How to add existing hard drive to new FreeNAS server

[neelflexi]

I saw all the posts related to my problem but did not get any answer or maybe I missed out.
I was using FreeNas 9.2.1 since 2018 with 4TB of WD Red hard disk as a storage device and the OS was in a 16GB Pendrive. I was storing all the cancer patient data without any problem but unfortunately, due to some power fluctuation, my OS Pendrive was not booting properly. Then again I reinstalled the same FreeNas OS into the server and tried to "auto import the volume" of that 4TB WD Red hard disk. But it is not importing and if I add the hard disk through the ZFS manager it shows all the data will be erased and I can not take that risk. That hard disk is containing all the current Cancer patient data by any means I have to get that volume. Plz, let me know anyone how to add that hard disk to the new server.

 

[danb35]

FreeNAS 9.2.1 is very old (released in early 2014), and you should give serious thought to upgrading to a version that's still getting security updates--which would be at least 12.0-U8.1. But that issue is somewhat down the road, and first let's see about getting your data imported.

Versions of FreeNAS before 9.3 supported both ZFS and UFS for storage. To determine which you were using (which will affect how you'll make that disk available again), run gpart show at the shell and post the output here.

 

[ChrisRJ]

Where is the backup?

 

[neelflexi]

Where is the backup?

Unfortunately, i lost that backup too. Otherwise i could retrieve the data from backup.

How can i add that hard drive again to the new server without erasing old data?

 

[danb35]

How can i add that hard drive again to the new server without erasing old data?

You can start by answering the question I asked you.

 

[neelflexi]

You can start by answering the question I asked you.

Here is the screenshot of "gpart show"

 

[danb35]

OK, that shows you used ZFS. You should be able to use the Auto Import, tell it it's a ZFS volume, and it should bring it in. If it doesn't, what error message does it give?

 

[neelflexi]

OK, that shows you used ZFS. You should be able to use the Auto Import, tell it it's a ZFS volume, and it should bring it in. If it doesn't, what error message does it give?

I tried the Auto Import option

The first pop up is

If i select "NO" option it gives the second popup

and if i select "YES" than asking for key

I tried the "Import volume" option it gives me this popup

 

[danb35]

Go back to the shell--what's the output of zpool import and zpool status?

 

[neelflexi]

Go back to the shell--what's the output of zpool import and zpool status?

Screenshot

 

[HoneyBadger]

If this is a single-disk volume (it was only ever made of a single 4TB WD Red) - then I would strongly suggest you stop immediately, go buy a second 4TB HDD (Red+ is fine, but any drive with equal or greater size will do) and make a bit-for-bit clone to the new unit. You can then disconnect the source drive and do your recovery operations only on the clone.

The error you're getting is "unsupported feature(s)" which seems odd if you're importing the pool into the same version it was written with - but I would try a newer (even an 11.x "Legacy" branch of FreeNAS) version to see if it will import the pool without complaint.

But again - if this is a single physical disk and only one copy, I'm going to suggest you go buy another disk and clone it, out of an abundance of caution. Once you get the pool imported again, you can then convert the single-disk to a mirror vdev for redundancy.

 

[neelflexi]

If this is a single-disk volume (it was only ever made of a single 4TB WD Red) - then I would strongly suggest you stop immediately, go buy a second 4TB HDD (Red+ is fine, but any drive with equal or greater size will do) and make a bit-for-bit clone to the new unit. You can then disconnect the source drive and do your recovery operations only on the clone.

The error you're getting is "unsupported feature(s)" which seems odd if you're importing the pool into the same version it was written with - but I would try a newer (even an 11.x "Legacy" branch of FreeNAS) version to see if it will import the pool without complaint.

But again - if this is a single physical disk and only one copy, I'm going to suggest you go buy another disk and clone it, out of an abundance of caution. Once you get the pool imported again, you can then convert the single-disk to a mirror vdev for redundancy.

Ok, can you plz suggest how to clone this hard drive, any specific software for this?

 

[HoneyBadger]

Ok, can you plz suggest how to clone this hard drive, any specific software for this?

I find that CloneZilla is a fine solution for this; it has a fairly straightforward process and several confirmation steps so that you can be certain that you've got your "Source" and "Destination" disks properly selected.

 

[neelflexi]

Ok, let me make the clone of the existing hard disk then plz let me know what to do next.

In case if this does not work then is there any alternative way to reterive the data?

 

[garm]

Make the clone, put the original drive in a safe place, and then if you cannot mount the pool you try data recovery tools, On the Clone.
If you fail that, you find a reputable forensic data recovery firm and give them the original drive, a lot of money and they will give you your data back.

 

[HoneyBadger]

Ok, let me make the clone of the existing hard disk then plz let me know what to do next.

In case if this does not work then is there any alternative way to reterive the data?

Once it's cloned, tuck the original away safely as @garm mentioned. I would start with trying a newer version of FreeNAS/TrueNAS to see if there was perhaps an upgrade along the way that put additional feature flags in your pool that can't be imported on the original 9.2.1 - from there, we can try progressively more aggressive import options on the clone drive (while trying read-only, perhaps)

 

[neelflexi]

Once it's cloned, tuck the original away safely as @garm mentioned. I would start with trying a newer version of FreeNAS/TrueNAS to see if there was perhaps an upgrade along the way that put additional feature flags in your pool that can't be imported on the original 9.2.1 - from there, we can try progressively more aggressive import options on the clone drive (while trying read-only, perhaps)

Ok, I do not have readily available the extra 4TB hard disk so I ordered on Amazon. I have an external WD hard disk for backup can I use that to make the clone of the original Nas hard disk?
I desperately need to import the hard disk... Plz, let me know if you have any options which I can try.

 

[garm]

I use ddrescue to clone drives, you need a storage pool or disk larger then the cloned disk to copy too

 

[danb35]

I desperately need to import the hard disk.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but if this is important data, you've done an extremely poor job of taking care of it:

• You've stored it on a single disk with no redundancy
• You don't have a reliable backup
• You apparently haven't updated the system in over eight years--though the message about feature flags suggests that you might have even though you say you haven't, which raises its own concerns.

Other issues could be identified, but this is enough to make the point. We're trying to help you, but you've put yourself in an extremely precarious position--one from which you may not be able to recover. If you are, offer a prayer of thanksgiving, and then fix these issues to reduce the likelihood of a situation like this arising again.