If you remove a hard drive from an unprotected array when the LaCie 2big is powered on, you can lose all your data. If one of the drives in RAID FAST mode has been removed and the front LED turns solid red, try the following:
You can replace one drive from a protected array while the device is powered on without losing data. This process is referred to as “hot-swapping” and can be performed when a hard drive in a protected array has failed (see LEDs and LED Power Button for health indications).
Each hard drive in JBOD mode is treated as a separate volume. Therefore, removing one of the hard drives is similar to disconnecting a standard plug and play hard drive. Before removing a hard drive, make certain to eject its volumes from your computer. For instructions on how to properly eject a hard drive, see Unmounting Your Drive.
When removing one drive improperly, it is likely that both volumes will unmount at the same time. However, the volume for the hard drive that is within its slot will reappear.
The front LED lets you know the state of a RAID array.
The drive LED for the failed hard drive will turn red or turn off, allowing you to identify the drawer that must be replaced. Drive LEDs are on the top end of the drawer.
A degraded RAID SAFE means that one of the hard drives has failed and that RAID protection is not in effect. However, your data remains intact on the healthy hard drive and you can continue to use the device. RAID protection will take effect once the replacement hard drive is installed and the array has completed data synchronization.
A broken RAID SAFE means that both hard drives have failed or, a hard drive has failed during RAID synchronization. All data is lost if the RAID is broken.
The steps below can be performed while the enclosure is powered on or powered off.
Refer to the table below for the RAID behavior following a hard drive swap:
RAID Mode | Data | Status |
---|---|---|
FAST | All data has been lost with the hard drive failure. | The LaCie 2big recreates FAST mode with the new hard drive and your operating system prompts you to format the volume. |
SAFE | Data is protected on the healthy hard drive. | The LaCie 2big synchronizes the data with the new hard drive. |
JBOD | All data stored on the failed hard drive is lost. Data on the healthy hard drive remains accessible. | The LaCie 2big maintains the JBOD configuration; your operating system prompts you to format the replacement hard drive. |
The table below provides estimated times to configure the RAID.
RAID | Time to complete |
---|---|
FAST | Less than a minute |
SAFE | Several hours to one or more days (see note below) |
JBOD | Less than a minute |
The time to complete the RAID SAFE synchronization is based upon total hard drive capacity. Though the time to synchronize may take several hours, you can begin using the volume immediately by initializing it with your operating system's disk utility (see Formatting).
Performance may be affected during RAID synchronization.
In general, the LaCie 2big powers off when the computer is shut down. However, the device remains powered on if it is in the midst of a RAID SAFE synchronization.