adding a hard drive to an existing software raid array

iammisc · 02-28-2006, 11:38 PM

Let's say I have a Software RAID 5 array. Can I turn off the computer, add a new hard disk and add it to the raid 5 array and then run mkraid again or something?

If so, how should I go about adding a new drive to an existing raid 5 array?

Thanks.

WhatsHisName · 03-01-2006, 01:18 AM

If you are referring to mdadm raids, you can only change the number of active devices in a software raid1 using the mdadm Grow Mode (option -G or --grow).

At some time in the future, it is anticipated that you will be able to change the number of active devices in a software raid5, but it isn’t currently implemented.

To add an extra drive as an active device to your raid5, you will need to start from scratch and rebuild the raid5 with the extra active device.

iammisc · 03-01-2006, 06:47 PM

If i rebuild the raid 5, will my old data still be there?

WhatsHisName · 03-01-2006, 07:08 PM

Not in a usable form.

You will need to backup and restore your files.