Advantages of new ZFS-on-boot features (boot scrub, verify install, etc)

[wblock]

I vote that the whole USB suggestion be removed altogether IMHO.

Freeing up a SATA port, or two for mirrored boot devices, is a big advantage for some motherboards and users.

 

[Mirfster]

Freeing up a SATA port, or two for mirrored boot devices, is a big advantage for some motherboards and users.

Yeah but dealing with USB Sticks is a PITA. To each their own, but I'm still gonna preach cheap old SSDs. ;)

BTW, correct me if I am wrong; but using SSDs (or even HDDs) over USB will also benefit from SMART Monitoring over USBs right?

 

[depasseg]

BTW, correct me if I am wrong; but using SSDs (or even HDDs) over USB will also benefit from SMART Monitoring over USBs right?

Yessir!

Code:

[root@freenas2] ~# smartctl -a /dev/da1
smartctl 6.3 2014-07-26 r3976 [FreeBSD 9.3-RELEASE-p31 amd64] (local build)
Copyright (C) 2002-14, Bruce Allen, Christian Franke, www.smartmontools.org

=== START OF INFORMATION SECTION ===
Device Model:     SSD USB 3.0 120GB
Serial Number:    VT16050123455ABCD
LU WWN Device Id: 5 888914 1001d2c3d
Firmware Version: 609ABBF0
User Capacity:    120,034,123,776 bytes [120 GB]
Sector Size:      512 bytes logical/physical
Rotation Rate:    Solid State Device
Device is:        Not in smartctl database [for details use: -P showall]
ATA Version is:   ATA8-ACS, ACS-2 T13/2015-D revision 3
SATA Version is:  SATA 3.0, 6.0 Gb/s (current: 6.0 Gb/s)
Local Time is:    Wed Sep 14 10:03:13 2016 EDT
SMART support is: Available - device has SMART capability.
SMART support is: Enabled

=== START OF READ SMART DATA SECTION ===
SMART overall-health self-assessment test result: PASSED

General SMART Values:
Offline data collection status:  (0x00) Offline data collection activity
                                        was never started.
                                        Auto Offline Data Collection: Disabled.
Self-test execution status:      (   0) The previous self-test routine completed
                                        without error or no self-test has ever 
                                        been run.
Total time to complete Offline 
data collection:                (    0) seconds.
Offline data collection
capabilities:                    (0x7d) SMART execute Offline immediate.
                                        No Auto Offline data collection support.
                                        Abort Offline collection upon new
                                        command.
                                        Offline surface scan supported.
                                        Self-test supported.
                                        Conveyance Self-test supported.
                                        Selective Self-test supported.
SMART capabilities:            (0x0003) Saves SMART data before entering
                                        power-saving mode.
                                        Supports SMART auto save timer.
Error logging capability:        (0x01) Error logging supported.
                                        General Purpose Logging supported.
Short self-test routine 
recommended polling time:        (   1) minutes.
Extended self-test routine
recommended polling time:        (  48) minutes.
Conveyance self-test routine
recommended polling time:        (   2) minutes.
SCT capabilities:              (0x0025) SCT Status supported.
                                        SCT Data Table supported.

SMART Attributes Data Structure revision number: 10
Vendor Specific SMART Attributes with Thresholds:
ID# ATTRIBUTE_NAME          FLAG     VALUE WORST THRESH TYPE      UPDATED  WHEN_FAILED RAW_VALUE
  1 Raw_Read_Error_Rate     0x0032   095   095   050    Old_age   Always       -       4394249150
  5 Reallocated_Sector_Ct   0x0033   100   100   003    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
  9 Power_On_Hours          0x0032   098   098   000    Old_age   Always       -       2247 (228 248 0)
 12 Power_Cycle_Count       0x0032   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       4
171 Unknown_Attribute       0x000a   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
172 Unknown_Attribute       0x0032   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
174 Unknown_Attribute       0x0030   000   000   000    Old_age   Offline      -       4
177 Wear_Leveling_Count     0x0000   000   000   000    Old_age   Offline      -       0
181 Program_Fail_Cnt_Total  0x000a   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
182 Erase_Fail_Count_Total  0x0032   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
187 Reported_Uncorrect      0x0012   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
190 Airflow_Temperature_Cel 0x0000   034   040   000    Old_age   Offline      -       34 (Min/Max 22/40)
194 Temperature_Celsius     0x0022   034   040   000    Old_age   Always       -       34 (Min/Max 22/40)
195 Hardware_ECC_Recovered  0x001c   115   115   000    Old_age   Offline      -       4394249150
196 Reallocated_Event_Count 0x0033   100   100   003    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
201 Unknown_SSD_Attribute   0x001c   115   115   000    Old_age   Offline      -       4394249150
204 Soft_ECC_Correction     0x001c   115   115   000    Old_age   Offline      -       4394249150
230 Unknown_SSD_Attribute   0x0013   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       100
231 Temperature_Celsius     0x0013   100   100   010    Pre-fail  Always       -       8589934592
233 Media_Wearout_Indicator 0x0032   000   000   000    Old_age   Always       -       2257
234 Unknown_Attribute       0x0032   000   000   000    Old_age   Always       -       1118
241 Total_LBAs_Written      0x0032   000   000   000    Old_age   Always       -       1118
242 Total_LBAs_Read         0x0032   000   000   000    Old_age   Always       -       47

SMART Error Log not supported

SMART Self-test log structure revision number 1
No self-tests have been logged.  [To run self-tests, use: smartctl -t]

SMART Selective self-test log data structure revision number 1
 SPAN  MIN_LBA  MAX_LBA  CURRENT_TEST_STATUS
    1        0        0  Not_testing
    2        0        0  Not_testing
    3        0        0  Not_testing
    4        0        0  Not_testing
    5        0        0  Not_testing
Selective self-test flags (0x0):
  After scanning selected spans, do NOT read-scan remainder of disk.
If Selective self-test is pending on power-up, resume after 0 minute delay.

[root@freenas2] ~# 

 

[Mirfster]

SSD USB 3.0 120GB

What the heck is that? Some weird offspring between an USB 3.0 and SSD? ;)

 

[depasseg]

It's this:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00O0NV5HU/?tag=ozlp-20

After my 4th USB stick failure, I upgraded.

 

[Mirfster]

Cool way to get around not having to use a MotherBoard SATA Port. A little expensive, but nonetheless cool.

 

[depasseg]

I figured it's cheaper than 4 more decent USB sticks. and the performance is much better.

 

[wblock]

A USB enclosure holding a normal SATA/mSATA/M.2 SSD will work also.

 

[diskdiddler]

@danb35
I would add that;

• USB sticks have become such a commodity that low quality, (and even out right fraud in sizes), has become the norm for the cheaper ones.

Personally I would now test a USB stick with both sizes checks and perhaps 10 full writes and read verifications before putting one into use.

https://www.google.com.au/search?q=...efox-b-ab&gfe_rd=cr&ei=sNTZV9qIIcbN8gex46qgDQ

Run it twice on the stick, if it passes, you're fine.
Try to use a brand name stick and ideally 2 of them.
I'm using "ADATA" 16GB sticks and it took 9 or 12 months for one stick to get one bad block (which subsequently, now works fine in a Windows PC as a spare stick for files)

The USB feature of FreeNAS is EXTREMELY handy for motherboards with few sata ports, or only /just enough/ sata ports to get the job done.

 

[Arwen]

https://www.google.com.au/search?q=...efox-b-ab&gfe_rd=cr&ei=sNTZV9qIIcbN8gex46qgDQ

Run it twice on the stick, if it passes, you're fine.
...

Actually that program is roughly what I use, though the Linux / Unix version of it;
http://oss.digirati.com.br/f3/

 

[Stux]

i like the idea of using two usb flash drives mirrored for booting - this may seem a silly question - if i have two identical sandisk flash drives how do i know which one to replace if there is a problem ? i assume they will have the same name in the bios.
if i removed the good one and booted with a bad one would this cause a big problem ?

that's two silly questions

Old post, but I just did this the other day.

If you USB disk has activity lights the. Dd from the good one to dev null and remove the one that doesn't light up.

Turned out I had a bad USB port.