bionic and WD MyCloud Live headaches

[przxqgl]

Ugg, that sucks.

yes, yes it does.

Not sure what your needs or budget is, but you might consider building your own small server with Linux in it rather than buying a retail NAS. Then you have 100% control over the applications, scripts, and access. It's really not very difficult. A mini-ITX board with a hardwired CPU and 4GB of RAM is fine for network storage. The bottleneck is the LAN connection.

Here, I got away from RAID1 as rebuilding a failed RAID is no small task and requires a replacement disk before you can begin. Instead, I went to a double-disk setup and "manually" duped the source to the backup drive via an auto-cron job. Using the BTRFS file system makes this incredibly easy. As drives aged and got replaced, I upgraded sizes to now having 15TB (16TB drive) of available backed-up storage. Sounds like a lot, but it's a full family media server and about half the space is unused. The current backup drives are 5.4T (6tb) and 9.1TB (10TB).

much as i would really like to have that much control and independence, mentally, i am not prepared for that kind of commitment. 30 years ago, i would have jumped at the opportunity, but at this point, it's just too much. i only understand about a tenth of what you said, even though, as few as 15 years ago, it would have been more like 30% to 40%. the learning curve necessary to regain that knowledge is more than i am prepared to undertake.

[oshunluvr]

Ugg, that sucks.

Not sure what your needs or budget is, but you might consider building your own small server with Linux in it rather than buying a retail NAS. Then you have 100% control over the applications, scripts, and access. It's really not very difficult. A mini-ITX board with a hardwired CPU and 4GB of RAM is fine for network storage. The bottleneck is the LAN connection.

Here, I got away from RAID1 as rebuilding a failed RAID is no small task and requires a replacement disk before you can begin. Instead, I went to a double-disk setup and "manually" duped the source to the backup drive via an auto-cron job. Using the BTRFS file system makes this incredibly easy. As drives aged and got replaced, I upgraded sizes to now having 15TB (16TB drive) of available backed-up storage. Sounds like a lot, but it's a full family media server and about half the space is unused. The current backup drives are 5.4T (6tb) and 9.1TB (10TB).

[przxqgl]

update for anybody that's interested:

i sent the drive to the data recovery folks, and they were able to recover about half of my data -- and about half of that is corrupt.

the bug in the cloud drive, which caused all of this, has been known about since 2018, but they haven't bothered to tell anyone about it, because it's a "legacy device" (meaning it hasn't had a firmware update since 2015).

the bug allows anyone with the IP address of the device, to login as admin, and do a factory reset of the device. a factory reset reformats the drive, and re-installs the operating system.

at this point, i have reached out to western digital, who have assured me that they are going to do "something", but they haven't decided what that "something" is yet. as far as i can tell, at this point, "something" may be as little as a written apology for my lost data.

on the plus side, this has motivated me to get a NAS that is also a RAID1 array, and i have also obtained a new, blank computer, onto which i intend to install the latest LTS of kubuntu...

...while i'm slowly going through piles of numbered files, categorising them, and labeling them as i go. 8/

[przxqgl]

Something kept nagging at me since I first saw your avatar. This afternoon it came to me!

Joe Btfsplk was a character in the Li'l Abner comic strip, which was the first comic I read religiously from the time I could read until I graduated high school.

i, also, read li'l abner, from the time i could read. al capp's artwork held as much facination for me as the dialogue. and he was always coming up with absolutely bizarre scenarios, like the schmoos, or slobovia... 8)

i identified with joe btfsplk (which i pronounced "butt,-if'-splik,") very early, even moreso because my parents told me he was the world's worst jinx, and i "didn't want to be like that".

[przxqgl]

The CAT5 connection would have been good to know. You do need to remove it from your internet facing router, as these devices are being attacked. I don't know if you can attach this drive to a network card on PC or laptop, so I'm bowing out of this discussion. Best of luck to you!

a quote from the first page of this thread:

actually, it's a CAT5 cable...

also:

there is no USB port on the back. there's a CAT5 port, and a DC power input, and a little hole that you stick an unbent paper clip to reset the thing.

;-)

i disconnected it from power, and from the router as one of the first actions i took when i discovered that i couldn't login. at this point, it's with the data recovery folks. i should know more in a few days.

[jglen490]

it is not a USB drive, and does not have a USB port. it is a NAS, which connects via CAT5 to my router.

and IF the data is there, i want to have a place to put it BEFORE i mess around with the drive itself, because IF it's there, and i DON'T have a place to put it, there's no telling whether or not i will be able to access it a second time.

The CAT5 connection would have been good to know. You do need to remove it from your internet facing router, as these devices are being attacked. I don't know if you can attach this drive to a network card on PC or laptop, so I'm bowing out of this discussion. Best of luck to you!

[GreyGeek]

Something kept nagging at me since I first saw your avatar. This afternoon it came to me!

Li'l Abner is a satirical American comic strip that appeared in many newspapers in the United States, Canada and Europe, featuring a fictional clan of hillbillies in the impoverished mountain village of Dogpatch, USA. Written and drawn by Al Capp (1909?1979), the strip ran for 43 years, from August 13, 1934, through November 13, 1977

Joe Btfsplk was a character in the Li'l Abner comic strip, which was the first comic I read religiously from the time I could read until I graduated high school.

Joe Btfsplk: The world's worst jinx, Joe Btfsplk had a perpetually dark rain cloud over his head. Instantaneous bad luck befell anyone unfortunate enough to be in his vicinity. Though well-meaning and friendly, his reputation inevitably precedes him ? so Joe is a very lonely little man ? so he associates himself with the Scraggs ? except in World War II when Joe decided to do his patriotic duty ? and associate himself with Hirohito!. He has an apparently unpronounceable name, but creator Al Capp "pronounced" Btfsplk by simply blowing a "raspberry", or Bronx cheer.^[16] Joe's personal storm cloud became one of the most iconic images in the strip.

[przxqgl]

For a SATA drive, you just plug it in, power and data; usually no firmware settings need to be changed. Potentially, the device numbering could change, and the computer might try to boot from the wrong device, but if it's not bootable the firmware should work it out, or you can press the key (often F2) to get a boot menu.

thanks. all this is stuff i did not know.

If there's no drive bay to put it, you can zip tie the drive to something; I did that for years. Hopefully, the desktop has a spare SATA power connection, and maybe the motherboard came with spare SATA cables.

i'm fairly sure the computer has extra SATA power and data cables, but it has been a while since i cracked the box... on the other hand, i am VERY familiar with using zip ties to secure hardware for which there are no bays. i've done that for years. ;-)

If you do take apart the MyCloud, I expect there's a good chance the drive has a SATA connection; but I have a spotty record with my expectations.

at this point, i think i'm going to engage professionals to do any data recovery. they're a lot more likely to find something, and, honestly, i don't trust myself enough to be certain i won't just make things worse.

[przxqgl]

OP, you do not need to INSTALL the drive. ATTACH the drive via USB. Safe, simple.

it is not a USB drive, and does not have a USB port. it is a NAS, which connects via CAT5 to my router.

and IF the data is there, i want to have a place to put it BEFORE i mess around with the drive itself, because IF it's there, and i DON'T have a place to put it, there's no telling whether or not i will be able to access it a second time.

[jglen490]

OP, you do not need to INSTALL the drive. ATTACH the drive via USB. Safe, simple.

[jlittle]

... i STILL don't know what changes i have to make to my CMOS in order to install a second hard disk in my computer

For a SATA drive, you just plug it in, power and data; usually no firmware settings need to be changed. Potentially, the device numbering could change, and the computer might try to boot from the wrong device, but if it's not bootable the firmware should work it out, or you can press the key (often F2) to get a boot menu. If there's no drive bay to put it, you can zip tie the drive to something; I did that for years. Hopefully, the desktop has a spare SATA power connection, and maybe the motherboard came with spare SATA cables.

If you do take apart the MyCloud, I expect there's a good chance the drive has a SATA connection; but I have a spotty record with my expectations.

[jglen490]

Like I said in my first post. Get the actual drive out and connect it via USB to a Linux desktop or laptop. If WD set the drive up as some sort of RAID, there are Linux tools like mdadm, and some related tools, that will find and reveal files. If the files appear to be gone, then deeper recovery tools may be needed. But, unless someone at least takes a chance on ripping the drive out of the WD enclosure, nothing will happen - one way or another.

[claydoh]

Devices like WD MyCloud or the Toshiba Canvio are not backup devices, they are storage devices. A backup has no need to be setup as a RAID device, but a storage device does, for recoverability. But, it's a common misunderstanding.

It's also true that what's on the hard drive in the WD enclosure may still have its data, but it won't be certain until someone tries.

Unless the Mybook has been effected by this malware, and the drive has been wiped, etc. Then maybe forensic tools can be used to recover, maybe.
This worst-case scenario has to be taken into account, unfortunately

[jglen490]

Devices like WD MyCloud or the Toshiba Canvio are not backup devices, they are storage devices. A backup has no need to be setup as a RAID device, but a storage device does, for recoverability. But, it's a common misunderstanding.

It's also true that what's on the hard drive in the WD enclosure may still have its data, but it won't be certain until someone tries.

[GreyGeek]

yup.

i'm not a noob, i just act like one. 8/

We all do at one time or another! Trouble occurs just after we fool ourselves into taking a shortcut, for what ever reason, by saying to ourselves "it won't hurt just once not to do ...".

I'm with you Claydoh!
I've used DD-WRT in my routers for the last 10-15 years (forgotten exactly how long). At first I burned DD-WRT to my routers, being careful to buy only the ones the DD-WRT recommended. Then, I decided to just buy a router that already had DD-WRT installed. The following router is one I've been using since the summer of 2014, when they first came out. It has been working faultlessly for me. I disabled my fiber optic cable modem internal router and use this one in its place.

https://www.amazon.com/Buffalo-AirSt...4650218&sr=8-5

Before that one I used this one for a couple years:
https://www.amazon.com/Linksys-Advan...4650218&sr=8-6
A Cisco E2500. About the time I got that router the CIA spying on Americans scandal was big news. It was leaked at the time that the CIA wanted router makers to put back doors into their routers. Cisco, which had recently purchased Linksys, sent out an update which required owners to purchase a Cisco cloud account before their update would install. Apparently Cisco wanted to earn a little revenue if the CIA was forcing them to update the router firmware. Regardless, I burned DDWRT to the E2500 router.

Before that, around 2005 or 2006, I was using the Linksys WRT54GL
https://www.amazon.com/Linksys-WRT54...s%2C200&sr=8-3
onto which I also burned DD-WRT just a few years before it burned out and I replaced it with the Linksys E2500 (Cisco's). So, with the DD-WRT firmware I used it for about 6 or so years. From 1998 until 2005 or 2006 I used the Linksys 54GL with stock firmware burned in.

I've determined that I will never use a wifi router without DD-WRT burned in.