On Sun, Feb 22, 2009 at 7:05 PM, Ian Forde <ian@duckland.org> wrote:
RAID in software, whether RAID1 or RAID5/6, always has manual steps
involved in recovery.  If one is using standardized hardware, such as HP
DL-x80 hardware or Dell x950 boxes, HW RAID obviates the need for a
"recovery procedure".  It's just easier.  You can still boot from a
single drive, since that's what the bootloader sees.  There are no
vendor instructions or utilities needed for recovery.  Nor is there a
backup controller needed. 

If I have to do hardware raid, I'll definitely spec in a backup controller. Learnt this the hard way when my raid 5 controller died years after I first got it and I could no longer find a replacement.

For high budget projects, having the extra raid controller as insurance isn't a big deal. But for most budget setup and cost conscious clients, soft raid obviates that hardware dependency.