If you're reading this you may already know Promise doesn't have linux "drivers". The problem is I would like to use the Promise controller on the motherboard of my server. The promise website has partial source code drivers (FastTrak 378 SATA) you can use to compile at OS install time? Has anyone tried this? If so, how did it go?
Once I backup whats on there now, I'd like to reinstall Centos without any Xen stuff built in. I had 2 vhosts on it before with Xen but would like to use VMware instead so I can have more hosts and a windows box too. The new OS will go on the new hard drives, hopefully configured in RAID-1 - care of the promise controller. Is this a good way to go or am I going to end up using dmraid anyway?

As it is now, there's a raid-1 array in the promise BIOS I set up (CTRL + F), but the Linux OS only sees 2 separate drives, no raiding. /dev/sda and /dev/sdb. Any ideas or help would be appreciated!

My understanding is that if it (the Promise card/chip) needs drivers, it is "fake RAID", & you might as well use Linux s/w RAID.

I can't afford (yet) true h/w RAID, nor the hassle to compile drivers for a "fake RAID" chip/card*; I just use Linux s/w RAID.


* I got seriously fooled by a "works w/ Linux" claim on a Highpoint RocketRAID 100 card a while back, & so I am using it as just another disk controller.