RAID configuration problem - Repost

Question

My original post was deleted by the moderators - for what reason I do not know. Here goes again...

I have just put a second SATA HD in my brand new Dimesion e520.

The original drive is a 320GB WDC (0)
The new drive is a 320GB Hitachi (1)

I have (the pre-installed) Vista on HD0 and I have installed Linux (Fedora Core 6) on HD1.

Naturally I DON'T want RAID - I want to have Windows on one drive and Linux on the other.

The problem is this:

If I leave the factory default setting of " RAID On" in the BIOS, I get a screen at boot time with a page of info and something like:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RAID Volumes
None Defined

Physical Disks:
Port Drive Model Serial# Size Type/Status
0 WDC WD3200KS XXXXXXXXX 298.1GB Non-RAID Disk
1 HITACHI HDT72503 XXXXXXXXX 298.1GB Non-RAID Disk
Press to enter Configuration Utility...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That stays on screen for about 30 seconds and then eventually goes into my bootloader from which I can boot quite happily into either Vista or Linux.
30 seconds may not seem long but it is a real pain to me! During that time you appear to be able to do nothing but wait... (no combination of keys that I have found will move it along).

If I change the BIOS setting to " RAID Autodetect / ATA" then the annoying configuration screen goes away - it goes straight into my bootloader - BUT I can't boot either Vista or Linux; they both report some sort of error or corruption.

How do I make the annoying RAID screen go away?

Thank you in advance for any help...

consolit · Answer

You've already answered your own question. You've already also diagnosed the possable what issue will arrise if you start with raid disabled in bios.   No matter what you'll have to wait that time until you move on.   Another option is to virtualize the linux or winOS while your running one or the other. This way you have accesss to both OS's at the same time. This in my opinion is the ultimate way to work.

Arthur_Dent_FLR · Answer

Well OK - But why is this screen / delay necessary? Why can I not simply say that I don't want raid and have the system treat them as two independent drives (as with IDE)? What exactly is the purpose of this screen?   Thanks to all   Mark   p.s. It's actually 35 seconds! (seems longer...)

ejn63 · Answer

You can, but what you'll need to do is set the BIOS to the autodetect/ATA and reload both operating systems.

Arthur_Dent_FLR · Answer

Thanks.   It's not the answer I was hoping for. You're supposed to say ' Oh sure - just load the fixthis.exe app and press the big green button marked 'Stop the silly screen from appearing' and all will be well in the world.'   I'm not sure I can face re-installing Vista from scratch and, even though Linux is easy, I've already invested quite a lot of time in setting it up how I want it...   Sigh...   Thanks anyway.   Mark   ps. (You're quite sure there isn't a big green button anywhere?...)

consolit · Answer

The screen is simply informational.

Arthur_Dent_FLR · Answer

But why can't I decide I don't want to see the information?

Arthur_Dent_FLR · Answer

OK Chaps, I've been thinking about this. I am begining to think that perhaps I will set the BIOS to "autodetect/ATA" and re-install both Vista and Linux.

I know it may be a little Off-Topic for this sub-forum, but does anyone know if the "Restore Dell Factory Image" will still work if I do change to "autodetect / ATA"?

It seems to me that this could be a good way to reinstall Vista. I'm not worried about re-installing Linux because I can do that easily.

I'm sorry but I find a 35 second delay each time I boot, to be unacceptable in a brand new high-speed PC.

Thanks for all your help so far...

Mark

Arthur_Dent_FLR · Answer

UPDATE   Well no-one replied so I went ahead and tried it anyway. I changed the BIOS setting to 'autodetect / ATA' and went through the 'Restore Dell Factory Image' routine. It seemed to work fine and I got quite excited - 'how easy is this?!' I thought to myself.   Unfortunately my hope was short-lived. On rebooting, Vista failed to load with a message something like 'Please Insert Disk' (or similar). Sigh...   So I dug out the installation disks and re-installed Vista from scratch. I was tempted to just wipe the drive a stick with Linux only, but I have paid (unwillingly) for Vista in the price of the PC and the mean part of me figured that if I've paid for it I should have it - even though I am never likely to use it much (except to remind myself why I use Linux!).   Anyway, I have just completed re-installing and re-configuring the Linux OS too and now everything works just fine - with no delay on boot-up.   So long and thanks for all the fish...   Thanks to all   Mark

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RAID configuration problem - Repost

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