Creating a new pool and copying all data to it?

[Gimpymoo]

I currently have 10 3TB drives. The pool consists of the 10 drives in 5 vdevs which are mirrored (Is that the correct terminology?) Apologies if not.

I have ran out of room in my case. The drives are 4 years old so keeping them is only likely to cost more in the long term. I was looking to get a bigger case to accommodate the older drives and some new ones but not sure if it makes sense to spend a lot on a bigger case when I can really do with just getting rid of the older/smaller drives to free up space, if that makes sense.

If I purchase 4 x 8tb drives, can I setup a new pool using those drives, copy all data to them then remove the other 10 drives thus freeing up space in the case again?

Or, is it better just to use more disks to the point of having more resiliency, in theory but at some point, I do not want to continue using the 3TB disks forever.

 

[danb35]

If I purchase 4 x 8tb drives, can I setup a new pool using those drives, copy all data to them then remove the other 10 drives thus freeing up space in the case again?

Sure. You're going to end up with about the same amount of available storage, assuming you continue with the same sort of pool layout, so this wouldn't give you (much) more space in the pool, but it would free up drive bays in the case.

Another possibility would be to replace four of your current disks (two mirrored pairs) with the new disks, and then remove the remaining three vdevs. This does introduce some pool overhead, though, so it may not be the best way to go.

 

[NugentS]

As a silly idea. Put an external LSI HBA into the NAS and add a JBOD chassis. Build the new array in the chassis and when populated remove the old array, transfer the disks to the NAS case and keep the JBOD for future upgrades

 

[Gimpymoo]

Sure. You're going to end up with about the same amount of available storage, assuming you continue with the same sort of pool layout, so this wouldn't give you (much) more space in the pool, but it would free up drive bays in the case.

Another possibility would be to replace four of your current disks (two mirrored pairs) with the new disks, and then remove the remaining three vdevs. This does introduce some pool overhead, though, so it may not be the best way to go.

Thanks.

Really is a "no win" situation unfortunately but got to "bite the bullet" at some point or nothing will change.

New case and new drives... ££££

Or, replace existing drives but gain only a few TB in storage. Spending more than the cost of the case to then get more storage.

When you mention "overhead", does that mean "unuseable" space in the pool owing to the difference in disk sizes?

 

[Gimpymoo]

As a silly idea. Put an external LSI HBA into the NAS and add a JBOD chassis. Build the new array in the chassis and when populated remove the old array, transfer the disks to the NAS case and keep the JBOD for future upgrades

I can spin up the new drives temporarily in the existing case? That would achieve the same result right?

My thinking is, I cannot just keep getting bigger and bigger cases every four years so at what point do you "bite the bullet" and "downsize" so you can start from new but keep your data? If that makes sense?

 

[danb35]

I can spin up the new drives temporarily in the existing case? That would achieve the same result right?

My thinking is, I cannot just keep getting bigger and bigger cases every four years so at what point do you "bite the bullet" and "downsize" so you can start from new but keep your data? If that makes sense?

My answer to this several years ago was to buy a 36-bay chassis, which I figured would give me plenty of space for years to come. And it’s worked, but it may not be the best answer for everyone.

The “overhead” I mentioned is in memory. This page may explain it a bit:

Blog | Perforce Software

Stay ahead with the latest trends, insights, and best practices in software development, DevOps, and version control on the Perforce blog

www.delphix.com

 

[Gimpymoo]

Still not sure which way to go.

New case + drives or simply new drives and move existing pool onto new disks with plenty of space in the case to start again.

Even with a new case and drives, will still be left with 10 rusty spinners I want to get rid off in the near future.