Can't set up Raid 0 array on 13th gen laptop

gabpalves · ‎10-05-2023

I've been trying to set up RAID 0 with two NVME SSD's for the past two days, without success.

I have a 13th gen i7 laptop from Dell (G15 5530). I have installed two Samsung 990 Pro drivers - bought from the same place to guarantee they are from the exact same model. I've also previously updated the firmware from both devices. I also believe the IRST drivers are fully up to date.

Both drives appear on the Optane Memory and Storage Management application correctly. I've already set "RAID On" in the BIOS/UEFI, under "SATA/NVMe Operation" (the other option being "AHCI").

I've booted from a "Windows to go" portable ssd, with Windows 11, so to leave both internal drives unused. In other words: none was being used by the loaded Windows instance.

Still... the "next" button in the "create raid volume" window is greyed out. There's no option, nor logs or any information about what the problem would be.

I've attached various evidences, including a fresh diagnistics output file.

Jocelyn_Intel · ‎10-06-2023

Hello, @gabpalves

Thank you for posting on the Intel® communities. I will do my best to assist you here.

Update your BIOS to the latest version available 1.8.0, as your BIOS is outdated (1.7.0).
Also, make sure you have the latest RST driver (19.5.6.1057) from your System Manufacturer.
In other matters, have you verified with your System Manufacturer if anything else has to be enabled? Did you make sure the laptop is compatible with RAID? Usually, laptops aren't.
Can you select one of these options?

Best regards,

Jocelyn M.

Intel Customer Support Technician.

gabpalves · ‎10-07-2023

Hi, Jocelyn!

Thanks for replying.

I've started over so to guarantee i have IRST drivers exactly from the manufacturer's website and nowhere else. It's the mentioned version. Last time, i had downloaded from Intel's website.

I've also updated the bios to the latest version, checking if "RAID on" is still enabled in BIOS/UEFI after that.

Unfortunately nothing changed. The "next" button, as well as the four mentioned options, are disabled. I can't select any of them, as questioned in item 4.

Dell won't confirm or deny the laptop is RAID ready. All they know is that there is an option in the BIOS/UEFI and, at the same time, that they won't even sell the laptop with two drives - even though it comes with a second slot and a spare heat sink.

I have a fresh copy of SSU logs, that i attached to this message.

Jocelyn_Intel · ‎10-09-2023

Hello, @gabpalves

Thank you for your reply and the information provided.

I would recommend you to uninstall and reinstall the RST tool to check if the persists.

If it does, then you will need to consult with your System Manufacturer on how to create a RAID via BIOS and verify if the laptop is really compatible with RAID. The fact that it has 2 disk slots, doesn't mean that is RAID compatible always.

Best regards,

Jocelyn M.

Intel Customer Support Technician.