iPod Changing Library from RAID 1 to Drobo

[Jigga Beef]

I currently have a RAID 1 of 2x 1.5 TB hard drives in my Mac Pro which is home to just my iTunes library. I have decided to buy a Drobo and am planning on using those 2 drives as well as buying a new 1.5 TB or 2TB drive when i get my Drobo.

I am assuming i have to insert a "clean" drive into drobo. Meaning i can't put in one of my 2 RAIDed drives with hopes of saving the information. But does anyone know for sure.

My plan is to "break" the RAID 1 and put one of the 1.5 TB drives as well as the new (1.5 or 2TB) drive i buy) into the Drobo and drag my iTunes library from the 1.5TB drive still in my Mac Pro over to the Drobo. Afterwards I'll erase that drive and add it to the third bay of the drobo.

My first question is what needs to be done to "break" my RAID 1 and not lose any of my data?

I know there are many posts about the drobo for itunes library in the Out-of-Control post but if anyone wants to shead some light on the drobo housing my iTunes library.

My major questions/concerns

How loud are the fans in the drobo when its idle . It will be in my bedroom, so i hope to get some sleep while its not is use. My Mac Pro never seems to bother me.

With Firewire 800 will i notice any lag in streaming music. I don't generally watch Movies or Shows on my computer, instead I Sync and save the movie i want to watch to my AppleTV.

Will i notice a big difference in my iPod/iPhone syncing speeds thru firewire 800 compared to an internal hard drive.

Thanks in advance for anybody who takes the time to answer my questions.

 

[MacFanJeff]

I currently have a RAID 1 of 2x 1.5 TB hard drives in my Mac Pro which is home to just my iTunes library. I have decided to buy a Drobo and am planning on using those 2 drives as well as buying a new 1.5 TB or 2TB drive when i get my Drobo.

I am assuming i have to insert a "clean" drive into drobo. Meaning i can't put in one of my 2 RAIDed drives with hopes of saving the information. But does anyone know for sure.

My plan is to "break" the RAID 1 and put one of the 1.5 TB drives as well as the new (1.5 or 2TB) drive i buy) into the Drobo and drag my iTunes library from the 1.5TB drive still in my Mac Pro over to the Drobo. Afterwards I'll erase that drive and add it to the third bay of the drobo.

My first question is what needs to be done to "break" my RAID 1 and not lose any of my data?

I know there are many posts about the drobo for itunes library in the Out-of-Control post but if anyone wants to shead some light on the drobo housing my iTunes library.

My major questions/concerns

How loud are the fans in the drobo when its idle . It will be in my bedroom, so i hope to get some sleep while its not is use. My Mac Pro never seems to bother me.

With Firewire 800 will i notice any lag in streaming music. I don't generally watch Movies or Shows on my computer, instead I Sync and save the movie i want to watch to my AppleTV.

Will i notice a big difference in my iPod/iPhone syncing speeds thru firewire 800 compared to an internal hard drive.

Thanks in advance for anybody who takes the time to answer my questions.

Yes and no. Yes, you can use the drives in Drobo, but you MUST format them using the Drobo software utility that ships with it. That is what makes all your single drives one big Drobo drive. Thus, your data will indeed be lost so backup first. But that means you can use the drives in your Drobo so they don't go to waste.

You need to get that data off those drives on some type of way such as DVD-DL, BD-R or the best is to copy to other hard drives that are NOT in any RAID, just single drives. Then copy from them over to the Drobo. You can't just "break" the RAID array without losing data. You have to get that somehow off there and on to the Drobo.

It depends upon your own views and everyone is different. Some say not that loud, while others say it is. The farther away it is from right in front of you the better, like on a shelf near your desk.

Depends on your system, it's possible but no way of knowing until you try it.

Not entirely clear here. Syncing your iPod is done over the USB cable and copied from your hard drive. The transfer speed of the files off the Drobo hard drives is limited to Firewire 800 and not SATA speeds like an internal drive would be.

Hope that helps some.