New NAS system after hardware failure - replace 2bay with 2 single bay?

[db9]

Hi, So short story is my long running QNAP 219II+ has quit - looks as if the drive controller has given up as well as the power plug on the 12v input looks like it has over heated. While the system boots the drives are not sensed but if I connect the drives to my Macbook (using Paragon ext3) I can see the drives (the power button on the QNAP also flashes red).
This is the second hardware failure (drive controller on my FreeNAS box quit as well) that I've had on my NAS boxes over the years and while not unexpected I'm wonder if I should change my system setup strategy?
While the bay box was RAID I find I really don't really need that function any longer as I'm not generating as much data as I once was and now use it for personal file storage, music and pictures.
Would replacing the 2 Bay system with qty 2 Single bay systems plus a USB drive (copied to and pulled off the network) be a viable solution? Or just replace with a "new" 2 bay system and a USB drive?

Just wondering
Thanks

 

[RMerlin]

I would stick with 2-bays, as RAID-1 can save a LOT of time, for the price of just a single spare disk.

If you are having frequent hardware-related failures then I would check your power source. Replace the UPS if using one, or install one if you aren't - even an entry-level model to at least ensure filtering, and handling of blackout/brownouts.

 

[dosborne]

As vendors are constantly changing their products, whether it be usb devices or NAS units, personally I always buy a backup unit for anything I consider "critical".

IMO, all network infrastructure deserves a ups, even in an environment that is stable. A UPS for a NAS should be considered mandatory considering what it does, even with raid.

Manly people make the mistake of equating RAID with BACKUP. RAID is not BACKUP.

I started with a 2-bay (D-Link) RAID 1. Once I realized that I had stuff on there I really didn't want to lose I bought a second identical unit that day in a box in case the first had a hardware issue. I then could afford a couple spare drives, so setup the second, also as RAID 1, but also setup rsync to mirror between hardware devices.

There are many options these days with usb drives, cloud drives, etc. Only you can really decide the value and therefore the effect required to either safeguard your data or decide how much effort you are willing to put in when there is a failure of some sort.

Although I used to have one, a single bay NAS is (usually) not worth the money. A 2-bay (or more!) Is generally the same price but at least gives you flexibility.

Trying to keep the cost low, I would even suggest buying 2 x 2-bay devices even if populating them with only 1 HDD as a starting point rather a 2 x HDD in a single 2-bay NAS, but this may not fit your use case.

Sounds to me like you just need to store stuff. In that case a usb drive may be appropriate. A usb dock may even be an option, and you could reuse your existing drives, although I haven't had much luck with the docks I tried years ago.

Another point, since I seem to be rambling about stuff, is that a simple usb to HDD cable can turn an old 2.5" or 3.5" HDD into a great storage or backup device. An older low capacity HDD makes a great "recovery image" for example.

Although I have all my critical files copied automatically to other devices and cloud storage, I still like my own off-site backup too. Outgrown the reasonable capacity of thumb drives (although larger sizes are now becoming available) so I've been using 2.5" SHDDs and the usb cable adapter. @ $60 or so for a 1TB unit, it is cheap to throw that into my safety deposit box.

 

[db9]

Thank you both for the replies.. yes I do have a UPS (APC550) and NAS has always been connected though I did replace the battery late last year (don't know if they failures are related in anyway)
I'll pick up a new 2 Bay and go from there.

If I plug the "old" drives into a "new" box will the NAS OS pick up the existing drive structure ? or will it be wiped clean ?(meaning I loose data)

Thinking that I may need to put a new drive into the new NAS and transfer data from the existing drive via USB (from laptop or using the NAS file manager)

Thank you

 

[RMerlin]

If I plug the "old" drives into a "new" box will the NAS OS pick up the existing drive structure ? or will it be wiped clean ?(meaning I loose data)

Depends. Some specific QNAP models for instance will let you migrate from an old model to a new one. Same with Synology. You will have to check with the NAS manufacturer to see which migration paths are supported (it varies between models and OS versions).

If going between two different manufacturer, then it will definitely NOT work. You will need to wipe out and reconfigure the disks, and then restore your data to it.

 

[db9]

RMerlin, Thank you..

Do you have an opinion regarding recovering data from the existing drives - since I'm on a MacBook (10.13.6) and there is no native support for ext3/4 I can ..
a) buy a copy of Paragon
b) create a Linux boot USB and boot Linux
c) load a VM and run Linux in the VM

Regards

 

[RMerlin]

RMerlin, Thank you..

Do you have an opinion regarding recovering data from the existing drives - since I'm on a MacBook (10.13.6) and there is no native support for ext3/4 I can ..
a) buy a copy of Paragon
b) create a Linux boot USB and boot Linux
c) load a VM and run Linux in the VM

Regards

You could try putting it in an USB enclosure and plugging it either to a new NAS, or to a router (if it supports USB disks). Whether they will be able to access it will depend on the partition scheme used on it.

You could also use Virtualbox on your Mac to setup a Linux VM.

 

[db9]

Better late than never.. Thank you
What I ended up doing is using my RPi and was able to see the "old" drives and copy the files to a "new" 1T usb drive - I then plugged the USB drive into the DS218+ and copied the files over to the NAS. I have further questions about Synology NAS and will post in the Synology forum