Recover unresponsive OMV without reinstall

1st Official Post

    I have OMV on an Odroid-HC2 and I can no longer access it through SSH (ssh: connect to host port 22: connection refused). I can however access and edit any file by putting the SD card on another device. So I can read or make changes to /etc/openmediavault/config.xml or /etc/sysctl.conf or peruse log files.


    Any tips to get OMV back up and running without needing to reinstall?


    For context, the issues started about a week ago with a login loop presumably due to a flashmemory plugin update. At that time I still had SSH access, but after installing another flashmemory plugin update which supposedly should fix the login loop, I lost SSH access as well. WebGUI login not working: returns to login screen after authorizing credentials

    • Official Post

    Clone the rootfs. Obviously not practical in your situation without timetravel, but you could consider being smart and lazy to revert changes in case of future faux pas.


    Simply remove the SD card from the HC2 and clone the contents.


    See: RE: New to OMV and Linux


    This is especially helpful for new users. It allows experimentation without time consuming and boring reinstalls again, again and again.


    When something goes wrong, and you don't know why or how to fix it, simply restore a previous clone.

    Be smart - be lazy. Clone your rootfs.
    OMV 5: 9 x Odroid HC2 + 1 x Odroid HC1 + 1 x Raspberry Pi 4

    Edited 2 times, last by Adoby ().

    Quote from Adoby

    My gift to you!

    Thank you.


    When possible, I still generally prefer identifying and fixing problems rather than nuking. Usually it's something minor.


    Given full access to the filesystem, it's frustrating not to know what to look for. I looked at system logs, but I did not see anything that stood out to me, errors, etc. I did notice though that the timestamps end the day I lost SSH access. I don't know if future boot attempts did not get into the logs or if it's just due to the HC2 not having a clock battery and some issue accessing the network/ntp.


    I'm thinking that at least I might want to keep logs and configurations either to restore or use as reference even if I do end up reinstalling.

    Quote from macom

    Might be a good opportunity to move to OMV5.

    Isn't OMV5 still in beta? I use this almost exclusively for backups, so I want the stable version.


    Will it be possible to upgrade directly from OMV4 to OMV5?

    • Official Post

    Yes, there is an upgrade path. Several lines in CLI.


    I would do (and did) a fresh install of OMV5. It is a pretty "stable" beta. Many use it already.


    There is some software like Duplicati and UrBackup which are beta since years ;)

    And there is other software that is announced stable ...

    • Official Post

    I have found that OMV is a bit "brittle". It is superbly stable with great performance when everything is as it should be. But make a tiny mistake when reconfiguring or installing extra stuff the first time, and it can be very difficult to recover. At least for me. Trial and error is not the way to go. Clone and success is...


    By cloning the rootfs at milestones during setup, and restoring when needed, I can quickly and without effort make sure that EVERYTHING is 100% perfect and prestine. Nothing dangling or hanging loose. It took a lot of reinstalls before I realized that I should start cloning during the installation process. It is a bit like climbing with or without a rope. I only have to take a small fall to the latest cloned copy, instead of falling all the way to the ground and having to start the climb again.


    Actually I have considered configuring some form of multiboot. So every time you reboot a new snapshot of your rootfs is created. And during a reboot you can select to boot to a previous working snapshot and/or purge newer or older snapshots. Great when using a SSD and btrfs for the rootfs.

    Except I wasn't reconfiguring or installing extra stuff or experimenting. My OMV has been pretty static for the better part of a year, except for periodic installation of updates and corresponding reboots. An update caused problems, and a further update got me to this point.


    Quote from Adoby

    Actually I have considered configuring some form of multiboot. So every time you reboot a new snapshot of your rootfs is created. And during a reboot you can select to boot to a previous working snapshot and/or purge newer or older snapshots. Great when using a SSD and btrfs for the rootfs.

    Sounds like a good idea, especially if it's as brittle as you say.

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