Temporary Unraid repurpose help.

[Stram]

Hi,

 

I've been using my 4 drive Unraid for 2 years now just to store my dvd collection. I only switch it on once a week to copy a few files to watch on my MacMini. However I need a very basic Windows machine for work this weekend and don't want to buy/build a machine for such a little time as it is a one time only thing so wanted to use the unRaid box instead. Would it be just a case of taking these drives out, putting a spare in, installing windows after changing bios then when finished changing bios back and putting the unraid drives back exactly as they are now would it just boot up like nothing has changed?

 

Kind regards,

Ste.

[Joe L.]

Hi,

 

I've been using my 4 drive Unraid for 2 years now just to store my dvd collection. I only switch it on once a week to copy a few files to watch on my MacMini. However I need a very basic Windows machine for work this weekend and don't want to buy/build a machine for such a little time as it is a one time only thing so wanted to use the unRaid box instead. Would it be just a case of taking these drives out, putting a spare in, installing windows after changing bios then when finished changing bios back and putting the unraid drives back exactly as they are now would it just boot up like nothing has changed?

 

Kind regards,

Ste.

Yes, that will work.  Just make sure the drives are assigned back to their same logical slots in the array when you re-start the array.  (Take a screen shot of the "devices" assignment page before you remove them.)

[Stram]

Thanks Joe,

 

I was going to take a photo of the devices page but I presumed the config would not have changed so wouldn't need to reassign anything, just switch the machine back on and unraid would power up like normal and start? I was going to put everything back like it is now even each drive on the same sata cable so I suspected it would be like nothing even happened to the machine.

[Joe L.]

The screen shot is just in case you accidentally didn't put the disks back on the same controller ports. 

Do it, and the odds are you will not need it.  (Don't do it, and you increase the chances you'll wish you did )

[sosdk]

Another thing you should do is to label both ends of your SATA cables.

[Rajahal]

Why even remove the drives?  Just unplug their power and data (SATA or IDE) connections, but leave them installed.  Then install your temporary Windows drive into another spare slot.  You can even reuse one set of power/data cable from one of the unRAID drives.  I figure the less you change, the less chance there is of messing something up.

 

Don't forget to remove the unRAID flash drive also.  It probably won't hurt anything to leave it in, but there's no reason to.