I Want a NAS

[IvanSnipedYu]

Before I continue, I should mention that I have no knowledge of this topic besides a few bits and pieces. Anyway, I want a NAS not to use as a backup but more of a solution to expand my storage. However, I'm not sure what the best solution is. Should I buy a NAS (like the ones made by WD) or should I build my own? If I do build my own what kind of parts should I be choosing? How do I do it? And how do I manage it? 


-Thanks in Advance

[Curufinwe_wins]

Got an old computer? 

 

If so buy a second ethernet add in card and you got yourself one of the best nas money can buy...

 

http://okgeek.net/how-to-turn-an-old-pc-into-nas-file-server-with-freenas.html/

 

 

Also most nas systems you can buy for consumers are TOTAL UTTER GARBAGE. Horrifically slow and insanely overpriced.

[baxtmann]

Old computers are the most cost effective.

[IvanSnipedYu]

Got an old computer? 

 

If so buy a second ethernet add in card and you got yourself one of the best nas money can buy...

 

http://okgeek.net/how-to-turn-an-old-pc-into-nas-file-server-with-freenas.html/

 

 

Also most nas systems you can buy for consumers are TOTAL UTTER GARBAGE. Horrifically slow and insanely overpriced.

 

Old computers are the most cost effective.

I don't have a old computer laying around but I'm willing to drop some cash on building a NAS. The only thing is that I'm not sure what parts to pick. Also, is it okay to keep these on 24/7.

[Curufinwe_wins]

I don't have a old computer laying around but I'm willing to drop some cash on building a NAS. The only thing is that I'm not sure what parts to pick. Also, is it okay to keep these on 24/7.

Anything and everything that has enough sata ports to make you happy (raid cards are super expensive).

 

1 GB of ram per TB of storage is the goal. Dual core i3 or quad core atom is good enough.

[baxtmann]

you can get like a 40 dollar AMD chip and 4gb or ram and stock it up with some HD's and it will run 24/7 easy. They dont require amazing specs at all.

[IvanSnipedYu]

you can get like a 40 dollar AMD chip and 4gb or ram and stock it up with some HD's and it will run 24/7 easy. They dont require amazing specs at all.

 

Anything and everything that has enough sata ports to make you happy (raid cards are super expensive).

 

1 GB of ram per TB of storage is the goal. Dual core i3 or quad core atom is good enough.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/VYgkxr

Would this be okay or overkill? If I keep it on 24/7 wont overheat? What are the best type of hard drives to put in a nas?

[Curufinwe_wins]

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/VYgkxr

Would this be okay or overkill? If I keep it on 24/7 wont overheat?

I mean it's probably a little bit overkill, but yea 24/7 operation is fine on that.

 

I'm not an ECC person myself, but if you think you need it, then here is what I would do:

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($110.99 @ NCIX US) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.88 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: Supermicro X10SLL-F Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($153.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Mushkin PROLINE 16GB (1 x 16GB) Registered DDR3-1600 Memory  ($86.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($34.99 @ Directron) 

Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($22.00 @ Newegg) 

Total: $433.84

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-06 18:17 EST-0500

[baxtmann]

WD Reds are good for NAS applications. And you dont need to worry about it overheating.

[Curufinwe_wins]

WD Reds are good for NAS applications. And you dont need to worry about it overheating.

HGST/Hitachi Deskstar Nas are even better... and cheaper...

[baxtmann]

Probably lol. 

[IvanSnipedYu]

HGST/Hitachi Deskstar Nas are even better... and cheaper...

 

Probably lol. 

Tried going for a even cheaper build.

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qkJ6CJ

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qkJ6CJ/by_merchant/

 

CPU: AMD A4-7300 3.8GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($39.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.88 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88X PRO3+ ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($69.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($66.99 @ Amazon) 

Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($43.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($22.00 @ Newegg) 

Total: $267.84

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-06 18:26 EST-0500

Would this be enough?

I mean if it isn't I wouldn't mind going for the other build, it's just that I rather spend the rest of my money on drives LOL.

Would it be okay for me to buy drives right now and add more in later? Is it fine to mix and match drives as well?

 

[Curufinwe_wins]

 

Tried going for a even cheaper build.

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qkJ6CJ

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qkJ6CJ/by_merchant/

 

CPU: AMD A4-7300 3.8GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($39.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.88 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88X PRO3+ ATX FM2+ Motherboard  ($69.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($66.99 @ Amazon) 

Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($43.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($22.00 @ Newegg) 

Total: $267.84

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-06 18:26 EST-0500

Would this be enough?

I mean if it isn't I wouldn't mind going for the other build, it's just that I rather spend the rest of my money on drives LOL.

 

 

I don't recommend dual core apu's... if budget is what you want (brb)

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Celeron G1840 2.8GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($39.95 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: ECS B85H3-M9 (1.0) Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($30.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($32.99 @ Adorama) 

Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($34.99 @ Directron) 

Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($22.00 @ Newegg) 

Total: $160.91

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-06 18:32 EST-0500

 

This will be better and you really don't need a 212 evo on a celeron (which is much better than the a4 you picked).

 

Is it good enough? yes, but honestly I think of all the builds your first one actually makes the most sense, because in the long run the HT and high speed really will help if you expand storage a lot same with the increased sata selections on the z97 you chose.

[IvanSnipedYu]

 

I don't recommend dual core apu's... if budget is what you want (brb)

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Celeron G1840 2.8GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($39.95 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: ECS B85H3-M9 (1.0) Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($30.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($32.99 @ Adorama) 

Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($34.99 @ Directron) 

Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($22.00 @ Newegg) 

Total: $160.91

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-06 18:32 EST-0500

 

This will be better and you really don't need a 212 evo on a celeron (which is much better than the a4 you picked).

 

Is it good enough? yes, but honestly I think of all the builds your first one actually makes the most sense, because in the long run the HT and high speed really will help if you expand storage a lot same with the increased sata selections on the z97 you chose.

 

I think I'm going to go with the first build. Is it okay to mix and match drives? Any tips on managing the NAS before I actually build it?

[Curufinwe_wins]

I think I'm going to go with the first build. Is it okay to mix and match drives? Any tips on managing the NAS before I actually build it?

Yea mix and match is fine. Uhh, follow the guide I posted above for random old computer free nas and you should be good.

[Ali777]

If you are going to use freenas

I recommend to read this before buying any hardware

https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?threads/hardware-recommendations-read-this-first.23069/

[braneopbru]

Before I continue, I should mention that I have no knowledge of this topic besides a few bits and pieces. Anyway, I want a NAS not to use as a backup but more of a solution to expand my storage. However, I'm not sure what the best solution is. Should I buy a NAS (like the ones made by WD) or should I build my own? If I do build my own what kind of parts should I be choosing? How do I do it? And how do I manage it? 

-Thanks in Advance

 

Honestly, don't take this the wrong way, but with the questions you are asking, it's plainly obvious that the best solution for you is to get something pre-built. When you are dealing with a system holding your data, do you really want to leave managing it to trial and error, or what some guy on a forum said you should try? This is exactly how people loose a lot of valuable data. Just look at the video that Linus uploaded on the server dying. Somebody who is obviously experience almost lost Terabytes of data because the backups hadn't been managed properly.

 

My suggestion is buy something that will fit your needs to hold your data now and get some old, cheap, used hardware to set up a test system and get some experience with the various OS options an managing them. Using a test system will let you get a ton of experience and let you experiment in ways that you wouldn't be able to do on a system that is actually holding data.

 

 

Got an old computer? 

 

If so buy a second ethernet add in card and you got yourself one of the best nas money can buy...

 

http://okgeek.net/how-to-turn-an-old-pc-into-nas-file-server-with-freenas.html/

 

 

Also most nas systems you can buy for consumers are TOTAL UTTER GARBAGE. Horrifically slow and insanely overpriced.

First off, I don't understand the reasoning behind getting a second ethernet card. Second, that guide in the link is TERRIBLE. FreeNAS is not meant to be two clicks to install, one click to share and done. There a ton of things that need to be set to ensure the safety of your data.

 

That last sentence is so wrong that I don't even know where to start. It is a massively uninformed generalization. Talk about painting with broad strokes.

 

Old computers are the most cost effective.

 

Quite the opposite. The drives are usually going to be the most expensive part of any NAS, so not buying a new motherboard/cpu/ram might only save you 20% or less of the total cost. When you take into account how power hungry an old computer can be, you could be spending the cost of a new mobo/cpu/ram every 12-18 months in hydro.

 

 

.......(raid cards are super expensive).......

 

1 GB of ram per TB of storage is the goal.......

If you are using FreeNAS , you want HBA cards NOT RAID cards. LSI based HBA cards are regularly selling for under $100 on ebay, many time with the adapter cables that you need and many of the able to work as either a RAID card or HBA, depending on which firmware you flash. How exactly is that super expensive?

 

The 1GB/1TB idea comes from FreeNAS and only when using ZFS; it doesn't really apply to other NAS OS options. Even for FreeNAS that is a very rough "goal". For many basic uses 1GB/2TB or less is plenty, but if you plan to uses deduplication, I believe the number is around 5GB/TB

[IvanSnipedYu]

Honestly, don't take this the wrong way, but with the questions you are asking, it's plainly obvious that the best solution for you is to get something pre-built. When you are dealing with a system holding your data, do you really want to leave managing it to trial and error, or what some guy on a forum said you should try? This is exactly how people loose a lot of valuable data. Just look at the video that Linus uploaded on the server dying. Somebody who is obviously experience almost lost Terabytes of data because the backups hadn't been managed properly.

 

My suggestion is buy something that will fit your needs to hold your data now and get some old, cheap, used hardware to set up a test system and get some experience with the various OS options an managing them. Using a test system will let you get a ton of experience and let you experiment in ways that you wouldn't be able to do on a system that is actually holding data.

 

 

First off, I don't understand the reasoning behind getting a second ethernet card. Second, that guide in the link is TERRIBLE. FreeNAS is not meant to be two clicks to install, one click to share and done. There a ton of things that need to be set to ensure the safety of your data.

 

That last sentence is so wrong that I don't even know where to start. It is a massively uninformed generalization. Talk about painting with broad strokes.

 

 

Quite the opposite. The drives are usually going to be the most expensive part of any NAS, so not buying a new motherboard/cpu/ram might only save you 20% or less of the total cost. When you take into account how power hungry an old computer can be, you could be spending the cost of a new mobo/cpu/ram every 12-18 months in hydro.

 

 

If you are using FreeNAS , you want HBA cards NOT RAID cards. LSI based HBA cards are regularly selling for under $100 on ebay, many time with the adapter cables that you need and many of the able to work as either a RAID card or HBA, depending on which firmware you flash. How exactly is that super expensive?

 

The 1GB/1TB idea comes from FreeNAS and only when using ZFS; it doesn't really apply to other NAS OS options. Even for FreeNAS that is a very rough "goal". For many basic uses 1GB/2TB or less is plenty, but if you plan to uses deduplication, I believe the number is around 5GB/TB

The main motive for building my own nas is using it for storage but I'm also interested in the experience of building and managing my own build. I know I said that I was considering prebuilt solutions but I'm more interested in building my own now. So please keep the advice train going I will continue to ask questions as they come up. Also want to mention that I haven't purchased anything yet and am still waiting to decided if I should or not, it is just at the moment I'm more interested in building my own nas than buying a prebuilt one.

- Thanks in Advance

[KuJoe]

Synology + Hard Drive = ~$250 shipped and you're all set.

 

If you want something cheap, simple, powerful, won't kill your electric bill, and won't add any noise to your office/room then just get a Synology NAS with a cheap consumer hard drive and call it a day. If you want redundancy grab a 2-bay Synology NAS and run RAID1 but I just use a single bay and run a nightly backup to a USB drive attached to it.

 

My Synology DS115j uses 12.5 watts under normal usage (70-90% CPU load) which equals $13.83 per year in power costs. It's so quiet I have to regularly run a ping or check the LEDs to see if it's still on.

[IvanSnipedYu]

Synology + Hard Drive = ~$250 shipped and you're all set.

 

If you want something cheap, simple, powerful, won't kill your electric bill, and won't add any noise to your office/room then just get a Synology NAS with a cheap consumer hard drive and call it a day. If you want redundancy grab a 2-bay Synology NAS and run RAID1 but I just use a single bay and run a nightly backup to a USB drive attached to it.

 

My Synology DS115j uses 12.5 watts under normal usage (70-90% CPU load) which equals $13.83 per year in power costs. It's so quiet I have to regularly run a ping or check the LEDs to see if it's still on.

I agree that buying a nas would probably be a better solution for me but I want the experience of building and managing my own server. It just seems more... fun.

[KuJoe]

I agree that buying a nas would probably be a better solution for me but I want the experience of building and managing my own server. It just seems more... fun.

 

Then go for something low profile (low power, low noise, low space, low price). An Intel Atom would work or you can be really geeky and grab an Orange Pi or Banana Pi (both have SATA ports so you can plug in a 2.5" drive).

 

Here are some (very poor) pics of my Banana Pro with a nice 750GB drive I use as a quick NAS that I can take with me to work:

 

[Captain_WD]

~snip~

 

Hey there IvanSnipedYu,

 

For simple storage of your files the best solution should be a pre-built NAS as they are very easy to set up and manage, overall warranty and support and optimized hardware. I could suggest checking out WD My Cloud series and see which one might suit your needs: http://products.wdc.com/support/kb.ashx?id=ydUzHo

If you still decide to go with a self-built NAS I would recommend checking the required specs for the OS that you are going to use. I would also recommend using NAS/RAID-class drives for this as they have additional features such as TLER that enable them to work much smoother and safer in these conditions. WD Red is an example of such a drive: http://products.wdc.com/support/kb.ashx?id=ZSaVCn

 

Feel free to ask if you happen to have questions! 

 

Captain_WD.

[IvanSnipedYu]

 

Hey there IvanSnipedYu,

 

For simple storage of your files the best solution should be a pre-built NAS as they are very easy to set up and manage, overall warranty and support and optimized hardware. I could suggest checking out WD My Cloud series and see which one might suit your needs: http://products.wdc.com/support/kb.ashx?id=ydUzHo

If you still decide to go with a self-built NAS I would recommend checking the required specs for the OS that you are going to use. I would also recommend using NAS/RAID-class drives for this as they have additional features such as TLER that enable them to work much smoother and safer in these conditions. WD Red is an example of such a drive: http://products.wdc.com/support/kb.ashx?id=ZSaVCn

 

Feel free to ask if you happen to have questions! 

 

Captain_WD.

 

Sorry for late response, I been busy. My problem with prebuilt nas is that most of them could only hold only a few drives. If I want to expand in the future my options are limited.

[Bensemus]

I'm in the same boat as you. My comp was running out of storage and I wanted to have fun building and managing my own server. I have no idea how cost effecent my build is but it was very fun making it and I only have non critical data on it for now so if/when I mess it up I can just start over (I already have once )

 

I'm running FreeNAS and it's not that hard to get running. Only thing that gave me a headache was trying to get the NAS to recognize the ups I hooked up. I resorted to just trying every driver and I eventually found one that let the two communicate. I watched some of their videos and have I got 2 shares on the NAS. One for my mac to back up to (I know I said non critical and I actually don't have anything important on the mac) and a windows share for my media library. 

 

My build is a: 

quad core Celeron

8GB ram

z97 itx mobo (reused)

BitPhoenix Prodigy itx case (reused, can actually hold quite a few drives. 8 3.5 and 2 2.5)

corsair 430w or 450w psu

2 3TB WD reds

 

The HDD cost about as much as the rest of the build. I want to and another and try raid 5. 

 

Off topic but anyone know why FreeNAS only let me put the 2 drives in raid 1? Would of liked to just run them as 2 individual drives. 

[Captain_WD]

~snip~

 

Yes, this is often a problem with pre-built NAS devices. Due to the design and the small form factor they come with pre-defined number of drive bays. This is why it is a good idea to have a clear plan for what you are getting the NAS/Server for. I use mine for example for my photos' backups and my RAID10 gives me great redundancy and 8TB of usable space which I know I won't run out of in the near future.

 

hit me up if I can help in any way!

 

Captain_WD.