Reassemble a RAID array when ports are limited

If the number of drives in an evidence RAID array is greater than the number of TaskForce ports of the appropriate type, you can still reassemble the RAID using one of two options:

Choose the best option based on the types and quantity of the drives that constitute the RAID.

Choose imaging drives to files:

Choose cloning SAS drives to SATA drives:

Option 1: Image drives to files

Use this option in the following cases:

  • A RAID array has more drives than there are free TaskForce ports.

Preparation

Make sure that your server has enough space to store all the drive image files (the sum of the capacities of all RAID members that lack ports for connection).

Imaging some RAID drives to files

To image a RAID member to a raw, E01, or AFF4 image file, connect the drive to the TaskForce, and then follow the steps described in Accessing password-protected servers.

To achieve higher reading speed on the next steps (reassembling and imaging the RAID), we recommend using RAW format for image files. However, if you are short on server space, opt for compressed E01 or AFF4 images.

Reassembling and imaging the RAID

After you have imaged all RAID members that lack ports for connection to files, do the following:

  1. Connect the other, unimaged part of the RAID members to the respective available TaskForce ports.
  2. On the left in the TaskForce main window, click RAID.
  3. On the Select source device panel, in SATA, SAS, or USB sections, select the physical drives that are members of a RAID array.
  4. Scroll down to the File section and click Select file. Select all the image files that are members of your RAID array. Confirm by clicking the Select button.
  5. Click Continue.
  6. TaskForce redirects you to the RAID configuration screen and immediately starts the Autodetection module.
  7. Optional: If you know some of the RAID parameters, such as RAID type, Start LBA, Block size, and Block order, you can select them manually from the lists at the top of the RAID configuration section. To change the device order, drag the devices up or down, as needed.
  8. Wait for a couple of minutes while the module is checking thousands of variants to find a possible RAID configuration. The Autodetection progress is displayed on the right side of the screen. To learn more about our heuristic RAID autodetection algorithm, see How autodetection of an unknown RAID works.
  9. Once TaskForce has detected a possible configuration, click Apply. TaskForce automatically changes the order of the devices, applies the detected RAID type and other parameters, and then parses and verifies the file system of an array.
  10. To make sure that the suggested RAID configuration is resulting in tangible data, check the Partitions section at the bottom left and preview the contents of a reassembled RAID, including partitions, folders, and files. To help you decide whether the applied configuration is valid or not, TaskForce displays a small tag with the accuracy percentage next to the partition. In some cases, TaskForce will suggest alternative configurations, and you can try to improve the accuracy percentage by applying these alternative configurations.
  11. Click Go to image to acquire a full bit-by-bit copy of the array to E01, AFF4, or raw image.
    Or click Go to logical to copy only selected partitions, folders, or files to L01 or ZIP.
  12. After imaging is finished, TaskForce automatically generates an Imaging completed report. It includes all the details of the source drives, the RAID configuration, the target, the partition, the timestamps, and more.

Option 2: Clone SAS drives to SATA drives

In this scenario, you clone up to 6 SAS drives to SATA drives first, and then reassemble the RAID array using available 6 SAS ports and 6 SATA ports (12 in total).

Use this option in the following cases:

  • A RAID array has up to 12 SAS drives.
  • Your network is heavily loaded.
  • You are not sure whether you have a 10 Gbit network or whether your server with images can support maximum throughput.

Preparation

Using the Diagnose module in TaskForce, make sure that all target SATA drives:

  • Have storage capacity that is equal to or greater than the source SAS drives.
  • Are in good condition (the diagnostics results are green).
  • Show an average speed of over 120 MB/s in section 3 (Media surface) of the diagnostics report.

Imaging SAS drives to SATA drives

First, connect up to 6 source SAS drives to the SAS ports and up to 6 prepared target SATA drives to the SATA ports.

Then do the following steps for each source SAS drive:

  1. In the TaskForce window, go to Image.
  2. Select a source SAS drive.
  3. On the Select target devices panel, switch to the Drives tab and select your target SATA drive.
  4. Click Continue.
  5. On the imaging settings page, select the Default preset on the bottom or change the settings as needed.
  6. Click Start.

Reassembling and imaging the RAID

  1. Disconnect the cloned batch of SAS drives from the SAS ports, and connect the batch that hasn’t been cloned.
  2. Switch the SATA ports into the Source mode.
  3. Now you have the first batch of the RAID members (clones) connected to the SATA ports, and the second batch connected to the SAS ports.
  4. In the TaskForce window, go to RAID.
  5. On the Select source device panel, select all SAS source drives and all SATA source drives that constitute the RAID.
  6. Click Continue.
  7. TaskForce redirects you to the RAID configuration screen and immediately starts the Autodetection module.
  8. Optional: If you know some of the RAID parameters, such as RAID type, Start LBA, Block size, and Block order, you can select them manually from the lists at the top of the RAID configuration section. To change the device order, drag the devices up or down, as needed.
  9. Wait for a couple of minutes while the module is checking thousands of variants to find a possible RAID configuration. The Autodetection progress is displayed on the right side of the screen. To learn more about our heuristic RAID autodetection algorithm, see How autodetection of an unknown RAID works.
  10. Once TaskForce has detected a possible configuration, click Apply. TaskForce automatically changes the order of the devices, applies the detected RAID type and other parameters, and then parses and verifies the file system of an array.
  11. To make sure that the suggested RAID configuration is resulting in tangible data, check the Partitions section at the bottom left and preview the contents of a reassembled RAID, including partitions, folders, and files. To help you decide whether the applied configuration is valid or not, TaskForce displays a small tag with the accuracy percentage next to the partition. In some cases, TaskForce will suggest alternative configurations, and you can try to improve the accuracy percentage by applying these alternative configurations.
  12. Click Go to image to acquire a full bit-by-bit copy of the array to E01, AFF4, or raw image.
    Or click Go to logical to copy only selected partitions, folders, or files to L01 or ZIP.
  13. After imaging is finished, TaskForce automatically generates an Imaging completed report. It includes all the details of the source drives, the RAID configuration, the target, the partition, the timestamps, and more.