Christopher (Drashna)

That's a very nice setup! What projector are you using?

The change log is always available in the folder along with the installers. I I just usually link the actual file for simplicity. Here is the changelog: http://dl.covecube.com/DrivePoolWindows/beta/download/changes.txt And no, the logs don't include the changes between builds, but only between major (release, RC, public beta builds) But you can get a full list of all the files and the changelog here: http://dl.covecube.com/DrivePoolWindows/beta/download/ And after installing the updated beta build (598), are you're still seeing the issues? If so, please upload the new crash dumps.

Specifically what is being referred to is the "StableBit Scanner" balancer in StableBit DrivePool. This balancer will automatically move pooled data off of any disk that is marked as "Damaged" (unreadable sectors) by StableBit Scanner. Because this is a balancer for DrivePool, this only affects pooled data. As for the threads about issues with the client computer backups on the pool, this usually has to deal with a failing/damaged drive. And unfortunately, this has much more to do with WHS's backup engine. For instance, the 4k "commit.dat" file. If that gets corrupted, the service will fail to start. But delete it, and you're fine. Also, it stores the actual data in 4GB chunks. Because the data is deduplicated, one file missing means that you could lose the ENTIRE database (speciifcally, a critical section, like part of the Windows directory). Because of this, we HIGHLY recommend enabling duplication on the Client Computer Backup folder. That way, if one disk fails, the database should be intact. Additionally, if you don't want the contents spread out, you could use the file placement rules to limit the contents to one (or two) disks. This way, it's on the one disk, but if Scanner detects an issue with that disk, it should evacuate the contents to another disk. Otherwise, if there is an issue with the disk, DrivePool can't do anything with the "other" data.

Snapshots won't complete on the pooled drive, as we don't support the Volume Shadowcopy Service on the pool. This is due to a lack of documentation on how to implement the feature. So, unfortunately, you cannot use Windows Server Backup (or the wbadmin utility) to backup the pool directly. In fact, you must backup the pooled disks, if you want to backup the pool. This is detailed here: http://stablebit.com/Support/DrivePool/1.X/Manual?Section=Using%20Server%20Backup%20to%20Backup%20the%20Pool

Very nice!

The pool itself is generated "at run time". Meaning that when you query a disk, the list is generated from the disks right then (and then cached in memory). Additionally, duplication information is stored on the pooled disks (and on each of the disks). As is information about the reparse points. Balancing settings and performance options are stored on the C:\ drive. These are the only things that would get affected by a restore. Otherwise, there should be no issue restoring the system drive.

Okay, I'm glad to hear that.

Like I said, we had added the virtual disks dependancy. Since I wasn't sure which version you were using, I wanted to make sure that was configured. As for the service startup type, that's fantastic news! I'll pass this along to Alex, and see if it would be a good idea to set this as the default. (https://stablebit.com/Admin/IssueAnalysis/13509) And specifically, the delayed start is supposed to start the service approximately 2 minutes after the first automatic service starts. That should be plenty of time, and definitely appears that way. Regards

Jackie, Try moving the "Client Computer Backups" folder off of the pool. See if that helps. I suspect that it may not, because the WHS backup is dirt slow. It's a known issue for a long while, but that seems excessively slow. Also, is this client PC on wireless? And ... I hate to suggest it, but try uninstalling Malware Bytes. I've seen it cause some pretty weird behavior (yes, even the free version that doesn't' include a realtime scanner). Also, while this post mostly applies to WHSv1... the network stuff may help significantly here: http://forum.wegotserved.com/index.php/topic/8335-before-you-post-media-stuttering-playback-issues-performance-irregularities/ And if none of that helps, try enabling logging on the server and run a backup. http://wiki.covecube.com/StableBit_DrivePool_Log_Collection http://wiki.covecube.com/StableBit_DrivePool_2.x_Log_Collection

That's a nice rack! I like the Norco RPC-4224 (I have a 4220 personally, that I got for ... ridiculously cheap). And as for the Archive drives, they do appear to work very well in the Pool. Though, if you're using WHS2011 or Server Essentials, I'd recommend using the File Placement rules to prevent the Client Backup database from being put on these drives. Just in case.

That's a lot of disk! As for the problem, a while back, we added the "Virtual Disk" service as a dependency for the StableBit DrivePool service. This should help with the "Missing disks" issue. To check, run "services.msc", find the "StableBit DrivePool Service", right click on it, and select "Properties", Open the "Dependencies" tab. If it doesn't list the Virtual Disk service, then you may want to update or add this manually. If it does display this, and it's still having issues, try setting the startup type to "Automatic (delayed)". This should delay the startup by a bit, to allow the system to load all of the disks before starting the service. Just remember that the UI will not load properly until the service has actually started. Alternatively, you could set the startup type to "manual", and set a scheduled task to run a minute or two after startup, and run "Net start DrivePoolService" to manually start it.

It depends. Do you have Real time duplication enabled (it should be, by default). Otherwise, once the drive is removed it should start. Or at least once the pool has been remeasured. It should then start a duplication pass and re-duplicate the files as needed. If it's not, try checking and changing the duplication level, if needed. This should also kick off a duplication pass.

Ah, well that will work.

It may be worth reseating the sticks of RAM as well. In case dust or anything got into the socket, or if there is a loose connection. And if you're using the built in memory diagnostics, and it comes up blank... then try memtest86+. If that comes up blank... google your motherboard for memory issues. Also, make sure that your RAM is on the hardware vendor list. If that checks out "clean", then try running with just one stick of RAM and see if the issue comes back. If it doesn't add another. Until the issue returns. Then try using different slots on the motherboard. See if it's a bad slot.

Well, it should be a php file (so text). From what you posted, it was "\Files\Backups\old\My Website Backups\abcdef\2006_12_05\public_html\mpn\html\c99.php" So you should find the file at "\PoolPart.xxxxx\Files\Backups\old\My Website Backups\abcdef\2006_12_05\public_html\mpn\html\c99.php"

I had ~10, I think. All but 4 have failed (well, 2 have completely failed, and the rest are starting to.. 1000+ damaged sectors and the same amount of "uncorrectable sector count" in SMART). That, and even if it is just a fluke.... shelling the drives voids the warranty. So if anything does go wrong, you're SOL. And the most important stat on your drive may be the warranty period.

I don't know, the built in memory diagnostics works pretty well. Especially if you enable the extended test. But more tests never hurt.

Talked to Alex (the developer) about this. Well, we're passing along the error code, so ... that's what Windows is telling us. Either scan the file with Defender and see what it says, or try turning Defender off. As for the service, yes, you can absolutely continue to access the pool with the service stopped. You won't be able to manage it, and balancing won't really happen, but that should be it, for the most part. If the issue persists, then grab the logs.

This looks like a single bit error in the memory. If you want details on the error, check out the above link, as Alex shows what the issue is exactly. Specifically, a single bit was flipped. This could be just random (in theory cosmic rays could do this... again, in theory), but it is much more likely that you have a bad memory module in the system.

If you want, you can use the above link to take a look at Alex's analysis of the issue. It's rather technical though. But it boils down to "really weird issue". Either way, could you download the latest beta build and see if that helps? http://dl.covecube.com/DrivePoolWindows/beta/download/StableBit.DrivePool_2.2.0.598_x64_BETA.exe This build should fix the BSOD problem that you're seeing. If it doesn't, it may indicate other hardware issues (running a memory test, and a CPU stress test may be a good idea just in case). And please upload the new dumps, in this case.

Is Drivepool giving the virus warning? Also, could you grab the logs? http://wiki.covecube.com/StableBit_DrivePool_2.x_Log_Collection Alos, is anything using the files in question? And do you have any antivirus installed on the system? If so, it may be that the php script can be downloading... or virus scanners like Avast tend to check the checksum without checking the actual contents.

From a quick look, the cause of the BSOD was due to memory corruption. I would highly recommend running a memory test on the system in question. I've also flagged the dump for Alex, to take a closer look. (https://stablebit.com/Admin/IssueAnalysis/13507)

I've sent you a trial extension, so that you can continue to test out things to get it working. Another question, are you using DrivePool as well? If so, try stopping the StableBit Scanner service. If that doesn't help, then something is accessing the pool and keeping the drives awake.

Okay, thank you. I've flagged the memory dump for Alex, and he'll take a look at it. In the meanwhile, could you please run a memory test just to be sure? Do you have Network IO Boost or Read Striping enabled? Also, are any of the disks in the system having issues? And was there something specific that may have been happening before the BSOD? IAR: https://stablebit.com/Admin/IssueAnalysis/13504

I'm not entirely sure. I hate to do this, but I'm going to defer answering, so that Alex (the developer) can weigh in. I want to make sure you get a correct and complete answer here, as this is a complicated and touchy subject. I suspect that you are correct, but I'm not sure. And a correct answer is more important here. As for Windows not handling the sleep/idling of the disk, that could be because of the SMART queries. Since Scanner queries often, that could be the cause. Setting StableBit Scanner to only query during a work window or scan should help curb that behavior.