Hello everyone --I intend to perform a firmware upgrade on my ReadyNAS Pro Business Edition. The unit has 6 x 2Tbyte disks installed, single volume is RAID-6, but hasn't expanded as the initial 1Tbyte disks were replaced with 2 Tbyte versions because the original volume wasn't X-RAID-2 formatted - I never thought we'd need this much space!I'm planning to delete the existing volume and rebuild as X-RAID-2 so I can use the extra space, and future-proof the unit to a degree, and then restore the data by performing a reverse of the unit's nightly rsync backup to a remote NAS (QNAP - sorry!)Whilst I'm about it, I'm also planning a Firmware upgrade and installing EnableRootSSH to give me more granular control over my data, specifically users/groups and permissions on our files (some of them have been written incorrectly over SMB as the 'admin' user ...)My questions are these:1. ReadyNAS Frontview's Home page tells me my firmware (unchanged from 2009) is RAIDiator 4.2.5; when I go to System -> Update -> Remote to see if there's an update available (in 4 years I would expect there to be), it reports there's an update version 4.2.20 (x86) available. To me this seems like a downgrade rather than an upgrade. Am I misreading the version numbers, or am I confused in some other way?2. Am I correct in my plan for recreating my logical volume, or is there another non-destructive way of changing from (Flexraid?) RAID-6 to X-RAID-2 with dual redundancy?3. Is the firmware upgrade destructive in any way? I'll back up my existing config, but does performing the upgrade lose any of my existing settings?4. I understand the Support caveats that go with EnableRootSSH, but I'm OK with this.Many thanks for any advice, in advance.Mike

Wow that is old firmware, but having said that some users still run even older firmware.1. 4.2.20 (Four.Two.Twenty) is much, much newer than 4.2.5 (Four.Two.Five). Fifteen firmware updates newer in fact (though some of these updates were pulled or just for specific new models introduced). There are even newer firmware releases such as the current production firmware 4.2.24 and 4.2.25 is currently in public beta.2. You could create an additional RAID-6 volume. You should find after updating the firmware that you can expand your current volume. See http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/19043/~/expanding-the-readynas-volume-when-in-flex-raid-mode.3. No firmware updates are not destructive. You may notice some changes (some obsolete settings may no longer be visible). However it is advisable to ensure your regular backup is up to date especially before such a major update.4. Good. And you have a backup too so worst case if you mess things up you should be able to factory default the unit and restore from backup.

Woah mdgm! Thanks!I get how the firmware upgrade versioning works now ... cool. Yeah it's old. I'm risk averse, and in general not lured in by 'new features'.That said, clearly this upgrade could help me: as I understand from reading your link in (2) above, I could simply do the Firmware upgrade, then expand my existing Flexraid RAID-6 dual redundant logical volume to use the extra space available on the 6 x 2Tbyte disks (currently it only 'sees' the original 6 x 1Tbyte), to be a larger RAID-6 volume, AND WITHOUT having to delete and restore my data?So, this expansion process isn't destructive? At first reason, it sounds like it isn't, which means I could stick with Flexraid RAID-6 volume, simply expand it - no need for an X-RAID2 rebuild - and then repeat this process again in the future as I replace all the disks over time with with larger ones. Not automatic as with X-RAID-2, granted, but if the process means I don't have to delete and then restore all my data then that's good.Can you confirm that? It'd be great if I didn't have the restore downtime.Cheers,Mike

You should be able to expand the volume after the firmware update. Expansion is not destructive.Do note a few expansion limitations1. Cannot expand by more than 8TB. If your volume capacity was 1.8TB when you last did a factory default you cannot expand past 9.8TB2. Cannot expand past 16TB. However you can do a factory default with disks in place to get a higher capacity volume than 16TB. Or create an additional volume if using Flex-RAID.

Thanks again. This is very good stuff.I initially had 6 x 1Tbyte disk in the RAID-6 volume, giving me circa 3.683Tbyte of space. I've replaced all of these with 2Tbyte drives, so expanding to use the 'extra' 1Tbyte on each of the newly-inserted disks should, at most, only expand me by 6Tbyte, right? Excellent. Most impressed by the speediness, succinctness and knowledge in your replies.Mike

Your currently volume capacity would roughly be doubled. So the expansion you would get would be under 4TB.

Upgrading Firmware on ReadyNAS Pro Business Edition

11 Replies

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mdgm-ntgr
NETGEAR Employee Retired
Oct 08, 2013
Wow that is old firmware, but having said that some users still run even older firmware.

1. 4.2.20 (Four.Two.Twenty) is much, much newer than 4.2.5 (Four.Two.Five). Fifteen firmware updates newer in fact (though some of these updates were pulled or just for specific new models introduced). There are even newer firmware releases such as the current production firmware 4.2.24 and 4.2.25 is currently in public beta.

2. You could create an additional RAID-6 volume. You should find after updating the firmware that you can expand your current volume. See http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/19043/~/expanding-the-readynas-volume-when-in-flex-raid-mode.

3. No firmware updates are not destructive. You may notice some changes (some obsolete settings may no longer be visible). However it is advisable to ensure your regular backup is up to date especially before such a major update.

4. Good. And you have a backup too so worst case if you mess things up you should be able to factory default the unit and restore from backup.
kin_nas_user
Aspirant
Oct 08, 2013
Woah mdgm! Thanks!

I get how the firmware upgrade versioning works now ... cool. Yeah it's old. I'm risk averse, and in general not lured in by 'new features'.

That said, clearly this upgrade could help me: as I understand from reading your link in (2) above, I could simply do the Firmware upgrade, then expand my existing Flexraid RAID-6 dual redundant logical volume to use the extra space available on the 6 x 2Tbyte disks (currently it only 'sees' the original 6 x 1Tbyte), to be a larger RAID-6 volume, AND WITHOUT having to delete and restore my data?

So, this expansion process isn't destructive? At first reason, it sounds like it isn't, which means I could stick with Flexraid RAID-6 volume, simply expand it - no need for an X-RAID2 rebuild - and then repeat this process again in the future as I replace all the disks over time with with larger ones. Not automatic as with X-RAID-2, granted, but if the process means I don't have to delete and then restore all my data then that's good.

Can you confirm that? It'd be great if I didn't have the restore downtime.

Cheers,

Mike
mdgm-ntgr
NETGEAR Employee Retired
Oct 08, 2013
You should be able to expand the volume after the firmware update. Expansion is not destructive.

Do note a few expansion limitations
1. Cannot expand by more than 8TB. If your volume capacity was 1.8TB when you last did a factory default you cannot expand past 9.8TB
2. Cannot expand past 16TB. However you can do a factory default with disks in place to get a higher capacity volume than 16TB. Or create an additional volume if using Flex-RAID.
kin_nas_user
Aspirant
Oct 08, 2013
Thanks again. This is very good stuff.

I initially had 6 x 1Tbyte disk in the RAID-6 volume, giving me circa 3.683Tbyte of space. I've replaced all of these with 2Tbyte drives, so expanding to use the 'extra' 1Tbyte on each of the newly-inserted disks should, at most, only expand me by 6Tbyte, right?

Excellent. Most impressed by the speediness, succinctness and knowledge in your replies.

Mike
mdgm-ntgr
NETGEAR Employee Retired
Oct 08, 2013
Your currently volume capacity would roughly be doubled. So the expansion you would get would be under 4TB.
kin_nas_user
Aspirant
Oct 08, 2013
Brilliant. Looks like I'm good to go ahead then, and I've got a lot less work to do than I'd planned: no volume recreation, no data restore. Nice one. :-)
kin_nas_user
Aspirant
Oct 10, 2013
The resync of the drives is going fine: upgraded the firmware to 4.2.20, and chose to simply expand the volume to take advantage of the 2Tbyte drives in all slots. I really, really like that.

Progress has been on 49% for about an hour now, and says it's going to take 162 then 252 then 56 hours to complete. Since my client will be back to work tomorrow and the team all bright and breezy and wanting to access their files, should I let them carry on as normal, or should I ask them to 'work locally' (we're very much a 1990s-style design agency ... ). Are lots of reads and writes during the resync likely to be problematic?

Also: I've just seen a pop-up telling me to reboot the device to continue with the update process, even though I'm at 50% now. Is this wrong - I'd have thought it not a good idea to reboot right now ...

Thanks for all your input, once again.
kin_nas_user
Aspirant
Oct 10, 2013
The resync of the drives is going fine: upgraded the firmware to 4.2.20, and chose to simply expand the volume to take advantage of the 2Tbyte drives in all slots. I really, really like that.

Progress has been on 49% for about an hour now, and says it's going to take 162 then 252 then 56 hours to complete. Since my client will be back to work tomorrow and the team all bright and breezy and wanting to access their files, should I let them carry on as normal, or should I ask them to 'work locally' (we're very much a 1990s-style design agency ... ). Are lots of reads and writes during the resync likely to be problematic?

Also: I've just seen a pop-up telling me to reboot the device to continue with the update process, even though I'm at 50% now. Is this wrong - I'd have thought it not a good idea to reboot right now ... should I ignore that?

Thanks for all your input, once again. Mike
mdgm-ntgr
NETGEAR Employee Retired
Oct 10, 2013
Ignore the request to reboot for now.

You did reboot as part of the update process to update to 4.2.20, right?

It might now be prompting you to reboot to update to 4.2.24
SuperNASman
Aspirant
Dec 03, 2013
Hello, I was wondering about firmware upgrades for the ReadyNAS Pro as well.

Why doesn't RAIDiator OS version 6 work with the ReadyNAS Pro?

What are the benefits of version 6 compared to version 4?

Will there be any more firmware updates for the ReadyNAS Pro?

Thanks all.