Install CentOS 7 on Degraded RAID 1

[blozo]

Hi, I'm going to install CentOS 7 on a new PC. I plan to use two drives in RAID 1 configuration, but I have only one of the new drives at the moment, since the other has bad sectors and will be replaced in a week or two. Am I forced to wait for it? I tried an installation and it seems that the RAID option is not provided by the installer since I have a single disk. So I created a degraded array manually, but the setup does not accept it in the partitioning phase.

If a trick comes to your mind, I would be grateful, so I can start installing and using the PC. Alternatively, I should install normally and then convert to partitionable RAID, but I thought that a degraded array was the right solution since I already know that I'll use RAID in a near future.

[aks]

You've going against the basic idea! The easiest way (assuming hardware RAID), isntall as a single disk and then assemble the RAID re-silvering from populated disk to not populated disk - mind same thing could be done for software RAID.

[cmurf]

Hi, I'm going to install CentOS 7 on a new PC.

How new? Does it have UEFI firmware?

So I created a degraded array manually, but the setup does not accept it in the partitioning phase.

It's not possible to do an installation to a degraded array.

I should install normally and then convert to partitionable RAID, but I thought that a degraded array was the right solution since I already know that I'll use RAID in a near future.

If you're using a separate /boot plus LVM, you could partition the new drive the same way as the 1st, and make the largest partition a PV in the existing VG. Then use lvconvert to convert all existing LV's from linear type to raid1. Easy. If you care to have resilient boot you can then create a degraded raid1 out of the small partition on the new drive intended for /boot, copy files over, obliterate the original /boot making certain to remove all signatures, and then add it to the degraded array, sync will be fast, done. Install bootloader on both drives -> this is totally non-obvious and basically annoying to do on UEFI which is why I ask how new the computer is and whether it's UEFI.