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Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

Pedro45
Aspirant

Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

I have a Netgear ReadyNAS214 (latest OS) which had a single drive as it was/is intended as a backup to machines on the network – "JBOD", no RAID required or wanted.

 

When I introduced a second drive, the NAS OS immediately started setting the two up in a RAID config – not what I was after. All I want is the two drives (well, their shares) to be visible as separate resources.

 

I aborted that process, shut it down and rebooted with just the second drive present.  Now that is all set up as a (solo) JBOD with shares, all working OK.  But I don't want to put drive #1 back in and risk the NAS going rogue-RAID on me and destroying 100GB of stored backup.

 

Obviously I'm missing something needed to achieve the desired "dual JBOD" configuration. Any suggestions?

Model: RN214|4 BAY Desktop ReadyNAS Storage
Message 1 of 11

Accepted Solutions
StephenB
Guru

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

Did you try to do a factory default?  That would be needed if you were still using XRAID.  I thought based on your earlier post that you have already gone back to JBOD.  FWIW, it wasn't needed to simply add a JBOD volume.

 

In an event, if that is what you are doing, then the NAS admin password has been reset to password.  The NAS will by default use XRAID.  So when you get past the wizard, you should

  • switch to flexraid
  • destroy the data volume
  • create two jbod volumes, one for each disk

There is no need to wait for the XRAID volume to build/resync.

View solution in original post

Message 6 of 11

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StephenB
Guru

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?


@Pedro45 wrote:

 

Obviously I'm missing something needed to achieve the desired "dual JBOD" configuration. Any suggestions?


Change to flexraid before you add the second disk.  You do that on the volume page - if there is a green stripe on the XRAID control, then XRAID is enabled.  Click it, and the system should change to flexraid.

 

Then select the disk on the volume page after you hot-insert it.  If the disk is used, then you'll need to use the format control on the page.  After that, create a second JBOD volume.

 

I suggest reading through chapter 2 of the software manual ( http://www.downloads.netgear.com/files/GDC/READYNAS-100/READYNAS_OS_6_SM_EN.pdf ).

Message 2 of 11
Pedro45
Aspirant

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

Your first para sounds like a contradiction.

 

I have read that Chapter 2.  All I took away from that was a sore head, and re-reading it didn't help one bit.  I came here hoping to find a simple step-by-step solution.

Message 3 of 11
StephenB
Guru

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?


@Pedro45 wrote:

Your first para sounds like a contradiction.

I fixed the typo.  And my response above does provide the step-by-step solution

  1. switch to flexraid (making sure there is no green stripe on the xraid control)
  2. add a disk
  3. format if needed
  4. create a new volume using that disk

Then of course create shares on it.

 

Though flexraid may sound complicated, using jbod with one disk per volume isn't hard.

Message 4 of 11
Pedro45
Aspirant

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

 I've copied all the 100GB of data off the #1 drive and I'm following the Installation Guide (pp9-11) to reinitialise/reformat that drive.  Except I can't get past the wizard's setup page wanting the admin password.  I give it the new pswd, hit Enable Password Recovery/Reset Button and then Next/Next/Apply and it errors with Failed to set Admin Account Password and Failed to set Recovery method.

 

If I select IGNORE and Apply, it pops up the error box again.  Can't ignore, can't satisfy the b@#$%^ wizard, can't proceed!!

 

What was once a useful single drive NAS is turning into an absolute nightmare.

Message 5 of 11
StephenB
Guru

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

Did you try to do a factory default?  That would be needed if you were still using XRAID.  I thought based on your earlier post that you have already gone back to JBOD.  FWIW, it wasn't needed to simply add a JBOD volume.

 

In an event, if that is what you are doing, then the NAS admin password has been reset to password.  The NAS will by default use XRAID.  So when you get past the wizard, you should

  • switch to flexraid
  • destroy the data volume
  • create two jbod volumes, one for each disk

There is no need to wait for the XRAID volume to build/resync.

Message 6 of 11
Pedro45
Aspirant

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

No I had done the factory default after removing all the data.  (The drive showed up as RAID 1 so I went that route.)  Then after the factory default I had to pass via the wizard.  Eventually I gave up on the wiz and was able to get the admin page to come up (with my pswd).  Went and "de-X-ed" and accepted the flex warning, plugged in the #2 drive and eventually formatted it after realising I had to DESTROY it first.  So now both have shares and I'm shifting the 100G of data back onto #1.  Will get to check out #2 later.

Message 7 of 11
Sandshark
Sensei

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

If your old password still worked, it didn't do a factory reset, at least not with the main drive installed.  But what you did need to do, unless you are confortable "under the hood" with SSH, is destroy the RAID volume and re-create the JBOD.  Seems you eventually got there, though after some frustration.

 

BTW, how your simple 1-drive NAS got so complicated is that it's not quite so simple as you seem to have thought.  You thought it was simple enough you didn't need to read the manual, which would have told you that XRAID is the default.  The NAS is a dedicated Linux computer with lots of drive bays, not something simple like a USB drive chassis.  Reading the instructions is highly recommended.

Message 8 of 11
Pedro45
Aspirant

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

The former pswd didn't work (had to go and find the default one ...), and the IP had reverted to DHCP rather than the static I had assigned.  It certainly did the factory reset/default.

 

I had read the manual, more than once, but it really didn't seem like it wanted to deal with JBOD x2.  I certainly didn't see anywhere that said "for more than one JBOD you'll need to flip X-RAID and select flexRAID".

 

Also the flexRAID warning "only recommended for experienced users)" or similar - which I am certainly not (*) - is a bit intimidating to newbies.  So the way forward was far from evident in the manual.

 

(*) This single-drive JBOD config was set up for me by someone else.

Message 9 of 11
StephenB
Guru

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?

Is the NAS set up the way you want it?

 


@Pedro45 wrote:

I had read the manual, more than once, but it really didn't seem like it wanted to deal with JBOD x2.  I certainly didn't see anywhere that said "for more than one JBOD you'll need to flip X-RAID and select flexRAID".


 

I agree it does require some knowledge of RAID in order to fully understand the FlexRAID features described in the manual. Note I don't work for Netgear, and I have no influence over what is in the manuals.  While there is always room for improvement, I do find them to be helpful myself - and many posters here don't know they exist or how to find them.  So I often do link them into my replies.

 

I will say that if the RAID modes are simplified too much, then users who want advanced RAID features are frustrated.  But if everything is exposed, the folks who don't understand RAID get confused.  

 

So XRAID is the simple version, but it only does the RAID redundancy mode that you don't want.  IMO, RAID redundancy is the right approach for most home users, so I think they've made the correct call there.  But since you don't want the RAID redundancy (for whatever reason), you are forced to use the advanced FlexRAID mode.  

 

There is a catch-22 here for Netgear.  A few years back, FlexRAID was simpler - but too restrictive for many people. So they added more knobs, and of course that made it more complicated. I guess they could add a third JBOD mode.  But I don't know if there are enough folks out there who would find that useful - and IMO adding too many modes makes things more complicated, not less.

 


@Pedro45 wrote:

The former pswd didn't work (had to go and find the default one ...), and the IP had reverted to DHCP rather than the static I had assigned.  It certainly did the factory reset/default.

 


You must have told it to do the reset (either from the web UI or the boot menu).  The reset/default does a full factory install (reformatting the disks and starting from scratch).  So it will apply all factory settings. 

 

BTW, there is also an OS reinstall option, which also will reset the password and the network settings to their default values.  But it doesn't rebuild volumes, change the share configuration, etc.  That is described in the hardware manual (since it is built into the boot loader).

 

Message 10 of 11
Pedro45
Aspirant

Re: Multiple NAS drives in a non-RAID (JBOD) configuration?



@StephenB wrote:

Is the NAS set up the way you want it?

It is.  Whether one day I will want to go RAID I don't know, but if nothing else this exercise has been a learning experience.

 

Thanks for your input.


 

Message 11 of 11
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