Which RAID level combines both mirroring and striping?

The correct answer is RAID 10, also known as RAID 1+0. This RAID level effectively combines the features of both mirroring and striping, providing the benefits of increased performance and redundancy.

In RAID 10, data is first mirrored, meaning that an exact copy of the data is stored on two drives. This ensures data redundancy; if one drive fails, the mirrored drive can take over without any data loss. Additionally, RAID 10 stripes data across multiple mirrored pairs. This striping enhances performance, as it allows multiple disks to be accessed simultaneously for read and write operations. As a result, RAID 10 offers both high availability and high performance, making it ideal for applications requiring both speed and data integrity.

In contrast, RAID 0 utilizes striping alone without any redundancy, leading to increased performance but no protection against drive failures. RAID 1 focuses solely on mirroring for redundancy but does not offer the performance benefits provided by striping. RAID 5 employs a combination of striping and parity but does not mirror data, which affects its fault tolerance capabilities differently. Thus, RAID 10 distinctly combines both mirroring and striping, delivering the advantages of both mechanisms.