User guide

6
Drobo User Guide
7
II. Getting Started
Starting-up your Drobo data robot
Connect Drobo to your computer using the provided USB 2.0 cable.
Then connect the Drobo power supply between the Drobo and an
electrical outlet. Note: as with all electronic equipment, we recom-
mend connecting your Drobo to an electrical outlet through a good
quality surge protector.
Preparing Drobo for use with your computer
Just as with any digital storage system, you must format Drobo for
use with your type of computer operating system by either…
A) Using the formatting tools provided in the Drobo Dashboard
software included on the Drobo Resource CD (PC only)
B) Or, using the formatting tools provided with your Windows or
Macintosh operating system. Here’s how…
Option A: Formatting for PC using Drobo Dashboard (easiest for PC)
• Insert the Drobo Resource CD into your Windows PC. If it doesn’t
automatically start, open the CD and double-click “Drobo.”
• Follow the installation
wizard instructions.
• When the Resource CD
menu opens, click “Drobo
Dashboard” to install.
• Open Drobo Dashboard
and this screen displays:
PowerUSB2.0
• The message at right
will then pop-up:
• Click “Yes.” This process
should take a few min-
utes. When complete
your Drobo is formatted
and ready to accept data.
Option B for PC: using Windows
®
drive formatting utility
You may already know how to use Windows built in disk format-
ting tools. If not, here is a step-by-step guide:
• Right-click on “My Computer” and select “Manage.”
• Click on “Disk Management” under the “Storage” section in the
“Computer Management” menu.
• You should see a drive labeled as “Unknown 2048.00 GB Not
Initialized.” Right-click on the text and select “Initialize Disk”
then follow the on-screen prompts.
• Right-click in the white space where you see “2048.00 GB
Unallocated” and select “New Partition…”
• The New Partition Wizard will launch. Follow on-screen prompts.
Hot Tip: Format Drobo as one single large drive:
(see note pg. 10)
– Select “Primary partition” (default)
– Allocate “2097149 MB” for the partition size (default)
– Select “NTFS” for the type of file system (default)
– Select “Default” for allocation unit size (default)
– Select “Perform a quick format”
Important note: By formatting Drobo as one single large drive,
you’ll never again have to format when adding or upgrading ca-
pacity. However, doing this causes your PC to indicate you have
“2TB of available space” when actual space is limited by the
drives you’ve installed. You can determine actual used space by
mousing-over the Drobo system tray icon* or checking its blue
capacity meter lights. (*only if
Drobo Dashboard is installed)
• When complete, Drobo
is format-
ted and ready to accept data.