Failed drive with mirrored IDE HDDs

[PoliMalaka]

Got a server (Dell PE350) from our HQ with two IDE HDDs.
Windows 2000 Server is installed and the drives are mirrored in windows using the disk manager.

One of the drives is failing. It will go offline then we reactivate it and it comes back for a few weeks.

How do we replace this drive?
Do we

1. Break the mirror using windows disk manager, replace the drive, and reconfigure the mirror?

2. Remove the mirror using windows disk manager, replace the disk, then reconfigure the mirror?

I have found the following KB articles but they don't really give insight of what to do exactly.
KB302969
KB141702 (this one references NT specifically but adds near the end that it also applies to W2K Server)

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[Daveyboy2]

First off, back up everything you can in case it bombs.

Remove the failing hard drive. Insert the new hard drive and boot to the OS. Go into the Computer Management section in the Admin Tools. You will see the one drive will now have an error on it - right click and 'reactivate mirror'.

You can break the mirror, but I never fool with that. Removing the hard drive will force a break. Removing the mirror will get rid of it altogether.

 

[PoliMalaka]

We actually tested removing the old drive and replacing it with a new one to see if anything happened automatically.
Nothing did.
The new drive showed up as a separate item but the mirror was still there with there with what should have been the old drive.
We have good backups.
What we will try is breaking the mirror, replacing the failing drive, then reestablishing the mirror with the new drive.
Cross your fingers!

 

[Daveyboy2]

Nah, it won't be automatic. RAID 5 would almost be an automatic, but you'd have some intervention.

If the system still boots up with the main hard drive, don't worry about the mirror. Break it - remove it - whatever you will need to do is OK, because one source is still good. Then re-build the mirror as a new one, and you're back in business.