A file server uses a three-disk hardware RAID 5 array. Users report sluggish file access, and the RAID management utility flags Disk 2 with several reallocated sectors and an "S.M.A.R.T. imminent failure" warning, although the virtual drive is still healthy. The company cannot afford downtime during business hours. Which action should the technician take first to resolve the issue while maintaining availability?
Install a fourth drive and convert the array to RAID 10 during the next maintenance window.
Replace every disk in the array and restore the data from last night's backup.
Force the controller to mark Disk 2 healthy and clear all error counters.
Hot-swap Disk 2 with an identical replacement drive and allow the array to rebuild.
Because a RAID 5 volume can tolerate the loss of a single member, the safest first step is to hot-swap the drive that is reporting S.M.A.R.T. imminent failure with an identical replacement. The controller will rebuild parity on the new disk while the array stays online. Clearing the error counters leaves a failing disk in service and risks data loss; replacing all drives and restoring from backup causes unnecessary downtime; converting to RAID 10 does not remove the failing disk and also requires additional hardware.
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What does 'hot-swapping' mean in the context of RAID?
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Why is RAID 5 able to tolerate the failure of one disk?