My work pc is setup to be a nightmare, this is why RAID 1 is not a backup and why that computer needs to be changed.
Episode #10-18 released on December 8, 2019
There is this computer that controls a series of other devices at work that has twin hard drives and is setup with Raid 1. This is why that machine is designed incorrectly.
I am going to start off with a fact, this computer, I am complaining about, controls fuel controllers. It is, also, not the first computer, of the same identical specifications, to have a failed drive within the Raid 1 array. The issues I will be describing are not unique, and a result of having the same exact model of computer being shipped every time and in the same configuration, and a hard drive always fails, almost immediately after deployment. And, this computer has to function without incident 24 hours day, every single day of the year.
These are the issues that occur. The computer is programmed to commit to certain tasks, and some of the tasks disappear as if they were never entered in the first place. When we cut shifts, the computer routinely hangs and cannot be cut. Cutting is when there is a shift change, and this allows for all financial data to be saved remotely and safely. When an employee cannot cut, it invariably results in a temporary disbalancing on the financial books because of the computer's inability to perform tasks it was designed to do. There is, also, the looking of devices after failed attempts at programming tasks to them, and an immediate predictable application failure when we reset the application to unlock the devices. Because there is no mouse and Windows still has a pointer for some reason, and because the device is setup with most privileges removed, the computer has to either be manually restart by others, or I have to use the old school keyboard method of alt-tab and then tabbing until I get the right button in the user interface to get the application to restart.
All those issues are the result of a company's IT department believing that a RAID 1 solution is enough to prevent outright failure of the computer. And, while it is partly true, it does result in many headaches for staff and clients. The reason for the RAID 1 configuration is to prevent data loss and avoid losing any financial information. The issue is there is always a dead drive and hard failure isn't just possible, it is imminent. Especially in a 24-hour 7-day 365 day a year setup for a device that was never designed to function in those conditions.
Just so we understand why Raid 1 is not a backup, we need to understand something about fault tolerance. The Fault tolerance in Raid 1 is exactly 1 drive. Since, most of the time the drives are from the same batch and exposed to the same conditions, it is possible for the recovery procedure to result in the failure of the second drive. For raid to be an effective form of backup, we need a multiple drive fault tolerance, and Raid 1 doesn't meet that criteria.
This is my daily nightmare, what is yours?
Host : Steve Smith | Music : | Editor : Steve Smith | Producer : Zed Axis Dot Net