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    I am having a problem that is similar to the ones posted by others.  I have read the "DE not migrating data" 5 page thread, but all those posts appeared prior to the WHS with PP1 OEM release.  If I am rehashing the issue, please point me to the solution.

    Just installed WHS PP1 yesterday for the second time.  The first drive is 120 GB and second is 500 GB.  The server console shows total size of 577 GB.  Last night I moved about 80 GB to the server and got the message that there was insufficient space.  BTW my PC is running Vista Ultimate.  I read the threads and the DE spec document and figured the server had to do some balancing and went to bed at 11.  At this time Network Health was Healthy.

    Today, about noon, the Network Health is Critical.  I reviewed all the logs in Event Viewer and other than successfully backing up the PCs, there were no problems.  DEMigrator.exe is running as a task.  Sys shows size of 20 GB with 15 GBfree and Data shows size of 91 with 534 free.

    I rebooted the server twice, one a shutdown and one a reboot.  The system tray icon for WHS on my pc has a popup saying "The majority of free space for your server is available on only 1 drive.  Folder duplication requires sufficient space on multiple drives to duplicate your files."  Both drives are Healthy in the Server Storage panel of the WHS Console.

    I am stumped.  I thought that by allowing 12 hours for the server to do its necessary balancing I would be able to move more files by now.  I read the Drive Extender document as it explained how wonderful and more superior it was as compared to hardware RAID 5 devices. But when the Server Storage panel shows 342 GB of free space and I cannot copy any files, I get worried.  I have another server that uses SCSI 320 RAID 5 and I have lost drives but I never lost data.

    Can someone tell me what I am doing wrong?

    thanks

    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 6:33 PM

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    dtiChuck said:

    Would WHS have any problems with the SATA controller?  It's a Promise FastTrak SX 4100.


    if you wish to use a disk attached to the SATA controller as system disk, you will need to provide storage controller drivers during the setup process. Usually on an USB stick, in some scenarios you will be asked later again to press F6 and provide the drivers on a floppy disk (only to be done if the setup process stops otherwise). (Windows Home Server is based on Windows Server 2003 and therefore has no clue about SATA drivers or modern methods of injecting them.)

    If the IDE drive stays the primary disk, this simplifies the installation, but you will have to add the controller drivers later as usual in Windows and add the SATA disk to the storage pool afterwards.
    Best greetings from Germany
    Olaf
    • Marked as answer by dtiChuck Tuesday, November 11, 2008 10:44 PM
    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 10:41 PM
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    Hi,

    It sounds as though the size mismatch between your two drives, is restricting just what can be duplicated.
    As good practise, if you are using the duplication option, then it's preferable that your system has similar drives. Personally, I reckon a three-drive system is the minimum, with the two storage drives being roughly the same size.

    Colin



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    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 7:05 PM
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    Colin

    Thanks for the reply.  WHS is installed on a 1 U SuperMicro that has only 2 bays and supports only USB 1.1, so I am pretty restricted to what I can do.  Since the bulk of what I am moving to the server is movies and TV shows, I really do not need duplication.  But for the 100 GB of Photos and Music, if they go on the server I do not want to loose those files and need duplication as a backup method.  I have not moved those files yet.

    My main concern is that will this issue happen again when more files are put on the server?  The main reason I bought WHS was for it to be 1) a central place to store documents and media files and 2) a media server.  I like the concept of the logical drives and its backup method.  I see DE as a sneak peek of the new file system in future Windows releases.  But I have 2 PCs that are Vista Ultimate and they could satisfy my two main reasons.

    If I switched the two drives, reinstalled WHS, and turn off duplication for videos, would that be better?  I would rather reinstall now before I spend time on links to the server on the other PCs.  I have a wife who thinks MS Bob was the greatest thing since sliced bread (parts of it were part of Office Help until Office 2007).  So I have to keep things real simple for her.  WHS seems perfect for the family and the future of media sharing.

    Chuck
    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 8:23 PM
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    Chuck,

    OK, it looks as though you will be hardware limited in the long run then.
    Certainly, you will be better only enabling duplication for the absolutely essential folders. Also, as you have a relatively small system drive, if you intend this to be your system for a while, then I would upgrade the drives to the largest you can manage.
    What is happening, is WHS is having to utilise the system drive as one of the duplicate areas and once you start doing any Client backups, these are also stored on that drive. Plus, this space is the transition space used for files being transferred to the server prior to their 'final resting place'.
    As you can see, once you take all these accumulating requirements into account, your system drive space will be used up rather quickly.

    Personally, rather than switching the drives, I would replace the small drive with a larger one, however if that's not possible then certainly not duplicating your video folder will help.

    Good luck,

    Colin



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    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 8:43 PM
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    Colin

    Good points, thanks for the reply.

    I was trying to use the hardware I had but I could get another 500 GB drive.  This will require me to reinstall anyway.  Could I switch drives and replace the 120 GB drive later?

    Chuck
    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 8:58 PM
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    dtiChuck said:

    I was trying to use the hardware I had but I could get another 500 GB drive.  This will require me to reinstall anyway.  Could I switch drives and replace the 120 GB drive later?


    you could switch the drives, but this will require a new installation (formatting both disks), which does not allow to preserve any data or backups. So you should store the stuff you wish to keep on other PCs over the network or on an external disk.

    Best greetings from Germany
    Olaf
    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 9:13 PM
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    All

    I have a spare SATA 500 GB drive and a SATA controller card.  I could put the card in the riser slot and use the IDE and SATA drives together.  I am resigned to reinstalling the WHS anyway so I am backing up the files I want to keep.  There is only 1 day of PC backup so no problems there.

    Would WHS have any problems with the SATA controller?  It's a Promise FastTrak SX 4100.

    chuck
    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 9:23 PM
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    dtiChuck said:

    Would WHS have any problems with the SATA controller?  It's a Promise FastTrak SX 4100.


    if you wish to use a disk attached to the SATA controller as system disk, you will need to provide storage controller drivers during the setup process. Usually on an USB stick, in some scenarios you will be asked later again to press F6 and provide the drivers on a floppy disk (only to be done if the setup process stops otherwise). (Windows Home Server is based on Windows Server 2003 and therefore has no clue about SATA drivers or modern methods of injecting them.)

    If the IDE drive stays the primary disk, this simplifies the installation, but you will have to add the controller drivers later as usual in Windows and add the SATA disk to the storage pool afterwards.
    Best greetings from Germany
    Olaf
    • Marked as answer by dtiChuck Tuesday, November 11, 2008 10:44 PM
    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 10:41 PM
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    Olaf

    Thanks, IDE will stay primary and I will get the necessary drivers for the controller.  Just finished removing all the files and I'll give it a try.

    chuck
    Tuesday, November 11, 2008 10:49 PM