hide devices from linux?

[Tom Horsley]

Is there any way early in kernel boot time to "hide" devices
from the kernel? Tell it something like /dev/sdc and /dev/sdd
aren't there - don't look at them - don't confuse yourself
trying to automagically detect a RAID on them, just pretend
they aren't there at all.

The original FC5 kernel apparently comes up with this
poop out of nowhere when booting my current system that
happens to have a Windows XP RAID on some other disks
I don't want it to use:

[root at zooty ~]# dmsetup table
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p11: 0 212909382 linear 253:0 98558838
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p10: 0 41945652 linear 253:0 56613123
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p2: 0 295820910 linear 253:0 16771860
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p1: 0 16771797 linear 253:0 63
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p9: 0 6297417 linear 253:0 50315643
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p8: 0 8385867 linear 253:0 41929713
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p7: 0 4192902 linear 253:0 37736748
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1: 0 312602112 striped 2 128 8:32 0 8:48 0
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p6: 0 16771797 linear 253:0 20964888
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p12: 0 1124487 linear 253:0 311468283
isw_deichhibbi_RAID_Volume1p5: 0 4192902 linear 253:0 16771923

If I update the kernel to the latest FC5 from updates, it
hangs at boot time right after it says it is starting nash (sigh :-).

I have no desire to access these disks when I've got linux booted,
and I'd really like to make them logically disappear (which is
a lot less work than opening the case and unplugging them :-).