BlackArmor NAS Network Storage Server

[slabbi]

Its quite cool here (38C).

I am pretty sure that I have found the problem:

/usr/sbin/apcupsd -f /etc/apcupsd/apcupsd.conf

writes

/var/log/apcupsd.status

periodically, so the device can never go into standby when an APC UPS is used.

I do not know if the daemon also runs when no UPS is used. Maybe other users can confirm if hdd standby works without UPS and does not work with UPS enabled?

I have changed "stattime 60" to "stattime 0" in

/etc/apcupsd/apcupsd.conf
so no status file will be created. Now I have to wait a day or so and check how the system behaves.

[taka_ozo]

I do not use an UPS  and still no standby......

I have deleted all users but admin and root

Dissabled all unecesary services like: global access, email,ftp, UPNP, NFS, Wiki Server and Media Service.

If it enters standby i wiil enable one service at time.

Later edit.....

No way....the device is not entering standby no matter what is enabled or dissabled. Havent try to dissable MAC services....but i guees the same result.

I have tried also with lan cable out.... same result....

[slabbi]

There are at least two services which prevent teh NAS to go into standby. The UPS is the first one, now I try to find the second one.

Maybe someone can help to identify problematic processes/services:

1. Get the process list "ps -ax"

2. Kill a process "kill -9 <number>"

3. Try to send a hd into standby mode "/usr/sbin/sendidle -s /dev/sda"

4. Wait at least 2-3 minutes, do not enter anything (since this restarts the disk)

The sendidle command only send the first drive into standby mode (fine for our test), you will hear when it is restarted. When it is restarted, try again with the next process until the hd is not restarted for a certain period of time. So you can try to identify the faulty process.

Do not kill the webserver process since it is quite usefull when you want to restart the unit usign the web interface.

[nfodiz]

I got a reply back from support concerning this issue today.  Maybe with any kinda luck they can track this down and issue a fix.

Fingers crossed,

Bill

[bert_black]

Hi,

I got the same issue - no standy after upgrading to firmware 1000.1081.

Did you get any further information from Support people ?

.

Tx, Bert.

[taka_ozo]

Seagate support? HUH? What? Come again?

....you talk about "support"......from Seagate....LOL......

[Per Guidelines: Be courteous and do not evade the word filter]....

[nfodiz]

I fear you may be correct.  I pointed support to this thread and also asked about a possible edited version of the 391 firmware that would take from the console and allow us to rollback. That was yesterday and I didn't get any kinda response back today.  Oh well, off to buy a Western Digital MyBook Live.  There is a review up at:

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/nas/nas-reviews/31314-wd-my-book-live-reviewed

Seems to blow away the speeds i'm seeing with my NAS110 and also has a WORKING standby mode

Bill

[taka_ozo]

At my workplace from aprox. 200 Dell PC's in 4 years WD drive are the ones that fail all other don't (Seagate,Fujitsu,Samsung etc)... About 20 hdd's fail...16 Desktop and 4 Enterprise Class

I had problems with Seagate drives too but those where "Made in China"...and it was 10 years ago.

The only thing that bothers me now is that stupid Standby bug.....

Question: why Seagate software guys bother to write 3 pages of code if it isn't loaded?

Example: Seagate BA 110 NAS

In /etc/init.d/rcS :

/bin/echo "==> Starting I/O Monitor for HDD standby .................. "
#/usr/bin/php -q /usr/sbin/monitor_io.php 2>/dev/null 2>&1 &

....this file contains 3 pages of disabled code for hdd standby

[slabbi]

Well, after killing 6 processes the box entered standby mode. This is quite strange. I was not able to identify one or two processes, the box always never entered standby mode or - when I forced the standby mode - the HDD were restarted whithin some secs or minutes. Really it seems that some processes prevent the box from entering the standby mode.

Finding a bug in this code is quite hard. The best would be to rewrite the whole system, a simple web interface is not too hard to create, SMB and FTP services is quite simple to implement. And bit by bit other services could be added.

Anyone interested in starting a project? We need some linux experts for the system (creating the startup scripts) and a web guy for the UI (a simple UI could be done by me; since I am always a little bit short of time the project leader should be someone who has really some time for that).

There is also no need to remove the old one, the new system could be installed in parallel to the old system, only the init script should call the new system instead of the old one, so it would we quite simple to go back.

[taka_ozo]

Why bother to install custom Linux.....FREENAS might be the perfect solution, but this device has a RAID configuration between EEPROM and HDD.

If it is possible to load only the boot loader into EEPROM and the rest on HDD.

Another member here "Hajo" has done some mods to the device firmware and as a future plan to load custom Linux to the device.

Maybe he will have some time to do that.

Until then i have done some research and found "Sheeva PLUG" or "GURU PLUG" almost the same hardware but no HDD....they have a SDK for the device maybe we can inspire from there