I have a RN312 with 2 disks (1TB each) running in X Raid (RAID1). System is working well, with 390GB disk space free. OS 6.10 (Hotfix 2)
I now plan to buy a new RN214 (with 4 x 1TB, to be configured in X-Raid, RAID5).
I will set up the new RN214 with static IP address, and create identical shares in RN214 as already exist in RN312. Both old RN312 and new RN214 will be on the same LAN at my home, with static IP addresses.
How can I synchronise the new RN214 to the old 312, (and then, once synchronised, map PC's to new RN214), and switch off old RN312?
Model: RN31200|ReadyNAS 300 Series 2- Bay (Diskless)
How can I synchronise the new RN214 to the old 312, (and then, once synchronised, map PC's to new RN214), and switch off old RN312?
I'd reconfigure the NAS manually (recreating user accounts, other settings, and shares via the web UI).
Once that is done, enable rsync on all shares on the RN312, and use rsync incremental backup jobs on the RN214 to transfer data from each share on the RN312 to the destination share on the RN214. Also set the "remove deleted files from target" on the advanced options. Rsync will preserve all file attributes (though folders will end up with the different date). The rsync jobs will run NAS-NAS, so you don't need to remain logged in to a PC.
It might take a day or so to complete this part. I suggest using incremental rsync, because you can re-run the jobs right before you shut down the RN312. That second update will complete quickly, and will take care of any files that might have changed after the initial backup was run.
If you use the "home" share feature, the easiest way to migrate the private shares is to log in to both from a PC, and manually copy the data over the network.
I now plan to buy a new RN214 (with 4 x 1TB, to be configured in X-Raid, RAID5).
Personally I recommend using larger disks, and leaving empty slots for later expansion. It's cheaper in the long run (and can cost the same initially).
For instance, 4 WD10EFRX would cost about $240. 2 WD40EFRX cost almost exactly the same, and actually gives you 1 TB more storage. Then later on you can expand by inserting a single new disk instead of upgrading a pair of working drives.
I do recommend using either NAS-purposed disks (WD Red or Seagate Ironwolf) or enterprise class. I don't recommend desktop drives, even though there are some on the HCL.
Thanks for the useful advice on this upgrade route. I will be using 4x WD Red drives, and will consider your suggestion to go for a larger (say 4TB) drive. I understand RN314 is not shipped as it is EOL, hence RN214 as my choice for the NASPrimary on a home system with only 2 users.
I will look in detail at using RSYNC as the route to populate the new RN214 from the old RN312. (I will convert the unused RN312 to a secondary Backup device (BackupB) just to store my RD snapshots). I already have a RN312 (2 x 2TB WD Red drives) called BackupA for daily backups.
As an alternative approach to change over from RN312 to RN214:
1. Place a new WD Red 4TB into the RN312, and allow to synchronise over 2 -3 days.
2. Use an old disk as a scratch disk to get the new RN214 onto network (new IP address) and update OS to latest.
3. Shutdown RN214, remove scratch disk, transfer WD Red 4TB Disk 1 from RN312 into slot 1 of RN214. Shut down old RN312, start up RN214. Map all links to new RN214 NAS.
4. Insert 2nd new WD Red 4TB disc into slot 2 of RN214 and allow to synchronise.
5. Add 3rd new WD Red 4TB disc into slot 3 of RN214 and allow to synchronise.
6. Add 4th new WD Red 4TB disc into slot 4 of RN214 and allow to synchronise.
As an alternative approach to change over from RN312 to RN214:
I don't recommend doing it this way. One reason is that the upgrade path from x86->arm NAS isn't a main use case - Netgear seems to assume that the main path is arm->x86. So it's not as well tested as the arm-x86 case (and might not even be fully supported). If you do try it this way, then make sure that the firmware on the RN214 matches the RN312 before you begin. Also uninstall your apps first, as they generally won't run on the RN214 (and won't migrate).
This would be a better path if you went with an RN424 (which is x86, but is also more expensive).
Of course you can start with 4x4TB, though I'd suggest starting with 2x4TB with two empty slots instead. Then add drives later on when it fills. Perhaps get 4 drives, and upgrade one of the RN312s to 2x4TB while you are at it. That will ensure that you can back up the NAS for now (and also when/if you go to 3x4TB on the main NAS).
I will stick with your suggestion of the RSYNC route to populate the new RN214(from old RN312). I was surprised the 'new' RN214 was equipped with ARM processor and not Intel. Netgear must have had their reasons.
I think a configuration backup on the old unit and restore on the new should move over all users and groups. It should work between OS6 units, ARM or Intel, just not from an OS4.x or 5.x system.
The 214 is getting to be a bit old. If you needed a faster machine as well as more bays, you should have gone with the 400 series or higher.
Thanks for the suggestions. Can I clarify your suggestion:
1. On the existing RN312, perform a configuration back up (say to my PC desktop).
2. On the new RN214;
a. Manually configure the identical Shares as on the RN312 (is this required or will a config Restore do this?);
b. Perform a Restore of the config file from my desktop.
3. This will transfer all the users, LUNs, permissions, backup jobs to the new RN214.
I note you say the RN214 is getting old. Do you know when this model was introduced? When was the new series RN424 introduced. I note the 214 has an ARM processor, whereas the 424 has Intel.
1. On the existing RN312, perform a configuration back up (say to my PC desktop).
2. On the new RN214;
a. Manually configure the identical Shares as on the RN312 (is this required or will a config Restore do this?);
b. Perform a Restore of the config file from my desktop.
I tried this (some time ago), and found that the configuration backup/restore didn't restore all the settings - and there is no list from Netgear on exactly what it skips. I think volume quota was one of them - but my recollection is that there were several others.
Also, the process will restore some app configuration files, even when the app isn't installed on the new system. That can cause issues later on (reinstalling the app might not work, attempting to remove it won't work, etc).
So while it can save some time (especially if you have a lot of users), you end up needing to
uninstall apps prior to backing up the config
hand-check the RN214 configuration after you are done
3. This will transfer all the users, LUNs, permissions, backup jobs to the new RN214.
Not sure about LUNs since I don't use them. But it won't copy the LUN itself.
It will transfer the file permission configuration for the share, but the actual file permissions (like all the attributes) are transfered when you copy the data over - and depending on the backup protocol you use, they might not be match the RN312. Rsync backup will preserve permissions.
I note you say the RN214 is getting old. Do you know when this model was introduced? When was the new series RN424 introduced. I note the 214 has an ARM processor, whereas the 424 has Intel.
The RN214 was introduced in the fall of 2015. The RN424 series was introduced in the fall of 2017.
Direct migration of your disks to an RN424 is simpler, since the RN312 is also Intel. So you could use one of your alternate procedures
remove one disk from the RN312 (replacing it and resyncing)
insert that disk in the RN424, and modify the configuration slightly (particularly the hostname, but also change static IP addresses if you use them, and you'll need to join the RN424 to ReadyCloud if you use that)
Insert a second disk in the RN424 to fix the degraded volume.
Thank you Steven for sharing your experiences. I do now feel that the RN424 will be a better unit than the RN214. Intel processor and much more recent model (2017 vrs 2015 for RN214) so better protected against EOL.
I will not use the Config backup/restore.
Assuming I go for RN424, I will adopt the method you set out of migrating a disc (2TB WD Red) from RN312 direct to RN424 and then syncing up the remaining 3 discs (3 x 2TB WD Red) in the RN424 to achieve RAID5.
I will adopt the method you set out of migrating a disc (2TB WD Red) from RN312 direct to RN424 and then syncing up the remaining 3 discs (3 x 2TB WD Red) in the RN424 to achieve RAID5.
I'd add 4 TB drives (as we discussed earlier). XRAID allows the sizes to be mixed.
Hi Steven, Can I call on your experience, please. I have decided to opt for the new RN42400 (Diskless). I am thinking of the following approach to migrate from Primary RN312 to the RN424, and would welcome you thoughts/suggestions:
1. Get new RN424, without disks, onto my network with: Device name, static IP, and updated OS. Gracefully shutdown.
2. Graceful shutdown of Primary RN312 and physically relocate both 1TB disks (Seagate Barracuda) from RN312 to RN424. Startup RN424
3. Once 424 is running (on 2 disks), remap desktop PC apps to new Primary NAS.
4. Add a 'spare' Toshiba 1TB disk from my 'Backup RN312' into slot 3, and once synced, the second disk into Slot 4. These two Toshiba disks (age 3 years) were in service about a week ago, so were under OS6.10.0 Hotfix2. They have got old ReadyNAS backup data on them. How should I format them before adding them into Slot 3 and 4 of the RN424 (Primary)? For info my total data on the RN312 Primary is only 600GB.
1. Get new RN424, without disks, onto my network with: Device name, static IP, and updated OS. Gracefully shutdown.
You can't do this w/o disks. The NAS boots from an OS partition that is stored on the disks - so you can't configure a diskless NAS. What you need to do is simpler.
1. Graceful shutdown of Primary RN312 and physically relocate both 1TB disks (Seagate Barracuda) from RN312 to RN424. Startup RN424
At that point, the RN424 will have all the data and settings (including hostname and network configuration) that the RN312 did. If you are reserving an IP address in the router, you can simply change the address registration to use the RN424's mac address.
FWIW, I don't recommend using static IP addresses on home networks, unless your router doesn't support address reservation. It's easier to manage reserved addresses, and it simplifies switching to a new router (which often uses a different IP address space).
Either way, there should be no need to remap anything on the PCs if the hostname and IP address aren't changed.
2. Add a 'spare' Toshiba 1TB disk from my 'Backup RN312' into slot 3,
You could run into some trouble here, since the Toshiba disk has the same volume name as the RN424 volume. It'd be safest to reformat the disk (or remove the partitions with Windows Disk Manager).
The format actually doesn't matter, because whenever you insert a formatted disk into the RN424 you have to manually reformat it again on the volume screen before it will add the disk to your volume. That's a safety check (many users have lost data because they assumed the NAS would preserve the data on the disks when they added them).
Removing the partitions (called volumes in the Windows Disk Manager) will result in the disk looking blank to the NAS, so with XRAID it will immediately add it to the volume.
2. The Toshiba disks come from a different RN312. To clarify: There is a Primary RN312 (which has Seagate drives), and a Backup RN312 (which had Toshiba 1TB drives, and now has WD Red 2TB drives). Will the Volume Name in the Toshiba drives from the BackupRN312 be an issue if used in the RN424? If yes, then could I not use the new RN424 (before I put it into service) to perform the format of the 2 Toshiba drives, via the Factory Default Reboot menu when starting up the RN424?
3. Is it possible to mix the make/model of HDD within a single NAS device? eg Seagate Barracuda 1TB and Toshiba 1TB in the same NAS.
Will the Volume Name in the Toshiba drives from the BackupRN312 be an issue if used in the RN424? If yes, then could I not use the new RN424 (before I put it into service) to perform the format of the 2 Toshiba drives, via the Factory Default Reboot menu when starting up the RN424?
XRAID volumes are always named Data, so the fact that it came from the backup NAS might not be relevant.
You could do a factory install with the Toshiba drives in the RN424, and then destroy the volume. You won't need to reformat if you do that. If you go down that path, you should also upgrade the RN424 to 6.10.0 if it isn't already running it.
3. Is it possible to mix the make/model of HDD within a single NAS device? eg Seagate Barracuda 1TB and Toshiba 1TB in the same NAS.
Yes. You will get a warning if you mix models that have different rotational speeds. You can ignore that. Note that the system performance will be gated by the slowest drive.
Also, there are some folks who say that mixing rotation speeds will have some impact on vibration frequencies that could affect drive life. I haven't seen a study that has data to support that conclusion. But - assuming it is true - I don't personally think it's a concern in a 2-4 bay desktop NAS, though it would be an issue if you have a big rackmount system (12 - 60 drives). I have a 2 bay Duo that's mixed a 7200 rpm Seagate and a 5400 rpm WDC drive for some years now, and I mixed speeds in my Pro-6 for several years too.
The next time you purchase drives, I'd suggest getting NAS-purposed drives - not desktop models like the ones that you are using now. That would be Seagate Ironwolf or Western Digital Red. Another option would be to go with SSDs - which would give you faster performance if you have a lot of small files (or folders with a lot of files in them).
But if your drives are working in the two RN312 NAS, there's no reason to replace them.
1. I will follow the route of using the new RN424 to (in two separate operations) to do a Factory Default format on the two Toshiba drives, and upgrade OS to 6.10.0 Hotfix2. Then, set aside those two formatted drives for later use. Next step will be to relocate the 2 existing Seagate 1TB drives from RN312 to the RN424, as per our earlier notes today.
2. I think the Seagate Barracuda has a spin speed of 7,200rpm and the Toshiba label quotes 7,200rpm. Thanks for your advice on the speed warning. In due course, I plan to have all 4 disks in the RN424 as WD Red (5,400rpm). My RN312 Backup is already WD Red.
As always, I'm very grateful for your time and expertise.
Well you advice has worked... so thanks very much. I have migrated the Volume (2 disks) from RN312 to RN424. All working well.
Prior to that I thought I had formatted the two old 1TB Toshiba disks from another (separate) RN312 for use in the Slots 3 and 4 of the new RN424. When I hot inserted the Toshiba disk into slot 3 I got a message "Please remove inactive volumes to use Disk #3". This disk was idetified in the 424 as data0. Can I insert this disc into slot 3 of the RN424 and use the "Destroy" function (for disk 3) to format it and destroy the old Volume. Clearly I did not format it correctly earlier. Thanks
When I hot inserted the Toshiba disk into slot 3 I got a message "Please remove inactive volumes to use Disk #3". ... Can I insert this disc into slot 3 of the RN424 and use the "Destroy" function (for disk 3) to format it and destroy the old Volume.
One thing you can certainly do is format it a Windows PC and then reinsert it.
If you have to do it in the NAS, then I suggest putting it into one of your 3 NAS by itself (doesn't matter which), powering up, and then destroy the data volume.
Thanks. Yes I have a spare NAS 312, I will insert disc, boot up, then use the command 'Destroy' (under the Volume menu) the volume, shut down, and move the now 'empty' disk across to Slot 3 of the RN424. Is that what you mean by Destroy the Volume.
