User Guide

NVIDIA Corporation 69

HAPTER 3

Using the NVIDIA MediaShield RAID Management Utility

Migrating From One RAID Array to Another

In a traditional RAID environment, when a user wants to change the current state of a

disk or a current array to a new RAID configuration, the process of reconfiguring the new

array involves multiple steps. The user must back up the data, delete the array, re-boot the

PC, and then reconfigure the new array.

MediaShield RAID allows the end user to change the current state of the disk or array to

another with a one-step process called ʺMigratingʺ. This section describes the NVIDIA

Migrating process and explains how to use Migrating to convert from one RAID array

type to another.

General Migrating Principles

MediaShield RAID includes extensive support for migrating, a process of converting from

one RAID mode to another RAID mode.

General Requirements and Limitations

• The new array capacity must be equal to or greater than the previous array.

For example, it is possible to migrate from a RAID 1 array to a RAID 0 array as long as

the RAID 0 array is the same size as (or larger than) the RAID 1 array.

• You cannot migrate

• To or from a JBOD (Spanning) array

• From RAID 1 to RAID 1

• From RAID 0+1 to RAID 1

• From RAID 5 to 1

• Free disks used for migrating must be no smaller than any of the current disks in the

array.