Geekzone: technology news, blogs, forums
Guest
Welcome Guest.
You haven't logged in yet. If you don't have an account you can register now.


michaeln

238 posts

Master Geek

Trusted

#98666 3-Mar-2012 15:19
Send private message

In a similar vein to this thread, I'm looking at the possibility of building my own NAS and invite the collective wisdom of the Geekzoners.

I'll be running ZFS, so I'm not really interested in buying a standalone device with its own RAID.

The NAS will be 'offsite' in an outside building (garage)
  • No heating
  • No cooling
  • (I Will probably build a rat proof cage around it)
It's to be a file server, only. I don't need or want media capabilities.
Requirements are:
  • 6+ SATA disks, 3.5" form factor
  • 1 x Gig-E network
  • 1+ USB, bootable (to install software)
  • Minimal graphics (will be a server, managed over network)
Optional, but unnecessary
  • WiFi
  • Bluetooth
  • CD/DVD (I'll install from USB)
  • etc.
It's going to be using ZFS, so I need to run something like
  • OpenIndiana
  • FreeBSD
  • FreeNAS
  • Mac OS X
And, because it's ZFS, and I'd like to use dedup,
  • Reasonable CPU required
  • 4GB+ memory desirable
I'd be interested in suggestions for:
  • Mainboard
  • Case
  • PSU
  • Supplier of same
Case no bigger than necessary, wide better than high. Rack mount OK (though I'd have to build the rack Smile)
Power consumption no greater than necessary (350W PSU is probably overkill)

I don't need disks, I already have a source for them.

Overall cost needs to be well under $1,000.

I'm note sure I'll go this route at the moment, which is why I'm asking for suggestions.

Create new topic
wsnz
649 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #594498 13-Mar-2012 11:07
Send private message

What size HDD's are you going to use? If they're 1TB+ in size and you're using ZFS, then I'd say you'll need more RAM than that given that there will be six of them.



JamesL
956 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user


  #594506 13-Mar-2012 11:27
Send private message

There's no native support for zfs on mac osx. Freebsd and freenas implementations aren't as good either

I'd stick with Solaris or OpenIndiana

michaeln

238 posts

Master Geek

Trusted

  #594710 13-Mar-2012 18:46
Send private message

wsnz: What size HDD's are you going to use? If they're 1TB+ in size and you're using ZFS, then I'd say you'll need more RAM than that given that there will be six of them.


1.5TB or larger. RAM is cheap, so I'm not too worried about putting in more. However, I can attest to ZFS working just fine with only 1GB and 3x1.5TB in RAIDZ, although I'm not running dedup on this. 



michaeln

238 posts

Master Geek

Trusted

  #594712 13-Mar-2012 18:51
Send private message

defnz: There's no native support for zfs on mac osx. Freebsd and freenas implementations aren't as good either

I'd stick with Solaris or OpenIndiana


MacZFS works just fine, as does Zevo

I'm probably leaning more towards OpenIndiana, but I gather it's a little picky about the chipsets it supports. Hence the query. Advice is appreciated.



DoomlordVekk
129 posts

Master Geek

Trusted

  #594814 13-Mar-2012 22:06
Send private message

Michael, have you had a look at the community version of Nexentastor?
 
it's built on OpenSolaris, I guess it kind of constrains you into 'their' way of doing things.
It does have dedup plugins and supports things like iSCSI (which doesn't always play well on the mac, from my experience).

Your question sort of hinted at wanting to roll-your-own style NAS, which this obviously won't work for but at the same time, you talked about FreeNAS as well, so I thought I'd pitch NexentaStor in your general direction.





"Customers don’t expect you to be perfect. They do expect you to fix things when they go wrong." Donald Porter – British Airways

The views expressed here are my own and are not reflective of other organisms or organisations.

michaeln

238 posts

Master Geek

Trusted

  #594877 13-Mar-2012 23:53
Send private message

DoomlordVekk: Michael, have you had a look at the community version of Nexentastor?
 
it's built on OpenSolaris, I guess it kind of constrains you into 'their' way of doing things.
It does have dedup plugins and supports things like iSCSI (which doesn't always play well on the mac, from my experience).

Your question sort of hinted at wanting to roll-your-own style NAS, which this obviously won't work for but at the same time, you talked about FreeNAS as well, so I thought I'd pitch NexentaStor in your general direction.



Yes, I've had a look at it. However, I'm more interested in the moment at suitable hardware. I could always go for a NAS appliance, but right now I'm researching options built around PC hardware.

Thanks for the suggestions, keep 'em coming.

Athlonite
1828 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user


  #594884 14-Mar-2012 01:44
Send private message

why not just go with an old 939 or AM2+ or even an Intel 775 mobo tradme have heaps for sale and you can pick up CPU's dirt cheap there aswell or if your looking for something new

http://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/components/motherboards/amd/auction-455926123.htm

http://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/components/cases-power-supplies/power-supplies/auction-457212516.htm

http://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/components/cases-power-supplies/cases/auction-456984164.htm

all total cost including shipping $691.99

 
 
 

Cloud spending continues to surge globally, but most organisations haven’t made the changes necessary to maximise the value and cost-efficiency benefits of their cloud investments. Download the whitepaper From Overspend to Advantage now.
michaeln

238 posts

Master Geek

Trusted

  #594915 14-Mar-2012 07:45
Send private message

Athlonite: why not just go with an old 939 or AM2+ or even an Intel 775 mobo tradme have heaps for sale and you can pick up CPU's dirt cheap there aswell or if your looking for something new

http://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/components/motherboards/amd/auction-455926123.htm

http://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/components/cases-power-supplies/power-supplies/auction-457212516.htm

http://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/components/cases-power-supplies/cases/auction-456984164.htm

all total cost including shipping $691.99


Thanks. I have been working through the plethora of components available to see what would meet the needs. Because there is so much choice, and possibility of getting it wrong, and since I've not assembles a system from scratch before, I thought I'd ask. Maybe someone had built something similar and could suggest MB+CASE+... as a good idea.

If there is such an ideal system, it does't seem to be obvious. Smile

Thanks for the suggestions, I'm adding them to the list of options---although the MB only seems to have 4 x SATA 2.0, which is less than I'd like.

jonherries
1395 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted
Subscriber

  #594954 14-Mar-2012 09:46
Send private message

Might be interesting to consider buying a laptop if you can find one with a PCIe interface (expresscard 2.0?) for the disk array.

Bonus is that they have their own screen if you need it for setup/debugging/updates, and have a battery for backup.

Generally they tend to be quiet as well as have a relatively low current draw...

michaeln

238 posts

Master Geek

Trusted

  #595028 14-Mar-2012 12:15
Send private message

jonherries: Might be interesting to consider buying a laptop if you can find one with a PCIe interface (expresscard 2.0?) for the disk array.

Bonus is that they have their own screen if you need it for setup/debugging/updates, and have a battery for backup.

Generally they tend to be quiet as well as have a relatively low current draw...


Interesting idea. I could also just look at a cheap-as PC with eSATA out. I then have to factor in the cost of suitable eSATA disk enclosures (which at least do generally offer JBOD functionality). So, simpler in some respects, but more complicated in others. Hmmm.

Thanks. 

wsnz
649 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #595140 14-Mar-2012 15:04
Send private message

michaeln:
1.5TB or larger. RAM is cheap, so I'm not too worried about putting in more. However, I can attest to ZFS working just fine with only 1GB and 3x1.5TB in RAIDZ, although I'm not running dedup on this. 


It works yes, but with 4.5TB using ZFS I'd recommend 6GB+ RAM to maximise the performance of your drives, even if they're low-end performance drives.

wsnz
649 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #595150 14-Mar-2012 15:18
Send private message

michaeln:

Thanks for the suggestions, I'm adding them to the list of options---although the MB only seems to have 4 x SATA 2.0, which is less than I'd like.


Definitely get a mobo with 6 SATA-3 ports and if you think you'll outgrow that, make sure it has 1 or 2 PCI-E 1x connectors so you add some more ports.

Personally, I'm currently looking at the Asus E25M1 for an upgrade to my NAS at home - has GB NIC, 6 SATA ports, Radeon HD 6310 graphics etc. This model doesn't have the PCI-E 1x connector but I'm not worried. This is in the sub $200 category.

Athlonite
1828 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user


  #595216 14-Mar-2012 17:33
Send private message

Thanks. I have been working through the plethora of components available to see what would meet the needs. Because there is so much choice, and possibility of getting it wrong, and since I've not assembles a system from scratch before, I thought I'd ask. Maybe someone had built something similar and could suggest MB+CASE+... as a good idea.

If there is such an ideal system, it does't seem to be obvious.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'm adding them to the list of options---although the MB only seems to have 4 x SATA 2.0, which is less than I'd like.


with the extra money saved from not having to buy an Graphics card you could buy a nice PCIe x4 RAID card to put in the PCIe x16 slot

Create new topic





News and reviews »

Air New Zealand Starts AI adoption with OpenAI
Posted 24-Jul-2025 16:00


eero Pro 7 Review
Posted 23-Jul-2025 12:07


BeeStation Plus Review
Posted 21-Jul-2025 14:21


eero Unveils New Wi-Fi 7 Products in New Zealand
Posted 21-Jul-2025 00:01


WiZ Introduces HDMI Sync Box and other Light Devices
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:32


RedShield Enhances DDoS and Bot Attack Protection
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:26


Seagate Ships 30TB Drives
Posted 17-Jul-2025 11:24


Oclean AirPump A10 Water Flosser Review
Posted 13-Jul-2025 11:05


Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7: Raising the Bar for Smartphones
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 Brings New Edge-To-Edge FlexWindow
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Epson Launches New AM-C550Z WorkForce Enterprise printer
Posted 9-Jul-2025 18:22


Samsung Releases Smart Monitor M9
Posted 9-Jul-2025 17:46


Nearly Half of Older Kiwis Still Write their Passwords on Paper
Posted 9-Jul-2025 08:42


D-Link 4G+ Cat6 Wi-Fi 6 DWR-933M Mobile Hotspot Review
Posted 1-Jul-2025 11:34


Oppo A5 Series Launches With New Levels of Durability
Posted 30-Jun-2025 10:15









Geekzone Live »

Try automatic live updates from Geekzone directly in your browser, without refreshing the page, with Geekzone Live now.



Are you subscribed to our RSS feed? You can download the latest headlines and summaries from our stories directly to your computer or smartphone by using a feed reader.