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I think that would depend mainly on the RAID controller you're using. Once you know what controller you have, do some searching/reading on the manufacturers web site or email their support and ask them.
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You need a RAID controller to create a RAID 5 array. Windows server operating systems can not create them by themselves...a RAID controller is required. Most recent versions of windows are capable of created a software RAID 0 but that's not the same thing and a RAID 0 is not a RAID 5.
You need to find out what type of RAID controller you have and contact the manufacturer about the possiblity of adding disks to the existing RAID 5 array and if you can, then you need to get information from them on how to do this the right way.
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Wow CurtR I'm surprised at your post.
MS server has the ability via software to do raid 0, 1 and 5. This is very well documented.
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/windows2000serv/maintain/optimize/11w2kadb.mspx
Being software there is absolutly no way to add disks to it dynamically. Even with a hardware smart raid controller you can add space but usually not to where you want it [c:].
You will have to backup, wipe the array, add the disks, reinit the array and restore the data.
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Thanks for your responses. I dont see why adding a disk to an array would be so difficult. Sure, it would require taking the array offline and a huge amount of moving of data and processor power, but its theoretically possible. When your looking at a 1TB array, backing up wiping and adding a drive becomes rather difficult!
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Pulling foot out of mouth.....
I stand corrected Wanderer! Just goes to show, you can't know everything. Thanks for the link btw. I hadn't read you could do 1 or 5 software RAID in 2000 and I know that sounds like a lame excuse but I guess I never researched it too far because I'm always using a RAID controller (SCSI or SATA) at work.
With a good controller card, you can add to a RAID 5 without too much hassle. Add the disk, run the RAID management software and add the new disk, wait several hours for synchronization to take place and check to ensure it's been done properly and you're good to go. I somehow doubt it's that simple though with a software RAID.
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Not a problem CurtR! You do so good all the rest of the time :-) And I am of the same mind - hardware raid is the only way to go.
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Hey Stephen in response to your question
"I dont see why adding a disk to an array would be so difficult"Here are some things to think about. First off lets look at hardware raid. You have a raid controller and you put three disks and make them raid5. You then partition into two partitions C: for OS and D: for Data. Now you want to add more space to c: since you installed a bunch of programs and the partition is full. You add a disk to the array. You have a smart controller, not a regular or older raid controller, that can reinit the array and add the disk space without wiping and reiniting the array.
You boot and go into Disk Manager. What you will see is C: D: and raw space. You can delete d: and recreate it with the added space or you could just make E: out of it. But you wanted to add the space to C:? YOU CAN'T. Not without either wiping everything and reinstalling from scratch or purchase a server version of Partition magic and reside the partitions taking the chance you will be reinstalling from scratch anyway.
Now do you see the difficulty?
Let's look at software raid.
You have a 3 disk raid 5 software array. You want to add space. Software raid is not smart like a smard raid controller. It is like a old or nonsmart raid controller. It can't add disks dynamically period. You have wipe and recreate the array with the added disk.
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it occured to me that perhaps there wasn't a understanding of exactly what happens when you raid a drive.
see here
http://www.acnc.com/04_01_05.html
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