Recover data from ZFS pool to NTFS drive

[RoDiesel]

Hi to all. New around here ..
I'm in the process of building a DIY NAS. Something not very complicated (good CPU, 6 drives etc.). Just testing the difference between a "handmade" and a Synology device, witch is getting old and needs to be replaced.

For the first test, I used two drives in a pool (Mirror_1), of course mirrored, hence the name. Replicating a defective MB, I tried to read/recover info from one of the drives and installed it into a GhostBSD environment (LiveCD) into another computer. I have used the following:
zpool import -f altroot=/mnt/MyData Mirror_1
In this case I was able to see the data and read it (/mnt/MyData).
Now, I needed to transfer the data to a NTFS drive. For that I used the following lines:
ntfs-3g /dev/da1s1 /mnt/Backup
Apparently, all was ok with the data transfer, but after reading the NTFS drive in Ubuntu, I observed that the data was not transferred completely. Or, in other case, the NTFS drive was unreadable (both under Ubuntu or Windows environment).
I do have to tell that after data transfer, I rebooted/shutdown the system from CLI without other commands.

Am I doing something wrong? I have tried multiple times but with questionable results. I do want to use TrueNAS Core/Scale but being able to recover the information from the drives after a hardware fails is a must for me.

Thanks

 

[sretalla]

Why would you make NTFS a requirement for the recovery?

Using ZFS would seem much more appropriate if you're on Ubuntu (and even Windows with ZFS on Windows).

If the data's already in a perfectly good ZFS pool, why recover it anywhere else at all? (just import it in another OS or move the disks to working hardware and run TrueNAS again).

 

[RoDiesel]

Why would you make NTFS a requirement for the recovery?

Using ZFS would seem much more appropriate if you're on Ubuntu (and even Windows with ZFS on Windows).

If the data's already in a perfectly good ZFS pool, why recover it anywhere else at all? (just import it in another OS or move the disks to working hardware and run TrueNAS again).

I was under the impression that I need the same hardware/MB for the pool to "function" correctly. Taking into consideration your advice, I will re-install TrueNas Core, set up a pool etc., and after that I will erase the OS and install a "new one" (albeit on the same MB), just for testing purpose (a good opportunity to learn more...), using the same drives/pool for storage. Maybe I'll even try TrueNas Scale. Be right back with the results ....
PS: Thanks for the answer.

 

[danb35]

I was under the impression that I need the same hardware/MB for the pool to "function" correctly.

You were under an incorrect impression--there's no requirement that the hardware be anything even similar. If you reinstall TrueNAS on completely different hardware, you might need to reconfigure the network devices, but other than that it just doesn't matter.

 

[Patrick M. Hausen]

You were under an incorrect impression--there's no requirement that the hardware be anything even similar. If you reinstall TrueNAS on completely different hardware, you might need to reconfigure the network devices, but other than that it just doesn't matter.

To add: this is the key advantage of ZFS over hardware RAID. Pick any hardware that can connect your disk drives and isn't crap. Recovery done.

 

[RoDiesel]

Just a side note: is there any special stuff that I need to do to import the "old" pool?
zpool import ... ????
Any documentation/link that I can use in the process to make my life easier?
Thanks

 

[HoneyBadger]

You were under an incorrect impression--there's no requirement that the hardware be anything even similar.

The one exception to this is regarding storage controllers, and why the community makes so much noise about HBAs, and discourages the use of hardware RAID controllers.

As long as you've provided ZFS with direct, unfettered access to your disks, the brand, model, and speed of the storage controller tends to not matter for obtaining access to the data stored on them.

Just a side note: is there any special stuff that I need to do to import the "old" pool?
zpool import ... ????
Any documentation/link that I can use in the process to make my life easier?
Thanks

Nope - the TrueNAS web UI actually has an option to import a pool from another ZFS system (whether TrueNAS or another ZFS source):

Importing Pools

Describes how to import storage pools on TrueNAS CORE.

www.truenas.com

Importing a Pool

Provides information on ZFS importing for storage pools in TrueNAS SCALE. It also addresses GELI-encrypted pools.

www.truenas.com