Avoiding a lock on the pool

[tylerdotdo]

I'm trying to move some files around on my drive pool, and I need to evacuate a large iscsi drive.  The proper process of removing the drive will lock my pool up for a few days, but I want to continue to use the pool to write data to while the removal is happening.  Can I avoid this by manually going into the poolpart and moving the files to another drive's poolpart?  Will that freak out the drivepool?  I've already excluded my drive I'd like to remove from the file placement, along with disabling any automatic balancing.

[Shane]

Removing a drive doesn't make the pool read-only during the removal. It does prevent removing other drives (they'll be queued for removal instead) and I believe it may prevent some other background/scheduled tasks, but one should still be able to read and write files normally to the pool.

Only problem I can think of is if you're removing drive X and you've got a file placement rule that says files can only be put on X; I'd assume you'd have to change or disable that rule.

[VapechiK]

hello again lol

i'm going to ASSUME you are NOT using duplication on your DrivePool.  i gather this from your previous post where you said you had attempted to use SnapRAID to no avail.  Shane is of course correct about disabling any file placement rules pertaining to the iSCSI drive BEFORE attempting the below.

i would:

1.  show hidden files and folders, and STOP the DrivePool service.

2.  navigate to the PoolPart folder on the iSCSI drive, select all folders/files, right-click CUT and go up and PASTE on the root of the drive.

3.  reopen DP GUI and remeasure the pool (important).  the data you moved out of the pool will now show as 'other.'  but it will still exist on the root of the iSCSI drive (just not in the 'pool.').  

4.  STOP the DrivePool service again.  open file explorer instances for each of the underlying pooled drives you wish to move the unpooled iSCSI data to.  right-click COPY and PASTE distributing the data from the root of the iSCSI drive into the PoolPart folders on whatever local drives in the pool where there is space to do so.  i say 'COPY' because you want to compare the copied data to the source, right?  once you are satisfied a bit for bit copy has occured, you can gradually right-click SHIFT + DELETE all data from the iSCSI drive.

5.  when done, REMEASURE the pool and REBOOT.

keep in mind that, whenever the DrivePool service may be stopped, the DrivePool kernel driver is still enabled and the DrivePool still shows up in file explorer as one big honkin' drive.  this means all drives comprising your pool are still considered part of the 'conglomerate whole,' and traditional 'drag-n-drop' practices can/may no longer apply between the underlying drives.  it can be a mindf**k for sure.

HAVE FUN

cheers