Details about how to add an RAID-Z1 array from another machine to a new machine

[crusader27529]

Well, here goes......I'm running 9.3, and have a new(to me) server to setup. The current server is running on a laptop(it was all I had) with 8GB of RAM, and 3 external SATA drives, and the new machine will run 11.2. The old machine has 2 USB drives, one for boot, and on that has dotsystem on it(whatever that is). On the new machine, I want to have one USB for boot(yes, it's not optimal) and a 160GB drive for the dotsystem, which appears to write data(logs?) continuously.

My plan is to leave the current raidz1 array in the old machine, and install(from CD) a new boot drive and the 160GB drive, and that should put the dotsystem on that drive. Then, I will install the original raidz1, and it should be imported automatically. Will this work? How do I actually import the old array? Can I install the drives HOT, or should I take the new machine down, install the drives, and reboot? The new machine is a SuperMicro server with 8 drive bays that should be hot swappable.

Am I approaching this correctly? How likely is that my data will be lost? I will backup the entire dataset to an external drive before I start this. Because of the laptop's lack of performance, the backup will probably take 3-4 days.

I'm old, so please be kind......

 

[Chris Moore]

If you are moving your pool to the new system, you don't need to re-install, just shutdown, move all the drives to the new system and ensure that it boots from your boot drive. Then do an upgrade of FreeNAS.

 

[crusader27529]

There's one more thing......I've been unable to get my FreeNAS 9.3 to update......it tries, but never succeeds.

The errors shown on the console imply that it can't reach the update server, but the networking is functional, as the system sends me emails periodically, so it must be able to get to the web.

I wanted to update just because I'm sort of stuck where I am, so transitioning to the new server AND updating that machine at the same time made sense, and having both machines functional before I moved the drives also made sense.

BTW, how can I retrieve the logs associated with the update failure so I can post/upload them here?

 

[Chris Moore]

There's one more thing......I've been unable to get my FreeNAS 9.3 to update......it tries, but never succeeds.

The errors shown on the console imply that it can't reach the update server, but the networking is functional, as the system sends me emails periodically, so it must be able to get to the web.

I wanted to update just because I'm sort of stuck where I am, so transitioning to the new server AND updating that machine at the same time made sense, and having both machines functional before I moved the drives also made sense.

BTW, how can I retrieve the logs associated with the update failure so I can post/upload them here?

No need to do that. This failure is due to the age of the version you are using. The servers that the update comes from have changed in the many, many years since version 9.3 was discontinued. You will need to do a manual upgrade, but doing a fresh install is still a valid option if you would rather do that. Doing an upgrade should bring your current configuration with it where doing a fresh install would require that you reconfigure the server. If you do a fresh install, when you move the drives over to the new server, you would need to import the pool and then create the network share. It is a fairly straightforward process. You would want to familiarize yourself with the documentation before you start.

FreeNAS® 11.2-U7 User Guide — FreeNAS®11.2-U7 User Guide Table of Contents

www.ixsystems.com

 

[Chris Moore]

Can I install the drives HOT, or should I take the new machine down, install the drives, and reboot?

It should not make a difference. The pool will be 'foreign' which is to say not-known to the new install, so you wold need to import the pool. That is covered here in the user guide:
https://www.ixsystems.com/documentation/freenas/11.2-U7/storage.html#importing-a-pool

Just shutdown the old system. The pool should be auto exported on shutdown, but you can also manually export the pool before shutdown of the 9.3 system if you would like, for safety sake. Here is the guide link:

FreeNAS User Guide 9.3-STABLE — FreeNAS User Guide 9.3 Table of Contents

www.ixsystems.com

 

[crusader27529]

Understood......I think I'll do the new system install, and then import the pool once I move the drives to the new server.

THANKS for the excellent help.....My SATA cabling won't arrive until next week, so I'll start the backup now(Just In Case) and be ready when the parts get here.

 

[Chris Moore]

If you have questions, please ask. Better safe than sorry and many of us were using 9.3 for a long time, so we have experience doing this upgrade ourselves.

PS. In version 9.3 the ZFS pool was called a volume and they called it "Detach Volume" in the guide. There is a figure, but no section heading for it.
The closest link is this:

8. Storage — FreeNAS User Guide 9.3 Table of Contents

www.ixsystems.com