2-HDD RAID System for 2.5” SATA HDD Air-light enough and connectable anywhere! User’s Manual USB 2.
Table of Contents PRECAUTIONS FOR THE RAID UNIT ..............................................................................4 GENERAL PRECAUTIONS ......................................................................................................................................4 RAID UNIT PRECAUTIONS ....................................................................................................................................4 INTRODUCTION ..........................................................
JBOD (NONE RAID) ............................................................................................................................................... 35 eSATA PCI EXPRESS CARD INSTALLATION .................................................................. 36 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................................................................. 36 HARDWARE INSTALLATION .................................................................
PRECAUTIONS FOR THE RAID UNIT GENERAL PRECAUTIONS The main circuit board of the RAID Unit is susceptible to static electricity. Proper grounding is required to prevent electrical damage to the RAID Unit or other connected devices, including the host computer. Always place the RAID Unit on a smooth surface and avoid all dramatic movement, vibration and percussion. Do NOT allow water to enter the RAID Unit.
INTRODUCTION Thank you for purchasing the 2.5-inch 2-HDD RAID System. The 2.5-inch 2HDD RAID System with RAID MASTER (Graphic User Interface) provides considerable storage capacity with general high-tech RAID configuration options in a desktop storage device. The RAID MASTER allows easy configuration of RAID Modes: JBOD (None RAID), RAID 0 (Striping), RAID 1 (Mirroring), and Span (Large). Please read thoroughly and follow the instructions provided in this manual.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENT To use the 2.5-inch 2-HDD RAID System, the minimum system configuration in the host computer require the following: PC 266MHz or faster CPU (Windows Vista requires a minimum 800MHz CPU) 64MB of RAM (Windows Vista requires 512MB of RAM) Microsoft Windows 2000, XP, 2003, Vista, 2008, 7, or higher One available USB 2.0, eSATA, or IEEE 1394b port MAC Macintosh PowerPC or Intel processors 64MB of RAM (Mac OS X 10.4 requires 256MB of RAM) Mac OS X 10.4 (Intel) or higher One available USB 2.
SYSTEM UNIT VIEWS FRONT VIEW DC IN Power Switch eSATA FireWire 800 LED Panel USB Power Disk2 Disk1 The status indication of each LED indicator is listed under the LED INDICATORS section.
BOTTOM VIEW PACKAGE CONTENTS RS-S2TJ USB cable FireWire cable eSATA cable Power Adapter 4 HDD Screws Quick Start Guide CD Slip Bag Please keep all package contents and packaging material in the event that the product must be returned.
INSERTING/REPLACING THE HARD DRIVES IN THE RAID UNIT To assemble the RAID Unit, please follow the steps listed in the instructions below: 1. Place the RAID Unit with its Bottom View facing you. Unfasten all four (4) Casing Screws with a Phillips screwdriver. Afterwards, turn the RAID Unit to its Cover side. 2. Lift the Cover upward to remove it. When opened, the PCBA boards (Printed Circuit Board) should be securely in place inside the RAID Unit.
FASTEN THE HDD PLACEMENT HOLDER ONTO THE HDDS 3. Unfasten the HDD Screw from the HDD Placement Holder(s) to remove from the Bottom casing. 4. Position the HDD Placement Holder onto the HDD end, facing away from the interface connectors and aligned with the screw hole openings. Fasten the HDD Placement Holder onto the HDD by inserting and tightening two (2) HDD Screws on both ends of the HDD Placement Holder. Repeat Steps 3 and 4 for the other HDD.
5. Carefully insert the SATA connector of the HDD into the slot on the PCBA board until it’s firmly connected, ensuring that the hard drive and HDD Placement Holder’s alignment are properly situated. Then, re-fasten and tighten the HDD Screw previously removed from the HDD Placement Holder and the casing. Repeat the same procedure for the other HDD. 6. Place the RAID Unit facing you. Align the Cover according to the appropriate interface opening gaps and place it on the RAID Unit.
7. Once the Cover is placed on the RAID Unit, use both hands to firmly hold and turn the RAID Unit to its Bottom View. Find the four (4) Casing Screws previously taken out before and re-fasten them in the appropriate screw holes.
CONNECTING THE RAID UNIT TO A COMPUTER To connect the RAID Unit, please complete the following steps: 1. Connect the AC/DC Power Adapter to the RAID Unit. If need to change the Adapter Head, press the click release to slide off the existing Adapter Head from the AC/DC Adapter. Then, replace it with a different Adapter Head in the same manner. Press here to release the clip 2. Insert both ends of the USB 2.0, eSATA, or FireWire 800 cable(s) into the corresponding port of the RAID Unit and the host.
3. Press the Power Switch to “turn on” the RAID Unit. The RAID Unit can also be powered by using only the FireWire 800 cable, without the AC/DC Adapter. Press the Power Switch for at least 3 seconds when shutting down the RAID Unit. 4. When connected, the Power LED light will become steadily white, and the Disk LED lights will become blue and flash until the HDDs are detected.
RAID MASTER The RAID MASTER is a newly-designed GUI Software specifically for our DataTale AIR. The drivers of the RAID MASTER for both PC and Mac are provided via CD included in the Package. The RAID MASTER gives a more convenient yet modern way to manage your RAID Unit. INSTALLATION To install the RAID Master via CD, please insert the CD included in the package. And select the appropriate driver based on your host system’s OS, copy the driver onto your Desktop.
RAID MASTER MENU o o o o CONFIGURATION & REBUILD: Shows a single connected RAID unit, or multiple connected RAID Units. Supports RAID configurations under Configuration and Rebuild options Provides HDD(s)’ current RAID status Indicates individual HDD(s)’ current disk information DEVICE INFORMATION: o Provides the basic information of the RAID Unit itself, once the RAID Unit is connected to the host: the Device’s information, and serial number for each inserted HDDs.
RAID MASTER: OPERATION CREATE A RAID To setup RAID functions for the RAID Unit, please complete the following steps: Creating a new RAID mode will delete all data stored on the HDD(s). If you have important saved data in the hard drives, backup all data before formatting the RAID Mode. 1. Under the “Configuration” option tab, select the RAID mode preferred and click the “Create RAID/Apply” icon.
If the OS of the host can support more than 2TB HDD(s) storage capacities and the HDD(s) is/are over 2TB, remember to check the “Over 2TB” option under the “Configuration” option tab. Please see “Over 2TB” section under Q&As for more information. Please review the “DISK VOLUME OVER 2TB” section of the User’s Manual for OS support information. 2. Once selected, the RAID MASTER will give an alert popup window stating “all data on disk will be lost. Proceed?”. Click on “Yes” icon to confirm. 3.
CHANGING THE MOST RECENT ASSIGNED RAID MODE To change the most recent assigned RAID Mode for the inserted HDD(s) of the RAID Unit, please complete the following steps: Changing the RAID Mode will delete all data stored on the HDD(s). If you have important saved data in the hard drives, backup all data before changing the RAID Mode. 1. Under the “Configuration” option tab, select the RAID mode prefer changing to and click the “Create RAID/Apply” icon.
2. Once selected, the RAID MASTER will give an alert popup window stating, “all data on disk will be lost. Proceed?” Click on “Yes” icon to confirm. 3. Once confirmed, the RAID MASTER will begin processing the chosen RAID Mode onto the chosen HDD(s). Once the process is completed, the “RAID Status” and “Disk Information” should reflect the newly assigned RAID mode.
DELETING AN ASSIGNED RAID MODE To delete an assigned RAID Mode for the inserted HDD(s) of the RAID Unit, please complete the following steps: Deleting a RAID Mode will delete all data stored on the HDD(s). If you have important saved data in the hard drives, backup all data before deleting the RAID Mode. 1. Under the “Configuration” option tab, click the “Delete RAID” icon to change the HDD(s) into JBOD (None RAID) disks.
2. Once selected, the RAID MASTER will give an alert popup window stating, “all data on disk will be lost. Proceed?” Click on “Yes” icon to confirm. 3. Once confirmed, the RAID MASTER will begin erasing the old RAID Mode for the chosen HDD(s). Once the process is completed, the “RAID Status” and “Disk Information” should reflect the chosen HDD(s) as JBOD (None RAID).
REBUILD If one of the HDDs fails, the Disk LED will become red, and the rebuild function can be set up under RAID 1 mode. To setup Rebuild under RAID 1 mode, please complete the following steps: The use of identical HDDs from the same manufacturer, with the same capacity and RPM is highly recommended. 1. When the failed HDD is removed, a popup window stating “Attention! Hot Swap” will appear. Click on “Ok” icon to continue. 2. Another popup window will appear stating, “Attention! RAID 1 Degrade Mode”.
3. Then, the “Rebuild” option should appear. Continue by replacing the failed HDD with a functional HDD or inserting a New HDD in place of the one removed. The New HDD will show up as red “New” and “Not Config”. To rebuild the New HDD (the new functional HDD) with the data from the Old HDD (the remaining functional HDD) sector by sector, click on the “Rebuild ==>” icon. The New HDD may be inserted into either Disk 1 or Disk 2, because the Rebuild feature can be performed in either direction.
4. A popup window stating, “Copy Data From Disk 1 to Disk 2. All data in Disk 2 will be lost. Continue?” Click on the “Yes” icon to confirm. 5. During the rebuild, a “Rebuild Percentage” status window will appear and the information under “RAID Status” and “Disk Information” sections should reflect the same. If data is accessed while the chipset is processing the Rebuild task, the speed of data access may vary or decrease. Hence, data access of the HDD(s) during Rebuild is highly not recommended.
6. After the rebuild is completed, data from Old HDD will be copied onto the New HDD under RAID 1 mode. The Rebuild feature is only available under RAID 1 mode. If the “Rebuild” option tab is selected under any other RAID mode, a popup window will appear stating, “Attention! There should be two disks with at least one RAID 1 disk for Rebuild Mode.
MIXED RAID STATUSES When a New HDD that’s been formatted with a certain RAID mode in another RAID Unit (specifically DataTale AIR) and is placed into the current RAID Unit along with an existing HDD, a “Mixed RAID” status will result. Under this circumstance, the New HDD can be re-formatted as JBOD (None RAID) mode. To do so, please complete the following steps: 1. The New HDD will appear as “RAID 0 (Broken)”, or other variations depending on the situation for other RAID modes.
3. Once completed, the New HDD is ready to be used as JBOD or combined with the existing HDD under a chosen RAID mode.
DEVICE INFORMATION To retrieve Device Information for the inserted HDD(s) of the RAID Unit(s), please connect the RAID Unit(s) to the host and open the RAID MASTER. Once connected, click on the second sub-menu icon (bottom) to see the information: The connected RAID Unit(s) information with Device model of the RAID Unit(s), and serial numbers of each inserted HDDs.
NUMBER OF DISKS SUPPORTING EACH RAID MODE LED INDICATORS The LED Panel has a thin plastic film for protection. It may be removed if prefer having a clearer view.
EXTERNAL BOOTUP External Bootup may be required if the user has two different operating systems set up in both the host computer and the RAID Unit. PC The External Bootup with different interface: OS \ Interfaces USB 2.0 FireWire Windows No No DOS Yes No eSATA Yes Yes MAC The External Bootup varies with different platform and interfaces: eSATA Platform \ Interfaces USB 2.
DISK VOLUME OVER 2TB The 2+TB HDD support is determined by the chipset used in the device and the operating system itself. The RAID Unit supports and recognizes 2+TB HDDs, but the actual 2+TB support will vary depending on the different operating systems used. If the OS does not support over 2TB, you can still use the RAID Unit by NOT checking the “Over 2TB” option under the “Configuration” option tab.
RAID MODES A Redundant Array of Independent (or Inexpensive) Disks (RAID) is a system that utilizes multiple hard drives to share or replicate data among the disks. The benefit, depending on the selected RAID Mode (combinations of disks), is one or more of increased data integrity, fault-tolerance, throughput or capacity when compared to single drives. Deleting the current partition prior to changing RAID modes is highly recommended.
In Striping mode, if one disk in the RAID Unit fails, all data in installed disks will be lost. RAID 1 (MIRRORING) RAID 1 (Mirroring) consists of at least two drives storing duplicate copies of the same data. In this mode, the data is simultaneously written to two disks. Thus, the storage capacity of a two-disk array is combined into a single disk and the capacity is limited to the size of the smallest disk.
SPAN A E B F C G D H F Disk 1 Disk 2 JBOD (NONE RAID) Just a Bunch of Disks (JBOD) refers to a group of hard drives. In JBOD, the number of logical drives is equal to the number of physical drives. This mode allows the RAID Unit to operate as a multi-disk storage enclosure, but provides no data redundancy.
eSATA PCI EXPRESS CARD INSTALLATION Complete the steps provided in this section to install the eSATA PCI Express Card to use with the RAID Unit. The eSATA PCI Express Card provides a host computer with two Windows and Mac compatible eSATA ports. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS Windows 2000 or later 32-bit/64-bit OS Mac OS 10.4.x or later An available PCI-Express slot CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive HARDWARE INSTALLATION 1. Power “off” and unplug your computer. 2.
DRIVER INSTALLATION Follow the provided prompts to complete the driver installation. For the Windows system, the “Add New Hardware Wizard” will open automatically. Insert the installation CD included in the package, navigate to and open the installation file. For Mac OS, insert the installation CD and locate the Mac driver installation file. Follow the provided instructions to complete the driver installation. Please refer to User’s Manual under eSATA Host Card section on our website.
WINDOWS 2003 and XP: WINDOWS 2000: 38
Q&As GENERAL Q: How do I choose the proper RAID mode for my RAID Unit based on the tasks I need to perform? A: Since the RAID Unit is a “Mass Storage” device, which means its size capacity is sufficient for data management, the different RAID mode settings can help you administer the enormous data storage from the HDDs combination. It is highly recommended to choose the RAID mode based on what is the essential factor to complete your task.
HDD CAPACITY Q: I would like to format my hard drives with the FAT (a.k.a. File Allocation Table) format, which can be read and written by both Mac and PC. Is there any limitation on its capacity? A: Yes, please check the table below for reference.
OVER 2TB Q: What is the “Over 2TB” option for under PC’s version of RAID MASTER? A: The HDD(s)’ storage capacity can affect RAID Unit’s operation depending on your host’s PC OS. Some older PC OS can only function the RAID Unit under a particular size limitation (please see “DISK VOLUME OVER 2TB” for more information). If the host can support more than 2TB HDD(s) storage capacities and the HDD(s) is/are over 2TB, check the “Over 2TB” option under the “Configuration” option tab.
LINUX Q: Can I use this RAID system under Linux OS? A: Yes, but the RAID System must first be set up under Windows or MAC OS via USB 2.0 or FireWire connection before using it under Linux OS.
APPENDIX Model Name Interface Connector HDD Support Data Transfer Speed RAID Level LED Indicators System Material Power Supply Dimension Weight (without HDD) Certification 2.5” 2-HDD RAID System USB 2.0 / eSATA / FireWire 800 eSATA x 1, USB 2.0 x 1, 1394b x 2 2.5” SATA HDD* *Identical HDD recommended – same manufacturer, capacity and RPM (9.5mm or 12.5mm) eSATA: up to 3Gbit/sec 1394b: up to 800Mbit/sec USB 2.
