Before creating any partitions, RAID sets must first be created using the BIOS RAID Utility or the SATARaid GUI. Once the sets have been created, allow the system to load Windows. Once Windows is running, open the Disk Management window located at:
Control Panel> Administrative Tools> Computer Management> Storage> Disk Management
A window similar to the following should appear:
This window has three main sections:
System listing of all formatted and available disks/RAID Sets.
Report of physical connection of disks/RAID Sets.
Report of partition status, disk letter, and volume name.
In the physical connection window, every disk should report as:
Basic
Disk Size (the actual available disk space will be reported here)
Online
Instead of "Basic," a disk may also report as either "Unknown" or "Dynamic." If the disk reports as "Unknown" right-click on the disk icon and click "Write Signature." A window will appear with the disk in question (all "Unknown" disks may appear in this window). Make sure the box next to each disk is checked, then click OK. The disk should now report as "Basic."
If a disk reports as "Dynamic," right-click on the icon of that disk, and click on "Convert to Basic Disk..." Within seconds the disk should report as Basic.
In the Report of physical connection of disks/RAID Sets section, the order in which the drives are displayed corresponds directly to the order the Sets appear in the BIOS. Therefore, the first Unallocated Partition represents Set 1, and so on.
In this example, there are two disks with unallocated partitions. Right-click on the partition of the first disk and click on "New Partition."
The "Create Partition Wizard" should appear. The first window is an introductory window to the Wizard. Click Next.
The second window designates the partition type. Choose primary partition and click Next.
The third window designates the partition size. Since this is a Striped RAID set utilizing 2 disk drives, the size of the partition will be approximately twice the size of the smallest single disk drive. Click Next.
The fourth window designates the drive letter of the partition. Change the drive letter if desired. Click Next.
The next window allows the volume label to be set and selection of the type of formatting to take place upon the creation of the partition. Make sure the Format this partition. . ." radio button is selected. Name the volume as desired (suggestions are generic names such as STRIPED SET or something specific to use such as FINANCIAL, CRITICAL, MISCELLANEOUS, etc.). It is recommended to use the default NTFS for the file system. Click Next.
The last window is a summary window listing all of the selections made. After verifying that everything is correct, click Finish.
The status of the newly created partition in the Disk Management window should change to Formatting and the percentage complete will be displayed. Depending upon the size of the partition, the format process may take several minutes. When complete, the status will change to "Healthy" and the name and drive letter will be updated. Once the disk reports Healthy, it appears in the listing in System Listing section with all of its pertinent information as well.
Repeat the above procedure as needed for any other partitions. Close the Data Management window by clicking on the small boxed "X" in the top right corner of the window. Click on the "My Computer" icon on the Desktop. The new drives will be visible and properly named. The new disks are available for use.