# Intel RST RAID 5 - Initialize?



## SouthOfHere (Sep 20, 2015)

I've just created a RAID 5 volume from 3x2TB disks, in the RST control panel it's saying the volume is not initialized. It states this is done prior to verifying and repairing data, but do I need to initialize it now? I don't quite understand what the feature does.


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## Solaris17 (Sep 20, 2015)

I'd like to know this as well.


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## Aquinus (Sep 20, 2015)

SouthOfHere said:


> I've just created a RAID 5 volume from 3x2TB disks, in the RST control panel it's saying the volume is not initialized. It states this is done prior to verifying and repairing data, but do I need to initialize it now? I don't quite understand what the feature does.


It syncs up every parity block. It basically does exactly as it suggests, it initializes or fully prepares, the RAID-5 parity data. If you don't initialize it, the RAID will create the parity data as needed so "free" space doesn't actually have parity. At least that's what I understand it to be. It's to ensure completeness of the parity data on your RAID. I always initialize my RAIDs, even my software RAIDs. Not that this would happen, but I wouldn't want to run the risk of any parity data being bad should the need arise that my array would need to get rebuilt.


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## FordGT90Concept (Sep 20, 2015)

What @Aquinus said.  Just click on "Initialize" and it will work on it in the background.  Just note that, until the initialization is done, the RAID5 volume will be very, very slow to respond.  You don't have to do it again until a drive fails.


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## Aquinus (Sep 20, 2015)

FordGT90Concept said:


> What @Aquinus said.  Just click on "Initialize" and it will work on it in the background.  Just note that, until the initialization is done, the RAID5 volume will be very, very slow to respond.  You don't have to do it again until a drive fails.


In fact I would say that it would respond exactly as if you were rebuilding the array because that's basically what it's doing.


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