Basic RAID question - Lacie 2big

[Paul Jonathan]

I bought a Lacie 2big 4TB for a project in May. The project isn't through Post yet, so we aren't quite ready to delete the raw-files. Since I am shooting another project next week, I was wondering whether or not it is possible to switch out both disks in the raid and use them as a different raid in the same enclosure.

My understanding of RAIDS is very limited and I didn't find anything searching for it, so please point me to any resources that I might have overlooked. But basically, I am wondering if I can swap out the disks, put in different disks for this project and then switch them back once we continue editing on the old project. Any advice?

Thanks,
Paul

 

[Björn Benckert]

Yes, all info is on the discs so you should without trouble be able to turn it off carefully remove de drives and insert new disks and format the volume.
Basically the only risk you are running is damaging the discs physically when swapping them, by dropping them in the floor or such.

One little important thing... Mark the drives so you know which one in the raid where sitting where, as some raidcontrollers can struggle if the disks within the raid swaps slots.

 

[Shiblon Wixom]

In theory, you can try it, but its a software raid0, so it may or may not work when you remount the drives, I would buy another Lacie Disk. I'm not partial to raid0, I tend to use single volume drives or hardware raids, I've had too many raid0 controllers go out on LaCie big disks and G-Raid.

 

[Paul Jonathan]

I forgot to write that the disks currently in the RAID are RAID 1, so they should be exact copies in theory?

@Björn: That was my thinking. But if I format the Volume, what happens when I re-insert the old disks?

 

[Björn Benckert]

In theory, you can try it, but its a software raid0, so it may or may not work when you remount the drives, I would buy another Lacie Disk.

Why would that not work? I have not done so on this particular raid but on a lot of other raids. Could you explain more in detail why it would not work just so I understand. Curious, As to me it would not be any different than seating two extra internal drives in your computer and format them as a raid. Then take them out and seat them in another computer and have them showing as a raid there... or am I completely mistaken?

 

[Shiblon Wixom]

They may or may not work, I've done it before successfully, but I've also had the enclosure reinitialize the disks as well. I would buy a go-flex backup plus 4TB for $150 and make a copy, just in case.

 

[Filip Vandoorne]

just mark the drives and raid config, so you know they are a pair. You can buy extra spare tray's from lacie, but you can also unscrew the disks and put other disks in it. Keep in mind you will lose the warranty of the drives if you unscrew them from the trays.
Lacie made multiple versions of the 2big. is it a version with dip swithes ? thunderbolt usb3? - they also made 2 versions of the usb3. The first generation 2big usb3 was better in my opinion = you could use them as jbod or software raid1/0, but the newer usb3 versions can only work in 'hardware' raid1/0, which makes them less interchangeable. Also the first version with esata was hardware raid1/0
The first generation 2big usb3 trays were interchangeable with the 2big thunderbolt , not anymore between the new 2big usb3 and thunderbolt.

 

[paul schefz]

looks like you want to save some cash by only buying 2 more bare drives....i think the easier thing to do would be to buy 2 drives, get a bare data adapter (or go flex) and copy the content of your raid on each of the 2 bare new drives that way you have the same thing as a bare mirrored raid 1 (2 copies of the raw data) but don't have to worry about any future raid set up or voiding your lacie warranty....

 

[Paul Jonathan]

Thanks for all the replies guys! I didn't realize External HDDs were so cheap, especially since we only need 2TB, so I figure I will just go down that route.

 

[PatrickFaith]

I just got the 6 tb Lacie, it's perty amazing with the recent red and adobe updates what I can do on a retina mac( i have the thunderbolt 6tb drive and a cinema display).