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#1 2007-03-25 19:44:53

Kelly W
New member
Registered: 2007-03-25
Posts: 1

Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Hi guys,  I'm brand new to this gadget and its already frustrating me a bit...
I bought it yesterday with a pair of Seagate 500 Gig drives.


Not knowing much about the 2 available formats with the shipped firmware, I chose EXT-3.  I could not get the easy search utility to find my box.  I found the IP manually through IP list from my Linksys router, then got in and did the initial format.  I then upgraded the firmware to the 1.02 and I'm currently stuck with the EXT-3 file system.  I can not get it to format.  I eventually got the Easy Search to find my box, once relocated to a separate 8-port switch.

So, here' what I've been trying:
Tools...Raid...Set Raid type and Reformat...

I choose Raid 1, enter 498, and nothing happens, ever.....
The format disk bar never shows any progress, and the Format Results area stays blank. There appears to be an error on the page.  I've captured it and attached below.

Is this an Internet Explorer issue, a DNS issue, or something I'm missing entirely...?  Anyone had this problem before?

Thanks,
Kelly

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#2 2007-03-26 01:52:46

MiK
Member
From: Sweden
Registered: 2006-12-17
Posts: 102

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Yeah, you should try another browser than MSIE. I had the same problem until I used FireFox.

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#3 2007-03-26 04:45:30

fordem
Member
Registered: 2007-01-26
Posts: 1938

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

I've had no problems formatting disks with IE, using both 6 & 7

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#4 2007-03-26 08:22:09

nicko
Member
Registered: 2007-03-17
Posts: 45

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

I did EXACTLY this - bought the DNS from dabs.com with two Samsung (soory I said Seagate initially) 500Gb drives, configered RAID 1 using the supplied firmware as EXT3, upgraded to 1.02b, had to reformat as EXT2 - all worked fine.

The reformat does pop up a progress box - do you have any popup blockers set in IE? You error message suggests that the expected popup was not created, so I guess your security setting are a bit high. (see "Security Settings" under the "Internet Options" item under "Tools").

Nicko

Last edited by nicko (2007-03-28 23:49:42)

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#5 2007-03-28 19:44:43

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

I bought the DNS-323 and 2x 500 GB Seagate HDD's from Dabs.com. IP address on our network is reserved by DHCP and issued based on the MAC address and can ping fine, although the easy search can't find it.

Formatted the drives EXT3 and discovered the problem copying large files. Proceeded to download and install the new firmware.
When I tried to reformat as EXT2 first time it didn't get past 94%. Now it doesn't seem to format at all, just hang with an empty progress bar.
Tried IE 6 and IE 7 as well as FireFox with popup's turned off.

Afterwards I need to power cycle the box to get anything from the web interface.

D-Link support have been useless and repeatied calls awaiting for '2nd line support' to get back to me are going nowhere.
Any ideas how to fix this? I bought this for my work and my boss is not a happy bunny :-(

Last edited by mattie-b (2007-03-28 19:45:41)

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#6 2007-03-28 20:42:36

MiK
Member
From: Sweden
Registered: 2006-12-17
Posts: 102

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

I had this problem with fw1.01, but it was fixed in fw1.02

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#7 2007-03-28 20:47:31

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

I have one pc at world that uses SATA so I've removed the drives from the DNS-323 and inserted them in PC one at a time and formatted them.

When I place them back inside the DNS-323 I can now format them properly, at least using IE7 the progress bar moves, although one of the sub frames/iframes comes up 'the page cannot be displayed'.

It doesn't get past 94% though :-( the progress bar just stops. The unit is still responsive as I can ping it, but the firmware must have a size limit for formatting.

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#8 2007-03-29 01:21:20

MiK
Member
From: Sweden
Registered: 2006-12-17
Posts: 102

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Do you really use fw1.02?

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#9 2007-03-29 11:21:32

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Yeah, firmware 1.02 downloaded from the UK support website. I am I the only person has problems formatting 500 GB drives as RAID 1?

Now I'm back at work this morning I'm going to rip out the drives, wipe them on another machine again and try formatting them at a low capacity setting, say 400 GB and see how that goes.

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#10 2007-03-29 12:14:37

fonz
Member / Developer
From: Berlin
Registered: 2007-02-06
Posts: 1716
Website

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Just a guess, I may be totally wrong, but I think I had similar problems. First, I formatted ext3/RAID1. Then after upgrading the firmware I reformatted to ext2/RAID1, and I also had the impression that it "doesn't complete" somehow. However, it wasn't a real problem, but just my impatience. After starting the format in the evening, I left it alone and went to bed. Next evening, I rebooted and all was fine (I think RAID1 just takes a lot longer than JBOD).

PS: two 500GB Samsung disks inside

Last edited by fonz (2007-03-29 12:15:20)

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#11 2007-03-29 12:52:45

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

I left the unit over night from 7pm to 9:30am. When I came in this morning the unit had powered off, even though it was set not to, and it's on a 24 hour supply with a UPS. When powering on the web interface starts the formatting disk wizard again after logging in. I recieved a support email back from D-Link with some silly stuff about resetting it and waiting and checking the IP address. Their phone support reps really don't listen or understand the problem when passing on the reports. The bottom of the email suggests that the 'case is closed'. I was promised a phone call and am deeply unhappy with the company at the moment. I'm writing a looooong email describing my whole experience in detail and replying right now.

I'm using 2x 500 GB Seagate Baracuda drives.

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#12 2007-03-29 13:00:40

fonz
Member / Developer
From: Berlin
Registered: 2007-02-06
Posts: 1716
Website

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

mattie-b wrote:

When powering on the web interface starts the formatting disk wizard again after logging in.

Right. I forgot that. It did the same here, I left it alone after that (and it was fine in the end).

And I agree that their support (D-Link Germany in my case) could be better.

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#13 2007-03-29 13:53:46

nicko
Member
Registered: 2007-03-17
Posts: 45

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

mattie-b wrote:

Yeah, firmware 1.02 downloaded from the UK support website. I am I the only person has problems formatting 500 GB drives as RAID 1?

I know this will sound irritating, but I followed almost exactly the same path as you (using Samsung 500GB drives: http://tinyurl.com/26xdno ) - I even also bought from DABS.

All worked flawlessly here - started with the shipped firmware, formated EXT3 (fine) RAID 1 - upgraded to 1.02b114 - found I couldn't use EXT3 so re-formatted to EXT2 RAID 1 no problem. Host is XP Pro box with IE7. Not using print services, but a lot of shares, FTP & iTunes servers.

I'm seriously chuffed with this box - it's so much better than any other I've looked at or used. If they'd only sort out the silly 8 charcter password restriction, I'd be over the moon...

Nick

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#14 2007-03-29 17:58:07

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Maybe it's the Seagate drives. I am also using XP Pro and IE7.

I have tried inserting only 1 drive at a time and formatting it as a stand alone drive (this option doesn't allow you to select a partition size). It still gets stuck at 94% on both drives. I tried this to eliminate the posibility of a fault on one of the drives.

Eventually I can get the unit to come on and show a drive as a share, but it freezes when copying files. I tried copying a 3GB file and it froze the box completely.

I have emailled screen shots of the firmware and status webpage, along with screen shots of the errors to D-Link in response to their silly support email and still haven't received a reply by email or telephone.

I have wasted two expensive days working on it and have given up. I have got an RMA number from Dabs and will be sending it back next week unless D-Link sort it out tomorrow.

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#15 2007-03-29 19:07:16

nicko
Member
Registered: 2007-03-17
Posts: 45

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Why not RMA the disks and get some Samsungs?

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#16 2007-03-29 19:22:40

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

nicko wrote:

Why not RMA the disks and get some Samsungs?

It's worth thinking about if you think it would solve the problem. I would love to be able to speak to someone at Dabs but they don't provide a phone number that I could see.

The Seagate drives don't appear to have problems themselves. The more I look at the D-Link with it's poor large file support the less inclined I feel to keeping it.

Last edited by mattie-b (2007-03-29 20:17:18)

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#17 2007-03-29 23:45:01

Aaron
Member
Registered: 2007-02-09
Posts: 53

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

The firmware afaik does not have a 'size' limit. I personally am running two WD Caviar 500gb drives and Have tried also to 750gb that worked flawlessly. What IS possible is a power consumption issue with the drives and the power adapter but that would take some looking into.

_Aaron

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#18 2007-03-30 07:52:55

nicko
Member
Registered: 2007-03-17
Posts: 45

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

mattie-b wrote:

nicko wrote:

Why not RMA the disks and get some Samsungs?

It's worth thinking about if you think it would solve the problem. I would love to be able to speak to someone at Dabs but they don't provide a phone number that I could see.

All I can say is that the Samsungs work for me - the DABS quicklink for the drives I used is 4C0KWS.

DABS keep their prices low by not having telephone support - actually, it is there if you really really have a problem - I eventually found the number on one of the usenet newsgroups (Google is your friend here).

Cheers

Nick

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#19 2007-03-30 11:20:36

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Nicko, have you had any trouble copying large files?

I want to use it for storing backup hdd images of machines on our network and for backing up our server hdd. Some images approach 20 gigabytes. The server in question only has USB1 ports (apparently) and no spare slots to add a USB2 or Firewire card, but does have dual gigabit LAN which is why I've opted for a NAS solution with RAID1 for safety.

We recently lost some data when a drive on our existing RAID5 array went down and it found an error on one of the remaining disks during the rebuild process. I'm trying to be extra careful this time having a spare backup box.

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#20 2007-03-30 11:35:07

nicko
Member
Registered: 2007-03-17
Posts: 45

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

mattie-b wrote:

Nicko, have you had any trouble copying large files?

No - I use Acronis TrueImage 9 on all my house machines - a total of 6. I do a full hd backup once a week, and differentials each day. The monthly full bu files are archived for 6 months.

The largest of these compressed archives (using Acronis' default settings) is about 48Gb, several others are in the 20Gb region, so I'm not having any problems at all with those - in fact they just whistle along - the backups are really really quick and I've no problems since I installed the DNS. I'm using a NetGear GS108 switch (nice switch - well matched to the DNS), but only the DNS is running at Gbit speed - everything else is 100Mb.

However, that's not the same as copying a large file - I backup directly onto user shares, i.e. the file grows slowly to its final size rather than just having the full 48Gb dropped onto it in one go...

I've not yet tried copying one of the large save sets - I'll give that a try tonight.

Nick

Last edited by nicko (2007-03-30 11:45:19)

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#21 2007-03-30 13:38:29

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

nicko wrote:

I'm using a NetGear GS108 switch (nice switch - well matched to the DNS), but only the DNS is running at Gbit speed - everything else is 100Mb.

I have just got precisely the same switch for the same reason, and yes, I'm using Acronis also.

I'm going to see if I can borrow a couple of smaller SATA drives from a mate to test the system again over the weekend.

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#22 2007-03-30 15:35:27

nicko
Member
Registered: 2007-03-17
Posts: 45

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

mattie-b wrote:

nicko wrote:

I'm using a NetGear GS108 switch (nice switch - well matched to the DNS), but only the DNS is running at Gbit speed - everything else is 100Mb.

I have just got precisely the same switch for the same reason, and yes, I'm using Acronis also.

Spooky. Seems that the only difference between our systems is that I'm using the Samsung disks (*)...

Same hardware, same firmware, same switch, same b/u software, bought from the same supplier at about the same time... Trivial question - I suppose you are using real CAT5e or CAT6 patch leads? Not that it'd effect this problem, but IMHO (I do this for a living) skimping on cables is a no-no, especially at Gb speeds...

Nick
(*) The only reason I use Samsungs is that I "upgraded" my sky+ box with a 250Gb Samsung (the recommended drive for Sky+ upgrades), and its really quiet and runs very cool (no fan)...

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#23 2007-03-30 15:41:18

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

nicko wrote:

I suppose you are using real CAT5e or CAT6 patch leads? Not that it'd effect this problem, but IMHO (I do this for a living) skimping on cables is a no-no, especially at Gb speeds...

At the moment the gigabit switch is still in the box.

I've just hooked it up with a standard CAT5e patch cable until I'm ready to delve into the wiring of our patch panels and switches to make room for everything, so it's running through a 10/100 switch at the moment.

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#24 2007-03-31 00:01:23

mattie-b
Member
Registered: 2007-03-28
Posts: 10

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

Well I've hooked it all up with the gigabit switch with the drives individually formatted (even though the web wizard didn't get past 94% again) and am running Acronis to backup the server. The file is over 7GB so far, so it's definately writing to the disk ok. I need to revisit it in the morning and see if the backup completes ok and if it's explorable to ensure that the files are retrievable.

I still don't have RAID working, but it's something rather than nothing.

Fingers crossed.

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#25 2007-03-31 08:35:07

nicko
Member
Registered: 2007-03-17
Posts: 45

Re: Will not reformat from EXT-3 to EXT-2

mattie-b wrote:

Nicko, have you had any trouble copying large files?

I copied a 6Gb Acronis archive from the DNS to my XP box in 9 minutes (the PC is only on 100Mbit, not 1Gbit like the DNS). I then copied the archive back to the DNS in a different location, also taking 9 minutes. I did the same with a 5Gb archive, and a 28Gb one.

Oh, and each time I checked that the archive was intact by browsing inside it with Acronis,

No problems with large files here.

Nick

Last edited by nicko (2007-03-31 08:36:33)

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