RAID question for new PC using ASRock FM2A88M Extreme4+ Motherboard

[BazzaG]

Hi,

I will be building a new PC & I am considering using a ASRock FM2A88M Extreme4+ Motherboard, AMD A8 7600 4-Core Processor housed in a Fractal Design Node 804 Mini Case.

The main reason for choosing the above mobo is that it has 8 x SATA3 ports and I would like setup a RAID5 configuration using the onboard RAID controller, thus:

SATA3_1 -> SATA3_6: HGST 3TB NAS drives,

SATA3_7: 64GB or 128GB SSD for OS (most likely Windows Server 2012) and programs

SATA3_8: Slimline Blu-Ray

The BIOS would be set to RAID, however, looking at the FM2A88M Extreme4+ manual it shows:

SATA IDE Combined Mode
This item is for SATA3_5, SATA3_6, SATA3_7 and SATA3_8 ports. Use this item to enable or disable SATA IDE combined mode. The default value is [Enabled]

Followed by the warning:
If you want to build RAID on SATA3_5, SATA3_6, SATA3_7 and SATA3_8 ports, please disable this item.

Given that SATA3 ports 5 & 6 would be part of the RAID5 configuration I'm concerned that the above setup will not work.

My question is therefore .... Will the above setup work OK?

Cheers
BazzaG...

[parsec]

Re: RAID question for new PC using ASRock FM2A88M Extreme4+ Motherboard

I think the term "combined mode" in SATA IDE Combined Mode is causing your question.

Combined in SATA IDE Combined Mode does not refer to combining multiple drives into a RAID array. Combined means the SATA ports can be used with both SATA drives, and IDE with PATA drives that use the older ribbon cables, or an IDE/PATA to SATA adapter. That option is an old compatibility option that is not compatible with RAID, as the warning you included confirms.

Just disable SATA IDE Combined Mode, and use RAID mode and it will work fine.

[BazzaG]

Re: RAID question for new PC using ASRock FM2A88M Extreme4+ Motherboard

Parsec,

Thanks muchly for your reply.

BazzaG...