ASUSTOR - Website Management

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<h4>COURSE OBJECTIVES</h4>
Upon completion of this course you should be able to:
<ol>
<li>Have a basic understanding of RAID and its different configurations.</li>
<li>Be able to set up a new storage volume with RAID.</li>
</ol>
 
<h4>PREREQUISITES</h4>
Course Prerequisites:
None
Students are expected to have a working knowledge of:
None
 
<h4>OUTLINE</h4>
<a href="#raid1">1. Introduction to RAID</a>
<a href="#raid11">1.1 What is RAID?</a>
<a href="#raid12">1.2 The different RAID levels</a>
<a href="#raid2">2. Configuring your NAS</a>
<a href="#raid21">2.1 Creating a new RAID Volume</a>
<a href="#raid22">2.2 Adding and Removing RAID Volume Spare Drives</a>
 <hr /> 
<h4><a name="raid1"></a>1. Introduction to RAID</h4>
<a name="raid11"></a>1.1 What is RAID?
RAID is a storage technology used to organize the data in your storage space (or storage volumes). RAID is short for redundant array of independent drives. It balances data protection, system performance, and storage space by determining how the storage system distributes data. Many different ways of distributing data have been standardized into various RAID levels. Each RAID level offers a tradeoff between data protection, system performance, and storage space. For example, one RAID level might improve data protection but reduce storage space. Another RAID level might increase storage space but also reduce system performance.
 Striping:
RAID is able to offer increased performance by using a data storage technique called striping. Data striping organizes the data on your hard drives in a way that allows for faster data access.
 Mirroring:
RAID offers increased data protection by using a data storage technique called mirroring. In mirroring, the data on your hard drives is replicated thereby producing data redundancy across your storage volume. This ensures greater protection for your data.
 
<a name="raid12"></a>1.2 The different RAID levels
In order to provide optimal storage space utilization and data protection, ADM supports multiple RAID levels allowing you to select the appropriate level for your needs. The following volume types levels are all supported by ADM:
<div class="alert alert-info">
<h4> Non-RAID Volume Types:</h4>
<ul>
<li style="line-height: 2;">Single: Only uses a single drive in the creation of storage space. This configuration does not offer any type of data protection.
 Total available capacity = Drive capacity
</li>
<li style="line-height: 2;">JBOD: An acronym for "Just a Bunch Of Disks", JBOD uses a combination of two or more drives to create storage space. The total storage capacity is the capacities of all the drives added together. The advantage of this configuration is that it allows you to use different sized drives together and provides a large amount of storage space. The downside is that it does not offer any sort of data protection.
 Total available capacity = Total capacity of all drives
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="alert alert-info">
<h4> RAID Volume Types:</h4>
<ul>
<li style="line-height: 2;">RAID 0: Uses a combination of two or more drives to create storage space. The total storage capacity is the capacities of all the drives added together. The advantage of this configuration is that it allows you to use different sized drives together and provides a large amount of storage space. Also, data in RAID 0 volumes is accessed in parallel which provides improved performance. The downside is that RAID 0 does not offer any sort of data protection.
 Total available capacity = Total capacity of all drives
</li>
<li style="line-height: 2;">RAID 1: In RAID 1 your data is written identically on two drives, thereby producing a "mirrored set". Exactly the same data is stored on the two drives at all times. RAID 1 protects your data from loss should one of your drives fail. RAID 1'ss advantage is that it offers protection for your data by providing data redundancy. The downside of this configuration is that when combining two drives of differing sizes, the total storage space will be equal to the size of the smaller drive. Therefore, you will be unable to use a portion of the larger drive.
 Total available capacity = (Capacity of smallest drive) * (1)
</li>
<li style="line-height: 2;">RAID 5: Combines three or more drives to create a storage space that is able to support one failed drive. Should one of your drives fail, your data will still be protected from loss. In the event of drive failure, simply replace the failed drive with a new one. The new drive will automatically be accommodated into the RAID 5 configuration. The advantage of using RAID 5 is that is that it provides data protection through data redundancy. The downside to using RAID 5 is that when combining drives of differing sizes, the total storage space will be calculated based on the size of the smallest drive.
 Total available capacity = (Capacity of smallest drive) * (Total number of drives - 1)
</li>
<li style="line-height: 2;">RAID 6: Combines four of more drives to create a storage space that is able to support two failed drives. Should two of your drives fail, your data will still be protected from loss. In the event of drive failure, simply replace the failed drives with new ones. The new drives will automatically be accommodated into the RAID 6 configuration. The advantage of using RAID 6 is that it is able to provide superior data protection through data redundancy. The downside to using RAID 6 is that when combining drives of differing sizes, the total storage space will be calculated based on the size of the smallest drive.
 Total available capacity = (Capacity of smallest drive) * (Total number of drives - 2)
</li>
<li style="line-height: 2;">RAID 10 (1+0): Combines four or more drive to create a storage space that is able to support multiple failed drives (as long as the failed drives do not belong to the same "mirrored set"). RAID 10 provides the data protection of RAID 1 along with the access efficiency of RAID 0. With respect to data protection, RAID 10 uses the RAID 1 method of having the exact same data written identically on two drives, producing "mirrored sets". These "mirrored sets" are then combined together in a RAID 0 configuration. RAID 10 requires an even number of four or more drives. When combining drives of differing sizes, the total storage space will be calculated based on the size of the smallest drive.
 Total available capacity = (Capacity of smallest drive) * (Total number of drives / 2)
</li>
<li style="line-height: 2;">RAID 50 (5+0): Combines six or more drives to create a storage space that provides both improved performance and data protection. RAID 50 delivers the data protection of RAID 5 together with the access efficiency of RAID 0. With respect to data protection, in the ASUSTOR NAS implementation, RAID 50 is constructed from two RAID 5 sets, allowing each RAID 5 set to tolerate the failure of one drive without data loss. As long as drive failures do not occur within the same RAID 5 set, data integrity can be maintained. RAID 50 requires a minimum of six drives. When combining drives of differing sizes, the total storage space will be calculated based on the size of the smallest drive.
 Total available capacity = (Capacity of smallest drive) * (Total number of drives - 2)
 Note: ADM does not support adding new hard drives to migrate directly from RAID 5 to RAID 50. ADM also does not support RAID 50 capacity expansion.
</li>
<li style="line-height: 2;">RAID 60 (6+0): Combines eight or more drives to create a storage space that provides both improved performance and data protection. RAID 60 delivers the data protection of RAID 6 together with some of the performance of RAID 0. RAID 60 allows the failure of two drives per RAID 6 set and maintains data integrity. As long as more than two drives do not fail within the same RAID 6 set, data remains safe. RAID 60 requires a minimum of eight drives. When combining drives of differing sizes, the total storage space will be calculated based on the size of the smallest drive.
 Total available capacity = (Capacity of smallest drive) * (Total number of drives - 4)
 Note: ADM does not support adding new hard drives to migrate directly from RAID 6 to RAID 60. ADM also does not support RAID 60 capacity expansion.
</li>
</ul>
</div>
 Note:
<ul>
<li style="line-height: 1.5;">Only Lockerstor Pro Gen2 series NAS supports RAID 50 and RAID 60. (Introduced in ADM 5.1.2)</li>
<li style="line-height: 1.5;">It is not possible for anyone to delete a volume where a WORM shared folder is set to compliance mode.</li>
<li style="line-height: 1.5;">RAID 0 or JBOD volumes cannot migrate to other RAID levels. Data will need to be offloaded to another storage device to set up a new RAID array.</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/kindeditor/image/20210610/20210610055548_27477.png" alt="" width="600" height="305" title="" align="" />
<div class="alert alert-info">
<h4>M.2 Storage</h4>
With the introduction of M.2 storage on an ASUSTOR NAS, you are now able to choose how you store your data. With M.2 caching, your NAS automatically stores frequently used data on installed M.2 drives. With the all-new M.2 storage feature, M.2 SSDs provide levels of sequential and random performance that are unattainable for most hard drives.
<ul>
<li>ADM 3.5.2 introduces M.2 storage.</li>
<li>To maintain optimal performance and quality, M.2 drives may only be paired with other M.2 drives in a RAID array.</li>
</ul>
</div>
 
<h4><a name="raid2"></a>2. Configuring your NAS</h4>
<a name="raid21"></a>2.1 Creating a new RAID Volume
In this section we will go through the steps for creating a new storage volume with a RAID level. In the following example, the ASUSTOR NAS that we are using already has a storage volume set up with 1 hard drive. We have just inserted 2 new hard drives and will walk you through the process of creating a new storage volume using these 2 drives.
 
STEP 1
<ul>
<li>After inserting the 2 new hard drives into the ASUSTOR NAS open [Storage Manager]. Under the Volume section you will see that there already is an existing "Volume 1" storage volume. Click on [Create] to begin the process of creating another storage volume.</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/kindeditor/image/20201228/20201228175349_38310.png" alt="" width="880" height="528" title="" align="" />
 
STEP 2
<ul>
<li>The Volume Setup Wizard window will now appear. Select the [Quick setup] radio button and click [Next].</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/kindeditor/image/20201228/20201228175410_21173.png" alt="" width="650" height="558" title="" align="" />
 
STEP 3
<ul>
<li>Select the [Balanced] radio button and click [Next].</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/kindeditor/image/20201228/20201228175440_62306.png" alt="" width="650" height="558" title="" align="" />
 
<div class="alert alert-info">
 Note:
At this screen you will be asked about your data storage requirements. The Volume Setup Wizard is generally able to offer you three different options to choose from. You can choose "Maximum capacity" if you wish to maximize the amount of storage space available, "Superior data protection" if you wish to have increased protection for your data or "Balanced" for a balance between storage capacity and data protection benefits. In our example we have decided to select "Balanced".
 
Depending on the number of drives and the option that you select, the Volume Setup Wizard will then make a decision about the RAID level to use for the new volume. This is all summarized in the tables below.
 
<table class="table table-striped table-bordered" border="2" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<th rowspan="2" style="background: Silver; text-align: center;">Number of drives</th>
<th colspan="1" style="background: DarkCyan; color: white; text-align: center;">Maximum capacity</th>
<th colspan="2" style="background: SteelBlue; color: white; text-align: center;">Superior data protection</th>
<th colspan="2" style="background: SeaGreen; color: white; text-align: center;">Balanced</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th style="background: DarkCyan; color: white; text-align: center;">RAID level</th>
<th style="background: SteelBlue; color: white; text-align: center;">RAID level</th>
<th style="background: SteelBlue; color: white; text-align: center;">Faulty drives tolerated</th>
<th style="background: SeaGreen; color: white; text-align: center;">RAID level</th>
<th style="background: SeaGreen; color: white; text-align: center;">Faulty drives tolerated</th>
</tr>
</tbody>
<tbody>
<tr>
<th style="text-align: center;">1</th>
<td>Single</td>
<td></td>
<td>0</td>
<td></td>
<td>0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th style="text-align: center;">2</th>
<td>RAID 0</td>
<td>RAID 1</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>RAID 1</td>
<td>1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th style="text-align: center;">3</th>
<td>RAID 0</td>
<td>RAID 5</td>
<td>1</td>
<td>RAID 5</td>
<td>1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th style="text-align: center;">4</th>
<td>RAID 0</td>
<td>RAID 6</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>RAID 5</td>
<td>1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th style="text-align: center;">5 ~ 16</th>
<td>RAID 0</td>
<td>RAID 6</td>
<td>2</td>
<td>RAID 5</td>
<td>1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th style="text-align: center;">17 ~ 24</th>
<td></td>
<td>RAID 60</td>
<td>4*</td>
<td>RAID 50</td>
<td>2*</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
 * RAID 50 and RAID 60 consist of multiple RAID 5 and RAID 6 arrays. RAID 50 allows one drive to fail per set and RAID 60 allows two drives to fail per set.
</div>
 
STEP 4
<ul>
<li>Look over a final summary of your settings. You can see that the wizard has helped us to select the RAID 1 configuration for a balance between data protection and storage capacity. You can also see that RAID 1 permits 1 faulty drive. This means that in the event that one of the drives for this volume should fail, your data will still remain complete. Finally you can see the two drives that are ready to be used to create the new storage volume. Once you're ready, confirm your settings by clicking [Finish].</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/kindeditor/image/20201228/20201228175629_36477.png" alt="" width="650" height="557" title="" align="" />
 
STEP 5
<ul>
<li>You will now see the newly created "Volume 2" under the Volume tab of storage manager. You will also see that the new storage volume is still in the process of being built. At this time your NAS will be ready for use. Please note that the time required for synchronization varies according to hard drive capacity.</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/kindeditor/image/20201228/20201228175647_77902.png" alt="" width="880" height="528" title="" align="" />
 
<a name="raid22"></a>2.2 Adding and Removing RAID Volume Spare Drives
ADM supports the use of spare drives when creating volumes using RAID 1, 5, 6, and 10. When a hard drive in a RAID Volume is damaged, ADM will automatically synchronize array data to the spare drive and replace the damaged hard drive to ensure no downtime, preventing the volume from entering degraded mode.
An idle hard drive can be set as a spare drive for an existing volume. A single volume can add up to two spare drives. The capacity of spare drives must be equal to or greater than the capacity of the smallest hard drive in a volume.
An inactive M.2 SSD can also be set as the spare drive for an M.2 volume.
The following example introduces instructions on how to set an inactive hard drive as a spare drive for a volume.
 
<ul>
<li>Add a hard drive to the NAS, and open Storage Manager.</li>
<li>Click Drive. Confirm that the status of the newly added hard drive is ‘Inactive’.</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/tinymce/upload_img_20230217170458_spare_drive_inactive_hdd.png" alt="" width="880" height="528" title="" align="" />
 
<ul>
<li>Select a supported volume and the Spare Drive button will become available. Click Spare Drive.</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/tinymce/upload_img_20230217170532_spare_drive_add_s1.png" alt="" width="880" height="528" title="" align="" />
 
<ul>
<li>Select an inactive hard drive and click OK.</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/tinymce/upload_img_20230217170551_spare_drive_add_s2.png" alt="" width="600" height="302" title="" align="" />
 
<ul>
<li>After successfully setting up a spare drive, volume information will be updated to reflect new information.</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/tinymce/upload_img_20230217170616_spare_drive_add_s3.png" alt="" width="880" height="528" title="" align="" />
 
 Spare drive capacity may not be smaller than the size of hard drives in an array.
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/tinymce/upload_img_20230217170635_spare_drive_small_size.png" alt="" width="600" height="303" title="" align="" />
 
If no longer needed, a spare drive can be removed easily.
<ul>
<li>Select a volume that has a spare drive and click Spare Drive.</li>
<li>Select a spare drive and press OK.</li>
</ul>
<img src="https://www.asustor.com/images/tinymce/upload_img_20230217170709_spare_drive_remove_s1.png" alt="" width="880" height="528" title="" align="" />
 <hr />
<h3>Learn More</h3>
<a target="_blank" href="https://www.asustor.com/online/College_topic?topic=352" rel="noopener">NAS 352 - RAID Level Migration and Capacity Expansion</a>
 
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