NAS Drive Replacement

[jthorpe]

I have a couple WD NAS drives (one model #: WD20000H1NC-00 which has a 2 TB WD green drive) that I got used. For some reason they aren't showing up on the network any more. Not sure if it's the drives that are going bad, or something else. I haven't attached them to my desktop to try to check the drive, as I don't know if attaching them with Windows running will cause an issue (I know with some TiVo drive replacements it says not to allow Windows to boot). I would like to replace the drive (and possibly increase the drive size as well). My questions are as follows:

1.) Is the boot program/OS, etc on the drive itself, or is it on a chip on the board that connects to the drive (i.e.: can I plug in a new drive and it'll work, or do I need to copy a boot file/program to the new drive first)?

2.) What drive type would be best for this (WD has black, blue, red, green and purple. I know green is low power, etc. but not sure if there is an advantage with any other type)?

3.) The current drives have some data on there I'd like to copy over to a new drive. How can I copy this over? Is there a program or set up where I can plug both (or even 1 drive at a time) and copy the complete contents of the drive (bit by bit) over to a new drive? I have a Maxtor dual drive NAS that was raided without redundancy (yes I know a bad idea, but I didn't check it before using it, now I wish I had), Is there a way of plugging in the drives to my desktop (or a hard drive to USB adapter) to be able to read and copy (with or without deleting the files from the old drive) onto a new drive or a folder in my documents?

My main thing is to retrieve as much data off the drives as possible, but would like to reuse the enclosures, even if it's just to store TV show/Movies on (for use with things like Boxee Box, and other streaming devices) to store my DVD movie collection on (as I have the original disc as backups).

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Starcruiser]

I'm uploading an image that I know to be good. Give me a minute and I'll PM you the link. I think you got a bad download.

 

[jthorpe]

I'm uploading an image that I know to be good. Give me a minute and I'll PM you the link. I think you got a bad download.

Downloading the file now. The version I got from the GParted site was: gparted-live-0.26.0-2-i686 ISO. I disconnected all hard drives from the system, connected the drive from the NAS to my computer and ran it, and the above is what it came up with. I was only able to get it to run GParted with a CD burned as an iso image vs. using thumbdrives as an iso image. Getting ready to create an ISO disk and trying it.

 

[jthorpe]

I'm uploading an image that I know to be good. Give me a minute and I'll PM you the link. I think you got a bad download.

Finally got it to run, but when scanning/reading devices, it comes up as Libparted Bug Found! - Input/output error during read on /dev/sda

Retry

Now it's "searching /dev/sda"

 

[jthorpe]

I'm uploading an image that I know to be good. Give me a minute and I'll PM you the link. I think you got a bad download.

I was able to get it to finish scanning and showing up: on that drive it shows 2 partitions

Partition - File System - Size - Flags
/dev/sda1 - ntfs - 931.51 GiB - boot (this one has a caution icon on it)
unallocated - unallocated - 2.48 MiB - (no flags)

Here is a short video I took and put on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77EpATaWWes

Is the unallocated partition the reason it's showing as unallocated, what options do I have??

Thanks

 

[Starcruiser]

That was extremely difficult to read. What I could make out looks promising though. It doesn't look like THAT particular disk is completely bad. Give the other drive a shot and see if you get the same result. If so, your data may be salvaged.
That warning you see is because it detected a RAID member but the other pieces of the configuration are missing/not configured.
The space at the end of the drive is mandatory. It has several purposes, mostly for repairing bad sectors. Every hard drive has it.
Also, WD Green drives are a poor choice for a NAS. They have aggressive power save settings that result in long spin up times. You're much better off going with a Red drive in the future, they're made to be NAS drives.

 

[jthorpe]

That was extremely difficult to read. What I could make out looks promising though. It doesn't look like THAT particular disk is completely bad. Give the other drive a shot and see if you get the same result. If so, your data may be salvaged.
That warning you see is because it detected a RAID member but the other pieces of the configuration are missing/not configured.
The space at the end of the drive is mandatory. It has several purposes, mostly for repairing bad sectors. Every hard drive has it.
Also, WD Green drives are a poor choice for a NAS. They have aggressive power save settings that result in long spin up times. You're much better off going with a Red drive in the future, they're made to be NAS drives.

How can I post pictures on here to make it easier to read?

 

[Starcruiser]

You don't need to, I was able to read enough to know which warning that was.
If the other drive won't show in GParted at all, it's likely failed/failing.

 

[jthorpe]

You don't need to, I was able to read enough to know which warning that was.
If the other drive won't show in GParted at all, it's likely failed/failing.

Well, the point is that isn't a RAID drive, it came from a single drive NAS device. So that's not the reason for the warning. If it's in an NTFS format, how can I get it to read other than unallocated in Windows disk management? The only options I have in GParted is: Delete, resize/move, copy, format, manage flags (it's currently set as boot), Check, Label, New UUID and Information.

Under information, it says:

File system: ntfs
Size: 931.51 GiB
Flags: boot

Path: /dev/sda1
Status: Not mounted
Label:
UUID:

First sector: 63
Last sector: 1953520064
Total sectors: 1953520002

Warning:
The device /dev/sda1 doesn't exist

ntfsresize v2012.1.15AR.7 Ilibntfs-3g
ERROR(2): Failed to check '/dev/sda1' mount state: No such file or directory
Probablyt /etc/mtab is missing. It's too risky to continue. You might try
an another Linux distro.

Unable to read the contents of this file system!
Because of this some operations may be unavailable

The cause might be a missing software package.
The following list of software packages is required for ntfs file system support: ntfsprogs / ntfs-3g.

Again, this is from the single drive NAS device. I haven't tried the RAID set from the Maxtor NAS device yet.

 

[Starcruiser]

Ah, I didn't realize we were working with the single disk NAS now.
Libntfs-3g is definitely included in gparted live, or else I wouldn't have recommended it.
Open a shell (it's basically command prompt) and type:
ntfsfix /dev/sda1
e2fsck -c /dev/sda1

 

[jthorpe]

Ah, I didn't realize we were working with the single disk NAS now.
Libntfs-3g is definitely included in gparted live, or else I wouldn't have recommended it.
Open a shell (it's basically command prompt) and type:
ntfsfix /dev/sda1
e2fsck -c /dev/sda1

Ahhh, well I do have 2 NAS devices that no longer show on my network and all 3 drives (2 from one that's a RAID0 and 1 from a single WD My Book) that show up as unallocated. I'm working with the single one at first, still considering getting that board from ebay to see if it'll show and read the drives from the 2 drive RAID volume set.

Open a shell? Is that a cmd prompt in GParted? Is that in the section I'm in now, or from the start menu of the GParted? Also, is the commands inputted into 2 different command lines, or as one command?

I put the 2 RAID0 drive in and did a scan in GParted, but the only drive that shows is the one from the single drive NAS device.

Thanks

 

[jthorpe]

Ah, I didn't realize we were working with the single disk NAS now.
Libntfs-3g is definitely included in gparted live, or else I wouldn't have recommended it.
Open a shell (it's basically command prompt) and type:
ntfsfix /dev/sda1
e2fsck -c /dev/sda1

I think I may have made an error, I removed the "boot" flag under the drive (in GParted) (cause I thought it's not a boot drive and it shouldn't be labeled as that), however now the whole drive is showing 1 partition and unallocated. When I right click on it, the only thing that shows up is the option for new and information. Information only shows info on the sectors and new creates a new partition. When I go to create a new partition, it says it needs to create a new partition table and to go to device>Create new ... but when I do this it says it'll erase the drive. I restarted the GParted and now it's seems stuck on "Scanning all devices..." part.


Ugghhh, I just want to access my data and copy it over to a new drive, why does it have to be so hard, lol.

 

[Starcruiser]

It should be a boot drive because that's what the NAS was booting. Messing with partition flags is never a good idea unless you REALLY know what you're doing, and even then it's not recommended. It's best to let the OS handle it.
The shell is easy to access from within Linux. Simply press Alt+2 for most distributions, and to return to the GUI environment Alt+1. If that doesn't work you can find it in the menus. You can do this even before GParted finishes detecting the disks.
The lines are entered one at a time.
Clearing that boot flag may have destroyed your boot sector information. I still recommend using the filesystem repair commands I suggested, if you can. If you can't... there may be recovery tools available. Which brand NAS is it? If it's a decent brand they all have tools available.

EDIT: I missed the part where you said it was a Western Digital. They are a good brand, which does provide recovery tools. Look at the Data Lifeguard Diagnostics tool. http://support.wdc.com/downloads.aspx?lang=en

 

[jthorpe]

It should be a boot drive because that's what the NAS was booting. Messing with partition flags is never a good idea unless you REALLY know what you're doing, and even then it's not recommended. It's best to let the OS handle it.
The shell is easy to access from within Linux. Simply press Alt+2 for most distributions, and to return to the GUI environment Alt+1. If that doesn't work you can find it in the menus. You can do this even before GParted finishes detecting the disks.
The lines are entered one at a time.
Clearing that boot flag may have destroyed your boot sector information. I still recommend using the filesystem repair commands I suggested, if you can. If you can't... there may be recovery tools available. Which brand NAS is it? If it's a decent brand they all have tools available.

EDIT: I missed the part where you said it was a Western Digital. They are a good brand, which does provide recovery tools. Look at the Data Lifeguard Diagnostics tool. http://support.wdc.com/downloads.aspx?lang=en

I tried the Alt+2 and it's sits on the GUI... I've even tried Alt+ other numbers as well as Ctrl+2 and other numbers, it just stays on the GUI (with exit, screenshot, terminal, gparted, screen resolution, web browser, and network config). I tried using the terminal for the command ntfsfix /dev/sda (as that's the drive not the partition) and it came up with:

Mounting volume... Error opening '/dev/sda': Permission denied
FAILED
Attemptiong to correct errors... Error opening '/dev/sda': Permission denied
FAILED
Failed to startup volume: Permission denied
Error opening '/dev/sda': Permission denied
Volume is corrupt. You should run chkdsk.

I attempted the sudo ntfsfix /dev/sda command and it returns with:

Mounting volume... Error reading bootsector: Input/output error
FAILED
Attempting to correct errors...Error reading bootsector: Input/output error
FAILED
Failed to startup volume: Input/output error
Error reading bootsector: Input/output error
Volume is corrupt. You should run chkdsk.


As far as the boot flag, after I did it (without really thinking about it), I right clicked on it and tried to set it back, but it was too late. Is there a way to have it scan the drive and recreate the partition table?

I went to WD site, but there are quite a few options, what one should I use?? I don't want to do any more errors on the drive than what is already done.


Thanks.

 

[Starcruiser]

I was afraid of that. You destroyed the boot sector. It'll be more difficult to recover now.
The tool you want is the Data Lifeguard Diagnostics.

 

[jthorpe]

I was afraid of that. You destroyed the boot sector. It'll be more difficult to recover now.
The tool you want is the Data Lifeguard Diagnostics.

Running the Data Lifeguard Diagnostics, it comes up with:

Test Option: QUICK TEST
Model Number: WD My Book 1110
Unit Serial Number: WCAV54886998
Firmware Number: 1030
Capacity: 999.50 GB
SMART Status: PASS
Test Result: FAIL
Test Error Code: 06-Quick Test on drive 2 did not complete! Status code = 07 (Failed read test element), Failure Checkpoint = 97 (Unknown Test) SMART self-test did not complete on drive 2!
Test Time: 08:54:33, June 10, 2016

Test Option: EXTENDED TEST
Model Number: WD My Book 1110
Unit Serial Number: WCAV54886998
Firmware Number: 1030
Capacity: 999.50 GB
SMART Status: PASS
Test Result: FAIL
Test Error Code: 08-Too many bad sectors detected.
Test Time: 08:54:58, June 10, 2016

 

[Starcruiser]

That pretty much confirms that the drive is on its way out if it's not already too far gone.
Use Recuva from Piriform to try to recover your data. If that can't do it, nothing can without specialists disassembling your drive in a clean room and reading the physical sectors manually, which usually costs $2000-$4000.
http://www.piriform.com/recuva/download/standard

 

[jthorpe]

That pretty much confirms that the drive is on its way out if it's not already too far gone.
Use Recuva from Piriform to try to recover your data. If that can't do it, nothing can without specialists disassembling your drive in a clean room and reading the physical sectors manually, which usually costs $2000-$4000.
http://www.piriform.com/recuva/download/standard

I tried the Recuva and the drive didn't seem to show up on the program. It seems that Unallocated (unmounted?) drives don't show up with Recuva, from what I can tell.

I did pull a working drive from my desktop RAID 0 array (a set with Windows XP on it) and this drive shows as unallocated on my Windows 7 laptop and Recuva doesn't show this drive either. I ran the "WD Data LifeGuard Diagnostic" program on this drive and it came back with these results:

Test Option: QUICK TEST
Model Number: WD My Book 1110
Unit Serial Number: WMATV4778228
Firmware Number: 1030
Capacity: 999.50 GB
SMART Status: PASS
Test Result: PASS
Test Time: 19:44:37, June 11, 2016

Test Option: EXTENDED TEST
Model Number: WD My Book 1110
Unit Serial Number: WMATV4778228
Firmware Number: 1030
Capacity: 999.50 GB
SMART Status: PASS
Test Result: FAIL
Test Error Code: 08-Too many bad sectors detected.
Test Time: 19:44:44, June 11, 2016

The working drive from my desktop RAID also failed the extended test, the only difference between the drive from the NAS and the one from the desktop is that the one from the NAS failed both tests. And I'm wondering if that's because of the partition table/mbr is missing, is the reason that it failed the first (quick) test.

I don't have the $2,000 to $4,000 for data recovery and I think most of what's on this drive is video files (TV recording, etc. but not 100% sure as I haven't used it in awhile), but I'm willing to spend a little to try and get back what I can though.

I'm now wondering if possible to clone data from an unallocated (unmounted?) drive to a new drive, is this possible??

I'm looking at a Sabrent USB 3.0 Dual Bay HDD Docking Station (on: https://www.sabrent.com/category/hard-drive-enclosures/EC-HDD2/). It also does offline cloning of drives. I'm looking at this to see if it'll clone the 2 drives that are in my desktop that's in a RAID 0 array to a new set (i.e.: drive 1 of the 2 drive RAID to a new drive 1, and repeat for drive 2). I'd like to upgrade from a 2 x 1 TB drive set to 2 x 2 TB drive set. But I know Windows XP (32 bit) has a 2 TB drive cap, but I don't know if this is per drive or per volume, as I'm not finding too much info on this. I'm hoping it's per drive and will allow me to use 2 x 2 TB drives in a RAID 0 to create 1 drive at around 4 TB and boot from it the new set. Either way I need to clone the drives either to 2 x 2 TB drives or to 2 new 1 TB drives, as one of the drives is from 2009 and has had a lot of use, and the RAID management shows one of the drives is starting to have errors on it, As of right now I'm not using the desktop drives until I can clone them. I'd rather clone the drives as they have programs on it that I can no longer install/activate as they were one time installs/activations. So was thinking of using this to clone the drives from the RAID to a new set, if this will work for RAID'd drives.

I'm also wondering if this will allow me to clone the unallocated drive to a new drive, if possible. Then using the new drive, format that with Windows to NTFS, then use Recuva (or something like it) to recover the files. Would this be possible?

Either way Recuva isn't showing any "unallocated" drives to be able to search the drive.