Software Setup
Once you've gotten to the POST screen, enter the bios. If you want to set up a raid array, you usually have to turn on RAID on the bios, which can be accomplished by going to the integrated peripherals tab, selecting “on-chip IDE function” and then selecting “RAID configuration.” This will bring you to a menu that allows you to activate RAID and select which channels to specifically activate for an array. Once you've set that up, reboot.

After passing the POST screen, you'll now have the option of going to the RAID setup menu by hitting tab. Do so, and you'll find the RAID menu, which is very easy to use. Simply create a striping (RAID-0) or mirroring (RAID-1) array and then add the disks you want on it. Now it's time for windows!

Insert your Windows CD and reboot. The computer will boot off of the CD and start the windows installation. Once again, a bit of a RAID side note here: You have to hit F6 right at the startup of the windows install so windows knows that you have drivers for your RAID array that you'll use right before the windows setup goes into it's main file copying phase. These drivers are found on a floppy disk that came with your motherboard. If you don't do this, windows will NOT be able to see your array. Also, windows won't tell you it registered you hitting F6, it will just go to a driver install screen later on in the installation. So just spam F6 the entire time it says to hit it, and assume it got the message. While windows is installing, you'll have a bit of free time. Use this time to gather together all of the various driver CD's for your peripherals. After about 20 minutes, windows will boot into that familiar screen and you're ready to start major driver installation. For this, here's my recommendations for driver order:

1. Motherboard drivers, found on motherboard CD
2. Reboot
3. Video card drivers, latest ones found on your video card manufacturer's website
4. Reboot
5. All other pci devices, such as sound cards, TV tuners, etc (no need to reboot between these installations)
6. Reboot
7. You're ready to go! Enjoy!

With the help of this guide, you'll be able to create a top of the line, fully customized gaming PC for quite a bit less than pre-built manufacturers charge for their own machines designed specifically for gaming. So now there's no excuse for any of you to say that you don't know how to build your computer, because all you need to know you've just read. Once you get good at it, it goes by relatively quickly. In fact, in setting up for this article I took apart my entire computer and rebuilt it, along with taking breaks for pictures, in 45 minutes. It's a skill no computer gamer should be without, and now you know how it's done. I hope you've enjoyed this guide, and I wish you good luck on your building endeavors!