FreeNAS 9.2.1 RELEASE warning message.

[OneStickShortOfaBundle]

I have just updated a server to FreeNAS 9.2.1 RELEASE and I'm getting the warning message below but, when I look at the volume status it says HEALTHY. Should I be worried and, if so, what action should I take?

WARNING: The volume onestickshd3 (ZFS) status is ONLINE: One or more devices are configured to use a non-native block size. Expect reduced performance.Replace affected devices with devices that support the configured block size, or migrate data to a properly configured pool.

 

[Jason Hamilton]

This has been addressed by cyberjock. If you search the forums you'll find the information about it. I'll see if I can't find the thread that addresses this. Bottom line no you shouldn't be worried.

 

[HoneyBadger]

Here's the thread in question.

TL;DR - It's a warning, your pool is fine, but you aren't getting optimal performance. Dig into the linked thread to find out more about sector size and ashift if you want to correct it.

 

[OneStickShortOfaBundle]

Thanks guys. I did a search but turned up nothing. I'll have a look at the thread. :)

*Update* OK, having looked through the thread it seems that I have two options. Either I 'live with it' or, I backup then remake my pool. I do have a backup but, I don't know if I have the motivation to start over.

 

[Dimitrios]

I like the part with the motivation.. i need one to!
Is possible to solve this any other way?
Thanks

 

[HoneyBadger]

I like the part with the motivation.. i need one to!
Is possible to solve this any other way?
Thanks

Nope, you have to destroy and recreate the pool.

Second, fixing it isn't easy. You can only fix this by either changing your ashift or fixing your disks. Since all disks now and in the future are 4k, that's not a good option. Ashift values cannot be changed once the vdev has been created, so that's not a good option either. So how do you fix it? You have to backup your pool, destroy and recreate it with the proper ashift, then copy your data back. Super easy, right?

Should be easy enough, just restore from your backups ... we all have those, right? ;)

 

[OneStickShortOfaBundle]

Yes, I have two backups but I'm not sure about the ashift thingy. Will this be taken care of automatically when I wipe the disks? I'm doing everything via the web interface as the Shell scares me because I'm thick.

 

[HoneyBadger]

Yes, I have two backups but I'm not sure about the ashift thingy. Will this be taken care of automatically when I wipe the disks? I'm doing everything via the web interface as the Shell scares me because I'm thick.

Should be handled automatically. 9.2 and later automatically assume 4K sectors and will use ashift=12 for the default. There's no harm done to older 512B drives by this unless you count the potential 3.5KB of lost space as a tragedy.

 

[OneStickShortOfaBundle]

Thanks. I think that I can cope with the 3.5KB of lost space. ;)

 

[Dimitrios]

I have just updated a server to FreeNAS 9.2.1 RELEASE and I'm getting the warning message below but, when I look at the volume status it says HEALTHY. Should I be worried and, if so, what action should I take?

I have just updated a server to FreeNAS 9.2.1 RELEASE and I'm getting the warning message below but, when I look at the volume status it says HEALTHY. Should I be worried and, if so, what action should I take?

My case is (Migration from FreeNAS-8.0.4-RELEASE-x64 to 9.2.1)
After reading this post searching for my case (warning about 4k in storage) I decide to use the 9.2.1 and leave some time with the warning... Big, huge mistake!
I am using it as a NAS on my XEN Hypervisor and 2 of my Vms start to behave mysterious and there disk now is corrupted.!
So my opinion is that in this particular migration is not safe with this kind of warning

 

[HoneyBadger]

My case is (Migration from FreeNAS-8.0.4-RELEASE-x64 to 9.2.1)
After reading this post searching for my case (warning about 4k in storage) I decide to use the 9.2.1 and leave some time with the warning... Big, huge mistake!
I am using it as a NAS on my XEN Hypervisor and 2 of my Vms start to behave mysterious and there disk now is corrupted.!
So my opinion is that in this particular migration is not safe with this kind of warning

This warning has nothing to do with disk corruption, it has to do with performance.

If you are having errors please make a new thread regarding them with specs of your system and we can investigate, but you can start by validating SMART attributes and making sure the rest of your hardware meets the FreeNAS specs.

 

[doglover]

Hello. Should I expect to run into this issue when upgrading from 9.1.1 to 9.2.1.3? If yes, I might stick with 9.1.1....
Thanks,
IMF

 

[cyberjock]

Hello. Should I expect to run into this issue when upgrading from 9.1.1 to 9.2.1.3? If yes, I might stick with 9.1.1....
Thanks,
IMF

There is always the very real possibility of having problems. That's why you backup your config file before you start... if things go horribly bad you can revert.

 

[doglover]

Thanks. Agreed, and I already have the config file and the data backed up. Still, the question stands. Should I expect the same issues going from 9.1.1 to 9.2.1.3 as are being mentioned in this thread or are those just for folks upgrading from older versions? Thanks!