In an array, the RAID controller is the component that manages the hard disk drives in the device, providing the physical disks as logical units to a computer or server; it may also be known as a disk array controller.
Different RAID controllers may be required depending on a variety of factors, such as the RAID level required (RAID 0, 1, 5 and so on), the number of internal/external ports, the type of drives (are they SAS/SATA/PATA?), and the number of drives required. There is a front-end and back-end interface to a RAID controller; the front-end interface enables communication with the computer or server, while the back-end interface manages the disks within the array.
There are around ten commonly-used RAID configurations, and each one will require a specific controller. RAID controllers can be hardware-based or software-based. Generally, simpler RAID configurations, such as RAID 0 and RAID 1, can use either. However, more complex RAID configurations, for example RAID 5 and 6, may require a hardware-based RAID controller.A hardware-based RAID controller uses a physical RAID controller card, which may take the form of a PCI or PCIe card, although some RAID controllers may be integrated with the motherboard. Software-based RAID uses the processing power of the operating system, which is cheaper as no dedicated hardware needs to be purchased, but slower due to processing power being taken up by the software.
RAID controllers can be damaged by sudden power surges or outages, when a server connection is broken, or when multiple disks in the array fail. In the event of RAID controller failure, while the data remains unaltered, it will become inaccessible. RAID data recovery in this instance will be incredibly painstaking, as the data parameters need to be calculated, which is time-consuming and involves a lot of cryptoanalysis.
If your RAID system has suffered from a controller failure, our RAID data recovery team will do their best to get it back. We offer a no-obligation RAID data recovery service, meaning that if we are unsuccessful in getting your data back, you won’t pay a penny. If we can’t get your data back or you turn down the no-obligation quote provided to you, we’ll return your array to you free of charge.