How to expand storage on the Cisco NSS324?

[bax_man]

Hi - am a network newbie, but I'm very impressed with what I've set up so far.

I have a Cisco NSS324 NAS unit that was delivered with four 1 TB drives. Running RAID 5 which provides 3 TB for data and 1 TB for self-backup (fascinating principle using twos complement .

I'm using the unit to capture analog video, about 25 GB for each two-hour tape. Have plenty of storage left, but the day may come when I run out.

If I replace the 1 TB units with 2 TB units, making 6 TB for data and 2 TB for backup - is the process as simple as replacing one unit at a time, letting the system re-build each new drive, until all four have been replaced, or will it be necessary to backup the data and restore after replacing the four drives and reformatting the system?

This question may have an obvious answer, and if so please forgive my newness.

P.S. The unit was pricey but I feel I'm pretty much getting what I paid for. Feature rich, excellent web-based admin, very fast data reads/writes, and expected to be highly reliable over time. Extremely pleased with the package as a whole.

Regards,

Baxter Fullerton
Coppell, TX

 

[thiggins]

You should never put a backup on the same device. If a power supply or controller fails or you suffer fire or theft, you lose everything. Use a separate NAS or backup to attached drives that are rotated and stored in a safe place.

To answer your question, the Cisco supports RAID capacity expansion, which works as you describe. It is a lengthy process, however, requiring 4-8 hours per rebuild. And you don't see the expanded capacity until all drives in the array are replaced.

 

[bax_man]

Thanks for the advice. You're right in that the RAID 5 should be a primary backup, but I should have a separate set of backups that are rotated off site for disaster recovery.

Thanks again.