Is it possible to copy data from external USB drive ?

[Sykotik]

As title, Can i copy data from an external HDD drive - straight to the HDD drives within truenas ?

 

[winnielinnie]

If the USB drive is a ZFS pool? Yes.

Otherwise, you should just copy the files over the local network via SMB, NFS, and/or Rsync.

 

[Sykotik]

No it's not a ZFS drive ,

how ever , this i a new pool with no data on at all ,
so i could quiet easy delete the pool and start again .

how ever i would need to remove the external drive afterwards , im guessing this is going to be a problem ??

 

[winnielinnie]

how ever , this i a new pool with no data on at all ,
so i could quiet easy delete the pool and start again .

I don't understand what that means?

Are you referring to the USB drive or the "pool" on the TrueNAS server?

Delete what pool? The ZFS pool on TrueNAS? Why?

 

[Sykotik]

sorry my bad , im new to all this so i will use terms the wrong way :(

its new sever all together,
i have create a Pool so far , nothing else
and started thinking the easiest way to get my data over on to the truenas sever . i have used "USB copy" on synology nas's and it works great , - no need to use SMB and windows.
So i was wondering if TN has some thing similar ?

you mentioned if the drive was a ZFS pool then i could be done , how would i go about doing this ?

 

[winnielinnie]

So i was wondering if TN has some thing similar ?

Short answer: no

You'll need to resort to using SMB, NFS, or Rsync over the network to copy from the USB drive to your TrueNAS ZFS pool.

you mentioned if the drive was a ZFS pool then i could be done , how would i go about doing this ?

That's irrelevant now. To make it a single-drive (non-redundant) ZFS pool would require wiping all the existing data on the drive itself.

 

[NugentS]

By far the best way is to mount the disk in a different machine and import across the network

 

[Sykotik]

Ok thanks guys

 

[webwalker]

I'm going to hang off the end of this one, because it sounds similar to a challenge I've got. I'm trying to solve this in the small scale (heh) at home before I try to implement it on a grand scale at work.
GOBS of USB based backup drives coming in from the field at work. "Dump it all on to big TrueNAS" bossman sez. "But don't hurt our busted*ss bandwidth. Have it done by April."

Therefore, I'm looking for a way (and I'll script it if I have to) to mount quite a pile of xfat USB disks for dumping to a new TrueNAS installation.

If the only way in and out of this NAS is the network cable, I'm gonna feel stupid for recommending it.

 

[chuck32]

Does the server has unused NICs?
Quick idea: Directly attach a laptop or other machine to it, chose a method of your liking (SMB, NFS, rsync etc.) and write a script that will copy the data once the drive is mounted.
Using a dedicated NIC should solve the bandwidth problem, although there will be write load on the pool.

Reconsider if blindly dumping all the drives (how many are we talking?) is a sensible approach. I'm still paying for my sins "storage is cheap, I'll just dump it here" with evenings of organizing stuff (almost done though :) ).

 

[webwalker]

Does the server has unused NICs?
Quick idea: Directly attach a laptop or other machine to it, chose a method of your liking (SMB, NFS, rsync etc.) and write a script that will copy the data once the drive is mounted.
Using a dedicated NIC should solve the bandwidth problem, although there will be write load on the pool.

Reconsider if blindly dumping all the drives (how many are we talking?) is a sensible approach. I'm still paying for my sins "storage is cheap, I'll just dump it here" with evenings of organizing stuff (almost done though :) ).

Thanks Chuck. I don't have a spare NIC on my 'little-brother', but we do on the production server. I guess if that's what I've got, that's what I've got.

Have you ever dealt with management who thinks that just getting thing #1 done, meant that they got it all done? Yeah, I'm the dude responsible for steps #1-28.

M

 

[chuck32]

Thanks Chuck. I don't have a spare NIC on my 'little-brother', but we do on the production server.

Then you can test your scripting at home where bandwidth doesn't matter and in production you can save the bandwidth.
I only mentioned the second NIC in order to be able to not hog the bandwidth.

For your other, non truenas related question, I had the privilege to almost always work with good managers. Consult a colleague for alternative ideas. If the problem persists, layout your plan in detail and the technical challenges and explain why it may take longer due to X.

Wishful thinking doesn't change facts, easy as that.