ReadyNas Duo v2 - Installation & Setup

[rozel]

Hi all

This is my first post and I admit it is a little noobish, so please go gentle

After extensive research particularly on this forum, coupled with the fact that I own numerous Netgear products which I have always found reliable, I purchased the above Nas unit the other day. Was immediately impressed with it's cute smallness and build quality

I have slotted in 2 x brand new Seagate ST3000DM001 3TB drives and right now the unit is syncing nicely.

However I have a few questions to start off with to enable me to understand fully how to configure the Duo to my requirements.

1. I have Sky Broadband here in the UK and my D-Link modem/router is connected through a Netgear WNR3500 router (which doesn't have a modem). System works marvellously. When it was set up, I was informed that once I exhausted the WNR3500's ethernet ports (which I have now) I could use the available 4 ethernet ports on the D-Link. I initially plugged in the Duo to the D-Link but my network didn't see it. I then disconnected a cable from the WNR3500 plugged in the Duo to it and hey presto - I was up and away! Question - how do I plug in either the Duo or another piece of kit to the D-Link to make my network see it too? I will be happy to provide settings etc if someone could tell me exactly what to provide.

2. When I installed RAIDar it updated itself before I started and seemed to skip a step to allow me to configure my drives. Before I knew it RAIDar started syncing the two drives in the default X-RAID2 configuration. I was originally going to install the drives for maximum volume space but now it seems I will have to wait the 4 hours plus for syncing to complete before I can restore to the factory settings to start all over. Question - In order to see the maximum 6TB across both drives what configuration choices do I have please? Ideally I would like to see one volume of 6TB with 4 folders, Documents, Photos, Music and Video. I may also have one other for a private share - password protected. What is the best way to do this please?

3. Is it possible to partition the drives?

4. How do I get into the configuration screen and in which software (RAIDar or RAIDiator)?

5. I have a 4Drive NAS 1TB Buffalo Terastation, which once cleared, is going to be used for backup as it is in a RAID5 configuration - slow but fantastically reliable. Will it be possible to set up a backup stratedgy to this unit?

6. I haven't discarded the idea of redundancy yet but I am filling up numerous 1TB drives at present by downloading 3D Blu-ray ISO's. I eventually want a media player to play these straight from the disc as an ISO file - right now I haven't this capability so I have to extract them which doubles their size. I want to be able to stream to my TV via my Sony Bravia TV, a Sony Blu-ray player and my PS3. But that is for another post - Question - would I be better to go for redundancy, stick with the default X-RAID2 configuration and expand later when 4,5 and maybe 6TB drives appear? I am aware that 4TB drives are out there now but they seem to be in their infancy and optical drives haven't reached this kind of magnitude yet. If 3TB is going to be it, then I may opt for a 6TB configuration and scrifice redundancy.

Thanks for reading - would appreciate your help

roz

[mdgm]

1) Configure the D-link to bridge the network of your WNR3500 (assuming the WNR3500 is the main router).

2) You don't need to wait to do a factory default. It can be done by powering down, then using the boot menu: http://www.readynas.com/kb/faq/boot/how_do_i_reset_the_readynas_to_factory_default

Instructions for using Flex-RAID are here: Configuring Your ReadyNAS for Flex-RAID

3) You can create up to 4 volumes (2 per disk). Personally I'd recommend creating separate volumes on disk 1 and disk 2. If you go with one big 6TB volume if any disk fails all data is lost. When a disk fails all data on all RAID-0 volumes utilising that disk is lost.

4) You can open RAIDar (http://www.readynas.com/downloads) and click setup or you can go to [url]https://ip.address.of.nas/admin[/url} directly in your web browser. RAIDiator is not a program. RAIDiator is the operating system/firmware on the NAS itself.

5) Personally I'd recommend X-RAID2. Do also note that you can migrate disks across to the NV+ v2 (see http://www.readynas.com/kb/faq/boot/how_do_i_migrate_disks_over_from_an_existing_readynas_to_another). The NV+ v2 can have 3x the capacity of the Duo v2 using X-RAID2 and the same capacity disks. (4-1) * 2TB = 3 * (2-1) * 2TB = 3 * 2TB

[rozel]

Thanks for your speedy response - much appreciated. I will have a think about how to configure whilst I am at work - the concept of 6TB immediately does appeal though

Regarding my first question the D-Link is acting as a modem but I was advised the 4 ports would be useable. Not sure about networking stuff in this respect so maybe you could expand because I really don't understand what you mean and really do not want to upset my network by fiddling with the WNR3500 at all.

Thanks again

roz

[mdgm]

Edit: advice below by StephenB is better

[StephenB]

If the D-link isn't gigabit, then this is a really bad idea. Even if it is gigabit, you will see some performance hit when accessing the duo from the WNR3500 devices. On home devices, routing is slower than switching. To maintain full performance, you can buy an gigabit switch and connect that to one of your WNR3500 ports. They are pretty inexpensive.

I am not sure exactly what mdgm has in mind. The D-link is in front of the WNR3500, and both are routing. Changing the D-Link to a bridge won't change the WNR3500 NAT behaviour.

Devices connected to the WNR3500 should be able reach out and access a Duo connected to the D-Link without any configuration change to the router. I have done this with a WNR3500Lv2 (accessing my pro connected to an upstream router). Though you may need to use the duo's IP address to get it to connect.

Going the other direction is the real problem (for instance, if the duo is set to backup up a PC connected to the WNR3500) and would require port forwarding to be set up in the WNR3500. This can be done if you are only trying to reach one device - if you need the Duo to reach out to multiple devices you can't connect it that way. Also some applications require "discovery", which usually doesn't go through routers very well (ReadyDLNA is one example). Overall, it is simpler to go with the switch idea.

[rozel]

If the D-link isn't gigabit, then this is a really bad idea.

Thank you for your further response - I overlooked this fact When I ordered Sky Broadband last year, they promised me an up to date router - they failed on that promise sending me a D-Linkl DSL-2604S, which as far as I can make out, is not a Gigabit or N-Draft router. I don't use it for wireless anyway but anticipated it being a Gigabit model. Yes a small Gigabit switch is going to have to be my next purchase - thanks for the advice.

I have another worry now........................

Syncing started straight away at about 156MB/Sec and it suggested about 4.5 hours to complete or thereabouts. I left for work leaving the ReadyNas syncing, assuming that when I got home the syncing would have completed and the disks spun down (as I changed the power down option to 5mins of disk inactivity). However when I actually arrived back home late last night, the blue light, just under the power button, was still flashing away and with a miniscule speed of a a very small fraction of a MB/Sec it was going to take 123 hours to complete! IIRC I turned off the PC, before leaving for work but left the ReadyNas doing it's thing - was this a bad step? Should I have left the PC on too? Anyhow, I pulled the plug because I couldn't turn the damn thing off using the power button and decided to return to the problem this morning.

This morning, switching the ReadyNas back on, it fired up ok and went into "Recovery Mode" rebuilding, presumably, the second disk? I played about with the configuration to set some new folders, renamed one and changed the host name, leaving the ReadyNas "recovering".

Again when things started off speed was around 150/160 MB/Sec but right now as I post this, the speed has dropped to 120MB/Sec with 18.9% completed and over 5 hours to complete, whereas at the beginning it was going to be 4.5 hours as yesterday.

What is happening please? Am I going to experience another slow-down of speed today as recovery progresses? I am worried that I will be in the same boat this evening as I was yesterday. I haven't transferred any files to the ReadyNas yet and whilst my PC has lost the connection to it, this is because of the Host Name change (RAIDar and RAIDiator are still seeing it) - I daresay when things have completed and I reboot all will be well - but when will this be lol?

Thanks again for your help

roz

[StephenB]

I have a pro (and two v1 products) not the v2...

Generally though it is not a good idea to pull the plug on a syncing raid array (unless you really have no choice). With the other platforms, the time estimates are approximate, and often vary as the syncing proceeds. Note that the raw disk transfer speed varies a huge amount over the disk surface (bit density and rotation speed are constant, so you get a lot more bits per second when you are reading the innermost part of the platter).

Anyway, try to let it run to completion. If it doesn't complete after 24 hours, open a support ticket. If it does complete, check the disk health/SMART statistics.

[rozel]

Thanks - I will do that.

How do I access the disk health/SMART statistics?

At the moment, RAIDar is saying 33.2% complete, 31 hrs to finish + Speed 16 MB/Sec - RAIDiator is saying 29.6%, 4hrs to complete and speed 128.9 MB/Sec. Blimey - the speeds differ and are fluctuating widly, although having tried to go into another part of RAIDiator to see about Disk Health (even though I couldn't see anything), it seems to have lost communication, probably because I changed the Host Name after commencement. So it seems only RAIDar is communicating now - it is seeing my new host name.

What's my best course of action - should I refresh RAIDiator or will this bugger things up?

Leaving for work in 45 mins

EDIT - just tried to refresh RAIDiator but it won't - probably have to wait now until (hopefully) recovery completes - speed/time seem to fluctuate the more or less I use the internet, which I am doing whilst recovery continues - should this ocurr or is it my setup?

Cheers

Roz

[StephenB]

I'd let it run until you get home tonight.

[rozel]

Ok I will - I posted an "edit" - see above. I will report back tomorrow morning - thanks for your help.

Roz

[rozel]

It's now 11.40 - appx 11 hours since I left for work. Speed is 1 MB/Sec - 38.3% complete and 501 hours remaining!!!

Absolutely hopeless - I cannot now say it has anything to do with my network or internet use - like last evening, speed just tailed off to bearly nothing after starting well enough. Something is drastically wrong here but what?

roz

[rozel]

Now it's 09.06 - RAIDiator has lost communication and RAIDar is saying: - 37.9% complete time to complete 134 hours 17 mins Speed 3MB/sec.

Surely something is very very wrong. How long should 2 x 3TB disks take to install - someone?

I still do not know despite asking, whether the Duo needs to be connected to my PC whilst Syncing/Recovery is going on? At the moment the power Light on the unit is on, the LED underneath is blinking away and the 2 smaller LED's underneath that are on. The Power button does not respond and so the only way I can turn the damn thing off is by pulling the power cord.

Please can someone help me please - it is now 3 constant days since I started installing and I'm getting worried about my new disks which have been spinning most of this time without any break.

My thoughts are that the slightest error when reading/writing files is going to trigger a RAID rebuild/Re-Syncing and so I am going to forget X-RAID2 which I wanted to at the beginning, but this thing didn't give me the option and commenced to build the default RAID anyway. So I want to get back to where I was and try to build a system where I ultimately will have NO RAID and have space over 2 volumes of 6TB (2 x 3TB). How do I achieve this please?

If I can't achieve this, then this thing is going back from wence it came - so far this has to be the very worst Netgear product I have ever owned.

EDIT - speed down to 0 MB/sec now - this is hopeless!!!!! I think it's frozen but god knows what the thing is doing with a blinking LED!!

roz

[mdgm]

Sounds like there's a problem with one or more of the disks.

Do you have a PC you could use to test the disks using SeaTools?

[rozel]

I'll be damned if there is a problem with the discs - at the beginning everything booted up fine but part-way through the Syncing, speed was lost. I pulled the plug as I have just done now once more. Recovery should take place which it was (twice) again everything started off nicely but eventually speed was lost .

Please can you answer my questions in red above? otherwise I cannot move forward. I have no spare PC which I am going to dismantle simply to test my discs - it is the ReadyNas which is proving problematic and if it has destroyed my discs, then I will be on the phone to NetGear - I bought the discs and the ReadyNas from 2 different suppliers.

Roz

[mdgm]

Probably about a day or so.

Doesn't need to be connected to PC but it can be.

Disks can and do fail at any time.

Are you able to access the Dashboard? If so, can you download the logs zip file?

If not able to to access the Dashboard you should put the NAS in tech support mode and forward port 23. With your IP address tech support (http://www.readynas.com/support) should be able to investigate whether there's a bad disk.