Drobo 8D User manual

Drobo 8D User Guide

Drobo 8D User Guide 2
1Drobo 8D User Guide.........................................................................................................6
1.1 Before You Begin........................................................................................................7
1.1.1 Product Features at a Glance...............................................................................8
1.1.2 Checking Box Contents ........................................................................................9
1.1.3 Checking System Requirements ........................................................................10
1.1.3.1 Operating Systems Supported....................................................................11
1.1.3.2 Connectivity Interfaces Supported for Drobo 8D.......................................12
1.1.4 Checking the Hardware You Need.....................................................................13
1.1.4.1 Selecting Drives ..........................................................................................14
1.1.4.2 Determining Drive Space Requirements ....................................................16
1.1.4.3 Using Power Protection..............................................................................17
1.2 Setting Up the Drobo 8D..........................................................................................18
1.2.1 Migrating a Disk Pack from Another Drobo Device...........................................19
1.2.2 Inserting Drives ..................................................................................................21
1.2.3 Connecting Cables on the Drobo 8D..................................................................23
1.2.3.1 Connecting Directly to the Drobo 8D .........................................................24
1.2.3.2 Connecting the Drobo in a Daisy Chain......................................................25
1.2.4 Powering On the Drobo 8D................................................................................27
1.2.5 Downloading and Installing Drobo Dashboard..................................................28
1.2.5.1 Installing Drobo Dashboard on Apple Mac™..............................................29
1.2.6 Registering the Drobo 8D...................................................................................37
1.2.7 Initializing and Updating the Drobo 8D to the Latest Firmware .......................40
1.2.8 Formatting the Drives of Drobo 8D ...................................................................43

Drobo 8D User Guide 3
1.2.8.1 Turning On the Drobo 8D and Formatting the Drives................................44
1.2.8.2 Selecting a File System and Volume Size for the Drobo 8D .......................48
1.3 Where To Go Next ...................................................................................................49
1.3.1 Using Best Practices for Protecting Data ...........................................................50
1.3.2 Using the Online User Guide..............................................................................51
1.3.3 Using Context-Sensitive Help.............................................................................52
1.3.4 Using Knowledge Base.......................................................................................53
1.3.5 Registering the Drobo 8D...................................................................................54
1.3.6 Getting Support..................................................................................................57
1.4 Using and Managing the Drobo 8D..........................................................................58
1.4.1 Using Drobo Dashboard.....................................................................................59
1.4.1.1 Downloading and Installing Drobo Dashboard ..........................................60
Installing Drobo Dashboard on Apple Mac™ .........................................61
1.4.1.2 Keeping Your Software Up to Date.............................................................69
Checking for Software Updates .............................................................70
Manually Updating Firmware from Drobo Website ..............................71
1.4.1.3 Touring Drobo Dashboard ..........................................................................72
1.4.2 Renaming the Drobo 8D ....................................................................................76
1.4.3 Formatting the Drobo 8D...................................................................................77
1.4.4 Safely Shutting Down the Drobo 8D ..................................................................80
1.4.4.1 Safely Shutting Down the Drobo 8D Using Drobo Dashboard ...................81
1.4.5 Resetting the Drobo 8D .....................................................................................83
1.4.6 Blinking Lights to Test Connectivity...................................................................84

Drobo 8D User Guide 4
1.4.7 Enabling or Disabling Menu Bar.........................................................................85
1.5 Modifying Device Settings for Drobo 8D .................................................................86
1.5.1 Enabling or Disabling Dual Disk Redundancy.....................................................87
1.5.2 Enabling the Disk Drive Spin Down Time...........................................................89
1.5.3 Dimming the Lights on Drobo 8D.......................................................................90
1.6 Managing Capacity (Drive Space) ............................................................................91
1.6.1 Calculating Capacity to Use................................................................................92
1.6.2 Adding Drives .....................................................................................................93
1.6.3 Removing Drives ................................................................................................95
1.6.4 Inserting a back slot SSD ....................................................................................97
1.6.5 Removing a back slot SSD ................................................................................100
1.7 Checking Storage Usage and Device Status Information.......................................101
1.7.1 Checking Storage Usage...................................................................................102
1.7.1.1 Viewing Capacity Chart.............................................................................103
1.7.1.2 Viewing Storage Usage .............................................................................105
1.7.2 Checking the Status of Drobo 8D.....................................................................107
1.7.3 Checking the Drobo 8D's Serial Number .........................................................109
1.7.4 Checking the Drobo 8D's Firmware Version....................................................110
1.7.5 Checking the Current Version of Drobo Dashboard ........................................111
1.7.6 Checking System Information..........................................................................112
1.7.7 Checking Drive Information .............................................................................114
1.7.8 Checking Performance Information.................................................................116
1.7.9 Getting Diagnostics on Drobo 8D ....................................................................117

Drobo 8D User Guide 5
1.7.10 Understanding the Indicator Lights .................................................................120
1.8 Using On-Screen and E-mail Alerts ........................................................................122
1.8.1 Setting Up or Modifying E-mail Alerts .............................................................123
1.8.2 Modifying When to Send E-mail Alerts............................................................128
1.8.3 Disabling E-mail Alerts .....................................................................................130
1.8.4 Modifying When to Send On-Screen Alerts.....................................................131
1.8.5 Disabling On-Screen Alerts ..............................................................................133
1.9 Using Backup Volume with the Drobo 8D .............................................................134
1.10 Intelligent Volume Management...........................................................................137

Drobo 8D User Guide 6
1Drobo 8D User Guide
Congratulations on your new Drobo!
This Getting Started section will help you get the Drobo 8D set up and running in just a few steps.
Related topics:
Before You Begin
Setting Up the Drobo 8D
Where to Go Next
Note:
To access the full selection of help topics, click on the folders on the Contents page in the
left window pane of this online user guide.

Drobo 8D User Guide 7
1.1 Before You Begin
Before you begin setting up the Drobo 8D, it’s a good idea to check system and hardware
requirements.
Related topics:
Product Features at a Glance
Checking Box Contents
Checking System Requirements
Checking the Hardware You Need

Drobo 8D User Guide 8
1.1.1 Product Features at a Glance
For a quick overview of features of the Drobo 8D, refer to the following images.
Figure 1: Front of the Drobo 8D with the bezel (faceplate) removed.
Figure 2: Back of the Drobo 8D
Related topic:
Before You Begin

Drobo 8D User Guide 9
1.1.2 Checking Box Contents
Check your product's box to ensure it contains all the components in the list below.
●Drobo 8D
●1 m Thunderbolt 3 cable (20GB/s)
●1.8 m power cord with power supply
●Quick Start Card
●Safety and Warranty Guide
Notes:
To connect Thunderbolt and Thunderbolt 2 devices to Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports, you
must have a Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 adapter.
You can purchase it from here: Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter
Drobo 8D supports only Apple Adapter.

Drobo 8D User Guide 10
1.1.3 Checking System Requirements
Check to ensure your operating system and cable interface are supported.
Related topics:
Operating Systems Supported
Connectivity Interfaces Supported for Drobo 8D