Question

a computer that is being used by the hr department needs to ensure that all of the data on that computer is protected from a single hard disk failure. the data needs to be read as quickly as possible, and the hr department would like to maximize drive use as much as possible. this computer can use up to three hard drives.
which of the following raid types would meet these requirements and provide the best data protection?
raid 0
raid 1
raid 5
raid 10

Explanation:

Step1: Analyze RAID 0

RAID 0 (striping) has no data redundancy. If one drive fails, all data is lost. So it doesn't meet the data protection requirement.

Step2: Analyze RAID 1

RAID 1 (mirroring) has data redundancy (data is mirrored on another drive). But with three drives, the usable space is only the size of one drive (since two drives would be used for mirroring in a simple sense, but it's mainly for two - drive setups in basic mirroring). And it doesn't maximize drive use as well as some other RAID types for three drives.

Step3: Analyze RAID 5

RAID 5 (striping with parity) requires at least three drives. It can handle a single - drive failure (due to parity). The usable space is \(n - 1\) (where \(n\) is the number of drives). For three drives, the usable space is \(3-1=2\) drive's worth. It provides good data protection (single - drive failure tolerance) and relatively good drive utilization.

Step4: Analyze RAID 10

RAID 10 (a combination of mirroring and striping) requires at least four drives (two pairs for mirroring first and then striping). Since the computer can use up to three drives, RAID 10 is not an option.

Answer:

RAID 5