A method and apparatus for fast initialization of storage devices. An apparatus is described including a redundant array of storage devices that comprises a logical volume of storage. The logical volume further comprises a plurality of stripes. A bit mapped vector provides state initialization information for each of the plurality of stripes in lieu of initializing each of the stripes. A storage controller initializes each of the plurality of stripes by using accesses to the redundant array while concurrently allowing access to the plurality of stripes. Initialization of a stripe can be done by processing a write access. Associated written data to the stripe and updating its corresponding redundancy effectively initializes that stripe. The bit mapped vector is updated to reflect the initialization of that stripe. In addition, while the redundant array is idle, further initialization of un-initialized stripes occurs while concurrently allowing access to the redundant array.