disk set of which
2 are online). When it comes to RAID 5 Data Recovery, DTI only needs to recover 2 of the 3
drives (if it is a 3 disk set) to get the files back!
Many storage controllers allow RAID levels to be nested.
Common nested RAID levels:
RAID 01: A mirror of stripes
RAID 10: A stripe of mirrors
RAID 50: A stripe across dedicated parity RAID systems
RAID 51: A mirror striped set with distributed parity (some manufacturers label this as RAID 53)
RAID 100: A stripe of a stripe of mirrors

Advantages of RAID
1. RAID allows form of backup of the data in the storage array in the event of a failure.
2. In event failure, if one of the drives fails then either drive swapped out for a new drive
without turning the systems off also known as hot swappable OR the redundant drive
could be used.
3. Ensures data reliability, increase in Input Output performance and
shadowing/Mirroring at a lower cost.
4. Increase the parity check and regularly checks for any possible system crash.
5. Provides Disk Stripping to write data to disk, which improves performance by the
interleaving of the bytes or the group of bytes.
6. Disk Stripping make multiple smaller disks look like one large disk
7. Reading and Writing of data done at simultaneously.
8. Mirroring for 100% duplication of data on two drives.
9. Mirroring offers parity check to ensure data from crashed system be matched with the
data stored on to the other disk.

Disadvantages of RAID
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RAID doesnt make data recovery any easier.

RAID cannot completely protect your data.
RAID doesnt always result in improved system performance.
Costly, must purchase and maintain RAID the controllers and dedicated hard drives
Have to be maintained by highly paid consultants.
They may slower the system performance if not used properly
RAID is not data protection, but to increase access speed
If your data is not being backed up offsite, security is still concerned

Types of RAID
Software-based RAID
Primarily used with entry-level servers, software-based arrays rely on a standard host adapter and
execute all I/O commands and mathematically intensive RAID algorithms in the host server CPU.
This can slow system performance by increasing host PCI bus traffic, CPU utilization, and CPU
interrupts. Some NOSs such as NetWare and Windows NT include embedded RAID software.
The chief advantage of this embedded RAID software has been its lower cost compared to higherpriced RAID alternatives. However, this advantage is disappearing with the advent of lower-cost,
bus-based array adapters.
ADVANTAGES

1. Low price
2. Only requires a standard controller.
Hardware-based RAID
Unlike software-based arrays, bus-based array adapters/controllers plug into a host bus slot
[typically a 133 MByte (MB)/sec PCI bus] and offload some or all of the I/O commands and
RAID operations to one or more secondary processors. Originally used only with mid- to highend servers due to cost, lower-cost bus-based array adapters are now available specifically for
entry-level server network applications.
In addition to offering the fault-tolerant benefits of RAID, bus-based array adapters/controllers
perform connectivity functions that are similar to standard host adapters. By residing directly on a
host PCI bus, they provide the highest performance of all array types. Bus-based arrays also
deliver more robust fault-tolerant features than embedded NOS RAID software.
As newer, high-end technologies such as Fiber Channel become readily available, the
performance advantage of bus-based arrays compared to external array controller solutions may
diminish.
ADVANTAGES

1. Data protection and performance benefits of RAID

2. More robust fault-tolerant features and increased performance versus software-based
RAID.
External Hardware RAID Card
Intelligent external array controllers "bridge" between one or more server I/O interfaces and
single- or multiple-device channels. These controllers feature an on-board microprocessor, which

provides high performance and handles functions such as executing RAID software code and
supporting data caching.
External array controllers offer complete operating system independence, the highest availability,
and the ability to scale storage to extraordinarily large capacities (up to a terabyte and beyond).
These controllers are usually installed in networks of standalone Intel-based and UNIX-based
servers as well as clustered server environments.
ADVANTAGES

1. OS independent
2. Build super high-capacity storage systems for high-end servers.

REFERENCES
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http://www.easeus.com/resource/software-based-raid-data-recovery.htm
http://www.hightech-post.com/2011/06/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-raid.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAID
http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Software-RAID-0.4x-HOWTO-2.html
http://www.computerweekly.com/news/1367590/Software-RAID-vs-hardware-RAIDPros-and-cons