Hardware for personal use NAS

[KrYpToCiD]

Hi there.

One of my friends is an 3D artist and few days ago he lost for the second time all his work from his HDDs and SSD (I must to confess I don't know how) and he asked me to build a server with 10TB of storage for him where he can back-up his work and develop his portofolio. The question that is pooping up is: What CPU do I need to buy to use that server as NAS and Plex server in the same time and how much memory do I need? I'm new at server hardware. I want to use unRaid as OS because the redundancy is at the same price as an HDD and like that I can save moneys for almost 3 HDD.

 

Thank you for the time you spend reading this  

[Klemmbrett]

So he want to edit on the server ? Is it not better for him to do the edit on his PC and use a NAS with some redundancy to save it later ?  

[KrYpToCiD]

5 hours ago, Klemmbrett said:

So he want to edit on the server ? Is it not better for him to do the edit on his PC and use a NAS with some redundancy to save it later ?  

Nope. He want to use it as backup and to host a website with his portofolio :))

Sorry if I made you to think otherwise

[KirbyTech]

Well you will want 8 core Intel to start, then I would just put in 16 GB of RAM since it is cheap. Add in RAID 5 or 6 (go with 6 if important data which it sounds like) So you will need 1-2 extra drives. I would also keep a spare sitting not far away incase of drive failure. Since it is important data, you will want a second server for backup reasons. Go with 2-3x the storage he needs today depending on how fast he is filling up stuff. 

 

As for hosting a web server.... Does he have a static IP? If not he will need DYNDNS, not worth it IMO. Go with Digital Ocean hosting to set up a Linux server. Go with a MEAN stack since it is easy to build on (it's what all my companies software runs on due to being fast and secure). 

 

If he wants to edit on the server not his desktop you will want 10 Gigabit Ethernet connection direct to server since switches cost a ton. He will want a RAID 10 SSD array with at least 6 drives in it. I would go with double capacity of what he needs today to let him grow.

 

For OS, I would go with just a basic Linux distro with packages added in. IMO it is better and more configurable. UnRAID is easier to use yes but the trade offs are not worth it unless you need very basic.

[Dark]

One shouldn’t host an external facing site on the same server they store backups on. 

Not the end of the world if you do but it isn’t advisable. 

[KrYpToCiD]

15 hours ago, KirbyTech said:

Well you will want 8 core Intel to start, then I would just put in 16 GB of RAM since it is cheap. Add in RAID 5 or 6 (go with 6 if important data which it sounds like) So you will need 1-2 extra drives. I would also keep a spare sitting not far away incase of drive failure. Since it is important data, you will want a second server for backup reasons. Go with 2-3x the storage he needs today depending on how fast he is filling up stuff. 

 

As for hosting a web server.... Does he have a static IP? If not he will need DYNDNS, not worth it IMO. Go with Digital Ocean hosting to set up a Linux server. Go with a MEAN stack since it is easy to build on (it's what all my companies software runs on due to being fast and secure). 

 

If he wants to edit on the server not his desktop you will want 10 Gigabit Ethernet connection direct to server since switches cost a ton. He will want a RAID 10 SSD array with at least 6 drives in it. I would go with double capacity of what he needs today to let him grow.

 

For OS, I would go with just a basic Linux distro with packages added in. IMO it is better and more configurable. UnRAID is easier to use yes but the trade offs are not worth it unless you need very basic.

 

8 hours ago, Dark said:

One shouldn’t host an external facing site on the same server they store backups on. 

Not the end of the world if you do but it isn’t advisable. 

 

 

Ok. Thank you for your answer. I'll keep in mind when I'll pick the components. The site won't be much, just a page with a gallery with his projects.

[KrYpToCiD]

I've been looking for components but I got to a dead end. I can't find a decent 8C CPU and a mobo with enough sata III ports. I have taught about buying a Raid controller and the prices in my country are waaaaay to high for what you can get. I even looked on ebay for affordable stuff and all that I was able to found was only those ES Xeons.......( I can get a really cheap X99 mobo from a friend).

Dose anyone have any ideas what parts should I use?

[Dark]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Supermicro-2U-X7DBE-2x-Xeon-E5450-3ghz-Quad-Core-32gb-8x-Trays/292393101294?epid=1041459826&hash=item4413fca7ee:g:l8IAAOSwu1VW6bKO

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Supermicro-2U-8-Bay-GPU-Server-X9SRW-F-Xeon-E5-1620-3-6Ghz-4-core-32GB-1TB-SATA/142636692232?hash=item2135cf3308:g:4ycAAOSw-jFZ-f7t

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Supermicro-2U-X8DTU-F-24-bay-2x-Xeon-6-Core-Low-Power-FreeNas-SAS2-SSD-SATA-III/142614635849?hash=item21347ea549:g:RocAAOSwPAxaAeXu

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-PowerEdge-R710-Virtualization-Server-8-Core-48GB-4x300GB-15K-1-2TB-PERC6i/171307537270?hash=item27e2b99376:g:~FcAAOSwKQ9Z-2Ca

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-PowerEdge-R710-Server-2-26GHz-8-Cores-16GB-RAM-DVD-SAS6i-RAID/192416178021?hash=item2ccce5df65:g:U0wAAOSw6VRaAcno

 

* https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-PowerEdge-R510-2x-Xeon-X5670-2-93ghz-Hex-Core-64gb-H700-12x-Trays-2x-PS/232581429021?hash=item3626eef71d:g:oAMAAOSw0IJZ1PfT

 

 

[KrYpToCiD]

8 minutes ago, Dark said:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Supermicro-2U-X7DBE-2x-Xeon-E5450-3ghz-Quad-Core-32gb-8x-Trays/292393101294?epid=1041459826&hash=item4413fca7ee:g:l8IAAOSwu1VW6bKO

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Supermicro-2U-8-Bay-GPU-Server-X9SRW-F-Xeon-E5-1620-3-6Ghz-4-core-32GB-1TB-SATA/142636692232?hash=item2135cf3308:g:4ycAAOSw-jFZ-f7t

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Supermicro-2U-X8DTU-F-24-bay-2x-Xeon-6-Core-Low-Power-FreeNas-SAS2-SSD-SATA-III/142614635849?hash=item21347ea549:g:RocAAOSwPAxaAeXu

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-PowerEdge-R710-Virtualization-Server-8-Core-48GB-4x300GB-15K-1-2TB-PERC6i/171307537270?hash=item27e2b99376:g:~FcAAOSwKQ9Z-2Ca

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-PowerEdge-R710-Server-2-26GHz-8-Cores-16GB-RAM-DVD-SAS6i-RAID/192416178021?hash=item2ccce5df65:g:U0wAAOSw6VRaAcno

 

* https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-PowerEdge-R510-2x-Xeon-X5670-2-93ghz-Hex-Core-64gb-H700-12x-Trays-2x-PS/232581429021?hash=item3626eef71d:g:oAMAAOSw0IJZ1PfT

 

 

lol thanks

[KirbyTech]

Dark is right, buy a pre-built server it will be cheaper/ easier unless you really know what you are doing and have contacts. 

[GDRRiley]

On 1/1/2018 at 9:10 AM, KirbyTech said:

Well you will want 8 core Intel to start,

WHAT? NO!!!

A quad core or a 6 core would do fine. And why intel? I would argue a AMD ryzen makes more sense here over a similarly priced xeon or i7.

[KirbyTech]

20 hours ago, GDRRiley said:

WHAT? NO!!!

A quad core or a 6 core would do fine. And why intel? I would argue a AMD ryzen makes more sense here over a similarly priced xeon or i7.

AMD Ryzen makes no sense, idea is a server and I don't know of any server motherboards that are Ryzen compatible. If they exist I haven't found them since I stick mostly with Intel since I know that they are good and the last I looked into AMD it is meh to say the best. 

 

Having 8 cores is a good place to start, price is higher yes but the advantages are huge when working with 3D since it can be offloaded to render and not use up the workstation resources. Or it will make running any other applications better. Also most who set up a server like OP is asking for tend to load them down eventually with lots a applications and add family/friends to using it. Having 8 cores is the lowest I would go for almost any new build server. 6 core would work fine today but in 2 or 3 years idk. Point is, plan for tomorrow not today.

[GDRRiley]

6 hours ago, KirbyTech said:

AMD Ryzen makes no sense, idea is a server and I don't know of any server motherboards that are Ryzen compatible. If they exist I haven't found them since I stick mostly with Intel since I know that they are good and the last I looked into AMD it is meh to say the best. 

no there are no server motherboards but there are lots of well built ryzen boards that would be fine. AMD now is at haswell or better. 

if you truly want server features then go threadripper but that is more 

[KrYpToCiD]

My friend dose not need only compute power. He wants to have only a backup and to stream via plex. The site-thing is only if the server can handle the other things flawless. That is why I asked about what processor should I buy for him. Mostly it will be a PC hidden in the closet but he wants some aesthetic (he's an art guy) and 3D work will be very light and he has an rig that is used for that and I can say, the parts are pretty impressive. Hosting a site, from the provider point of view is not a problem. In our country we get 1gig download and 500megs upload for only 10 euros or 10$. But the parts are pretty expensive tho.

[KirbyTech]

23 hours ago, KrYpToCiD said:

My friend dose not need only compute power. He wants to have only a backup and to stream via plex. The site-thing is only if the server can handle the other things flawless. That is why I asked about what processor should I buy for him. Mostly it will be a PC hidden in the closet but he wants some aesthetic (he's an art guy) and 3D work will be very light and he has an rig that is used for that and I can say, the parts are pretty impressive. Hosting a site, from the provider point of view is not a problem. In our country we get 1gig download and 500megs upload for only 10 euros or 10$. But the parts are pretty expensive tho.

Have you looked into static IP for the site? Best to use a static IP for websites. You can do dynamic DNS but it sucks and costs a lot compared to a static IP (in Canada anyways)

[KrYpToCiD]

 

29 minutes ago, KirbyTech said:

Have you looked into static IP for the site? Best to use a static IP for websites. You can do dynamic DNS but it sucks and costs a lot compared to a static IP (in Canada anyways)

Dynamic DNS is included in our provider service  SO that shouldn't be a problem and we can manage to get static IP too  

[KirbyTech]

2 hours ago, KrYpToCiD said:

 

Dynamic DNS is included in our provider service  SO that shouldn't be a problem and we can manage to get static IP too  

Okay just mentioned since I know here neither are included. Where do you live that it is included?

[KrYpToCiD]

Yes :)) I think this is the only cool thing in my country about technology. Everything else, PC parts, consoles,TVs etc. are overpriced. We pay 169% of the US, UK or even Canada prices (after taxes) even if we are in far worse economically situation ........

[geo3]

For a file server you absolutely do not need 8 cores. It's one of the least CPU intensive things a server does outside of a NTP service.

[KrYpToCiD]

6 minutes ago, geo3 said:

For a file server you absolutely do not need 8 cores. It's one of the least CPU intensive things a server does outside of a NTP service.

Yeah, but the hosting thing dosen't require more compute power? I'm still at planning things out right now. I must to tell him what to buy and to build the machine, so I don't want to spend more money than I need to.

[geo3]

1 minute ago, KrYpToCiD said:

Yeah, but the hosting thing dosen't require more compute power? I'm still at planning things out right now. I must to tell him what to buy and to build the machine, so I don't want to spend more money than I need to.

Depends on what it does. If it's pretty a static HTML site for hosting his portfolio that's almost the same thing as a file server, just sends html files via http instead of any file via SMB protocol.

[KrYpToCiD]

10 minutes ago, geo3 said:

Depends on what it does. If it's pretty a static HTML site for hosting his portfolio that's almost the same thing as a file server, just sends html files via http instead of any file via SMB protocol.

 

It won't be something special, a site with 3 pages and one of them will be a gallery. That it is all  

[geo3]

1 hour ago, KrYpToCiD said:

 

It won't be something special, a site with 3 pages and one of them will be a gallery. That it is all  

Yeah, you don't need much CPU power at all for this purpose.  Good I/O, both disk and network, is still important however.

[KrYpToCiD]

OK Thank you for information