Ubuntu - Remove Mdadm RAID Array

If you need to reconfigure your mdadm RAID array, then it is probably easies to destroy it and then rebuild a new one. The following steps will show you how to destroy your existing mdadm RAID array.

WARNING: Make sure to move all of your data off the array before proceeding.

Steps

Stop the RAID array so that you can operate on it.

sudo mdadm --stop /dev/md0

Query your arrays to find out what disks are contained using

sudo mdadm --detail /dev/md0

Zero the superblock FOR EACH drive (or use gparted to delete the partitions if you have a GUI)

sudo mdadm --zero-superblock /dev/sdx
sudo mdadm --zero-superblock /dev/sdy

You may also want to move your mdadm config to a backup file just in case.

sudo mv /etc/mdadm/mdadm.conf /etc/mdadm/mdadm.conf.bak

References

• Ubuntu Forums - How to remove an MDADM Raid Array, Once and For All!