Ok here's the current state of my UnRaid box:

UnRaid version 4.5-beta 11

Abit AB9 Pro

2x PCI-E 2 Port (1 usable internal port each) SATA expansion cards

1x IcyDock 5 in 3 Bay Convertor

1x 2TB Western Digital GP Drive (parity)

6x 1TB Seagate Drives

1x 1TB Western Digital Drive

1x 500GB SATA Drive

1x 640GB WD Blue Drive (cache)

ALL INTERNAL CONNECTIONS ARE IN USE

 

New and freshly ordered ready for use:

4x 2TB Hitachi 7200RPM drives

1x External eSATA Harddrive Dock (1 drive max and hopefully it plays nice with UnRaid)

 

Endgame:

UnRaid version 4.5-beta 11

Abit AB9 Pro

2x PCI-E 2 Port (1 usable internal port each) SATA expansion cards

1x IcyDock 5 in 3 Bay Convertor

4x 2TB Hitachi (1 for parity)

1x 2TB WD GP

1x 640GB WD Blue Drive (cache)

4 INTERNAL PORTS NOW AVAILABLE - probably all with the Icy Dock

 

My ultimate goal is to trade the current WD 2TB parity drive with one of the new Hitachi's and then switch out all of the 1TB/500GB drives (8 total) with the new 2TB Hitachi drives. The 1TB and lower drives are going bye bye basically (excluding the cache). My question for you guys is... what is my gameplan here? What is the best method to easily transfer over to this new arrangement?

 

I'm assuming the first thing I should do is disconnect the cache drive and use that connection along with one of the eSATA's for the preclearing of the new drives (2 at a time, 15-20 hours each?). Then I'm absolutely clueless on what the correct path is to go from here and could really use some concrete input.

I've done something similar. The way I did it was to:

 

Preclear a high capacity drive (1.5 TB in my case).

Add it to the array.

COPY over the data from two smaller drives (750 GB x2)

Unassign the smaller drives.

Shut down server.

Physically remove the smaller drives.

Replace with another larger capacity drive

Turn on server.

Preclear new drive.

While preclearing, use "Restore" button.

Restart the array.

Rebuild parity while new disk preclears.

Once precleared, repeat process.

 

 

In this way I will replace six 750 GB drives with 1 TB, 1.5 TB and 2 TB models.

I've done 4 of them so far, two at a time.

 

 

1. Preclear each of the new disks. As you finish each one, assign it as cache and then copy desired data to the drive. (Make sure to disable the mover script)

2. Run a parity check on the old array one last time

3. physically install new disks and remove old

4. Press restore and configure array from devices page

5. Start array (parity will build

6. Examine syslog for unexpected errors

7. Run a parity chech to ensure the parity build is good and all drives functional and no connections lose

Possible plan.

 

Buy a two way external e-sata (assuming your external posts are esata) pci backplate. Buy two external esata cables. Dissconnect the cables from the pci backplate. Plug the esata cables into the pci cable giving you two 'normal' sata terminated cables. Take the side of the unraid box. Plug the esata end to the external ports and the normal sata end into two of the new sata disks.

 

You now have two spare sata ports. Result!

 

Run a parity check on the old array, check syslog to make sure everything is good. . Take a copy of super.dat from flash\config. Take a screenshot of the devices page. Save it.

 

Preclear all new disks at least once. MD5 a bunch of files from the "to be replaced" disks and a couple from the remaining in the array disks.

 

Add each new drive as a cache drive (one at a time, can use devices to swap over the two new drives without having to re-power. Stop the array, assign one drive. copy the data, stop the array, assign the other disk, start the array, copy more data) and use linux copy to copy data from the smallest/slowest array disks to the new disks. Transfer the contents of four array disks to be replaced preferably to three new disks if possible two disks if the data will fit (means 1 less  power off). Swap old parity disk for a new disk. Do not use old parity disk yet. Keep it unplugged and safe.

 

Assign the two cache disks into the array.

Hit restore button and generate parity on the new array. MD5 to check all the old files and the few remaining files. Check syslog.

 

If there are errors and/or problems. You can restore the old array since you have the old parity drive, the old data disks and the super.dat and where they all go in the array.     

 

 

Thanks for the suggestions!

 

I'm probably going to go bjp's method since it doesn't involve buying anything else etc. I'll disconnect the cache drive so I can preclear 2 drives at a time etc. The copy data off onto the drives connected to cache and move from there.