What should an administrator do after identifying a bad drive in a JBOD storage array?

After identifying a bad drive in a JBOD (Just a Bunch Of Disks) storage array, the most prudent action is to replace the failed drive and restore the data from the last backup. This is crucial because JBOD does not provide redundancy or data protection like RAID configurations do. In JBOD, each disk operates independently, so if one disk fails, any data stored on that disk is immediately at risk of loss.

Replacing the failed drive is necessary to maintain the capacity of the storage system, but restoring data from the last backup ensures that any lost information is recovered. This approach safeguards against further data loss and establishes a baseline for ongoing operations.

In contrast, the other options propose actions with varying implications for data integrity and recovery. Relying on automatic rebuild processes or using hot spares is typically more applicable in RAID scenarios that offer redundancy. Reseating a drive may not resolve hardware failures, and doing so without proper backup may lead to permanent data loss if the drive is indeed faulty. Therefore, ensuring data recovery through replacement and restoration is the recommended best practice in the context of failed drives in a JBOD setup.