I have supermicro board x9dai.  the unassigned devices disks connected via standard sata cables.

I was wondering if its ok if I start HOT swapping them ?   before I get disk errors, crashes  etc...

If yes, than whats the advise: first the sata data cable and then the power ? or reverse ? 

Edited September 11, 20187 yr by dadarara

To fully support hot swap you need a compatible enclosure with capacitors to provide protection against voltage drop or current inrush when adding/removing disks, without that it will likely still work but it's safer to just power down and replace the disk.

 

If you still want to do it make sure to at least disable the disk before pulling it by typing:

 

echo 1 > /sys/block/sdX/device/delete

 

I hotswap UD with an eSATA enclosure. I power down the enclosure before changing disks.

1 hour ago, trurl said:

I power down the enclosure before changing disks.

That's fairly safe, same as using the command above for internal disks before pulling it, as it powers down the disk.

On 9/11/2018 at 6:44 PM, johnnie.black said:

To fully support hot swap you need a compatible enclosure with capacitors to provide protection against voltage drop or current inrush when adding/removing disks, without that it will likely still work but it's safer to just power down and replace the disk.

AFAIK, the standard internal SATA data and power connectors are keyed and designed for hot plugging. the power(or was it ground) leads will connect first to mitigate voltage drop/current inrush. But yeah, its better to have hotswap bays so you add/remove the drives in one motion and less likely to cause physical damage