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Re: Vaio Z RAID 0

On 17/10/12 11:16 AM, Dan wrote:

On Wed, Oct 17, 2012 at 11:24 AM, Frank Otto<oft.kontra.ml@gmail.com>  wrote:

Hi Dan,

the good news is that I can confirm that it is possibly to run Linux
on a VAIO SVZ13, using the original Intel-RAID0 and without destroying
the pre-installed Windows.  The bad news is that the way I did it is
probably not easy to follow for everyone, and it might require some luck
(i.e. using the correct versions of everything, and in the right order).

Unfortunately I cannot give you precise advice, but maybe telling you
about my experiences installing Linux on this device will be of some help.
However, in my case I did not install Debian Wheezy but Xubuntu 12.04.
For this I had to use Ubuntu's "alternate installer", which I believe
behaves very similar to the Debian installer, although I guess there
are some differences.

But before running any installer, I actualled used a Linux-Live-CD (GRML
2012.05) to back up (using ntfsclone) and shrink (using ntfsresize)
the Windows partitions and to repartition (using fdisk -uc) the
Intel-RAID0. If I recall correctly, the original partitioning was:
p1 = recovery
p2 = Windows boot loader
p3 = Windows 7
p4 = hibernation
I deleted p1 and p4 and shrank p3. Later during the installation, I used
p1 for the Linux / filesystem, and the space gained from p3&p4 for /home.

I do not recall having any trouble creating the filesystems. But if
I had, I would have tried creating the filesystems manually via GRML,
and then telling the installer to simply use the existing filesystems
(which I believe is possible, but admittedely I'm not completely sure).

For me the biggest snag was installing GRUB to the MBR, which requires
giving the correct device name, i.e. /dev/mappers/isw_something or so.
But in the end it worked, and dual-booting between Windows and Linux works
fine so far.  As such, I cannot confirm the statement from Julien's blog
that "this kind of RAID is not supported correctly by GRUB".

Another internet resource which might contain helpful hints is this
thread:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/675057-ubuntu-linux-svz1311.html

Hope this helps and good luck,
Frank

P.S. this is the first time I use google-mail to reply to this list,
so if this ends up in the wrong place or breaking the thread, I apologize.

Hi Frank,

Thanks a lot for your answer! It is good news that Linux runs in this
laptop. I shrink the windows partition using Windows. I think that
Windows messed up something because I can not even create a ntfs
partition using Windows...

Maybe I can use the Windows copy that comes with the laptop using
virtualbox. I use most of the time linux and not Windows. I am
creating now the rescue DVDs. Windows 7 takes 5 DVDs!!!

Best,
Dan
You need to use the Windows Disk Manager to shrink the windows partition because both the actual partition and the file system need to be adjusted. After doing this, you should check the partition for errors. Only then should you try to do anything else.
Using RAID 0 (not really RAID because there is no redundancy) for a primary file system is a scary proposition. Both drives need to be working or your system is in deep trouble. Given that disk failures probably account for the majority of hardware problems, I personally would try to get rid of the RAID 0 entirely.
To remove RAID 0, you may have to copy your Windows partitions to another drive temporarily, then try to break the array and copy the partitions back to just one drive. This means that you need to resize the Windows partitions so that they fit onto a 128G drive.
Once you have your partitions copied, try booting from a live cd and use gparted to create new Windows partitions on one disk and Linux partitions on the other. Copy the Windows partitions back and try rebooting into Windows. This may actually require reinstalling Windows (do a repair-type installation so you don't wipe out your other Windows programs). Don't reformat the disks but do allow Windows to try to repair them if needed. And keep the copies of the original partitions until you have this working.
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