How can I update to TOS5?

[SquarePeg]

I found out a few days ago that the reason I have had issues with previous attempts to update to TOS5 on my F5-221 is because I've got one of the 2GB root partitions.

Can anyone tell me if there is a simple, straightforward way to adjust this (on Linux) without having to jump through hoops or should I just stay on TOS4 forever?

Thanks

[Gremlin]

At the moment there is too little info in your post to provide a reasoned answer.

1. Do you have a good backup (of all the data you don't want to lose)?

The trivial, but impractical answer for most people, would be to buy a new NAS and sufficient drives. Install TOS5 directly. Then you can copy your data from original nas to new nas. Without "jumping through hoops" you have TOS5 and can use the original NAS as a backup device (presuming the answer to (1) is 'NO" as is usually the case).

2. Do you have a desktop PC/MAC?

That would make life easier, but I understand some users no longer have such devices at hand.

3. Do you have a means of attaching a drive caddy to a PC/MAC/laptop (usually USB) in order to work on old drives removed from NAS?

4. Do you have a means of attaching a monitor & keyboard to your NAS?

Whatever, heed the teasers about TOS 6. I have a feeling we may be about to go through the whole thing again

[SquarePeg]

Hi, all my data is backed up.

I haven't long (November) spent £280 on this NAS, I have a desktop PC which I run Linux on.

It doesn't matter if I wipe the drives as I have backups, it's more that the root partition (which I believe is on an internal drive in the NAS) is only 2GB in size so is apparently not suitable to install TOS5 on without doing something to it.

[Gremlin]

To try and correct any misunderstanding (quite common) the 2GB partition should actually be on each drive in the nas.

When drives are initialised mirror raids are set up which include a 2GB partition for the OS (TOS) and another for a swap partition. The logic is that whichever drive is installed, there should always be a functional OS and SWAP partition available. Add a new drive and an additional set of mirrors are created on that drive.

So, the relatively simple method to upgrade to TOS 5 is to wipe the existing drives (I find "secure erase" the best way) so removing every vestige of the previous system (and data, of course). For some reason, deleting partitions alone does not seem sufficient - something invariably gets missed. If you can attach each drive (in turn) to your linux box you should be able to use 'parted' or 'gparted' (or your software of choice) to clean the drives.

I must confess a lack of Linux knowledge and how a standard install would work for you. Anyway, typically:

Download the Latest TOS 5 installation package from the support download pages: (*.ins)

The next step is to install TOS 5. The sequence is as for a new box install EXCEPT use the "custom" install method. (If you rely on the automated on-line install you end up with TOS4 again as that is still the default.) When you are requested point the install to the downloaded .ins package.

The new TOS5 packages automatically set up the os partition as 8GB (or what passes for 8GB, mine shows 7.41)

The most important thing to remember is there is no 'root' user in TOS5. You will be asked to supply a user name and password during the install. This will be the equivalent of 'root'. Likewise there are no default 'admin/admin' user/password setups available. If you forget the user name and password you enter now, you are stuffed!

Hope that helps.

e&oe. I've tried to keep it simple, so may have missed some bits that others may believe are essential

[SquarePeg]

Hi, thanks for you reply.

I didn't realise the root partition was on the hard drives, I thought there was some internal flash memory in the NAS.

This makes things much more clear and much easier to do.

I will try it out later. I have a 'caddy' that I can plug the hard drives into and I can use parted or gparted to delete the partitioning scheme and start afresh.

Thanks again for you help, much appreciated.

[SquarePeg]

Out of curiosity, do you use BTRFS or EXT4?

[Gremlin]

I use TRAID on BTRFS. Depending on size and number of disks it essentially acts as Raid 1 or 5 (you see that on the console messages) but is easier to expand. I guess if I had a larger NAS it might look like Raid 6 or 10 but I'm not that ambitious! I started with 2TB drives and expanded to 4TB drives without any hassle (Just takes a little time to rebuild with each individual drive). I think the important thing with BTRFS is to have a UPS and no pulling the power plug! Often seems to be at the bottom of troubles. Like everything it's a learning curve.

[SquarePeg]

Thanks. I haven't got a ups I'm afraid. I used BTRFS on my desktop but I've not had great results with it on the NAS, although that could be because the root partition was too small.

I think I'll stick to TRAID and EXT4 when I install TOS5 though.

Thanks again for your help

[Gremlin]

I'm pretty sure TRAID is BTRFS only.