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Forum Discussion
ReadyNas Duo v2 - Installation & Setup
Hi all
This is my first post and I admit it is a little noobish, so please go gentle :)
After extensive research particularly on this forum, coupled with the fact that I own numerous Netgear products which I have always found reliable, I purchased the above Nas unit the other day. Was immediately impressed with it's cute smallness and build quality :)
I have slotted in 2 x brand new Seagate ST3000DM001 3TB drives and right now the unit is syncing nicely.
However I have a few questions to start off with to enable me to understand fully how to configure the Duo to my requirements.
1. I have Sky Broadband here in the UK and my D-Link modem/router is connected through a Netgear WNR3500 router (which doesn't have a modem). System works marvellously. When it was set up, I was informed that once I exhausted the WNR3500's ethernet ports (which I have now) I could use the available 4 ethernet ports on the D-Link. I initially plugged in the Duo to the D-Link but my network didn't see it. I then disconnected a cable from the WNR3500 plugged in the Duo to it and hey presto - I was up and away! Question - how do I plug in either the Duo or another piece of kit to the D-Link to make my network see it too? I will be happy to provide settings etc if someone could tell me exactly what to provide.
2. When I installed RAIDar it updated itself before I started and seemed to skip a step to allow me to configure my drives. Before I knew it RAIDar started syncing the two drives in the default X-RAID2 configuration. I was originally going to install the drives for maximum volume space but now it seems I will have to wait the 4 hours plus for syncing to complete before I can restore to the factory settings to start all over. Question - In order to see the maximum 6TB across both drives what configuration choices do I have please? Ideally I would like to see one volume of 6TB with 4 folders, Documents, Photos, Music and Video. I may also have one other for a private share - password protected. What is the best way to do this please?
3. Is it possible to partition the drives?
4. How do I get into the configuration screen and in which software (RAIDar or RAIDiator)?
5. I have a 4Drive NAS 1TB Buffalo Terastation, which once cleared, is going to be used for backup as it is in a RAID5 configuration - slow but fantastically reliable. Will it be possible to set up a backup stratedgy to this unit?
6. I haven't discarded the idea of redundancy yet but I am filling up numerous 1TB drives at present by downloading 3D Blu-ray ISO's. I eventually want a media player to play these straight from the disc as an ISO file - right now I haven't this capability so I have to extract them which doubles their size. I want to be able to stream to my TV via my Sony Bravia TV, a Sony Blu-ray player and my PS3. But that is for another post :) - Question - would I be better to go for redundancy, stick with the default X-RAID2 configuration and expand later when 4,5 and maybe 6TB drives appear? I am aware that 4TB drives are out there now but they seem to be in their infancy and optical drives haven't reached this kind of magnitude yet. If 3TB is going to be it, then I may opt for a 6TB configuration and scrifice redundancy.
Thanks for reading - would appreciate your help
roz
This is my first post and I admit it is a little noobish, so please go gentle :)
After extensive research particularly on this forum, coupled with the fact that I own numerous Netgear products which I have always found reliable, I purchased the above Nas unit the other day. Was immediately impressed with it's cute smallness and build quality :)
I have slotted in 2 x brand new Seagate ST3000DM001 3TB drives and right now the unit is syncing nicely.
However I have a few questions to start off with to enable me to understand fully how to configure the Duo to my requirements.
1. I have Sky Broadband here in the UK and my D-Link modem/router is connected through a Netgear WNR3500 router (which doesn't have a modem). System works marvellously. When it was set up, I was informed that once I exhausted the WNR3500's ethernet ports (which I have now) I could use the available 4 ethernet ports on the D-Link. I initially plugged in the Duo to the D-Link but my network didn't see it. I then disconnected a cable from the WNR3500 plugged in the Duo to it and hey presto - I was up and away! Question - how do I plug in either the Duo or another piece of kit to the D-Link to make my network see it too? I will be happy to provide settings etc if someone could tell me exactly what to provide.
2. When I installed RAIDar it updated itself before I started and seemed to skip a step to allow me to configure my drives. Before I knew it RAIDar started syncing the two drives in the default X-RAID2 configuration. I was originally going to install the drives for maximum volume space but now it seems I will have to wait the 4 hours plus for syncing to complete before I can restore to the factory settings to start all over. Question - In order to see the maximum 6TB across both drives what configuration choices do I have please? Ideally I would like to see one volume of 6TB with 4 folders, Documents, Photos, Music and Video. I may also have one other for a private share - password protected. What is the best way to do this please?
3. Is it possible to partition the drives?
4. How do I get into the configuration screen and in which software (RAIDar or RAIDiator)?
5. I have a 4Drive NAS 1TB Buffalo Terastation, which once cleared, is going to be used for backup as it is in a RAID5 configuration - slow but fantastically reliable. Will it be possible to set up a backup stratedgy to this unit?
6. I haven't discarded the idea of redundancy yet but I am filling up numerous 1TB drives at present by downloading 3D Blu-ray ISO's. I eventually want a media player to play these straight from the disc as an ISO file - right now I haven't this capability so I have to extract them which doubles their size. I want to be able to stream to my TV via my Sony Bravia TV, a Sony Blu-ray player and my PS3. But that is for another post :) - Question - would I be better to go for redundancy, stick with the default X-RAID2 configuration and expand later when 4,5 and maybe 6TB drives appear? I am aware that 4TB drives are out there now but they seem to be in their infancy and optical drives haven't reached this kind of magnitude yet. If 3TB is going to be it, then I may opt for a 6TB configuration and scrifice redundancy.
Thanks for reading - would appreciate your help
roz
29 Replies
Replies have been turned off for this discussion
- Now it's 09.06 - RAIDiator has lost communication and RAIDar is saying: - 37.9% complete time to complete 134 hours 17 mins Speed 3MB/sec.
Surely something is very very wrong. How long should 2 x 3TB disks take to install - someone?
I still do not know despite asking, whether the Duo needs to be connected to my PC whilst Syncing/Recovery is going on? At the moment the power Light on the unit is on, the LED underneath is blinking away and the 2 smaller LED's underneath that are on. The Power button does not respond and so the only way I can turn the damn thing off is by pulling the power cord.
Please can someone help me please - it is now 3 constant days since I started installing and I'm getting worried about my new disks which have been spinning most of this time without any break.
My thoughts are that the slightest error when reading/writing files is going to trigger a RAID rebuild/Re-Syncing and so I am going to forget X-RAID2 which I wanted to at the beginning, but this thing didn't give me the option and commenced to build the default RAID anyway. So I want to get back to where I was and try to build a system where I ultimately will have NO RAID and have space over 2 volumes of 6TB (2 x 3TB). How do I achieve this please?
If I can't achieve this, then this thing is going back from wence it came - so far this has to be the very worst Netgear product I have ever owned.
EDIT - speed down to 0 MB/sec now - this is hopeless!!!!! I think it's frozen but god knows what the thing is doing with a blinking LED!!
roz - Sounds like there's a problem with one or more of the disks.
Do you have a PC you could use to test the disks using SeaTools? - I'll be damned if there is a problem with the discs - at the beginning everything booted up fine but part-way through the Syncing, speed was lost. I pulled the plug as I have just done now once more. Recovery should take place which it was (twice) again everything started off nicely but eventually speed was lost .
Please can you answer my questions in red above? otherwise I cannot move forward. I have no spare PC which I am going to dismantle simply to test my discs - it is the ReadyNas which is proving problematic and if it has destroyed my discs, then I will be on the phone to NetGear - I bought the discs and the ReadyNas from 2 different suppliers.
Roz - Probably about a day or so.
Doesn't need to be connected to PC but it can be.
Disks can and do fail at any time.
Are you able to access the Dashboard? If so, can you download the logs zip file?
If not able to to access the Dashboard you should put the NAS in tech support mode and forward port 23. With your IP address tech support (http://www.readynas.com/support) should be able to investigate whether there's a bad disk. - Having just read the "Factory Default instructions" I think that maybe I should try and do this and start again. - Question - is this possible with less than "new" discs? I mean I have read that the ReadyNas has to have new discs in it to start off with. But resorting to the Factory Default setting, will I be able to bring up the menu, within the 10-minute period of course, to start over? I this cannot be achieved, then I am on the phone immediately.
Roz - BTW - I refrained from pulling the plug, pending your response(s). I did exit RAIDar but having just got back into it we are now at 38% complete but once again speed is down to 0 MB/Sec - woho! a 0.1% increse lol! This is showing that something is happening. Initially time was going to be 4/5 hours but as I have said a dramatic speed collapse kicks in around 30/55% - I think 57% is as far as I have got.
So If I disconnect the unit from the Network, by disconnecting the ethernet cable, I should be able to plug it back in later and communicate once more using RAIDar?
Right now I am unable to launch Dashboard, it's telling me it is off-line.
Roz rozel wrote: Question - is this possible with less than "new" discs?
Yes. It'll wipe the disks. Sometimes if you were using disks taken from a PC there could be a problem requiring the partitions to be deleted off the disks before insertion into the NAS, but other than that a factory default should work fine, provided disks etc. are fine.rozel wrote:
I mean I have read that the ReadyNas has to have new discs in it to start off with. But resorting to the Factory Default setting, will I be able to bring up the menu, within the 10-minute period of course, to start over? I this cannot be achieved, then I am on the phone immediately.
Yes you can start over. You don't have to use RAIDar if you are happy for the ReadyNAS to choose the RAID mode for you.rozel wrote: So If I disconnect the unit from the Network, by disconnecting the ethernet cable, I should be able to plug it back in later and communicate once more using RAIDar?
Yes. Not sure why you'd want to disconnect it from the network though.- Thank you mdgm - I'm just trying to work this thing out. I have just plugged the ethernet cable back in but now even RAIDar doesn't see it! LED is still blinking away though. I will restart my PC, see what gives then and decide what to do next over a cup of coffee.
If I should go the Factory Reset route, should I start with one disc then add the second afterwards? Or is it best to leave them both in situ? As I said, I want 2 x 3TB volumes, so what RAID version or should I say options should I select?
Thanks again your advice has been much appreciated :)
Roz - Select Flex-RAID JBOD
- Sorry to be a nuiscance but try as I may I cannot get the factory default to work, or to put it another way, to bring up the RAID screen after opening RAIDar. My unit is currently powered off. Exactly what steps should I now take please?
I have read through the instructions pressed the reset button both when powered up and powered down and tried holding the power button on for 30 seconds but every time I then open RAIDar it goes into automatic syncing/recovery mode to rebuild X-RAID ! This thing is doing my head in!
So can you talk me through the step by step process please, starting at the point that my Duo is currently powered down?
Cheers
Roz
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