Have i got this right??

Forum History Drobo
1

I have just got my second drobo2 as a backup to my main unit.

Main unit has 4x1tb drives in it, which i think gives 2.79tb data storage, currently holding 1.9tb of dvd rips and music.

Now, if I lose 1 drive, I have the built-in protection yes?

But, am I right that this is only for that one instance i.e. if I lose another drive before replacing the failed one and rebuilding, all my data is fried?

Thanks
Dave

2

you are correct on all counts

1 drive failure = fine

2nd drive failure - all gone (assuming it is fairly full - if its fairly empty you may be ok… but that is a SLIM chance)

3

Brilliant, thanks for the quick reply.

Probably best to get a spare drive on the shelf then just in case.

4

There is another scenario, where 1 drive fails and Drobo has enough space to recreate redundancy with the remaining drives. Later (before you return from vacation in Medjugorje) another drive fails, but Drobo already rebuilt redundancy so you lose nothing.
Of course, that requires that all your data fits on the smallest 2 drives, which is not true in this case.

5

rdo, you’re mostly right. If enough drives fail, one at a time, so that you’re left with more data on the pack than usable space, the data will still be there and accessible. However, the pack isn’t protected from any further drive failures until you add enough capacity to cover the data and allow relayout to finish.

6

hi davek, have a look at my sig:
i did exactly that with 2 drobos.

have a search for syncback on the threads for fuller details… its very good (on windows) for verifying and helping to synchronise 1 drobo to the other. (make sure you practice safely first and read up about it before using, but some people just get a 2nd drobo and copy/paste their actual data files using their computers operating system.

7

Thanks, I am using an app called superduper to schedule copying of one drobo to the backup, once a week will be adequate I think as I watch more than I rip usually so not much changes in a week.

It’s running now, taking a while but I know about the low speed on drobo’s.