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ReadyNAS 204 won't load admin page
I have a ReadyNAS 204 with firmware 6.10.7 and four 8TB drives. Have had it 4 years (bought it gently used) and it ran without any issues. I don't run any apps on it, I only use it to store media files, documents, pictures and full backups of my desktop PC (Windows 10 Pro). It has not required a firmware update in quite some time. I have backups of everything that is on this NAS on two other, smaller NAS.
Starting 2 days ago the Admin page won't load. The screen remains blank for a long time and nothing happens, but sometimes I get an error screen saying it is offline.
I have tried all the suggestions I could find here and in KB articles. I rebooted it using the power button on the device, it booted without issue. I can access all the files and shares in Windows Explorer. I can run all the media files. I can direct backups to it. Everything is working except that the Admin page won't load.
I tried using RAIDar. When I try to use "Logs" or "Diagnostics" it prompts me to log in, but when I enter the admin password nothing happens ever, and RAIDar freezes and has to be closed using Task Manager. Today for the first time RAIDar loaded, displayed the device correctly, and I tried to access Diagnostics again, but suddenly the screen changed and it gave me this message: "RAIDar could not find any NETGEAR storage on your network. Check that your storage device is powered on and connected correctly" but not every time.
When I got this message I checked, as requested, and the NAS is powered on and connected correctly and all the shares and files still show up in Windows Explorer, and I can still access them.
I have not changed any settings or passwords or anything at all in many months BUT I know that Disc 2 needs to be replaced soon because it started giving me warnings a week ago, I just haven't had time to buy a new drive.
I don't know what to try next. Could the failing drive have something to do with this? It can't be a coincidence that the two things happened sequentially within a few days, can it?
If you power up with three drives you'll know immediately if you've solved the problem. Your volume will mount, though it will be listed as "degraded" due to lack of redundancy, and you should have access to the GUI. Then when you insert the new drive into the empty bay, you should see the NAS recognize it and begin to sync.
If you power up with the replacement already in place, it will start to re-sync immediately and if you can't get into the GUI, you won't know if it's because the sync is hogging too much CPU or something else is (still) wrong.
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Maeve1956 wrote:
Could the failing drive have something to do with this?
It could. Generally Netgear runs the web server at a lower priority than other services. If the drive is generating a lot of errors, then that sometimes does result in a non-responsive web ui.
It's also conceivable that the errors resulted in a full OS partition (due to the error logging). That can result in a lot of odd symptoms, including a broken web ui.
Maeve1956 wrote:
I don't know what to try next.
Since you are backed up, data safety is not a concern.
If ssh is enabled, you can try using that to see what is going on.
Assuming no ssh, options I see are
- purchase a replacement drive, and hot-swap with the failing one.
- pull the failing drive now, and see if the web ui starts working normally again.
- do a factory default from the boot menu. If the system works normally again, reconfigure the NAS and restore the files from the backup.
I honestly can't remember if SSH is enabled. I think so, but I set this up 4 years ago and haven't had to make any major changes and so I haven't been to that screen lately. I can't verify since I can't get into the admin page.
I've never used SSH, but I'm sure I can find instructions on using it somewhere and figure it out.
Based on what you say (which I suspected), I think my priority now should be replacing the drive. I've never done that either, but I believe the manual has instructions, and as it's a hot swap drive it should be a piece of cake.
Thank you for replying.
Maeve1956 wrote:
I honestly can't remember if SSH is enabled.
My guess is that it is not.
But you can test it easily. If you are using windows, enter ssh root@nas-ip-addess in the windows search bar (using the real NAS IP address of course). From a Mac you can open terminal and enter the same command.
If ssh is enabled, youi'll probably get a message asking to confirm a fingerprint (say yes), and then you'll get a password prompt.
If it's not enabled, you should get a connection refused message, or possibly the text box will just close.
Maeve1956 wrote:
it's a hot swap drive it should be a piece of cake.
A hot-swap is what I always recommend. The main thing is to make sure you pull the right drive. If you get that wrong, then you can lose data.
FWIW, I always test my replacement drives in a Windows PC first, using vendor tools. Seatools for Seagate, and Dashboard (or Lifeguard) for Western Digital. I run the full non-destructive test, and also a full erase/write zeros test. Some out-of-the-box drives have passed one of these tests, but failed the other.
I don't know what you mean by "could have resulted in a full OS partition." Can you explain what that is and how it works, please? Thanks.
The OS partition on the NAS is quite small, and some programs have been known to fill it up. If enabled, you should have received email alerts about it. But with the GUI not working, the alerts may also no have. The only way you will know is to go into the NAS via SSH and check.
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