I’m currently running TrueNAS SCALE 24.04.2.5 and I’d like to upgrade to the newest/recommended version, but I want to make sure I do it the right way and don’t lose my Apps, app configs, or SMB/share settings.
My Apps are installed from the official TrueNAS Apps catalog/store and they are currently running under the existing 24.04 Kubernetes Apps system.
I mainly care about not losing the installed apps and their configurations/data.
From what I understand, since I’m on 24.04.2.5, my Apps are still Kubernetes-based, and the upgrade to 24.10 Electric Eel is where the migration to Docker-based Apps happens. I want to confirm the safest upgrade path before doing anything.
The savest way for your apps depends entirely on how you set up the app storage. Did you use hostpaths or pvc? If you used hostpaths for config and data storage the “migration” is simply to install the new docker app and use your old paths for config and storage.
If you used pvc you first have to mount the pvc, copy the config folders to a new dataset and then re-install the app using the new paths for the config and data storage.
Edit:
If you update from 24.04. you apps config doesn’t disappear. The dataset which stores the pvcs is preserved and not automatically deleted. So you can also do the app migration after updating to 24.10 and onward. If i remember correctly the pvc storage was in a dataset called ix-application ( can’t remember if it was hidden or not like the new .ix-apps dataset is).
id go 24.04 → 24.10 first, then jump to whatever current train u want after apps settle. the k8s→docker flip is the messy bit.
hostpath apps:
-note the config/data paths u already set
-upgrade
-install the new docker catalog apps and point them at the same paths
pvc apps:
-on 24.04 the volumes sit under the ix-applications dataset on ur pool
-after 24.10 new stuff lands under /mnt/.ix-apps/
-mount the old pvc dataset, copy the app config dirs out, then reinstall using host paths
b4 update:
-scrub + snapshot the apps dataset
-export a config backup
-screenshot each app’s storage settings
Hey, thanks for the help — I really appreciate it.
I’ve added some screenshots to show how my apps are currently set up.
From what I can see, my apps are using the default ixVolume option, which says it is a dataset created automatically by the system. That apps are stored on my NVMe pool under ix-applications, which is where I wanted it for performance.
So just to check I understand correctly:
When I upgrade from TrueNAS SCALE 24.04.2.5 to 24.10 Electric Eel, the app config/data stored in the existing app dataset should be preserved and not automatically deleted.
After the upgrade/migration, when i reinstall the apps, I should choose Path instead of the default storage option, and point each app’s config/data storage back to the existing folders under the NVMe ix-applications / ixVolume location, assuming the data is still there.
Is that the right approach, or am I misunderstanding how ixVolume storage is handled during the migration?
I just want to make sure I don’t accidentally create fresh empty app storage or lose my existing app configs/data.
No, i would copy the data out of the ix-applications dataset and create my own Dataset for app config storage on the nvme drive and then point the fresh install at the new dataset.
My reason for doing it that way is that the iXVolumes have long string-of-characters-names that are hard to distinguish from one another.
I prefer to be able to distinguish the dataset for plex from nextcloud by name for instance
The new docker backend doesn’t use the ix-applications dataset, but instead a (from the gui) hidden dataset called .ix-apps.
We got it working in the end. We followed the approach you suggested: instead of relying on the old ix-applications / PVC storage directly, we created our own clean apps folder/dataset structure for the app config/data. Then we pointed each newly installed app to those folders using path/host path storage.
Mini guide for anyone else doing this or struggling:
Disclaimer: This is how I did it, and it worked for me. I am not a professional, so please make sure you have proper backups/snapshots before trying this. Your setup may be different, so adjust the paths and steps to match your own system.
Stay on your old/current version before upgrading. In my case I was on TrueNAS SCALE 24.04.2.5.
Turn off all your apps. Before changing anything, make sure you have backups/snapshots of your pools and app data.
Go through each existing app and write down or screenshot all important settings and paths, especially:
config paths
media paths
download paths
host paths
port numbers
any app-specific settings you may need to recreate later
Find your ix-applications dataset/folder. This is where the old app configs/data are stored.
Adjust the pool name and app name to match your system.
After copying, verify the data copied over.
Example:
du -sh /mnt/NVME/apps/sonarr
You can also check multiple apps at once:
du -sh /mnt/NVME/apps/plex /mnt/NVME/apps/prowlarr /mnt/NVME/apps/qbittorrent /mnt/NVME/apps/radarr /mnt/NVME/apps/sabnzbd /mnt/NVME/apps/sonarr
Once the app data is copied into your own folders/datasets, upgrade to Electric Eel.
After upgrading to Electric Eel, verify that your new apps folders are still there and that the sizes look right. Once everything looked good, I continued upgrading TrueNAS version by version until I reached Goldeye. I did not jump straight to the latest version; I upgraded one available version at a time.
After reaching the newer app system, reinstall the apps fresh.
When installing each app, choose Path/Host Path storage instead of relying on the automatic/default app storage. Then point the app’s config path to the new app folder you created for that specific app.
For example:
Plex config path:
/mnt/NVME/apps/plex
Sonarr config path:
/mnt/NVME/apps/sonarr
Radarr config path:
/mnt/NVME/apps/radarr
Recreate the media/download path mappings using the notes or screenshots you took earlier.
Once the apps were reinstalled and pointed back to the copied config folders and the same paths I was using before, I did not really have to reconfigure anything. The apps came back pretty much as they were before the upgrade.
