Moving a Windows software RAID1 array to a hardware RAID controller.

[RebateMonger]

I'm trying to move a Windows Server 2003 software RAID1 partition (the System partition) to a hardware RAID controller. I'd like to use drive imaging software for the move. But the original software RAID partition seems to be a tiny bit LARGER than the maximum hardware RAID partition that I can attain with the same drives.

These are two WD Raptor 150GB drives in software RAID1. The partition size is something like 139GB in the software RAID configuration. If I attach two identical WD Raptor 150GB drives to my 3Ware RAID controller, the maximum partition size I can get is something like 138GB. (Note: the numbers could be off, but you get the basic idea.)

The problem is that, as far as I know, all the drive imaging software won't restore a backed-up partition to a smaller partition. Anybody know of:

a) Backup software for Windows Server 2003 that will create an image of the system and move it to a (slightly smaller) partition?

or

b) A way to make a Windows Server 2003 software RAID1 array a tiny bit smaller than it was? (The 150GB array only has 70GB of data on it.)

Thanks for any advice.

 

[ZBOLTZ]

Try ghost or any of those other types of programs that are similar to ghost. Another way would be to just back up those files on another hard drive such as an external one.