On 2024-02-06 10:17, Daniel Morris wrote:
On Mon, Feb 05, 2024 at 01:18:22AM +0000, Robert Webb wrote:
You may have a hardware problem causing disk corruption. If so, trying to use software to fix your disk would be a mistake, probably. Check your ram by booting memtest86 (memtest86+). If, after sufficient time running the tests, there are no errors, boot your Rescue system and, with /dev/mapper/system-root un-mounted, run 'btrfs check /dev/mapper/system-root'. Do not use the '--force' option.
In addition to the warnings of not making things worse, assuming SATA, try substituting your SATA cable to the drive.
Anecdata: I went around the houses searching for the cause of a slew of filesystem errors (btrfs & xfs) a few years ago that even a motherboard switch didn't permanently fix. I had the luxury of all data being backed up and the system being a former workhorse due an upgrade.
Switching disks to another machine showed no such underlying problems on the drives (checksumming file reads to backup versions of ~4TiB slow-moving data). I assumed bad controller on the motherboard (since it was now erroring on two of six drives).
After upgrading the motherboard and processor/memory the trouble paused, but then returned after a few days/power-ups.
A bit of Kepner-Tregoe "the trouble is, the trouble is not" and the common parts were PSU, SATA cables, case, keyboard/mouse. Since I had spare/new SATA cables, which didn't need a screwdriver/were least effort to change....and "Tada!" the problems went away (my instinct/prejudice blamed ten year old PSU to that point).
I was surprised. The SATA cables had been connected and forgotten, there was no sign of strain on the connectors, pinched routing etc.
In the years between, I heard a '2.5 Admin' podcast that slated a particular batch/vintage of SATA cables that were prone to deteriorating due to a reaction from one of the dyes used in the casings (ISTR).
But what sort of damage can make a cable fail in that manner? I'd guess changed transmission properties. It can not be continuity. I had to change SATA cables on a computer, but the failure was much more evident, as in "not working", maybe "not working at all.
A friend had similar mysterious file systems problems on a Mint system last summer, and renewing SATA cables made those go away too. We might even have bought similar cables from the same supplier many years before.
HTH, Daniel
-- Cheers / Saludos, Carlos E. R. (from 15.4 x86_64 at Telcontar)