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Storage Upgrade Path (reddthat.com)
submitted 1 month ago* by to c/truenas@programming.dev
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The cost of storage is quite expensive at the moment (June 2026), I'm wondering how easy it is to increase the amount of drives I use down the line.

Can I start with a single drive and then later add another to effectively mirror, the first drive?

I've seen comments online saying you can't move between different vdevs, is that true?

If that is true is it possible to select RAIDZ1 even if you only have a single drive, and then parity would automatically start working when a third drive is added?

Or would I have to copy my data from the first drive elsewhere, and basically reset the drive to upgrade?

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[–] 2 points 1 month ago (1 child)

You can't change the vdev type/layout of a drive without wiping all data stored on it. The one exception is adding a drive to a RAIDZ1, which is allowed but has some annoying repurcussions. I'm not sure if the TrueNAS interface will let you create a vdev that is missing drives, but you probably can using zfs commands and I'd expect TrueNAS to accept it like any other vdev once mounted.

In any case, you should really have a separate backup which can serve as your second copy.

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  • [–] [S] 1 point 1 month ago

    Thanks for the response!

    So no easy way really, that's a shame but I guess I'll deal with that once I can get some more drives...

    I'll keep a second copy of any precious files on my computer and/or phone.

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