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RAID (redundant array of independent disks)

Show me everything on RAID

Word of the Day

- W hat is RAID?

RAID (redundant array of independent disks; originally redundant array of

inexpensive disks) is a way of storing the same data in different places
(thus, redundantly) on multiple hard disks. By placing data on multiple disks,
I/O (input/output) operations can overlap in a balanced way, improving
performance. Since multiple disks increases the mean time between failures
(MTBF), storing data redundantly also increases fault tolerance.

Ask your RAID questions at ITKnowledgeExchange.com

A RAID appears to the operating system to be a single logical hard disk.

RAID employs the technique of disk striping, which involves partitioning each
drive's storage space into units ranging from a sector (512 bytes) up to RAID
several megabytes. The stripes of all the disks are interleaved and NEWS, TIPS & MORE
addressed in order.
Aging RAID still an effective ... (MAGAZINE FEATURE)
In a single-user system where large records, such as medical or other Erasure codes: The foundation of RAID 6 arrays (TIP)
scientific images, are stored, the stripes are typically set up to be small Self-healing systems and RAID technology (TIP)
Managing data storage capacity on RAID (TIP)
(perhaps 512 bytes) so that a single record spans all disks and can be VIEW MORE
accessed quickly by reading all disks at the same time.
VENDOR CONTENT
In a multi-user system, better performance requires establishing a stripe A Better RAID Strategy for High Capacity Drives in
wide enough to hold the typical or maximum size record. This allows Mainframe Storage (WHITE PAPER)
overlapped disk I/O across drives. Advanced Disk Solutions for Dummies (BOOK)
Solving the Problem of Persistent Data Retention (WHITE
There are at least nine types of RAID plus a non-redundant array (RAID-0): PAPER)
E-Guide:Â Best of 2010: The 10 Web Pages Most Read by
RAID-0: This technique has striping but no redundancy of data. It UK-based IT Pros (EGUIDE)
VIEW MORE
offers the best performance but no fault-tolerance.
RAID-1: This type is also known as disk mirroring and consists of at SEE ALSO
least two drives that duplicate the storage of data. There is no Related Topics:
striping. Read performance is improved since either disk can be read RAID , Disk arrays, Disk drives, Solid-State Storage
at the same time. Write performance is the same as for single disk Site Highlights:
What's your storage FAQ?
storage. RAID-1 provides the best performance and the best fault-
Not an Enterprise?
tolerance in a multi-user system.
RAID-2: This type uses striping across disks with some disks storing GET E-MAIL UPDATES
error checking and correcting (ECC) information. It has no advantage Submit your e-mail below to receive Storage-related news,
over RAID-3. tech tips and more, delivered to your inbox.
RAID-3: This type uses striping and dedicates one drive to storing
RAID
parity information. The embedded error checking (ECC) information is
used to detect errors. Data recovery is accomplished by calculating Primary Storage/Hardware
the exclusive OR (XOR) of the information recorded on the other E-mail:
drives. Since an I/O operation addresses all drives at the same time, Not a member? We'll activate your FREE
RAID-3 cannot overlap I/O. For this reason, RAID-3 is best for membership with your subscription.
single-user systems with long record applications.
RAID-4: This type uses large stripes, which means you can read
records from any single drive. This allows you to take advantage of
overlapped I/O for read operations. Since all write operations have to
update the parity drive, no I/O overlapping is possible. RAID-4 offers
Search RAID (redundant array of independent disks) at
no advantage over RAID-5. SearchStorage
RAID-5: This type includes a rotating parity array, thus addressing the
write limitation in RAID-4. Thus, all read and write operations can be
overlapped. RAID-5 stores parity information but not redundant data
(but parity information can be used to reconstruct data). RAID-5
requires at least three and usually five disks for the array. It's best for

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What is RAID (redundant array of independent disks)? - Definition fro... http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid5_gci214332,00.html

multi-user systems in which performance is not critical or which do few

write operations.
RAID-6: This type is similar to RAID-5 but includes a second parity
scheme that is distributed across different drives and thus offers
extremely high fault- and drive-failure tolerance.
RAID-7: This type includes a real-time embedded operating system as
a controller, caching via a high-speed bus, and other characteristics of
a stand-alone computer. One vendor offers this system.
RAID-10: Combining RAID-0 and RAID-1 is often referred to as
RAID-10, which offers higher performance than RAID-1 but at much
higher cost. There are two subtypes: In RAID-0+1, data is organized
as stripes across multiple disks, and then the striped disk sets are
mirrored. In RAID-1+0, the data is mirrored and the mirrors are
striped.
RAID-50 (or RAID-5+0): This type consists of a series of RAID-5
groups and striped in RAID-0 fashion to improve RAID-5 performance
without reducing data protection.
RAID-53 (or RAID-5+3): This type uses striping (in RAID-0 style) for
RAID-3's virtual disk blocks. This offers higher performance than
RAID-3 but at much higher cost.
RAID-S (also known as Parity RAID): This is an alternate, proprietary
method for striped parity RAID from EMC Symmetrix that is no longer
in use on current equipment. It appears to be similar to RAID-5 with
some performance enhancements as well as the enhancements that
come from having a high-speed disk cache on the disk array.

Learn more about RAID

Post-RAID products: Some industry observers believe the scale of storage has
outpaced RAID's usefulness as a data protection mechanism.

RAID 6 vs. RAID 10: Rick Cook outlines the most efficient uses of RAID 6 and
RAID 10.

Learn all about RAID storage: This handbook describes the different levels of
RAID technology and explains how storage administrators can choose the
appropriate RAID level.

RAID level comparison chart: A free download: In this RAID level comparison
chart, the most important RAID levels are defined, along with information about
the pros and cons of each RAID level.

How RAID storage systems protect your application data: RAID storage systems
improve application performance and data availability. Learn about RAID levels
and choosing the right RAID technology.

The evolution of RAID data protection: RAID has evolved in the last 20 years, but
the core concept of combining drives to protect data lives on regardless of the
methods used.

A failed RAID drive needs immediate attention: This tip emphasizes the
importance of replacing a failed RAID drive immediately and the possible
consequences of not doing so in a timely manner.

A guide on RAID storage devices for beginners: In our guide on RAID storage
devices, learn how to chose the best RAID storage system, download our chart
on RAID levels and take our RAID data storage quiz.

RAID data storage for beginners: A RAID quiz: Think you know everything about
RAID data storage? Take our quiz and find out.

RAID level comparison chart: A free download: In this RAID level comparison
chart, the most important RAID levels are defined, along with information about
the pros and cons of each RAID level.

Using a storage partition in your data storage infrastructure: Learn about the
common use cases for a storage partition in a data storage infrastructure, as well
as the differences between a storage partition and a logical unit number (LUN).

The pros and cons of RAID disk arrays in small business data storage
environments: RAID is commonly used in many data storage environments for
added data protection, however there are several drawbacks when using RAID.

CONTRIBUTORS: Con Diamantis and Yoshinobu Yamamura

LAST UPDATED: 20 Dec 2010

Do you have something to add to this definition? Let us know.

Send your comments to techterms@whatis.com

More resources from around the web:

- Storage Networking expert Christopher Poelker answers your questions
about RAID.

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