Beginner Seeking Help with TrueNAS Scale App Installation

[lucv]

Hello TrueNAS Community,

I hope this message finds you well. I'm reaching out as a complete beginner in the TrueNAS world, seeking guidance for some issues I've encountered with TrueNAS Scale. I recently installed TrueNAS Scale version TrueNAS-SCALE-23.10.1.3 and managed to set up a storage pool, as well as configure static IP addresses for both my TrueNAS system and my computer. My goal was to leverage TrueNAS Scale for its NAS and app ecosystem.

However, I've hit a roadblock when attempting to access any of the apps, including both native TrueNAS apps and open-source ones. Despite my efforts, I haven't been successful in accessing them. Upon browsing through the forums, it seems that updating my system's BIOS time to UTC might resolve this issue. I have a GPU on order and plan to try this solution as soon as it arrives.

Nevertheless, I have a lingering concern that my problem might stem from DNS configuration. If anyone could offer some insight into this matter or point me in the right direction, I would be immensely grateful.

Furthermore, I've observed that my TrueNAS system isn't communicating effectively with the TrueNAS servers, as I've encountered difficulties checking for new updates.

I am also using an ethernet switch, not sure this has any effect on the DNS.

I apologize for my lack of expertise in troubleshooting these matters. I truly appreciate any assistance or advice the community can offer to help me resolve these issues and fully utilize TrueNAS Scale's capabilities.

Thank you very much for your time and support.

Best regards,
Luc

 

[Bainnor]

I don't see anything listed under Nameservers in your first screenshot. Did you try hitting the 'settings' button and specifying the address of your DNS service?

 

[lucv]

I don't see anything listed under Nameservers in your first screenshot. Did you try hitting the 'settings' button and specifying the address of your DNS service?

Hey thank you for this direction, sounds like it could be my issue. How would I go about properly identifying my dns address?

I am running my ethernet connection from my router into a managed switch and then into my truenas server. Are any of these where I should be looking for the DNS address?

 

[Bainnor]

Logging into your router's status page should show the DNS server used by your router. As each router has a different method to login, you'd need to consult your manual for your router's version.

If you have a windows machine on the same network that has internet access, you could also open a command prompt and use

ipconfig /all

Among other data, the DNS Server address would be listed there. I'm not super familiar with other systems, but I believe linux systems store their dns configuration in the /etc/resolv.conf file, so the DNS server provided by your router should be stored there, if you don't have a windows computer but do have a linux machine on the same network.

Managed switches do also have additional configuration elements which vary by manufacturer. You may need to login and review your settings, but similar to routers, each manufacturer has different configurations for their hardware, so best to check the manual for your switch if you need to review or change any settings.

If you're of a mind to use non-isp DNS servers, such as Google, Open DNS, Cloudflare, etc, you could search to find a public DNS server that suits your needs/privacy concerns and use theirs instead.

 

[lucv]

Logging into your router's status page should show the DNS server used by your router. As each router has a different method to login, you'd need to consult your manual for your router's version.

If you have a windows machine on the same network that has internet access, you could also open a command prompt and use

ipconfig /all

Among other data, the DNS Server address would be listed there. I'm not super familiar with other systems, but I believe linux systems store their dns configuration in the /etc/resolv.conf file, so the DNS server provided by your router should be stored there, if you don't have a windows computer but do have a linux machine on the same network.

Managed switches do also have additional configuration elements which vary by manufacturer. You may need to login and review your settings, but similar to routers, each manufacturer has different configurations for their hardware, so best to check the manual for your switch if you need to review or change any settings.

If you're of a mind to use non-isp DNS servers, such as Google, Open DNS, Cloudflare, etc, you could search to find a public DNS server that suits your needs/privacy concerns and use theirs instead.

Hi Bainnor,

I apologize for the delayed response. I've been overwhelmed with work recently, so I'm just getting around to reviewing this now. Here's the update: Unfortunately, the issue persists. I've taken a few steps to address it. I added two NameServers, namely 8.8.8.8 and 0.0.0.0. Additionally, I verified that my TrueNAS has the correct IPv4 and IPv6 settings matching those of my router. I also enabled the DHCP protocol on my server to facilitate communication. Regarding my router, I configured a port forwarding rule between it and TrueNAS, using port 80 for both the start and end ports.

Despite these efforts, the errors persist. My TrueNAS is still unable to check for updates or connect to apps. I'm feeling quite frustrated with this situation, as I've been researching extensively through forum articles and instructional videos. It seems like something that should be relatively straightforward.

Do you think the problem still lies with DNS?

*I've even disconnected my managed switch and connected my server directly to the router to rule out any issues stemming from the switch.

Any assistance you can provide would be greatly appreciated. I'm eager to learn!

 

[lucv]

On further investigation, I have found out that my time seems to be off. I've ran the ''timedatectl'' command in Shell, results are posted below.

Could this be the starting point of my issue, and how would I go about correcting this issue? My BIOS is set to UTC however the local time on my server is set to PDT?

 

[chuck32]

and how would I go about correcting this issue? My BIOS is set to UTC however the local time on my server is set to PDT?

You can set your time zone in the truenas GUI. BIOS UTC is correct.

As for the DNS issue, 0.0.0.0 is not a DNS Server, 8.8.8.8 is good (or add 1.1.1.1 from cloudflare additionally or as posted before see what your had set as the default).

 

[lucv]

You can set your time zone in the truenas GUI. BIOS UTC is correct.

As for the DNS issue, 0.0.0.0 is not a DNS Server, 8.8.8.8 is good (or add 1.1.1.1 from cloudflare additionally or as posted before see what your had set as the default).

chuck32 thank you for your reply. So here is the update:

1. I set my time so that it is presenting UTC all across via GUI as you have suggested

2. I've set my global Network Config back to: Inherit domain from DHCP, and I have reset my Main network Interface back to the original.
I've done all of the above to test if the default settings would give me access to the apps or the update page:

Unfortunately, this was not the case, as I'm still receiving errors:

It feels like Im missing something obvious here.

To recap, in the past when I tried to set a static IP address for my server then errors started to appear. And now I'm here, contemplating if i should do a complete reinstall lol

Is there any additional info that I can share/look into/test to narrow down my issue?