From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Fri Apr 29 15:16:40 2011 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 64D67106566B for ; Fri, 29 Apr 2011 15:16:40 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from freebsd-questions@m.gmane.org) Received: from lo.gmane.org (lo.gmane.org [80.91.229.12]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id E79B28FC19 for ; Fri, 29 Apr 2011 15:16:39 +0000 (UTC) Received: from list by lo.gmane.org with local (Exim 4.69) (envelope-from ) id 1QFpQs-00084Z-3U for freebsd-questions@freebsd.org; Fri, 29 Apr 2011 17:16:38 +0200 Received: from pool-173-79-85-36.washdc.fios.verizon.net ([173.79.85.36]) by main.gmane.org with esmtp (Gmexim 0.1 (Debian)) id 1AlnuQ-0007hv-00 for ; Fri, 29 Apr 2011 17:16:37 +0200 Received: from nightrecon by pool-173-79-85-36.washdc.fios.verizon.net with local (Gmexim 0.1 (Debian)) id 1AlnuQ-0007hv-00 for ; Fri, 29 Apr 2011 17:16:37 +0200 X-Injected-Via-Gmane: http://gmane.org/ To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org From: Michael Powell Followup-To: gmane.os.freebsd.questions Date: Fri, 29 Apr 2011 11:19:20 -0400 Lines: 37 Message-ID: References: <4DB9E68B.2000908@wp.pl> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7Bit X-Complaints-To: usenet@dough.gmane.org X-Gmane-NNTP-Posting-Host: pool-173-79-85-36.washdc.fios.verizon.net Subject: Re: Drive selection for gmirror X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Fri, 29 Apr 2011 15:16:40 -0000 Ireneusz Pluta wrote: > Hello, > > when selecting SATA drives for gmirror, boot device, connected to an > on-board controller, should I look for so-called "enterprise grade", or > "raid edition" drives (like for instance > http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=40), or I should rather > focus on models closer to "consumer grade"? Will gmirror configuration > significantly benefit from things like TLER, or it would rather be > harmful, like when using these disks as single ones in desktop > applications? > This is an overly broad generalization, but I would tend to match RE drives with expensive hardware-only RAID controllers. They are touchy and really designed with TLER in mind. On the other end of the spectrum is a pure software RAID such as gmirror. I don't know all that much about the innards but I believe a pure software RAID run on JBOD will work with consumer grade drives just fine most of the time. The in-between caveat is the so-called 'fakeraid' sets of controllers. These are what you're most likely to find as a cheap 'feature-add' on a consumer desktop motherboard. Things like Intel RAID Matrix and such are known not to work well with non-Windows environments. However, much of the time these will still work fine if RAID functionality is turned off in BIOS and the connected drives are JBOD, with a pure software RAID applied instead of trying to utilize the motherboard BIOS RAID. My web development server at home has a pair of Raptors on an ICH5 controller with gmirror and has been completely trouble free for about a year now. I'd stay away from the "Green" drives that spin down all the time. Even a pure software RAID solution is likely not going to be happy with them. -Mike