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Here is the link to HighPoint:
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.highpoint-tech.com/USA/bios_rr133.htm">http://www.highpoint-tech.com/USA/bios_rr133.htm</a><br>
<br>
My board is a Abit BE7-RAID.<br>
<br>
Todd<br>
<br>
Bryan J. Smith wrote:
<blockquote
cite="mid1126245528.6192.5.camel@bert64.oviedo.smithconcepts.com"
type="cite">
<pre wrap="">On Thu, 2005-09-08 at 19:26 -0700, Todd Cary wrote:
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">I have RH 8 running on a Abit BE7-RAID motherboard. My task is
installing Centos 4.1 with limited knowledge on installing with hardware
RAID.
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->
It is _not_ hardware RAID, but FRAID (i.e., 100% software).
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">The arrays are still in place for the two pairs of drives.
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->
Understand by "array" you are talking about "regular looking ATA drives"
that have a specific disk organization the FRAID (100% software) driver
can understand.
You either need to load an equivalent software driver under Linux (which
may or may not be possible), or use the newer kernel 2.6 LVM2-DM (Device
Mapper) which now has some FRAID meta-data support. I've found both to
be largely _broken_ and untrustworthy in general, but I'm hopeful for
the latter in the future.
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">HighPoint only shows drivers up through RH 9.
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->
Correct, because the vendor has produced 100% proprietary, binary-only
modules for _specific_ kernel versions. There is no GPL driver, there
is _no_ general, linkable driver (AFAICT). FRAID has always suffered,
and will always suffer, from the fact that 100% of the RAID logic is in
the software, and that software is almost always licensed from a 3rd
party and proprietary.
The Device Mapper approach is interesting though. Instead of relying on
the vendor's proprietary driver/logic, it can read the meta-data and use
the generic software RAID built in the Linux kernel -- by-passing any
need for the proprietary FRAID software/logic.
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Is there anyone who can take me through the steps? Remove the existing
arrays? Will the drivers work with Centos 4.1?
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->
The drivers won't even work on Fedora Core and even some newer Red Hat
Linux kernel updates.
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Since I used Windows to download the HighPoint tar file for RH 9,
I am not what I should do with it.
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->
Can you send me a link? I'd be interested in knowing what they offer.
</pre>
</blockquote>
<br>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Ariste Software
200 D Street Ext
Petaluma, CA 94952
(707) 773-4523
</pre>
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