Chapter 8- Mass Storage Tech

Describe how RAID 0+1 works.

"Nested, Mirrored Stripes" Like RAID 10, RAID 0+1 (or a "mirror of stripes") is a nested set of arrays that works in opposite configuration from RAID 10. It takes a minimum of four drives to implement RAID 0+1. Start with two RAID 0 striped arrays, then mirror the two arrays to each other.

SATA drives come in three common SATA-specific varieties: A. 1.5 Kbps, 3 Kbps, and 6 Kbps B. 1.5 MBps, 3 MBps, and 6 MBps C. 1.5 TBps, 3 TBps, and 6 TBps D. 1.5 Gbps, 3 Gbps, and 6 Gbps

1.5 Gbps, 3 Gbps, and 6 Gbps

The current PATA standard provides support for _______________ at speeds of up to _______________. A. 144TB, 66MBps B. 144PB, 133MBps C. 144PB, 266MBps D. 144PB, 6Gbps

144PB, 133MBps

PATA drives used _______________-pin ribbon cables.

40

The maximum SATA-device cable length is _______________.

40 inches

What is the maximum PATA device cable length? A. 18 inches B. 1 meters C. 2 meters D. 3 meters

A. 18 inches

Which term refers to the mirroring technique in which each drive has its own controller? A. Disk duplexing B. Disk striping C. Disk striping with parity D. Super-disk mirroring

A. Disk duplexing

_______________ (without parity) means spreading the data among multiple (at least two) drives. A. Disk striping B. Disk mirroring C. Disk duplexing D. Parity

A. Disk striping

Which unit measures hard drive spindle speed? A. Revolutions per minute (RPM) B. Bytes per second (BPS) C. Reads per second (RPS) D. Writes per second (WPS)

A. Revolutions per minute (RPM)

What hard drive technology typically implements a 2.5-inch, mSATA, or M.2 form factor? A. SSD B. PATA C. SCSI D. SATA

A. SSD

You are installing two PATA drives. How should you set the jumpers? A. Set one to master and the other to slave. B. Set one to primary and the other to secondary. C. Set one to first and the other to second. D. Set one to master and the other stand-alone.

A. Set one to master and the other to slave.

How many tiny read/write heads service each platter in a traditional hard disk drive (HDD)? A. Two B. Three C. Five D Eight

A. Two

How many failures can RAID 0 withstand and remain functional? A. Zero B. One C. Two D. Up to three

A. Zero

What is S.M.A.R.T.?

ATA/ATAPI version 3 introduced Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T.), an internal drive program that tracks errors and error conditions within the drive. This information is stored in nonvolatile memory on the drive and can be examined externally with S.M.A.R.T. reader software.

Why is airflow an important consideration in system builds?

Airflow in a case can make or break your system stability, especially when you add new drives that increase the ambient temperature. Hot systems get flaky and lock up at odd moments.

What is a first step in configuring controllers?

As a first step in configuring controllers, make certain they're enabled. Most controllers remain active, ready to automatically detect new drives, but you can disable them. Scan through your CMOS settings to locate the controller on/off options. This is also the time to check whether the onboard RAID controllers work in both RAID and non-RAID settings.

What is the maximum SATA device cable length? A. 18 inches B. 1 meter C. 2 meters D. 3 meters

B. 1 meter

At what speed does the SATA 1.0 specification perform? A. 1.0 GBPS B. 1.5 GBPS C. 2.0 GBPS D. 2.5 GBPS

B. 1.5 GBPS

Which ATA revision introduced Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T.)? A. ATA-2 B. ATA-3 C. ATA-6 D. ATA-7

B. ATA-3

What is the maximum eSATA device cable length? A. 18 inches B. 1 meters C. 2 meters D. 3 meters

C. 2 meters

At what speed does the SATA 2.0 specification perform? A. 1.5 GBPS B. 2.0 GBPS C. 3.0 GBPS D. 6.0 GBPS

C. 3.0 GBPS

What is the minimum number of drives needed to implement RAID 6? A. Two B. Three C. Four D. Five

C. Four

Which term is a type of controller that has chips with its own processor and memory? A. CMOS Northbridge controller B. BIOS controller C. Hardware RAID intelligent controllers D. Software RAID virtual controllers

C. Hardware RAID intelligent controllers

The Disk Management program in Windows Server versions can configure drives for _______________, and it works with PATA or SATA. A. RAID 0+1 B. RAID 0 or 10 C. RAID 0, 1, or 5 D. RAID 5 or RAID 10

C. RAID 0, 1, or 5

Which SATA variety runs at 6 GBPS? A. SATA 2.0 B. SATA 1.0 C. SATA 3.0 D. SATA 6.0

C. SATA 3.0

How many wires are in the SATA interface? A. Four B. Eight C. Seven D. Eighty

C. Seven

_______________ technology is commonly used in desktop and laptop hard drives, memory cards, cameras, USB thumb drives, and other handheld devices. A. Terminal B. Magnetic C. Solid-state D. Copper

C. Solid-state

What is the minimum number of drives needed to implement RAID 5? A. One B. Two C. Three D. Four

C. Three

Less expensive SSDs typically implement less reliable _______________ memory technology in place of the more efficient _______________ technology to cut costs. A. dual-level cell (DLC), single-level cell (SLC) B. single-level cell (SLC), dual-level cell (DLC) C. multi-level cell (MLC), single-level cell (SLC) D. single-level cell (SLC), multi-level cell (MLC)

C. multi-level cell (MLC), single-level cell

Advanced Host Controller Interface (AHCI) mode is enabled at the _______________ level and generally needs to be enabled before you install the operating system.

CMOS

Motherboards provide support for the SATA hard drive controllers via the system BIOS, but they require configuration in _______________ for the specific hard drives attached.

CMOS

What is the purpose of the Advanced Host Controller Interface (AHCI)?

Current versions of Windows support the Advanced Host Controller Interface (AHCI), an efficient way to work with SATA HBAs

Which term specifies a type of nonvolatile flash memory that current SSD devices use to retain data when power is turned off or disconnected? A. ATAPI-6 B. ATA-7 C. AHCI D. NAND

D. NAND

Which version of SATA ties capable drives directly into the PCI Express bus on motherboards? A. SATA 1.0 B. SATA 2.0 C. SATA 3.0 D. SATAe

D. SATAe

Which drive technology rules the roost the server market? A. Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T.) B. Advanced Host Controller Interface (AHCI) C. Redundant array of independent (or inexpensive) disks (RAID) D. Small computer system interface (SCSI)

D. Small computer system interface (SCSI)

When configuring controllers, if the controllers are enabled and the drive is properly connected, the drive should appear in CMOS through a process called _______________. A. autoboot B. SMARTscan C. HDdetect D. autodetection

D. autodetection

The most important advance in SATA involves _______________. A. platter oxidation B. ohm ratings C. magnetic interference D. data throughput

D. data throughput

Which SATA variety runs up to 16 GBPS? A. SATA 1.0 B. SATA 2.0 C. SATA 3.0 D.SATA 3.2

D.SATA 3.2

What is disk striping without parity?

Disk striping w/o parity means spreading the data among multiple (at least two) drives. Disk striping by itself provides no redundancy.

_______________ extends the SATA bus to external devices.

External SATA (eSATA)

Describe four problems associated with the parallel ATA interface.

First, the flat ribbon cables impeded airflow and could be a pain to insert properly. Second, the cables had a limited length, only 18 inches. Third, you couldn't hot-swap PATA drives. You had to shut the computer down completely before installing or replacing a drive. Finally, the technology had simply reached the limits of what it could do in terms of throughput. It was time to revamp both the connection and the language for ATA/ATAPI drives.

Briefly describe the spindle or rotational speed of a hard drive.

Hard drives run at a set spindle speed, with the spinning platters measured in revolutions per minute (RPM). Older drives ran at a speed of 3600 RPM, but new drives are hitting 15,000 RPM. The faster the spindle speed, the faster the controller can store and retrieve data. Here are the common speeds: 5400, 7200, 10,000, and 15,000 RPM.

_______________ is the ability to replace a bad drive without disturbing the operating system.

Hot swapping

The CompTIA A+ 1001 objectives list PATA motherboard ports as _______________ connectors.

IDE

What is autodetection?

If the controllers are enabled and the drive is properly connected, the drive should appear in CMOS through a process called autodetection. Autodetection is a powerful and handy feature that takes almost all the work out of configuring hard drives.

When installing PATA drives, how do you set the jumpers?

If you have only one hard drive, set the drive's jumpers to master or standalone. If you have two drives, set one to master and the other to slave. Or set both to cable select. The easiest way is to read the front of the drive; you'll find a diagram on the housing that explains how to set the jumpers properly.

Why is it easier to install a SATA drive instead of a PATA device?

Installing SATA hard disk drives is much easier than installing PATA devices because there are no jumper settings to worry about at all, as SATA supports only a single device per controller channel. Simply connect the power and plug in the controller cable as shown in the OS automatically detects the drive and it's ready to go. The keying on SATA controller and power cables makes it impossible to install either incorrectly.

Describe how RAID 5 works.

Instead of dedicated data and parity drives, RAID 5 distributes data and parity information evenly across all drives. This is the fastest way to provide data redundancy. RAID 5 requires at least three drives. RAID 5 arrays effectively use one drive's worth of space for parity.

What is meant by just a bunch of disks (or drives), or JBOD?

It is a term for a storage system composed of multiple independent disks of various sizes.

What two questions should be considered before installing or replacing an existing HDD with an SSD?

Keep in mind the following considerations before installing or replacing an existing HDD with an SSD: • Do you have the appropriate drivers and firmware for the SSD? Newer Windows versions will load the most currently implemented SSD drivers. As always, check the manufacturer's specifications as well. • Do you have everything important backed up?

Briefly describe the various SSD memory technologies.

Less expensive SSDs typically implement less reliable multi-level cell (MLC) memory technology in place of the more efficient single-level cell (SLC) technology to cut costs. The cutting-edge memory in SSDs is stacked memory, which takes NAND and adds a third dimension to it, giving it increased density and capacity

How do you install M.2 and mSATA drives?

M.2 and mSATA drives slip into their slot on the motherboard or add-on card, then either clip in place or secure with a tiny screw. Both standards are keyed, so you can't install them incorrectly.

What items can impede airflow?

Many things can impede the airflow— jumbled-up ribbon cables (used by older storage systems, USB headers, and other attachments), drives squished together in a tiny case, fans clogged by dust or animal hair, and so on.

How did SATA change autodetection?

Motherboards provide support for the SATA hard drive controllers via the system BIOS, but they require configuration in CMOS for the specific hard drives attached. In the old days, you had to fire up CMOS and manually enter hard drive information whenever you installed a new drive. Today, this process is automated

The _______________ specification supports a communication connection between the operating system and the SSD directly through a PCIe bus lane, reducing latency and taking full advantage of the wicked-fast speeds of high-end SSDs.

NVMe

Briefly explain the advantages of NVMe.

NVMe supports a communication between the operating system and SSD directly through a PCIe bus lane, allowing for a reduced latency while taking advantage of fast speeds of high-end SSDs

_______________is a disk-optimization feature for SATA drives that enables faster read and write speeds.

Native Command queuing (NCQ)

Software RAID means the _______________ is in charge of all the RAID functions.

OS operating system

The latest version of SATA, SATA Express (SATAe) or SATA 3.2, ties capable drives directly into the _______________ bus on motherboards.

PCIe

_______________ is also called RAID 1+0 and sometimes called a "stripe of mirrors."

RAID 10

RAID that distributes data and parity information evenly across all the drives is known as _______________.

RAID 5

Identify the three big performance metrics to weigh when you buy an SSD. Sequential

Read/Write Random Read/Write Latency

How do you install solid state drives, including installation into a desktop or tower?

SATA SSDs possess the same connectors as magnetic SATA drives, so you install an SSD as you would any SATA drive. SATA SSDs usually come in 2.5-inch laptop sizes. Just as with earlier hard drive types, you either connect SSDs correctly and they work, or you forget to plug in the power cable and they don't.

Rather than using a master/slave concept, how does SATA function

SATA creates a point-to-point connection between the SATA device—magnetic hard drives, solid-state drives, optical media drives—and the SATA controller, the host bus adapter(HBA). At a glance, SATA devices look identical to PATA devices.

What are the factors that make either software or hardware RAID the best choice?

Software is often used when price takes priority over performance. Also, Software RAID does not require special controllers; you can use the regular SATA controllers to make a software RAID array. But you do need "smart" software. Software RAID means the operating system is in charge of all RAID functions. It works for small RAID solutions but tends to overwork your operating system easily, creating slowdowns. Also, Windows Disk Management is not the only software RAID game in town. A number of third-party software programs work with Windows or other operating systems. Hardware is used when you need speed along with data redundancy. When you really need to keep going, when you need RAID that doesn't even let the users know a problem has occurred, hardware RAID is the answer. Most traditional RAID setups in the real world are hardware-based. Almost all of the many hardware RAID solutions provide hot-swapping—the ability to replace a bad drive without disturbing the operating system. Hot-swapping is common in hardware RAID.

Regardless of the external interface, you will find an ordinary SATA drive inside the _______________ (the name used to describe the casing of external hard drives).

external enclosures

Drive bay _______________ sit at the front of a bay and blow air across the drive.

fan

SATA creates a point-to-point connection between the SATA device and the SATA controller, the _______________.

host bus adapter

Windows supports _______________, drives that combine flash memory and spinning platters to provide fast and reliable storage.

hybrid hard

ATA hard drives are often referred to as _______________ drives.

integrated drive electronics IDE

The ___________ on SATA controller and power cables makes it impossible to install either incorrectly.

keying

A traditional hard disk drive (HDD) is composed of individual disks, or aluminum platters that are coated with a(n) _______________ medium.

magnetic

The process of reading and writing data at the same time to two drives is called _______________.

mirroring

What advanced SATA features does the Advanced Host Controller Interface(AHCI) usage unlock?

native command queuing and hot-swapping

Faster drives mean better system performance, but they can also cause the computer to_______________.

overheat

Disk striping with parity protects data by adding extra information, called _______________ data, that can be used to rebuild data if one of the drives fails.

parity

Hard drive cables have a colored stripe that corresponds to the number-one pin—called _______________—on the connector

pin 1

Many folks refer to traditional HDDs as magnetic hard drives, or sometimes _______________-based hard drives.

platter

In technical terms, _______________ technology and devices are based on the combination of semiconductors and transistors used to create electrical components with no moving parts.

solid-state

Hard drives run at a set _______________, with the spinning platters measured in revolutions per minute (RPM).

spindle speed

As per the PATA standard, if there is only one hard drive, the drive's jumper is set to master or _______________.

standalone

Disk _______________, spreading data across multiple drives, by itself provides no redundancy.

striping

What are the specifications and matching speeds of three common SATA-specific varieties?

• SATA 1.0: 1.5 Gbps/150 MBps • SATA 2.0: 3 Gbps/300 MBps • SATA 3.0: 6 Gbps/600 MBps • SATA 3.2: up to 16 Gbps/2000 MBps, also known as SATAe

A common SATA numbering method uses the term _______________ for each controller. A. pins B. channels C. lanes D. banks

B. channels

How many functional failures can RAID 10 withstand and remain functional? A. One B. Up to two C. Up to four D. Up to 10

B. Up to two

What tool can you use in Windows to configure and manage hard drives and RAID levels? A. FDISK B. Disk Management C. AHCI D. Device Manager

B. Disk Management

Disk mirroring/duplexing is also known as _______________. A. RAID 0 B. RAID 1 C. RAID 2 D. RAID 3

B. RAID 1

What type of power connector do all PATA drives use? A. Mini B. Standard Molex C. P1 D. Sub

B. Standard Molex

How many PATA drives—including hard drives, optical drives, and tape drives—can be connected to a single ATA controller? A. One B. Two C. Four D. Six

B. Two

What is the best friend a tech has when it comes to troubleshooting hard drive installation?

The autodetection feature of the CMOS setup utility.

Explain how to handle excess heat associated with multiple hard drives.

The easiest way to do this is to add fans. Open up the PC case and look for built-in places to mount fans. How many case fans do you have installed now? What size are they? What sizes can you use? (Most cases use 80-mm fans, but 120-mm and even larger fans are common as well.) Jot down the fan locations of the case and take a trip to the local PC store or online retailer to check out the fans.Don't forget to consider the added noise level.

What are the two elements of hot swapping?

The first being the capacity to plug a device into the computer without harming either. The second is that once the device is safely attached, it will be automatically recognized and become a fully functional component of the system. SATA handles hot-swapping just fine in modern systems.

Which PATA standard provides support for very large hard drives and what are the maximum capacities of supported storage size and data transfer speed?

The last ATA/ATAPI standard that addressed PATA provided support for very large hard drives (144 petabytes [PB], more than 144 million gigabytes) at speeds up to 133 megabytes per second (MBps).

Where is the obvious place to start when implementing RAID?

The obvious starting place for RAID is to connect at least two hard drives in some fashion to create a RAID array. Specialized RAID controller cards support RAID arrays of up to 15 drives—plenty to support even the most complex RAID needs. Dedicated storage boxes with built-in RAID make implementing a RAID solution simple for external storage and backups.

What is disk duplexing?

This "super-drive" mirroring technique uses a separate controller for each drive. With two drives, each on a separate controller, the system will continue to operate even if the primary drive's controller stops working.

What is disk mirroring?

This process of reading and writing data at the same time to two drives.

Describe the advantages of using disk duplexing over disk mirroring.

With two drives, each on a separate controller, the system will continue to operate even if the primary drive's controller stops working. Disk duplexing is also faster than disk mirroring because one controller does not write each piece of data twice.

Explain some strategies for setting the boot order.

You assign boot order priority to drives and devices in CMOS.Some strategies include booting first from the optical drive and then from a hard drive. This enables them to put in a bootable optical disc if they're having problems with the system. Of course, you can set it to boot first from your hard drive and then go into CMOS and change it when you need to—it's your choice. Most modern CMOS setup utilities include a second screen for determining the boot order of your hard drives. This screen enables you to set which hard drive goes first. If you have a different operating system on each hard drive, this can be very helpful.

How do you implement AHCI? List the available options.

You'll generally have up to three options/modes/HBA configurations: IDE/SATA or compatibility mode, AHCI, or RAID.

If the controllers are enabled and the drive is properly connected, the drive should appear in CMOS through a process called______________.

autodetect