May 19, 2009
Welcome to this edition of The Computer Builder. In this issue, let's discuss what RAID is, and then understand the difference between IDE and SATA.
Term Of The Week
RAID - RAID stands for 'Redundant Array of Integrated Disks'. It is a technology for combining two or more hard disks to ensure they operate with increased speeds or data reliability. There are many RAID configurations - RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, etc.In RAID 0, for example, striped disks are used to distribute data across several disks in a way that gives improved speed and full capacity. However, all data on all disks will be lost if any one disk fails.
RAID 1, on the other hand, has mirrored disks which act as a real-time backup solution. Two (or more) disks each store exactly the same data, at the same time, and at all times. Data will not be lost as long as one disk survives. Total capacity of the array is simply the capacity of one disk.
Tip Of The Week
Here's some information on IDE and SATA. IDE is an older interconnection technology that connects hard disk drives or other storage devices to the motherboard. SATA stands for "Serial ATA" and is a much improved interconnection technology compared to IDE.If you're looking for a new hard drive, try to go for a SATA hard drive and equivalently, a SATA enabled motherboard. A pure IDE motherboard will not be able to take SATA hard drives, so do specify that you want a SATA enabled motherboard – these boards are also usually backwards compatible with IDE – meaning they can also accommodate IDE devices.
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