The StorCenter ix2 is a very versatile device. It is quick and easy to set up. You can access data via SMB, FTP, NFS, and HTTPS.

You can copy files to it via Windows, then attach it as a datastore to an ESXi server to use those files. Of course, it makes a great backup device. I got nearly 700MB/min over a gigabit network.

However, there are limits to the NFS protocol, and more specifically ESXi’s implementation of it, that severely limit its usefulness for backups as a directly-attached hard disk in a VM.

For one thing, it’s terribly slow. I got less than 100MB/min over the same network, from the same VM, using the same backup software. The only difference was that one test was performed using WBAdmin to do the backup to a UNC path to the StorCenter, and the other was done with the NFS share mounted as a datastore and a VMDK allocated to the VM as a hard disk for Windows Server Backup to use as its backup device.

Another limitation is that you cannot change out the StorCenter for another one easily when it is mounted via NFS. In order to change out your backup device, you’d have to shut down the VM, remove the datastore, change out the StorCenter, mount the new one as a datastore, add a new VMDK to the VM, and boot Windows again. At least you don’t have to reboot ESXi, and you could do it remotely, but it still stinks.

If you need an NFS server in a pinch, or want to back up to a network device using a UNC path with a wbadmin command (perhaps scripted and scheduled), the StorCenter is great.  However, you lose the ability to do a full/incremental schedule with the built-in backup software in Windows 2008. If you have third-party software that can do UNC paths, it’s all good.

If you want to use Windows Server Backup, and you have something else available for offsite backup, then I recommend an eSATA disk for Windows 2008/SBS2008 backups, NOT a StorCenter.

Tags: backup, Iomega, NAS, StorCenter

I have determined that it is possible to replace the hard disks in an Iomega StorCenter ix2 (and have the thing work afterward). You don’t have to send it in for service or throw it away. However, it is not easy to do it, and I would not recommend it to anyone who is not comfortable working with the innards of computers.

Also, you cannot use this method to increase the capacity. I tried 1TB disks and 160Gb disks before my set of 500GB disks arrived. It didn’t like either one, it definitely wants the 500GB disks.

If you’re not good with hardware, STOP! and take it to an authorized service center.

Here is the procedure to replace the hard disks:
1. Remove the existing disks from the unit. That means removing a lot of screws and connectors, and loosening the mainboard to squeeze the disks out.
2. Make a disk image of a good disk from the StorCenter, if either of its disks are still good. I used Acronis True Image Home version 11 to back up and restore the disk image.
3. Use disk imaging software to put the images on your new 500GB disks. You might only need the image to be on one disk, but I didn’t bother figuring out if that is true, or which one it should be on.
4. Use partition editing software (Windows disk manager?) to remove the large partition from each disk, leaving the small one.
5. Reassemble the StorCenter, boot it, and authorize it to rebuild the mirror set.

It takes a bit of time to rebuild the mirror set. If you don’t want to wait for that, you can interrupt it by deleting the shared folders and telling it to change the data protection level. That interrupts the mirror rebuild and just prepares the disks the fast way.

This procedure talks about replacing both disks. It is also possible that you could replace just one disk, and maybe even rebuild the mirror set and keep your data intact after a single disk failure - but that was not the point of this exercise, and I did not try that.

Of course, I am certain that doing this voids any sort of warranty - but if your warranty was still good, you wouldn’t be doing this, would you?

Tags: Iomega, NAS, StorCenter