ReadyNAS Duo - new disk displays Bad Disk Detected in RAIDar

I would remove the WD disk again and test it with the WD Lifeguard diagnostic on a PC.

I don't have the ability to hook to my pc... Pretty much a novice here. :(

OK. Try powering down the duo and move the WD disk back to slot 2 (leaving slot 1 empty), and see if it boots up that way. The slot number matters with ReadyNAS.

If it boots: Confirm that your data is there, and also check the SMART+ stats on the health tab of Frontview. The stats that matter most are reallocated sectors and spin retries. If it looks good, put your Seagate back into slot 1.

If it doesn't boot: You should probably assume the disk is bad. If you purchased it recently on-line, you can likely exchange it, with no questions asked. If you wait too long, you will need to RMA the disk to WD, and you will get a refurbished disk in return. The model might be different (and the size could be larger, depending on what they have in their spares inventory at the moment). WD should accept the ReadyNAS bad disk report at face value, and execute the exchange.

cindygraeff wrote:
... I was eventually able to see Disc 2 in Frontview, and it indicated it had no free space available...

I am a little confused about what you mean here (and what you did on the initial install). When you install a second disk for redundancy, you should see both disks on the same volume tab (volume C). The "xxxx GB allocated" on the volume tab should approximately match the disk size, and should be the same for both disks. What you will not see is free space available on each disc. The "GB allocated" is not telling you about free space; it is just telling you the amount of that disk being used in the raid array. If you set up Disc 2 as a separate volume (c and d tabs), then you aren't getting redundancy. If you are looking somewhere else on Frontview, maybe you can give us some more details.

cindygraeff wrote:
I don't have the ability to hook to my pc... Pretty much a novice here. :(

Being able to run vendor diags is a pretty useful thing. One way that works with laptops (or desktops) and is very easy is to do: Pick up a SATA/USB adapter (for instance http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-USB- ... B000VS4HDM). This gives you a disk power adapter in addition to the USB connection.

I've found that the USB connection works ok (though slow). Though since my laptop also has an eSata connector, I also picked up an SATA-eSata cable - so I generally use the power adapter combined with that.

I installed the WD in slot 2, leaving slot 1 empty. The blue power light is flashing once per second. All 4 of the green LED lights are flashing together in a 3 long, 3 short pattern. The RAIDar shows the 2 disk green, but the info says Corrupt Root.

What's next?

Thanks for your help, by the way.

cindygraeff wrote:
I installed the WD in slot 2, leaving slot 1 empty. The blue power light is flashing once per second. All 4 of the green LED lights are flashing together in a 3 long, 3 short pattern. The RAIDar shows the 2 disk green, but the info says Corrupt Root. What's next? Thanks for your help, by the way.

You're welcome.

If you don't have a current backup of your data (or your duo configuration), then I think you should remove the WD drive, put the seagate back into slot one, and make the backup(s).

At that point you could possibly submit an on-line support case, and let Netgear sort it out. (If you do that, you should edit the title of the thread to include your support case number).

Another thought is that after the backup step you could reinsert the WD drive, and see if it rebuilds it. Either way, please report back on your status.

I took out the disk 2 WD. Put in the Disk 1, Seagate.... Had a successful backup thru Time Machine.

Now I'm going to put the WD into slot 2, and see what happens. I'll keep you posted.

Needed to reboot with both disks in. Although I had to unplug and replug the unit to get it to power down. RAIDar displayed File system check, with green light in slot 1. Slot 2 is blank. I allowed it to reboot, and at the Frontview I told it to reboot and perform a volume scan.

That too did not work... The disk 2 was not recognized. So, with both disks in - the Seagate in disk 1, and the WD in disk 2, I did a factory reset... Knowing it will wipe both disks. I am hoping it will properly set and recognize both disks.

I'll let you know what happens next.

Did a factory reset on both disks.... RAIDar has been showing that both disks are recognized and both green on RAIDar, with Info showing as Installing for the past 2 1/2 hours.

Looking at the ReadyNAS, the blue power light flashes 2 times, followed by a flash of the single green LED light above the Disk lights (which are not lit).

Is this normal behavior for factory reset on both Disks? Should I be patient and wait? Or shut down and start again?

Is Raidar finding it? I am not sure what the LED pattern means, but Raidar might tell you something less cryptic.

Yes... RAIDar shows the Volume light blank, the Disk 1 & Disk 2 solid green, and in the Info column says Installing" . I finally, after 5 hrs of this, unplugged it.