I built my PC back in 2017 with two 2TB HDDs set up in RAID 1 for storage. In late 2024, I rebuilt the PC but retained the old 2TB drives and added a new RAID 1 setup with two 8TB HDDs, plus two 2TB M.2 drives as a boot drive and working drive. Everything was generally running smoothly, though I encountered some permission issues with the folders on the Old Data Drive. I had trouble upgrading from Windows 10 to 11 for a while, but eventually decided to try again after swapping out my boot drive. The installation finished, but now the Old Data Drive appears as F:Local Disk and is inaccessible, despite being visible in Disk Management and Storage Spaces. I'm running Disk Drill to recover files, but I'm asking for advice on the cause and whether I should do anything besides format the drives and redo the RAID setup. Thanks!
4 Answers
It sounds like you might have run into issues with how Windows 11 handles RAID or how the drives were recognized post-upgrade. Changes in system settings can sometimes cause data access issues like this. Always ensure you have backups before making big changes to your setup!
Make sure to disconnect those drives during OS installs in the future. Even if it doesn't directly relate to this issue, it can keep Windows from messing with them, potentially preventing issues like this one!
To get a better understanding of the crash, consider checking for dump files in C:WindowsMinidump. These files are super helpful for diagnosing BSOD problems. If you find any, zip them up and send them to a file sharing site for better help. Just make sure you're using something reliable!
You might want to check the drives’ health with CrystalDiskInfo. If they show anything like 'Caution' or 'Bad,' that's a sign of trouble. Also, keep in mind that Windows Storage Spaces can have quirks and might not be as reliable as other solutions for RAID setups. Unfortunately, if you don’t have good backups, it could get tricky.
I checked CrystalDiskInfo and both drives are showing good health, so that's a relief! But now I'm worried it might have been the Windows upgrade causing this problem instead of a drive failure. I just wasn't expecting Windows to lose access like this.
Losing access after an upgrade can happen; it might have reconfigured how those drives are viewed by the system. Keeping everything connected during the upgrade could have contributed, so in the future, consider disconnecting extra drives.
I really should have done that. Lesson learned for sure!