Rack-mounted NAS

[Sardzoski]

Hello all, 

 

I want to build a NAS for home use and I want to fit it in a rack mountable case. Currently I don't have any parts, so I'm looking to buy everything. I want to use the machine a NAS primarily, as a media server so I can stream movies to a TV and use it to backup my computer. 

I don't have a price range in mind but I wouldn't want to spend more than $1000 including drives. Talking about drives, 4 x 6TB drives in RAID 1 should be enough.

 

Thank you for your help ? 

[brwainer]

My first question is, how deep is your rack? If it is less than 900mm (like mine is 600mm deep) then you will need to pay attention to the depth of the chassis very closely.

[Sardzoski]

I don't have anything at this moment. I want to make a complete plan of all the equipment that I will be using.

[Mikensan]

$1000 is a very tight budget to include disks and rack-mount case. I just bought a 24u 4 post rack off of amazon for about $250 and that's a steal. Good luck finding half-racks cheaper. Most rack mount cases are going to cost you $100 using internal trays. External sleds? $200 cheapest. If you want the cheapest rack, google lackrack, it's just upside down end tables from Ikea.

 

6TB disks are going to run you about $190 on average (on sale). That's $760. The best deal I see right now (linked below) is $144, and you'll have to break them open and hope they're not some dumbass proprietary interface (have run into a time or two). That is still $600ish.

 

Honestly unless you're dead set on brand new, I'd get a used server. Maybe a R610, R710 (both come in 3.5 varients), C2100 - don't buy a Perc controller and get a HBA. With 24-32gb of ram, they should only run you $200-$250 shipped. Then you could buy the drives and be just under $1,000 (or slightly over).

 

 

https://slickdeals.net/f/9881132-6tb-wd-my-book-desktop-usb-3-0-external-hard-drive-144-free-shipping?src=SiteSearchV2_SearchBarV2Algo1

 

[ARikozuM]

You need either an enclosed or open cabinet. 

 

You'll need a server board (consumer boards will work as well, but all the devices on that board will use power even if not in use) and a CPU that supports ECC (if you want it). 

 

The PSU, you'll have to search for, but you may want something with high efficiency, redundancy, and long cables; modularity doesn't matter much. 

 

I would recommend speccing out a build and then finding a good chassis for the server such as this one. The features you absolutely need should be thought of as much as possible. Needs over wants with servers when under a budget. You can also try using a NZXT Source case as a NAS tower.

[Sardzoski]

So definitely 1000 with drives is impossible, and I don't to get something used. Maybe going with new hardware and getting less storage (for now) and upgrading later is a better option. 

What about parts? 

1. Mother board ...

2. CPU ...

3. RAM ...

4. PSU ...

5. Drive for the OS, this should be Solid State. I'am thinking Samsung EVO 

1 to 4, I generally have no idea what to get (I have never build a NAS or anything server-related).

What are your suggestions, do I need anything else? 

• Supermicro X10SLL+-F-O LGA1150/ Intel C222 PCH/ DDR3/ SATA3&USB3.0/ V&2GbE/ MicroATX Server Motherboard (https://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-X10SLLF&c=CJ) - $170
• Intel Xeon E3-1230 v5 SkyLake 3.4 GHz 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1151 80W BX80662E31230V5 Server Processor (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117613&ignorebbr=1) - $260
• Kingston ValueRAM 16GB (1 x 16G) DDR4 2133 Server Memory ECC DIMM (288-Pin) RAM KVR21E15D8/16 (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820242215) - $140
• SeaSonic SSN-6522G 2 x 650W Redundant 2U Server Power Supply - 80 PLUS GOLD (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151134&cm_re=redundant_power_supply_80_plus-_-17-151-134-_-Product) - $330
• SAMSUNG 850 EVO 2.5" 250GB SATA III 3-D Vertical Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-75E250B/AM (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147372&cm_re=Samsung_Evo-_-20-147-372-_-Product) - $110

This adds up to over $1000 without drives.

 

And adding 2x 6TB in RAID 1 gets the server to $1800, is it worth it? 

• WD Red Pro 6TB NAS Hard Disk Drive - 7200 RPM Class SATA 6Gb/s 128MB Cache 3.5 Inch - WD6001FFWX (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAAEE56U3752&cm_re=WD_red-_-22-235-001-_-Product) - $380 x2 = $760

Can you tell me where can I cut some corners, but still have a future-proof machine?

[Electronics Wizardy]

1 hour ago, Sardzoski said:

So definitely 1000 with drives is impossible, and I don't to get something used. Maybe going with new hardware and getting less storage (for now) and upgrading later is a better option. 

What about parts? 

1. Mother board ...

2. CPU ...

3. RAM ...

4. PSU ...

5. Drive for the OS, this should be Solid State. I'am thinking Samsung EVO 

1 to 4, I generally have no idea what to get (I have never build a NAS or anything server-related).

What are your suggestions, do I need anything else? 

for the cpu + mobo, id just get a cheap lga 1151 board + cpu

so a inexpensise h110 board and a celeron will work fine. You don't need much cpu. You can spend more on ecc, but its not really worth it here.

 

3. For ram, 8gb is fine, but id get 16gb if its cheap.

 

4. Reliable and low power, so something like the seasonic 360w 80+ gold will work well

 

5. id use a usb flash drive here(8gb is fine), no need for a ssd. The boot drive speed doesn't matter at all. Im assuming your running some linux variant.

 

For raid, id probably go raid 5 with zfs with 4 drives in linux or freenas.

 

 

[Mikensan]

Unless you plan to do some virtualization with this box, you don't need such a beefy CPU. The Intel G3XXX or G4XXX will power through almost any NAS operations. They're usually $40-$60.

 

Intel G4400 $60

Asrock 1151 H110 $50

16gb DDR4 $100

P/S $100 (Gold rated would nice if you plan to leave it on 24/7)

Case $100 (rackmount, internal disks)

 

Sitting at $410. I used newegg for all the prices and rounded up.

 

If you need performance, better to have more disks that are smaller than fewer larger disks. But if it's purely for store then don't worry about.