Moving Disks Between Servers with Different RAID Controllers: How to Avoid Data Loss?
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TechiePanda927
I'm trying to move some disks from my current Dell PowerEdge R630 server, which has a PERC H730 Mini RAID controller, to a new Dell PowerEdge R730xd server with a PERC H330 RAID controller. My current setup includes three virtual disks using RAID0 and some additional disks set as Non-RAID for a RAIDZ1 pool in TrueNAS SCALE. I want to transfer these drives without losing any data and ensure TrueNAS can recognize the pools as they are. Is this possible, and what precautions should I take during this process?
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This whole situation is giving me chills! With three RAID 0 configurations, I'd just rebuild everything instead of migrating it. If the data is valuable, it should have some backup or redundancy—otherwise, why bother moving it?
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Honestly, I wouldn't risk it without a backup. You might be able to import the foreign configuration if you put the disks in the same slots, but there's no guarantee it will work. I'd strongly recommend backing up your data, then moving the disks and creating new virtual disks before restoring everything from your backup. Don't forget that RAID0 isn't the best choice for production environments, either.
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If your RAID controllers both have Dell firmware, they typically won’t overwrite anything on the disks. You can move the disks over and check for an "Import Foreign Config" option in the PERC's settings. Just be cautious not to click on anything that says initialize or erase—if something goes wrong, you can always return the disks to the old setup.
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When dealing with ZFS, it's actually not advisable to rely on the RAID functionality of the controllers. It works best with direct disk access. I've successfully moved ZFS volumes by exporting the pool from the old server, transferring the drives, and then using the command `zpool import` on the new server. Just make sure the ZFS version on the new server supports all the features of your pool.
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Why go through all that hassle? You might want to consider starting fresh with new disks. That way, you eliminate any potential data loss stress.
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