P4VM900-SATA2

User Manual

Version 1.0 Published August 2007 Copyright2007 ASRock INC. All rights reserved.

Copyright Notice:

No part of this manual may be reproduced, transcribed, transmitted, or translated in any language, in any form or by any means, except duplication of documentation by the purchaser for backup purpose, without written consent of ASRock Inc. Products and corporate names appearing in this manual may or may not be registered trademarks or copyrights of their respective companies, and are used only for identification or explanation and to the owners benefit, without intent to infringe.

Disclaimer:

Specifications and information contained in this manual are furnished for informational use only and subject to change without notice, and should not be constructed as a commitment by ASRock. ASRock assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions that may appear in this manual. With respect to the contents of this manual, ASRock does not provide warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties or conditions of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. In no event shall ASRock, its directors, officers, employees, or agents be liable for any indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages (including damages for loss of profits, loss of business, loss of data, interruption of business and the like), even if ASRock has been advised of the possibility of such damages arising from any defect or error in the manual or product.
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) this device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation. CALIFORNIA, USA ONLY The Lithium battery adopted on this motherboard contains Perchlorate, a toxic substance controlled in Perchlorate Best Management Practices (BMP) regulations passed by the California Legislature. When you discard the Lithium battery in California, USA, please follow the related regulations in advance. Perchlorate Material-special handling may apply, see www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate ASRock Website: http://www.asrock.com

Contents

1. Introduction.. 5
1.1 Package Contents... 1.2 Specifications... 1.3 Minimum Hardware Requirement Table for Windows VistaTM Basic Logo... 1.4 Motherboard Layout.. 1.5 ASRock 6CH I/O PlusTM... Pre-installation Precautions... 2.1 CPU Installation.. 2.2 Installation of CPU Fan and Heatsink.. 2.3 Installation of Memory Modules (DIMM).. 2.4 Expansion Slots (PCI, HDMR, and PCI Express Slots). 2.5 Jumpers Setup.. 2.6 Onboard Headers and Connectors.. 2.7 SATAII Hard Disk Setup Guide.. 2.8 Serial ATA (SATA) / Serial ATAII (SATAII) Hard Disks Installation... 2.9 Hot Plug and Hot Swap Functions for SATA / SATAII HDDs... 2.10 SATA / SATAII HDD Hot Plug Feature and Operation Guide.... 2.11 Driver Installation Guide.. 2.12 HDMR Card and Driver Installation.. 2.13 Installing Windows 2000 / XP / VistaTM With RAID Functions... 2.13.1 Installing Windows 2000 / XP With RAID Functions.. 2.13.2 Installing Windows VistaTM With RAID Functions.. 2.14 Installing Windows 2000 / XP / VistaTM Without RAID Functions... 2.15 Untied Overclocking Technology.. 3.1 Introduction... 3.1.1 BIOS Menu Bar.. 3.1.2 Navigation Keys... 3.2 Main Screen.. 29

2. Installation.. 12

SETUP 3. BIOS S ETUP UTILITY... 28
3.3 Advanced Screen.. 3.3.1 CPU Configuration.. 3.3.2 Chipset Configuration.. 3.3.3 ACPI Configuration.. 3.3.4 IDE Configuration.. 3.3.5 PCIPnP Configuration.. 3.3.6 Floppy Configuration.. 3.3.7 Super IO Configuration.. 3.3.8 USB Configuration.. 3.4 Hardware Health Event Monitoring Screen. 3.5 Boot Screen.. 3.5.1 Boot Settings Configuration.. 3.6 Security Screen.. 3.7 Exit Screen... 4.1 Install Operating System.. 4.2 Support CD Information.. 4.2.1 Running Support CD.. 4.2.2 Drivers Menu... 4.2.3 Utilities Menu... 4.2.4 Contact Information...

4. Software Support.. 44

Platform CPU

Chipset Memory

Hybrid Booster

Expansion Slot

Graphics

Audio LAN

Rear Panel I/O

Connector

BIOS Feature

Support CD Hardware Monitor

OS Certifications

- CPU/Chassis FAN connector - 20 pin ATX power connector - 4 pin 12V power connector - CD in header - Front panel audio connector - 2 x USB 2.0 headers (support 4 USB 2.0 ports; 2 of them are shared with USB45 ports on the I/O panel) (see CAUTION 7) - 4Mb AMI BIOS - AMI Legal BIOS - Supports Plug and Play - ACPI 1.1 Compliance Wake Up Events - Supports jumperfree - AMBIOS 2.3.1 Support - Drivers, Utilities, AntiVirus Software (Trial Version) - CPU Temperature Sensing - Chassis Temperature Sensing - CPU Fan Tachometer - Chassis Fan Tachometer - Voltage Monitoring: +12V, +5V, +3.3V, Vcore - Microsoft Windows 2000 / XP / VistaTM compliant (see CAUTION 8) - FCC, CE, WHQL
WARNING Please realize that there is a certain risk involved with overclocking, including adjusting the setting in the BIOS, applying Untied Overclocking Technology, or using the thirdparty overclocking tools. Overclocking may affect your system stability, or even cause damage to the components and devices of your system. It should be done at your own risk and expense. We are not responsible for possible damage caused by overclocking.

CAUTION!

1. 2. 3. About the setting of Hyper Threading Technology, please check page 31. This motherboard supports Untied Overclocking Technology. Please read Untied Overclocking Technology on page 27 for details. Due to the chipset limitation, the actual memory size may be less than 4GB for the reservation for system usage under Windows XP and Windows VistaTM. 4. Although this motherboard offers stepless control, it is not recommended to perform over-clocking. Frequencies other than the recommended CPU bus frequencies may cause the instability of the system or damage the CPU. 5. While CPU overheat is detected, the system will automatically shutdown. Before you resume the system, please check if the CPU fan on the motherboard functions properly and unplug the power cord, then plug it back again. To improve heat dissipation, remember to spray thermal 6. grease between the CPU and the heatsink when you install the PC system. Before installing SATAII hard disk to SATAII connector, please read the SATAII Hard Disk Setup Guide on page 21 to adjust your SATAII hard disk drive to SATAII mode. You can also connect SATA hard disk to SATAII connector 7. 8. directly. Power Management for USB 2.0 works fine under Microsoft Windows VistaTM / XP SP1 or SP2 / 2000 SP4. Microsoft Windows VistaTM driver keeps on updating now. As long as we have the latest driver, we will update it to our website in the future. Please visit our website for Microsoft Windows VistaTM driver and related information. ASRock website http://www.asrock.com

Requirement Table Windows Minimum Hardware R equirement Table for W indows TM Vista Basic Logo
For system integrators and users who purchase our motherboard and plan to submit Windows VistaTM Basic logo, please follow the below table for minimum hardware requirement.
CPU Memory VGA Intel 1GHz CPU 512MB Single Channel* DX9.0 with WDDM Driver
* If you use onboard VGA with total system memory size 512MB and plan to submit Windows VistaTM Basic logo, please adjust the shared memory size of onboard VGA to 64MB. If you use onboard VGA with total system memory size above 512MB and plan to submit Windows VistaTM Basic logo, please adjust the shared memory size of onboard VGA to 128MB or above.

1.4 Motherboard Layout

3 20.3cm (8.0 in)

PS2 Keyboard

PS2 Mouse

PS2_USB_PWR1

ATX12V1

Super I/O

DDR1 (64/72 bit, 184-pin module)
DDR2 (64/72 bit, 184-pin module)

CPU_FAN1

ATXPWR1

FSB800

DDR400

PCI EXPRESS

USB 2.0 T: USB4 B: USB5
Center: Line Out Bottom: Mic In Top: Line In

LAN PHY

IDE1 IDE2

24.4cm (9.6 in)

USB4_5
USB 2.0 T: USB0 Top: RJ-45 B: USB1

RAID RoHS

USB 2.0 T: USB2 B: USB3

FLOPPY1

COM1 VGA1

PARALLEL PORT

4Mb BIOS

VIA P4M900 Chipset

PGA478

CMOS Battery

Audio CODEC

VIA VT8237S

HD_AUDIO1

USB2.0

CHA_FAN1

CLRCMOS1

ATA133

PLED PWRBTN

PANEL 1

SATAII_2

SATAII_1

5.1CH HD

SPEAKER1

HDLED RESET

PS2_USB_PWR1 Jumper ATX 12V Connector (ATX12V1) CPU Heatsink Retention Module CPU Socket 2 x 184-pin DDR DIMM Slots (DDR1, DDR2) Infrared Module Header (IR1) Flash Memory Floppy Connector (FLOPPY1) Secondary IDE Connector (IDE2, Black) Primary IDE Connector (IDE1, Blue) North Bridge Controller South Bridge Controller Primary Serial ATA II Connector (SATAII_1) Secondary Serial ATAII Connector (SATAII_2)
System Panel Header (PANEL1) USB 2.0 Header (USB67, Blue) Chassis Speaker Header (SPEAKER 1) Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN1) Clear CMOS Jumper (CLRCMOS1) HDMR Slot (HDMR1) Front Panel Audio Header (HD_AUDIO1) Internal Audio Connector: CD1 (Black) 3 x PCI Slots (PCI1- 3) PCI Express x16 Slot (PCIE1) ATX Power Connector (ATXPWR1) Shared USB 2.0 Header (USB4_5, Blue) CPU Fan Connector (CPU_FAN1)
1.5 ASRock 6CH I/O Plus TM
PS/2 Mouse Port (Green) Parallel Port USB 2.0 Ports (USB23) RJ-45 Port Line In (Light Blue) Line Out (Lime)
Microphone (Pink) Shared USB 2.0 Ports (USB45) USB 2.0 Ports (USB01) VGA Port COM Port PS/2 Keyboard Port (Purple)

2. Installation

P4VM900-SATA2 is a Micro ATX form factor (9.6-in x 8.0-in, 24.4 cm x 20.3 cm) motherboard. Before you install the motherboard, study the configuration of your chassis to ensure that the motherboard fits into it.

Pre-installation Precautions
Take note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components or change any motherboard settings. 1. Unplug the power cord from the wall socket before touching any component. 2. To avoid damaging the motherboard components due to static electricity, NEVER place your motherboard directly on the carpet or the like. Also remember to use a grounded wrist strap or touch a safety grounded object before you handle components. 3. Hold components by the edges and do not touch the ICs. 4. Whenever you uninstall any component, place it on a grounded antistatic pad or in the bag that comes with the component.
Before you install or remove any component, ensure that the power is switched off or the power cord is detached from the power supply. Failure to do so may cause severe damage to the motherboard, peripherals, and/or components.

2.1 CPU Installation

Step 1. Step 2. Step 3. Unlock the socket by lifting the lever up to a 90 angle. Position the CPU directly above the socket such that its marked corner matches the base of the socket lever. Carefully insert the CPU into the socket until it fits in place.
The CPU fits only in one correct orientation. DO NOT force the CPU into the socket to avoid bending of the pins.

Step 4.

When the CPU is in place, press it firmly on the socket while you push down the socket lever to secure the CPU. The lever clicks on the side tab to indicate that it is locked.
CPU Marked Corner Lift Lever Up to 90

Socket Marked Corner

STEP 1: Lift The Socket Lever Up to 90
STEP 2/STEP 3: Match The CPU Marked Corner to The Socket Marked Corner
STEP 4: Push Down And Lock The Socket Lever
2.2 Installation of CPU Fan and Heatsink
This motherboard adopts 478-pin CPU socket to support Intel Pentium 4 / Celeron CPU. It requires larger heatsink and cooling fan to dissipate heat. You also need to spray thermal grease between the CPU and the heatsink to improve heat dissipation. Make sure that the CPU and the heatsink are securely fastened and in good contact with each other. Then connect the CPU fan to the CPU_FAN connector (CPU_FAN1, see p.10 No. 27). For proper installation, please kindly refer to the instruction manuals of the CPU fan and the heatsink.
2.3 Installation of Memory Modules (DIMM)
P4VM900-SATA2 motherboard provides two 184-pin DDR (Double Data Rate) DIMM slots.
Please make sure to disconnect power supply before adding or removing DIMMs or the system components.

Step 1. Step 2.

Unlock a DIMM slot by pressing the retaining clips outward. Align a DIMM on the slot such that the notch on the DIMM matches the break on the slot.

notch break

The DIMM only fits in one correct orientation. It will cause permanent damage to the motherboard and the DIMM if you force the DIMM into the slot at incorrect orientation.

Step 3.

Firmly insert the DIMM into the slot until the retaining clips at both ends fully snap back in place and the DIMM is properly seated.
2.4 Expansion Slots (PCI, HDMR and PCI Express Slots)
There are 3 PCI slots, 1 HDMR slot, and 1 PCI Express slot on this motherboard. PCI slots: PCI slots are used to install expansion cards that have the 32-bit PCI interface. HDMR slot: The HDMR slot is used to insert a HDMR card with v.92 Modem functionality. The HDMR slot is shared with PCI3 slot; you can only choose either PCI3 slot or HDMR slot to use. PCIE Slots: PCIE1 (PCIE x16 slot) is used for PCI Express cards with x16 lane width graphics cards.
If you install the add-on PCI Express VGA card to PCIE1 (PCIE x16 slot), the onboard VGA will be disabled.
Installing an expansion card
Step 1. Before installing the expansion card, please make sure that the power supply is switched off or the power cord is unplugged. Please read the documentation of the expansion card and make necessary hardware settings for the card before you start the installation. Remove the system unit cover (if your motherboard is already installed in a chassis). Remove the bracket facing the slot that you intend to use. Keep the screws for later use. Align the card connector with the slot and press firmly until the card is completely seated on the slot. Fasten the card to the chassis with screws. Replace the system cover.
Step 2. Step 3. Step 4. Step 5. Step 6.

2.5 Jumpers Setup

The illustration shows how jumpers are setup. When the jumper cap is placed on pins, the jumper is Short. If no jumper cap is placed on pins, the jumper is Open. The illustration shows a 3-pin jumper whose pin1 and pin2 are Short when jumper cap is placed on these 2 pins. Jumper PS2_USB_PWR1

(see p.10, No. 1)

Setting

1_2 2_3

Short pin2, pin3 to enable +5VSB (standby) for PS/2 +5VSB +5V or USB wake up events. Note: To select +5VSB, it requires 2 Amp and higher standby current provided by power supply. Clear CMOS

Serial ATA (SATA) Data Cable

(Optional)

Serial ATA (SATA) Power Cable
(Optional) connect to the SATA HDD power connector connect to the power supply
Please connect the black end of SATA power cable to the power connector on the drive. Then connect the white end of SATA power cable to the power connector of the power supply. Besides six default USB 2.0 ports on the I/O panel, there are two USB 2.0 headers on this motherboard. Each USB 2.0 header can support two USB 2.0 ports. The shared USB 2.0 header (USB4_5) is shared with USB ports 45 on the I/O panel. When using the front panel USB ports by attaching the front panel USB cable to USB4_5 header, the USB ports 45 on the I/O panel will not be able to function. This header supports an optional wireless transmitting and receiving infrared module.

USB 2.0 Header

(9-pin USB67) (see p.10, No. 16)
USB_PWR P-7 P+7 GND DUMMY

GND P+6 P-6 USB_PWR

Shared USB 2.0 Header
(9-pin USB4_5) (see p.10, No. 26)

USB_PWR P-4 P+4 GND

1 USB_PWR P-5 P+5 GND DUMMY

Infrared Module Header

(5-pin IR1) (see p.10, No. 6)

IRTX +5VSB DUMMY

GND IRRX
Internal Audio Connectors
(4-pin CD1) (CD1: see p.10, No. 22)

CD-L GND GND CD-R

This connector allows you to receive stereo audio input from sound sources such as a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, TV tuner card, or MPEG card. This is an interface for the front panel audio cable that allows convenient connection and control of audio devices.

Front Panel Audio Header

(9-pin HD_AUDIO1) (see p.10, No. 21)
GND PRESENCE# MIC_RET OUT_RET
OUT2_L J_SENSE OUT2_R MIC2_R MIC2_L
1. High Definition Audio supports Jack Sensing, but the panel wire on the chassis must support HDA to function correctly. Please follow the instruction in our manual and chassis manual to install your system.
2. If you use AC97 audio panel, please install it to the front panel audio header as below: A. Connect Mic_IN (MIC) to MIC2_L. B. Connect Audio_R (RIN) to OUT2_R and Audio_L (LIN) to OUT2_L. C. Connect Ground (GND) to Ground (GND). D. MIC_RET and OUT_RET are for HD audio panel only. You dont need to connect them for AC97 audio panel. E. Enter BIOS Setup Utility. Enter Advanced Settings, and then select Chipset Configuration. Set the Front Panel Control option from [Auto] to [Enabled]. F. Enter Windows system. Click the icon on the lower right hand taskbar to enter Realtek HD Audio Manager. For Windows 2000 / XP OS: Click Audio I/O, select Connector Settings , choose
Disable front panel jack detection, and save the change by clicking OK. For Windows VistaTM OS: Click the right-top Folder icon , choose Disable front

Functions SAT SAT 2.9 Hot Plug and Hot Swap Functions for SATA / SATAII HDDs
P4VM900-SATA2 motherboard supports Hot Plug and Hot Swap functions for SATA / SATAII Devices. NOTE What is Hot Plug Function?
If the SATA / SATAII HDDs are NOT set for RAID configuration, it is called Hot Plug for the action to insert and remove the SATA / SATAII HDDs while the system is still power-on and in working condition. However, please note that it cannot perform Hot Plug if the OS has been installed into the SATA / SATAII HDD.
What is Hot Swap Function?
If SATA / SATAII HDDs are built as RAID1 then it is called Hot Swap for the action to insert and remove the SATA / SATAII HDDs while the system is still power-on and in working condition.
SAT SAT Feature 2.10 SATA / SATAII HDD Hot Plug Feature and Operation Guide
This motherboard supports Hot Plug feature for SATA / SATAII HDD. Please read below operation guide of SATA / SATAII HDD Hot Plug feature carefully. Before you process the SATA / SATAII HDD Hot Plug, please check below cable accessories from the motherboard gift box pack. A. 7-pin SATA data cable B. SATA power cable with SATA 15-pin power connector interface A. SATA data cable (Red) B. SATA power cable

SATA 7-pin connector

The SATA 15-pin power connector (Black) connect to SATA / SATAII HDD
1x4-pin conventional power connector (White) connect to power supply

Caution

1. Without SATA 15-pin power connector interface, the SATA / SATAII Hot Plug cannot be processed. 2. Even some SATA / SATAII HDDs provide both SATA 15-pin power connector and IDE 1x4-pin conventional power connector interfaces, the IDE 1x4-pin conventional power connector interface is definitely not able to support Hot Plug and will cause the HDD damage and data loss.
Points of attention, before you process the Hot Plug:
1. Below operation procedure is designed only for our motherboard, which supports SATA / SATAII HDD Hot Plug. * The SATA / SATAII Hot Plug feature might not be supported by the chipset because of its limitation, the SATA / SATAII Hot Plug support information of our motherboard is indicated in the product spec on our website: www.asrock.com 2. Make sure your SATA / SATAII HDD can support Hot Plug function from your dealer or HDD user manual. The SATA / SATAII HDD, which cannot support Hot Plug function, will be damaged under the Hot Plug operation. 3. Please make sure the SATA / SATAII driver is installed into system properly. The latest SATA / SATAII driver is available on our support website: www.asrock.com 4. Make sure to use the SATA power cable & data cable, which are from our motherboard package. 5. Please follow below instructions step by step to reduce the risk of HDD crash or data loss.

How to Hot Plug a SATA / SATAII HDD:
Points of attention, before you process the Hot Plug: Please do follow below instruction sequence to process the Hot Plug, improper procedure will cause the SATA / SATAII HDD damage and data loss.
Step 1 Please connect SATA power cable 1x4-pin end (White) to the power supply 1x4-pin cable. Step 2 Connect SATA data cable to the motherboards SATAII connector.
SATA power cable 1x4-pin power connector (White)
Step 3 Connect SATA 15-pin power cable connector (Black) end to SATA / SATAII HDD.
Step 4 Connect SATA data cable to the SATA / SATAII HDD.
How to Hot Unplug a SATA / SATAII HDD:
Points of attention, before you process the Hot Unplug: Please do follow below instruction sequence to process the Hot Unplug, improper procedure will cause the SATA / SATAII HDD damage and data loss.
Step 1 Unplug SATA data cable from SATA / SATAII HDD side.
Step 2 Unplug SATA 15-pin power cable connector (Black) from SATA / SATAII HDD side.
2.11 Driver Installation Guide
To install the drivers to your system, please insert the support CD to your optical drive first. Then, the drivers compatible to your system can be auto-detected and listed on the support CD driver page. Please follow the order from up to bottom side to install those required drivers. Therefore, the drivers you install can work properly.
2.12 HDMR Card and Driver Installation
If you do not insert HDMR card to this motherboard, and you finish installing all drivers to your system now, but in the future, you plan to use HDMR card function on this motherboard, please follow the steps below then. 1. Insert HDMR card to HDMR slot on this motherboard. Please make sure that the HDMR card is completely seated on the slot. 2. Install HDMR card driver from our support CD to your system. 3. Reboot your system.
2.13 Installing Windows 2000 / XP / Vista TM With RAID Functions
If you want to install Windows 2000 / XP / VistaTM OS on your SATA / SATAII HDDs with RAID functions, please follow below procedures according to the OS you install.
2.13.1 Installing Windows 2000 / XP With RAID Functions
If you want to install Windows 2000 / XP on your SATA / SATAII HDDs with RAID functions, please follow below steps. STEP 1: Set up BIOS. A. Enter BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced screen IDE Configuration. B. Set the SATA Operation Mode option to [RAID]. STEP 2: Make a SATA / SATAII driver diskette. A. Insert the ASRock Support CD into your optical drive to boot your system. B. During POST at the beginning of system boot-up, press <F11> key, and then a window for boot devices selection appears. Please select CDROM as the boot device. C. When you see the message on the screen, Generate Serial ATA driver diskette [YN]?, press <Y>. D. Then you will see these messages, Please insert a blank formatted diskette into floppy drive A:

press any key to start Please insert a floppy diskette into the floppy drive, and press any key. E. The system will start to format the floppy diskette and copy SATA / SATAII drivers into the floppy diskette. STEP 3: Use RAID Installation Guide to set RAID configuration. Before you start to configure RAID function, you need to check the RAID installation guide in the Support CD for proper configuration. Please refer to the document in the following path in the Support CD:. \ RAID Installation Guide STEP 4: Install Windows 2000 / XP OS on your system. After step1, 2, 3, you can start to install Windows 2000 / XP OS on your system. At the beginning of Windows setup, press F6 to install a third-party RAID driver. When prompted, insert the SATA / SATAII driver diskette containing the VIA RAID driver. After reading the floppy disk, the driver will be presented. Select the driver to install according to the mode you choose and the OS you install.
1. If you install Windows 2000 / XP on IDE HDDs and want to manage (create, convert, delete or rebuild) RAID functions on SATA / SATAII HDDs, please set the RAID configuration by using the Windows RAID installation guide in the following path in the Support CD:. \ RAID Installation Guide 2. If you want to use VIA RAID Tool in Windows environment, please install SATA / SATAII drivers from the Support CD again so that VIA RAID Tool will be installed to your system as well.
2.13.2 Installing Windows Vista TM With RAID Functions
If you want to install Windows VistaTM on your SATA / SATAII HDDs with RAID functions, please follow below steps. STEP 1: Set up BIOS. A. Enter BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced screen IDE Configuration. B. Set the SATA Operation Mode option to [RAID]. STEP 2: Use RAID Installation Guide to set RAID configuration. Before you start to configure RAID function, you need to check the RAID installation guide in the Support CD for proper configuration. Please refer to the document in the following path in the Support CD:. \ RAID Installation Guide STEP 3: Install Windows VistaTM OS on your system. Insert the Windows VistaTM optical disk into the optical drive to boot your system, and follow the instruction to install Windows VistaTM OS on your system. When you see Where do you want to install Windows? page, please insert the ASRock Support CD into your optical drive, and click the Load Driver button on the left on the
bottom to load the VIA RAID drivers. VIA RAID drivers are in the following path in our Support CD:. \ I386 After that, please insert Windows VistaTM optical disk into the optical drive again to continue the installation.
1. If you install Windows VistaTM on IDE HDDs and want to manage (create, convert, delete or rebuild) RAID functions on SATA / SATAII HDDs, please set the RAID configuration by using the Windows RAID installation guide in the following path in the Support CD:. \ RAID Installation Guide 2. If you want to use VIA RAID Tool in Windows environment, please install SATA / SATAII drivers from the Support CD again so that VIA RAID Tool will be installed to your system as well. 3. To operate SATA RAID utility under Windows VistaTM, please right-click VIA V-Raid Utility icon on the desktop and select Run as administrator item to execute.

3.2 Main Screen

When you enter the BIOS SETUP UTILITY, the Main screen will appear and display the system overview
BIOS SETUP UTILITY H/W Monitor Boot

Advanced

Security

System Overview

System Time System Date BIOS Version Processor Type Processor Speed Microcode Update Cache Size Total Memory DDR1 DDR2 : : : : : [16:15:31] [Mon 08/20/2007] P4VM900-SATA2 BIOS P1.00 Intel (R) CPU 2.80GHz 2800MHz F34/17 256KB
Use [Enter], [TAB] or [SHIFT-TAB] to select a field. Use [+] or [-] to configure system Time.
: 1024MB with 128MB shared memory : 512MB/166MHz (DDR333) : 512MB/166MHz (DDR333)

+Tab F1 F9 F10 ESC

Select Screen Select Item Change Field Select Field General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit
v02.54 (C) Copyright 1985-2003, American Megatrends, Inc.
System Time [Hour:Minute:Second] Use this item to specify the system time. System Date [Day Month/Date/Year] Use this item to specify the system date.

3.3 Advanced Screen

In this section, you may set the configurations for the following items: CPU Configuration, Chipset Configuration, ACPI Configuration, IDE Configuration, PCIPnP Configuration, Floppy Configuration, SuperIO Configuration, and USB Configuration.

Configure CPU

Advanced Settings
WARNING : Setting wrong values in below sections may cause system to malfunction. CPU Configuration Chipset Configuration ACPI Configuration IDE Configuration PCIPnP Configuration Floppy Configuration SuperIO Configuration USB Configuration

Enter F1 F9 F10 ESC

Select Screen Select Item Go to Sub Screen General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit
Setting wrong values in this section may cause the system to malfunction.

3.3.1 CPU Configuration

BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced CPU Configuration
CPU Host Frequency Actual Frequency (MHz) Boot Failure Guard Spread Spectrum PCIE clock operation mode Ratio Status Ratio Actual Value Ratio CMOS Setting [Auto] [133] [Enabled] [Auto] [Sync. mode] Select how to set the CPU host frequency.
Unlocked (Max:21, Min:14) 21 [21] [Disabled] [Enabled] [Enabled] Select Screen Select Item Change Option General Help Load Defaults Save and Exit Exit
Max CPUID Value Limit CPU Thermal Throttling Hyper Threading Technology

+F1 F9 F10 ESC

CPU Host Frequency While entering setup, BIOS auto detects the present CPU host frequency of this motherboard. The actual CPU host frequency will show in the following item.
Boot Failure Guard Enable or disable the feature of Boot Failure Guard. Spread Spectrum The default value of this option is [Auto]. PCIE clock operatin mode Use this to select the operation mode of CPU and PCIE clocks. The default value is [Sync. mode]. Configuration options: [Async. mode] and [Sync. mode]. Ratio Status This is a read-only item, which displays whether the ratio status of this CPU is Locked or Unlocked. If it shows Unlocked, you will find an item Ratio CMOS Setting appears to allow you changing the ratio value of this CPU. If it shows Locked, then the item Ratio CMOS S e t t i n g w i l l b e hidden. If you use the ratio value to time the CPU frequency, it will be equal to the core speed of the installed processor. Ratio Actual Value This is a read-only item, which displays the ratio actual value of this CPU. Max CPUID Value Limit For Prescott CPU only, some OSes (ex. NT4.0) cannot handle the function with disable. This should be enabled in order to boot legacy OSes that cannot support CPUs with extended CPUID functions. CPU Thermal Throttling You may select [Enabled] to enable P4 CPU internal thermal control mechanism to keep the CPU from overheated. Hyper Threading Technology To enable this feature, it requires a computer system with an Intel Pentium 4 processor that supports Hyper-Threading technology and an operating system that includes optimization for this technology, such as Microsoft Windows XP. Set to [Enabled] if using Microsoft Windows XP, or Linux kernel version 2.4.18 or higher. This option will be hidden if the installed CPU does not support Hyper-Threading technology.

3. 7 Exit Screen

Main Exit Options
Save Changes and Exit Discard Changes and Exit Discard Changes Load Optimal Defaults
BIOS SETUP UTILITY H/W Monitro Boot
Exit system setup after saving the changes.
F10 key can be used for this operation.
Save Changes and Exit When you select this option, it will pop-out the following message, Save configuration changes and exit setup? Select [OK] to save the changes and exit the BIOS SETUP UTILITY. Discard Changes and Exit When you select this option, it will pop-out the following message, Discard changes and exit setup? Select [OK] to exit the BIOS SETUP UTILITY without saving any changes. Discard Changes When you select this option, it will pop-out the following message, Discard changes? Select [OK] to discard all changes. Load Optimal Defaults When you select this option, it will pop-out the following message, Load optimal defaults? Select [OK] to load the default values for all the setup configurations.
Support 4. Software Suppor t
4.1 Install Operating System
This motherboard supports various Microsoft Windows operating systems: 2000 / XP / VistaTM. Because motherboard settings and hardware options vary, use the setup procedures in this chapter for general reference only. Refer to your OS documentation for more information.
4.2 Support CD Information
The Support CD that came with the motherboard contains necessary drivers and useful utilities that enhance the motherboard features.
4.2.1 Running The Support CD
To begin using the support CD, insert the CD into your CD-ROM drive. The CD automatically displays the Main Menu if AUTORUN is enabled in your computer. If the Main Menu did not appear automatically, locate and double click on the file ASSETUP.EXE from the BIN folder in the Support CD to display the menus.

4.2.2 Drivers Menu

The Drivers Menu shows the available devices drivers. Please install the necessary drivers to activate the devices.

4.2.3 Utilities Menu

The Utilities Menu shows the applications software that the motherboard supports. Click on a specific item then follow the installation wizard to install it.

4.2.4 Contact Information
If you need to contact ASRock or want to know more about ASRock, welcome to visit ASRocks website at http://www.asrock.com; or you may contact your dealer for further information.

VIA RAID Installation Guide
1 VIA BIOS RAID Installation Guide. 3
1.1 Introduction of RAID. 3
1.2 RAID Configuration Precautions. 3
1.3 Installing Windows 2000 / XP / Vista With RAID Functions. 4
1.4.1 Installing Windows 2000 / XP With RAID Functions. 4
1.4.2 Installing Windows Vista With RAID Functions.. 5
1.4 BIOS Configuration Utility. 6
1.4.1 Enter BIOS Configuration Utility. 6
1.4.2 Create Disk Array.. 6
1.4.3 Delete Disk Array.. 8
1.4.4 Select Boot Array. 8
2 VIA Windows RAID Installation Guide. 10
2.1 VIA Windows RAID Installation Guide for Windows 2000/XP Users. 10
2.1.1 Create RAID Array 10
2.1.2 Delete Disk Array. 12
2.1.3 Check All Disks. 13
2.1.4 Verify Mirror Disk. 14
2.1.5 Synchronize Mirror Disk. 15
2.1.6 Disk Error Detection. 16
2.1.7 Duplicate Critical RAID 1 Array. 16
2.1.8 Rebuild Broken RAID 1 array. 16
2.2 VIA Windows RAID Installation Guide for Windows Vista Users 19
2.2.1 Create Disk Array. 19

2.2.2 Remove Array. 22

2.2.3 Add/Remove Spare. 22
2.2.4 Synchronize Mirror Disk. 23
2.2.5 Repair Broken Disk Array 23
1 VIA BIOS RAID Installation Guide
You are allowed to configure RAID functions under BIOS environment.

1.1 Introduction of RAID

VIA VT8237S south bridge chipset integrates RAID controller supporting RAID 0, RAID 1, and JBOD functions with two independent SATA channels. This section will introduce the basic knowledge of RAID.
RAID The term RAID stands for Redundant Array of Independent Disks, which is a method combining two or more hard disk drives into one logical unit. For optimal performance, please install identical drives of the same model and capacity when creating a RAID set.
RAID 0 (Data Striping) RAID 0 is called data striping that optimizes two identical hard disk drives to read and write data in parallel, interleaved stacks. It will improve data access and storage since it will double the data transfer rate of a single disk alone while the two hard disks perform the same work as a single drive but at a sustained data transfer rate.
WARNING! Although RAID 0 function can improve the access performance, it does not provide any fault tolerance. Hot-Plug any HDDs of the RAID 0 Disk will cause data damage or data loss.
RAID 1 (Data Mirroring) RAID 1 is called data mirroring that copies and maintains an identical image of data from one drive to a second drive. It provides data protection and increases fault tolerance to the entire system since the disk array management software will direct all applications to the surviving drive as it contains a complete copy of the data in the other drive if one drive fails.
JBOD (Spanning) A spanning disk array is equal to the sum of all drives. Spanning stores data onto a drive until it is full then proceeds to store files onto the next drive in the array. When any member disk fails, it will affect the entire array. JBOD is not really a RAID, and it does not support fault tolerance.
1. 2 RAID Configurations Precautions
Please use two new drives if you are creating a RAID 0 (striping) array for performance. It is recommended to use two SATA drives of the same size. If you use two drives of different sizes, the smaller capacity hard disk will be the base storage size for each drive. For example, if one hard disk has an 80GB storage capacity and the other hard disk has 60GB, the maximum storage capacity for the 80GB-drive becomes 60GB, and the total storage capacity for this RAID 0 set is 120GB.
You may use two new drives, or use an existing drive and a new drive to create a RAID 1 (mirroring) array for data protection (the new drive must be of the same size or larger than the existing drive). If you use two drives of different sizes, the smaller capacity hard disk will be the base storage size. For example, if one hard disk has an 80GB storage capacity and the other hard disk has 60GB, the maximum storage capacity for the RAID 1 set is 60GB.
Please verify the status of your hard disks before you set up your new RAID array.
1. 3 Installing Windows 2000 / XP / Vista With RAID Functions

If you want to install Windows 2000 / XP / Vista OS on your SATA / SATAII HDDs with RAID functions, please follow below procedures according to the OS you install.
Installing Windows 2000 / XP With RAID Functions
If you want to install Windows 2000 / XP on your SATA / SATAII HDDs with RAID functions, please follow below steps.
STEP 1: Set up BIOS. A. B. Enter BIOS SETUP UTILITY Advanced screen IDE Configuration. Set the SATA Operation Mode option to [RAID].
STEP 2: Make a SATA / SATAII driver diskette. A. B. Insert the ASRock Support CD into your optical drive to boot your system. During POST at the beginning of system boot-up, press <F11> key, and then a window for boot devices selection appears. Please select CD-ROM as the boot device. C. D. When you see the message on the screen, Generate Serial ATA driver diskette [YN]?, press <Y>. Then you will see these messages, Please insert a blank formatted diskette into floppy drive A: press any key to start Please insert a floppy diskette into the floppy drive, and press any key. E. The system will start to format the floppy diskette and copy SATA / SATAII drivers into the floppy diskette.
STEP 3: Use RAID Installation Guide to set RAID configuration. Before you start to configure RAID function, you need to check the RAID installation guide in the Support CD for proper configuration. Please refer to the document in the following path in the Support CD:. \ RAID Installation Guide STEP 4: Install Windows 2000 / XP OS on your system. After step1, 2, 3, you can start to install Windows 2000 / XP OS on your system. At the beginning of Windows setup, press F6 to install a third-party RAID driver. When prompted, insert the SATA / SATAII driver diskette containing the VIA RAID driver. After reading the floppy disk, the driver will be presented. Select the driver to install according to the mode you choose and the OS you install.
1.If you install Windows 2000 / XP on IDE HDDs and want to manage (create, convert, delete or rebuild) RAID functions on SATA / SATAII HDDs, please set the RAID configuration by using the Windows RAID installation guide in the following path in the Support CD:. \ RAID Installation Guide 2. If you want to use VIA RAID Tool in Windows environment, please install SATA / SATAII drivers from the Support CD again so that VIA RAID Tool will be installed to your system as well.
Installing Windows Vista With RAID Functions
If you want to install Windows Vista on your SATA / SATAII HDDs with RAID functions, please follow below steps.
STEP 2: Use RAID Installation Guide to set RAID configuration. Before you start to configure RAID function, you need to check the RAID installation guide in the Support CD for proper configuration. Please refer to the document in the following path in the Support CD:. \ RAID Installation Guide STEP 3: Install Windows Vista OS on your system. Insert the Windows Vista optical disk into the optical drive to boot your system, and follow the instruction to install Windows Vista OS on your system. When you see Where do you want to install Windows? page, please insert the ASRock Support CD into your optical drive, and click the Load Driver button on the left on the bottom to load the VIA RAID drivers. VIA RAID drivers are in the following path in our Support CD:. \ I386 After that, please insert Windows Vista optical disk into the optical drive again to continue the installation.

1.If you install Windows Vista on IDE HDDs and want to manage (create, convert, delete or rebuild) RAID functions on SATA / SATAII HDDs, please set the RAID configuration by using the Windows RAID installation guide in the following path in the Support CD:. \ RAID Installation Guide 2. If you want to use VIA RAID Tool in Windows environment, please install SATA / SATAII drivers from the Support CD again so that VIA RAID Tool will be installed to your system as well. 3. To operate SATA RAID utility under Windows Vista, please right-click VIA V-Raid Utility icon on the desktop and select Run as administrator item to execute.
1.4 BIOS Configuration Utility
Enter BIOS Configuration Utility
After the system powers on, the following information will appear on the screen. Press Tab key to enter BIOS configuration utility.
The main interface of BIOS configuration utility is as below:

Create Disk Array

Within the main interface, use the up and down arrow key to highlight the Create Array command and press <Enter> to call out the list of creation steps.
Highlight the Array Mode and press <Enter>, then a list of array modes will appear. Just highlight the target array mode that you want to create, and press <Enter> to confirm the selection.
There are two methods to create a disk array. One method is Auto Setup, and another is Select Disk Drives. Select Auto Setup to allow BIOS to select the disk drives and create array automatically. Select Select Disk Drives to let user select the array drives manually. When using Select Disk Drives method, the channel column will be activated. Just highlight the target drives that you want to use and press <Enter> to select them respectively. When all drives have been selected, press <Esc> to go back to the creation steps menu.
Create RAID 0 If RAID 0 array is selected in step 2, user can also select a block size for the array. Use the arrow key to highlight the Block Size and press <Enter>. Then the list of available block size will popup. The block size can be selected from 4K to 64K Bytes.
Use the arrow key to highlight the Start Create Process and press <Enter>, then a warning message will appear. Press Y to finish the creation, or press N to cancel the creation. Please note that the content of the hard drive will be destroyed after array creation.
Create RAID 1 The data on disk drives will be destroyed if user uses Auto Setup to create RAID 1. But you can reserve the data on source drive if you use Select Disk Drives to select the source and the mirror drive.
Press y to copy data of source to mirror drive. There is a limitation when using this feature. The capacity of mirror drive must be greater or equal to the source drive; otherwise the RAID 1 cant be created and a error message will appear: Error: mirrors size is smaller than source!!! Press ESC return. If user does not want to duplicate data, the data on the source and the mirror drive will be destroyed.

Create JBOD The data on disk drives will be destroyed if user uses Auto Setup to create a JBOD. However, you can reserve the data on the first disk drive of a JBOD array if you use Select Disk Drives to select disk drives
The data on the first disk drive will be reserved and the other disk drives in JBOD will be expanded behind the first disk drive and become free space. Expand Span (JBOD) Array function is not available if VT8237S only supports 2 SATA ports.

Delete Disk Array

User can delete a specific RAID that has been created. Following are the steps to delete a created disk array. 1. Use arrow key to highlight Delete Array item in main menu interface, and press <Enter>. The channel column will be activated. 2. Use arrow key to highlight the target disk drive and press <Enter>. A
warning message will appear. Press Y to delete a specific array or press N to cancel.
Delete a disk array will destroy all the data on the disk array except RAID 1. When a RAID 1 is deleted, the data on these two hard disk drives will be reserved and become two normal disks.

Select Boot Array

User can select a disk array as boot device if user wants to boot operating system from an array. Boot disk array may not be selected if user does not boot the Operating System from the disk array. Use the arrow key to highlight the Select Boot Disk item then press <Enter>. The channel column will be activated. Just use arrow key to highlight the target disk array then press <Enter>. If you select a disk array that has a boot mark and press <Enter>, then its boot setting will be canceled.
VIA Windows RAID Installation Guide
You are allowed to configure RAID functions under Windows environment. The RAID Software is a Windows-based software utility with graphical user interface and provides user an easy-operation tool to configure and manage disk drives or disk arrays connected to VT8237S SATA controller. Please read this guide carefully and follow the instructions below to configure and manage RAID functions. For Windows 2000 / XP and Windows Vista, there are different installation procedures. Please follow the instructions below according to the OS you install.
NVIDIA Windows RAID Installation Guide for Windows 2000 / XP Users

After GUI software is installed, it will automatically start every time when your Windows OS is started. An icon tray of the tool bar to indicate that GUI software is currently running.
will appear in the system
Just double click on the small icon to call out the main interface of the software.
You may click on one of the three buttons to create different types of disk array Select Array Creating Method will be prompted.

RAID 1,

Span, and

RAID 0. Then a

Auto: The software will configure the available hard disk drives to be a disk array. User can modify the hard disk drives later. It is strongly recommended to use this method.
Custom: Disk array is arranged by user.
Click Auto button. The Creating Array window will pop up. If you select Custom, the Available Disks window will list the available disk drives for array-creating. Select a disk drive and click right arrow button to add the specific disk drive to array. After adding a disk drive, user can also remove the selected disk drive from array. Click the disk drive in Array Disks windows, then click left arrow button to remove the selected disk drive.
Press Create button to create or Cancel button to cancel it.
After you pressed the Create button, a warning message will pop up. Click Yes to finish the creation of disk array, or No to cancel.
A message box will pop up to prompt user that the disk array has been created successfully and ask user whether to restart the computer. Click Yes to restart the computer or click No to skip restarting. New disk array setting will take effect only after restarting.
Create RAID 1 You can reserve the data on the source drive after clicking Create button when you create a RAID 1 array.
There is a limitation if user wants to keep the data on the source drive the capacity of the mirror drive must be greater or equal to the source drive, otherwise the RAID 1 cant be created.
If user wants to keep data in the source drive, RAID tool will ask user to synchronize the mirror drive after the systems rebooting.
Create JBOD The data in the first disk drive of JBOD array can be reserved when a JBOD array is created.

The data on the first disk drive will be reserved and the other disk drives in JBOD will be expanded behind the first disk drive and become free space.
Select the disk array that you want to delete from the left
window. Click Remove Array button , then a warning message will pop up.
2. Click Yes to delete the specific disk array or click No to cancel.
A message box will pop up to prompt user that the disk array has been deleted successfully and ask user whether to restart the computer. Click Yes to restart the computer or click No to skip the restarting. New setting will take effect only after restarting.

Warning:

Deleting a disk array will destroy all the data on the disk array except RAID 1. When a RAID is deleted, the data on these two hard disk drives will be reserved.

Check All Disks

You can check if all the disk drives work normally by clicking button. After you complete the checking, a dialog window will pop up to show each disks current status as following picture.
Your hard disk drive must be compatible with ATA/ATAPI-5 specifications and support SMART commands; otherwise the checking will fail.

Verify Mirror Disk

Data on the mirror disk must be the same as its corresponding source disk to provide fault tolerance for RAID 1.
Select a RAID 1. Right-click the selected RAID, and then a shortcut menu will appear. Click Verify Mirror to verify whether the source and the mirror disks are identical.
After executing verify mirror command, a dialog will show the verifying process. You can pause or cancel this process at any time. The process may take a long time if the capacity of RAID is large.
When the mirror disk is not identical with the corresponding source disk, the mirror disk will be marked with a need-sync icon:
need-sync mirror disk should be synchronized as soon as possible.

Synchronize Mirror Disk

For RAID 1, it must be synchronized when data on the mirror disk is not identical with its corresponding source disk. Sometimes the data on the mirror disk may be newer than the source disk. For example, the source disk is absent and the mirror disk runs in the tolerance mode. So the exact meaning of Synchronize Mirror is to keep the data on a pair of the source and the mirror disks identical. RAID software always marks the mirror disk with a need-sync icon even though the mirror disk may have the correct data.

Select RAID 1. Right-click the selected RAID, then a shortcut menu will appear. Click Synchronize Mirror to synchronize the source and the mirror disks.
When synchronization starts, a dialog will show the process. You can pause or cancel this process at any time.
A message will pop up when synchronization is finished.

Disk Error Detection

RAID will pop up an error message when the failure or absence of a disk drive is detected.
Duplicate Critical RAID 1 Array
If, during the system-booting, the software detects the inconsistence between the source and the mirror disks of RAID 1, the disk array will be marked as critical status, and the software will automatically prompt user to duplicate the RAID 1 to make the mirror disk consist with the corresponding source disk again.
You may click Yes to synchronize now or click No to synchronize later.
When the synchronization starts, a dialog will show the process. You can pause or cancel this process at any time. If you cancel the synchronization process, the RAID is on need-sync condition. You should synchronize again to guarantee the data are identical between the source and the mirror disk drives. A message will pop up when synchronization is finished.
Rebuild Broken RAID 1 array
If, during the system-booting, the failure or absence of any member disk of RAID is detected, the array will be marked as broken status. If broken
RAID 1 array is detected by the RAID software, it will indicate a serial steps to repair this problem. 1. A dialog box will pop up to indicate the RAID is broken. Click Yes.
Then another dialog box will pop up. If the source or the mirror disk drive is unplugged only, click Cancel to stop rebuilding step. Shut down the system. Plug the absent disk drive, and then reboot the system. If the original disk drive is broken-down, you may plug a new disk drive then reboot the system. Click Next to the next step.
3. Select a disk drive from Available Disks and click
button to replace the broken-down one, and then click Next.
A warning message will pop up. If you want to rebuild the RAID by using the disk drive that you selected in the previous step, click Next.

Warning: The data on the selected disk drive will be lost.

Reboot the system.

This RAID is marked as a critical RAID. The RAID software will do the Duplicating Critical RAID 1 process.
2.2 NVIDIA Windows RAID Installation Guide for Windows Vista Users
To create a RAID disk array, you can click on Create Array
in the Operation block. If the number of available free
disks is enough for a RAID mode, you can finish your creation. When free disks (disks not in any disk array) are selected to create a disk array, original data on these disks maybe lost, so be sure these data will never be needed or conduct necessary back-ups. You are allowed to select RAID 1 (Mirror), RAID 0 (Stripe), Span (JBOD), RAID 5 or RAID 0+1. Here we take RAID 1 (Mirror) for example. For other types of RAID disk array, the operation procedures are similar. Please refer to below steps for details of creating a RAID disk array.

Select RAID Mode

Select one type by clicking corresponding item and click <Next>.
Select Controller and Creating Method
Select a controller to create array. As soon as you select one controller, the disks you will select for this array will be limited on this controller. Besides, you have to select the creation method in this step. Selecting Auto, the tool will select array disks for you, and you dont need to do anything. Selecting Custom, tool will list all available disks in the available disks list, and you have to select disks for the array manually. You may adjust the selected disks manually in both cases.

Select Array Disks

You need to select the disks for the array you are creating. Please select an available disk from the left side list, then click the Right-Arrow button to add a disk into array. Array disks will be added in the order of Source, Mirror and Spare disk. A Spare disk can also be added or removed after a Mirror array is created. To remove a disk from array, please click the array disk, then click the Left-Arrow button. Whenever a disk (array disk or available disk) is selected, its capacity and physical location will be shown in the bottom-left corner.
Keep OS Data Information (Optional)
When you selected the disk on which the Operating System is running to create a RAID array, the information will be prompted to inform you that tool will keep the OS disk data for you.
Keep Source Data Information (Optional)
If you didnt select the disk on which the Operating System is running to create a RAID array, the information will be prompted to allow you keeping the data on the source disk.

Final Confirmation

As soon as you click the <Next> button, the data on the hardware disk maybe destroyed permanently. So please do confirm your data, and backup the important data before clicking <Next> button.

Successful Information

This step informs you that you have create an array successfully.

Remove Array

To remove a disk array, you can click on Remove Array
in the Operation block. If there are arrays in current system,
you can finish your removing. You can also remove an array by shifting top-left block to device tree, right-clicking the upper-most level array node and clicking Remove Array on the pop-up shortcut menu. Then follow the instructions on the screen to remove array.

Add/Remove Spare

This function is specified for RAID1 (Mirroring) disk array. A Spare disk is a special array disk that will be used to replace the Source or Mirror disk when one of them meets disk failure. To Add a Spare disk to or Remove Spare from a RAID1 disk array,
you can click Add/ Remove Spare
in the Operation block. If there are RAID1 arrays in the current system, the Add/
Remove Spare wizard will guide you to finish this operation. You can also shift the top-left block of main application window to Array View/Tree, select the upper-most level tree node of the RAID 1 array and right click the array node and click Add/ Remove Spare on the pop-up shortcut menu. Then follow the instructions on the screen to add/remove array.
Synchronize Mirror Disk forces data on the mirror disk to be identical with the source disk by copying the data from the one with newer data to the other disk. Note that the source disk does not always have the latest data. Please follow the instructions on the screen to synchronize mirror array.

Repair Broken Disk Array

If some disk(s) in a disk array can not work any more (due to disk failure or disk absence), the disk array will be in broken status.
At this time, the array's icon in the Array View will looks like
. To repair the broken disk array, right click the array icon
and click Repair Broken Array on the pop-up shortcut menu. Note that the Spare disk in a RAID1 array is only a replacement disk in case of a Source or Mirror disk failure. So the failure or absence of a Spare disk does not affect the RAID1 array.