Need help with RAID setup (Antec NexStar)

[CubsWin]

I posted a few days ago about backing up recordings. Based on the feedback received in that thread, I decided that a RAID 1 external drive setup would be the best way to ensure my recordings are safe.

I read through some other threads and found that people have had good experiences with Antec enclosures, so I bought the Antec NexStar MX NST-400MXS3R and 2 identical 2 TB Seagate HDD's. The problem is I can't seem to get RAID to work. I have inserted both drives into the enclosure and set the jumper to RAID 1. When I transfer recordings, they are only getting saved to the first HDD and never get mirrored to the second.

Is there something special I need to do to get the drives to work in RAID 1? What I did was inserted one drive into the enclosure and allowed my Hopper 3 to format it. Then I removed that drive and inserted the second drive and allowed the Hopper 3 to format that one. Then I put them both in the enclosure together. No matter what order I insert the drives, the first drive is the only one that ever gets written to.

Should I have done something else? Do the drives need to be in a certain state before inserting them into the enclosure for RAID to work with the Hopper 3? Does anyone have specific experience with the Antec NexStar enclosures who could tell me what steps you followed that worked for you? Thank you!

 

[Cheddar_Head]

I believe the mistake was in allowing the Hopper3 to format the HD on an individual basis. When using hardware RAID the RAID controller works as the interface to the Hopper3. The RAID controller puts a signature on the drives that marks them as part of a RAID set.

Try this:

1) Reformat the drives using a computer as NTFS or anything else.
2) Place the drives into the enclosure
3) Configure the RAID 1 set, this should trigger a RAID build which will configure the drives for use in a RAID set.
4) Connect the enclosure with drives to the Hopper3 and allow the Hopper3 to format

You should then have a RAID 1, mirrored drive setup.

 

[CubsWin]

I believe the mistake was in allowing the Hopper3 to format the HD on an individual basis.

You were right, but there was one other issue that I had to get resolved. I went back and followed your instructions, but even Windows was still detecting the drives individually instead of as one mirrored drive. What I finally figured out is that there is a poorly documented Reset button on the enclosure that needs to be held down after changing jumper settings in order for the new settings to take effect. After I did that, Windows detected a single drive. Then I connected the enclosure back to the Hopper 3 and it formatted it correctly as one drive. Everything seems to be working fine now. Thank you for your help!

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