Server: Dell T20 with additional SATA PCI-E controller, 5 SATA drives plugged in at the moment. All GPT partitioned.
System: GNU/Linux Debian 9 Stretch.
Situation: I often change HDD configuration in order to run data extractions from customer formatted drives and such.
Problem: If I unplug some drive(s), and plug in new one(s), I need to edit the file systems file:
/etc/fstab
If I don't do that, the system would hang on boot.
Personal suspicion: If I unplug, say:
/dev/sde
Which is part of one software RAID1 using mdadm, and plug in some other drive, the system, I think, is searching for the original drive, but finds other drive.
The mdadm.conf file follows:
cat /etc/mdadm/mdadm.conf | grep ARRAY -A 1
ARRAY /dev/md1 level=raid1 num-devices=2 metadata=1.2 name=backup-server:1 UUID=319334f9:76d6fccf:d61307bd:2427b6ba devices=/dev/sdd1,/dev/sde1
The /dev/md1 detail follows:
/dev/md1:
Version : 1.2
Creation Time : Sun Mar 26 17:25:30 2017
Raid Level : raid1
Array Size : 976630464 (931.39 GiB 1000.07 GB)
Used Dev Size : 976630464 (931.39 GiB 1000.07 GB)
Raid Devices : 2
Total Devices : 2
Persistence : Superblock is persistent
Intent Bitmap : Internal
Update Time : Fri Aug 18 13:44:37 2017
State : clean
Active Devices : 2
Working Devices : 2
Failed Devices : 0
Spare Devices : 0
Name : backup-server:1 (local to host backup-server)
UUID : 319334f9:76d6fccf:d61307bd:2427b6ba
Events : 2562
Number Major Minor RaidDevice State
0 8 49 0 active sync /dev/sdd1
1 8 65 1 active sync /dev/sde1
Question #1: Is the devices line mandatory and if so, may I address the drives by UUID?
Question #2: Say I re-plug-in the original sde drive to another cable, how to make it still recognized? I think this whole thing should be addressing drives and array by UUID and it would be solved, no? If I am correct, where do I have to change stuff?
