FreeNAS Storage Build

[TheMrMiffy]

As the title suggests I am building a FreeNAS based storage server for backups and media storage, I am building this primarily for my father as he works in the video production industry and has several large jobs coming up, he has experienced hard drive failure before and can't afford for it to happen again. Here are the parts I have selected, I have overidden all the prices to a local store (PLE) because it is easier than buying online. He needs this for backing up his data and importing raw media.

 

Components:

CPU:  Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($217.00 @ PLE Computers)
Motherboard:  Asus H87M-E Micro ATX  LGA1150 Motherboard  ($114.00 @ PLE Computers)
Memory:  Kingston 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1333 Memory  ($85.00 @ PLE Computers)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($105.00 @ PLE Computers)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($105.00 @ PLE Computers)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($105.00 @ PLE Computers)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($105.00 @ PLE Computers)
Case:  BitFenix Merc Alpha (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($55.00 @ PLE Computers)
Case Fan:  Fractal Design FD-FAN-SSR2-120 40.6 CFM 120mm  Fan  (Purchased For $13.00)
Power Supply:  XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply  ($69.00 @ PLE Computers)
Other: HighPoint RocketRAID 2720SGL ($209.00)
Total: $1182.00 AUD

 

PcPartPicker Link: http://au.pcpartpicker.com/p/1hw4J

 

Hardware aside I need to decide what RAID type to use, to start of he needs at least 4TB of usable space and will probably expand in the future. I need your guy's input on the hardware and RAID configuration, speed isn't a huge issue as he won't be editing directly of of it he will just back up media to it or copy data over to his machine as he needs it.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

 

TheMrMiffy

[Samdb]

I would change the processor to an i3 when they are released, an i5 seems overkill and you will not gain too much from it. Also, try changing the drives to WD Reds, as they are designed for NAS use up to 5 drives. If you can, get 2x4gb RAM since the board is dual channel.

[jtwj]

I would change the processor to an i3 when they are released, an i5 seems overkill and you will not gain too much from it. Also, try changing the drives to WD Reds, as they are designed for NAS use up to 5 drives. If you can, get 2x4gb RAM since the board is dual channel.

 

Unless you need the low power states of haswell, you could go for an i3 ivy and probably save some money. WD Reds seem like the go-to drives but I think Seagate drives are great too. I never had any problems with them. I would honestly just get the cheapest 7200 drives you can find and just test them thoroughly before deploying them. I would also suggest 2x8gb of ram. Maxing out the ram does wonders for FreeNAS systems.

 

As for RAID take a look at this tread by looney. Think this would be an ideal solution.

 

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/33510-how-to-install-and-setup-flexraid-on-your-windows-storage-system/#entry429010

 

Hope this helps.

@looney

[WoodenMarker]

If you could buy online instead: http://au.pcpartpicker.com/p/1hNC3

 

8 native sata 6gb/s ports, 8 3.5in bays for hdds, and onboard raid, 0, 1, 5, and 10. 

[TheMrMiffy]

Sorry for the late reply, I was out all yesterday.

 

I would change the processor to an i3 when they are released, an i5 seems overkill and you will not gain too much from it. Also, try changing the drives to WD Reds, as they are designed for NAS use up to 5 drives. If you can, get 2x4gb RAM since the board is dual channel.

Thanks, I'll probably go with WoodenMarker's AMD build because it would offer good performance for less, I'll consider Red's because the AMD build leave's a bit of leeway for upgrades.

 

Unless you need the low power states of haswell, you could go for an i3 ivy and probably save some money. WD Reds seem like the go-to drives but I think Seagate drives are great too. I never had any problems with them. I would honestly just get the cheapest 7200 drives you can find and just test them thoroughly before deploying them. I would also suggest 2x8gb of ram. Maxing out the ram does wonders for FreeNAS systems.

 

As for RAID take a look at this tread by looney. Think this would be an ideal solution.

 

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/33510-how-to-install-and-setup-flexraid-on-your-windows-storage-system/#entry429010

 

Hope this helps.

@looney

Thanks for the suggestions, I think I'll go ahead and get Red's for it as well as more RAM I do remember reading somewhere on the FreeNAS wiki about the more RAM the better.

 

If you could buy online instead: http://au.pcpartpicker.com/p/1hNC3

 

8 native sata 6gb/s ports, 8 3.5in bays for hdds, and onboard raid, 0, 1, 5, and 10. 

Thank you, I think I will go with this build but with Red's and 16GB of RAM.

 

Thanks everyone this is the semi-finalized build if you have any other suggestions you still have a few days until I buy the components.

[WoodenMarker]

Thanks everyone this is the semi-finalized build if you have any other suggestions you still have a few days until I buy the components.

Looks solid.

[algoat]

Sorry for the late reply, I was out all yesterday.

 

Thanks, I'll probably go with WoodenMarker's AMD build because it would offer good performance for less, I'll consider Red's because the AMD build leave's a bit of leeway for upgrades.

 

Thanks for the suggestions, I think I'll go ahead and get Red's for it as well as more RAM I do remember reading somewhere on the FreeNAS wiki about the more RAM the better.

 

Thank you, I think I will go with this build but with Red's and 16GB of RAM.

 

Thanks everyone this is the semi-finalized build if you have any other suggestions you still have a few days until I buy the components.

 

Looks pretty solid.  I would probably try to get a cheaper FM2 CPU like and AMD A4-5300.  It only has a 65W TDP compared to the A10's 100W as well so you're saving in the long run.   If it's just a storage server, then you don't need much computing power at all, my CPU only draws 20W and the freeNAS server runs fine.  Here is my server specs as an example: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/21948-ltt-10tb-storage-show-off-topic/page-2#entry279789

 

Also, what kind of RAID are you going to set up?  I'm thinking with 4 drives, a raid-5 or raid-z1 would be sufficient.  The general rule of thumb is that if you're running a zfs file system on freeNAS, then you should have 1 GB of ram for every 1 TB of hard drive space which is one of the reasons why people say it's better to have more memory on freeNAS.

[TheMrMiffy]

Looks pretty solid.  I would probably try to get a cheaper FM2 CPU like and AMD A4-5300.  It only has a 65W TDP compared to the A10's 100W as well so you're saving in the long run.   If it's just a storage server, then you don't need much computing power at all, my CPU only draws 20W and the freeNAS server runs fine.  Here is my server specs as an example: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/21948-ltt-10tb-storage-show-off-topic/page-2#entry279789

 

Also, what kind of RAID are you going to set up?  I'm thinking with 4 drives, a raid-5 or raid-z1 would be sufficient.  The general rule of thumb is that if you're running a zfs file system on freeNAS, then you should have 1 GB of ram for every 1 TB of hard drive space which is one of the reasons why people say it's better to have more memory on freeNAS.

Thanks, I've downgraded the CPU to the A4-5300. I was thinking RAID-5 but I read on the FreeNAS wiki that RAID-Z1 is the software equivalent, do either of them offer an advantage over each other? The 16GB of RAM is just to allow headroom for future upgrades.