OWC Mercury Elite Pro Dock
Device Setup
7
2.2 RAID Settings
Changing the RAID Mode
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The RAID mode is controlled by a dial on the rear of the inner-chassis; see the assembly
instructions for information on how to access the inner chassis.
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The dial has four positions, each labeled with a different RAID mode. To change the RAID mode,
rotate the RAID dial using a paper clip or flat-head screwdriver (size SL2.5 or SL2 should work)
so that the arrow is pointing to the desired RAID mode. Each time the arrow is aligned with a new
mode, you should feel a slight click.
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Once you’ve changed the RAID mode you can re-assemble the device, then power it on and
connect it to the host. At this point the device will reconfigure itself.
RAID 0 “Drive Striping” Mode
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The two drives show up as a single large disk with a size equal to the combined capacities of both
drives. RAID 0 is used when speed is the primary objective; it does not provide data redundancy
for protection. The reading and writing of data files is spread across both drives to gain speed by
distributing the workload. This allows for the fastest data transfer rates, but if one drive fails the
whole array becomes corrupted. The data will be lost.
RAID 1 “Drive Mirroring” Mode
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The two drives show up as a single disk with a size equal to the capacity of a single drive from the
array. RAID 1 copies (or “mirrors”) the data from the first drive to the second drive. This is useful
when reliability and redundancy are more important than capacity or maximum speed. When one
drive fails, it can be replaced and the data can be rebuilt automatically from the other functioning
drive. See the Replacing Drives section for more details on the drive replacement and rebuild
process.
Span Mode
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Both drives show up as a single large disk, but one which functions differently than RAID 0. The
total size will depend on the drives installed; unlike RAID 0 or RAID 1 you can use drives of different
capacities. A span is an array (but not a RAID) in which the data is written sequentially across
the drives. When one drive becomes full, subsequent data is written to the second drive. This
combines the capacities of the drives, but it does not provide any performance or data redundancy
benefits.
Independent Drive Mode
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Each drive will appear individually without being combined. If you are using drives of differing
capacity and model, or if you are using only one drive, this is the mode to use.
If there is any data on the drives being installed, choosing any mode other than Independent Mode, will result in
the loss of all data on the drives!
Warning
