Determining Available Storage Pools to Import

After the pool has been removed from the system (either through an explicit export or by forcefully removing the devices), you can attach the devices to the target system. ZFS can handle some situations in which only some of the devices are available, but a successful pool migration depends on the overall health of the devices. In addition, the devices do not necessarily have to be attached under the same device name. ZFS detects any moved or renamed devices, and adjusts the configuration appropriately. To discover available pools, run the zpool import command with no options. For example:

# zpool import
 pool: tank
    id: 11809215114195894163
 state: ONLINE
action: The pool can be imported using its name or numeric identifier.
config:

        tank        ONLINE
          mirror-0  ONLINE
            c1t0d0  ONLINE
            c1t1d0  ONLINE

In this example, the pool tank is available to be imported on the target system. Each pool is identified by a name as well as a unique numeric identifier. If multiple pools with the same name are available to import, you can use the numeric identifier to distinguish between them.

Similar to the zpool status command output, the zpool import output includes a link to a knowledge article with the most up-to-date information regarding repair procedures for the problem that is preventing a pool from being imported. In this case, the user can force the pool to be imported. However, importing a pool that is currently in use by another system over a storage network can result in data corruption and panics as both systems attempt to write to the same storage. If some devices in the pool are not available but sufficient redundant data exists to provide a usable pool, the pool appears in the DEGRADED state. For example:

# zpool import
  pool: tank
    id: 11809215114195894163
 state: DEGRADED
status: One or more devices are missing from the system.
action: The pool can be imported despite missing or damaged devices.  The
        fault tolerance of the pool may be compromised if imported.
   see: http://www.sun.com/msg/ZFS-8000-2Q
config:

        NAME        STATE     READ WRITE CKSUM
        tank        DEGRADED     0     0     0
          mirror-0  DEGRADED     0     0     0
            c1t0d0  UNAVAIL      0     0     0  cannot open
            c1t3d0  ONLINE       0     0     0

In this example, the first disk is damaged or missing, though you can still import the pool because the mirrored data is still accessible. If too many faulted or missing devices are present, the pool cannot be imported. For example:

# zpool import
  pool: dozer
    id: 9784486589352144634
 state: FAULTED
action: The pool cannot be imported. Attach the missing
        devices and try again.
   see: http://www.sun.com/msg/ZFS-8000-6X
config:
        raidz1-0       FAULTED
          c1t0d0       ONLINE
          c1t1d0       FAULTED
          c1t2d0       ONLINE
          c1t3d0       FAULTED

In this example, two disks are missing from a RAID-Z virtual device, which means that sufficient redundant data is not available to reconstruct the pool. In some cases, not enough devices are present to determine the complete configuration. In this case, ZFS cannot determine what other devices were part of the pool, though ZFS does report as much information as possible about the situation. For example:

# zpool import
pool: dozer
    id: 9784486589352144634
 state: FAULTED
status: One or more devices are missing from the system.
action: The pool cannot be imported. Attach the missing
        devices and try again.
   see: http://www.sun.com/msg/ZFS-8000-6X
config:
        dozer          FAULTED   missing device
          raidz1-0     ONLINE
            c1t0d0     ONLINE
            c1t1d0     ONLINE
            c1t2d0     ONLINE
            c1t3d0     ONLINE
Additional devices are known to be part of this pool, though their
exact configuration cannot be determined.