Understanding arrays, Terminology – Gateway 840 VT-100 User Manual

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Understanding arrays

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Understanding arrays

You can create an array at any time. The table below describes the drive
requirements for each RAID level.

Terminology

The following describes the terminology used when creating and managing
arrays.

RAID Level

Minimum No. of Drives

Maximum No. of Drives

0

1

12

1

2

12

5

3

12

50

6

12

10 (Mirrored)

4

12

Important

Before you create more than one array, you must be sure
that your host operating system supports multiple Logical
Unit Numbers (LUNs). Most operating systems do support
multiple LUNs, or have an option for it. If your operating
system does not support multiple LUNs, the host will only
be able to see one array at the first disk LUN.

Term

Description

Array

A group of drives that are combined together to create a
single large storage area. Up to 64 arrays are supported,
each containing up to 12 drives per array. There is no limit
for the drive size in the arrays.

Chunk Size

This is the amount of data that is written on a single drive
before the controller moves to the next drive in the stripe.

Stripe Size

This is the number of data drives multiplied by the chunk
size.

Cache Flush Array

This is the array that is used to automatically flush cache
data in the situation where power has failed to some of the
drives.

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