Import disk without losing data

Apps and Virtualization
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1

There are questions about this topic every now and then, and I have to write them again here:

Is there a way to import an SSD (from Ubuntu) into a virtual machine (Ubuntu Server) without resetting the disk?

It seems that there is already an explanation for the Nightly version in the Documentation Hub - is this already possible in Truenas (Scale/Core) with the Bluefin or Cobia versions or with another current version that is NOT beta? :thinking:

Do you also know whether there is already a release date for this new function or whether it is worth switching to the Nightly version for this function?

If it really isn’t possible to import the hard drive without deleting the data; What would then be the best way to move several TB (5~10 TB) as effectively and quickly as possible?

Best regards and thank you very much for your answers in advance,
schBenedikt

2

Dumbest & easiest way I could think of would be to attach the SSD to an HBA & then just pass the HBA through directly to the VM.

Once you’ve loaded into the VM you’d just mount the disk attached the HBA.

I don’t see why this wouldn’t work or why it would have any risks to the data on the SSD, but I guess if it is mission critical then backups are gold. If you do want to move that much data then I guess a 1 time replication task would be best.

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Something to consider is the version of ZFS being used in Ubuntu and TrueNAS. If Ubuntu has newer feature flags set, odds are TrueNAS will not accept it. But it doesn’t hut to give it a try.