Building a NAS + Plex server

[Bugses]

I'm thinking about building my own NAS and Plex server, and I got some hardware laying around, that I would like to use for it. I got an AMD A6-6400K, but I won't be using that, as it only scores 2291 in Passmark, and as far as I've understood, that's just enough for 1 Plex stream. I'm thinking about buying a new CPU for the motherboard though, which is a GA-F2A88XN-WIFI and that's a socket FM2+. So I'm considering getting the A8-7650K. It got a TDP of 95 W, is that way too much for a NAS?

[Lurick]

What is your target number of streams and what resolution?

How many drives and how much space?

[Bugses]

Just now, Lurick said:

What is your target number of streams and what resolution?

How many drives and how much space?

I would like to plan for the future a little, but I won't be needing more than 6 drives in the foreseeable future. Right now I'm just using 4 TB in my Diskstation, so I'm far from a datahoarder. I think, if I were to get 6 drives at some point, I would be going for 6 x 6 TB drives.

Regarding streams, we are talking 2-3 1080p streams.

[WereCat]

Can you go Ryzen?

 

ASROCK Fatal1ty AB350 ITX WiFi

Ryzen 3 2200G APU (when it releases next month)

 

That should be about $200 for board and CPU, you also get ECC support with the Asrock board if you will be expanding the server in future.

 

You will also have to get DDR4 (8GB should be way more than enough).

You can sell what you have now.

 

Ryzen 3 1200 scores 6800 points in Passmark and the 2200G will be clocked higher so it should easily hit at least 7000-7200 points which should be enough for 3x 1080p stream.

[Bugses]

8 minutes ago, WereCat said:

Can you go Ryzen?

 

ASROCK Fatal1ty AB350 ITX WiFi

Ryzen 3 2200G APU (when it releases next month)

 

That should be about $200 for board and CPU, you also get ECC support with the Asrock board if you will be expanding the server in future.

 

You will also have to get DDR4 (8GB should be way more than enough).

You can sell what you have now.

 

Ryzen 3 1200 scores 6800 points in Passmark and the 2200G will be clocked higher so it should easily hit at least 7000-7200 points which should be enough for 3x 1080p stream.

The thing is though, that I'll be needing a new case and PSU too. So we're suddently talking around $500, and that's probably on the low side, as I'm buying the hardware in Denmark which is quite expensive. If I used my current board, I would spend around $100 on that CPU I mentioned, then I could use my current DDR3 and just add some more to it. Then I would get a Node 304 case, that's around $90. That would be a much cheaper solution for me, the only thing I'm worried about, is if that TDP is way too high for a NAS on that A8-7650K.

[voyager_]

Even with the A8 you may be cutting it close if you want to have 3 streams running that require trans coding. If the files will be playing direct you can get away with a much slower CPU. What size videos do you plan on having on it? and how many will require trans coding at one time? I have a system running unraid with an AMD 8320E underclocked to 3Ghz with 16 gigs of ram. You can get away with 4-8 gigs without any problems. It has no issues running 2-3 1080p streams that have to be transcoded and the occasional 4k video. If the files are playing direct from the server it puts it under almost no load. As far as adding hard drives as long as you have open PCI slots you can always toss in an HBA card for more expansion.

[Bugses]

11 minutes ago, voyager_ said:

Even with the A8 you may be cutting it close if you want to have 3 streams running that require trans coding. If the files will be playing direct you can get away with a much slower CPU. What size videos do you plan on having on it? and how many will require trans coding at one time? I have a system running unraid with an AMD 8320E underclocked to 3Ghz with 16 gigs of ram. You can get away with 4-8 gigs without any problems. It has no issues running 2-3 1080p streams that have to be transcoded and the occasional 4k video. If the files are playing direct from the server it puts it under almost no load. As far as adding hard drives as long as you have open PCI slots you can always toss in an HBA card for more expansion.

Mostly I'll be streaming 1 stream. Like 8/10 times. The size of the videos would range from 10 to 20 GB.

[Lurick]

15 minutes ago, Bugses said:

The thing is though, that I'll be needing a new case and PSU too. So we're suddently talking around $500, and that's probably on the low side, as I'm buying the hardware in Denmark which is quite expensive. If I used my current board, I would spend around $100 on that CPU I mentioned, then I could use my current DDR3 and just add some more to it. Then I would get a Node 304 case, that's around $90. That would be a much cheaper solution for me, the only thing I'm worried about, is if that TDP is way too high for a NAS on that A8-7650K.

Is the case and PSU you have now from a pre-built?

Are you going to be running the server 24/7?

[Bugses]

Just now, Lurick said:

Is the case and PSU you have now from a pre-built?

Are you going to be running the server 24/7?

No,I would buy the Node 304, a PSU and probably 3-4 gigs of RAM more. I would sell my current case and CPU.

It would run 24/7 yeah.

[KirbyTech]

Servers are something that it is worth it just to spend the extra money on and get something that works right. Doesn't mean you need proper racks or rack mount everything, it just means the hardware you buy should be good. If this is a server running 24/7 you want at least a 80+ gold PSU which I doubt you have, also if you plan to run high bitrate 1080p to multiple streams then you might hit a network bandwidth issue. Not too sure on that one though. As for buying a new CPU, MOBO and RAM, just buy it now and set and forget.

[Bugses]

2 minutes ago, KirbyTech said:

Servers are something that it is worth it just to spend the extra money on and get something that works right. Doesn't mean you need proper racks or rack mount everything, it just means the hardware you buy should be good. If this is a server running 24/7 you want at least a 80+ gold PSU which I doubt you have, also if you plan to run high bitrate 1080p to multiple streams then you might hit a network bandwidth issue. Not too sure on that one though. As for buying a new CPU, MOBO and RAM, just buy it now and set and forget.

I hear you, and thank you for your tips. But what do you think about the hardware I had picked out? I would definitely pick a 80+ gold PSU

[KirbyTech]

1 minute ago, Bugses said:

I hear you, and thank you for your tips. But what do you think about the hardware I had picked out? I would definitely pick a 80+ gold PSU

What you picked out might run 3 1080p streams, depends bit rate and such. I would say go with something more powerful 

[voyager_]

18 minutes ago, Bugses said:

Mostly I'll be streaming 1 stream. Like 8/10 times. The size of the videos would range from 10 to 20 GB.

Then the A8 should be fine. It should do 1-2 streams without any issues

[Bugses]

23 minutes ago, KirbyTech said:

What you picked out might run 3 1080p streams, depends bit rate and such. I would say go with something more powerful 

According to Plex, it needs around 2000 Passmark score to run a 1080p stream. According to a YouTuber who tested it, it's quite a lot less. Like 16xx Passmark.

[Ashiella]

1 hour ago, Bugses said:

I'm thinking about building my own NAS and Plex server, and I got some hardware laying around, that I would like to use for it. I got an AMD A6-6400K, but I won't be using that, as it only scores 2291 in Passmark, and as far as I've understood, that's just enough for 1 Plex stream. I'm thinking about buying a new CPU for the motherboard though, which is a GA-F2A88XN-WIFI and that's a socket FM2+. So I'm considering getting the A8-7650K. It got a TDP of 95 W, is that way too much for a NAS?

 

14 minutes ago, Bugses said:

According to Plex, it needs around 2000 Passmark score to run a 1080p stream. According to a YouTuber who tested it, it's quite a lot less. Like 16xx Passmark.

I have an x5650 @4ghz to run plex, at 4k it gets slammed, about 70% usage. 12571 passmark a 1080p stream thats about 3000kbps birate, 24 minutes long, 550MB, about 1.2% usage which is about 150 passmark, id probably say around 1500 passmark is what youd need.

[Ashiella]

1 hour ago, WereCat said:

Can you go Ryzen?

 

ASROCK Fatal1ty AB350 ITX WiFi

Ryzen 3 2200G APU (when it releases next month)

 

That should be about $200 for board and CPU, you also get ECC support with the Asrock board if you will be expanding the server in future.

 

You will also have to get DDR4 (8GB should be way more than enough).

You can sell what you have now.

 

Ryzen 3 1200 scores 6800 points in Passmark and the 2200G will be clocked higher so it should easily hit at least 7000-7200 points which should be enough for 3x 1080p stream.

X5650 + x58 board would likely be a better value. At stock its 7400 passmark and overclocked to 3.6-3.8ghz (easy oc) it would get around 10000. (Usd) 25$ cpu and 100$ mobo, maybe 140 if you want a nice one, and ddr3 is far cheaper.

[WereCat]

1 minute ago, Ashiella said:

X5650 + x58 board would likely be a better value. At stock its 7400 passmark and overclocked to 3.6-3.8ghz (easy oc) it would get around 10000. (Usd) 25$ cpu and 100$ mobo, maybe 140 if you want a nice one, and ddr3 is far cheaper.

Not a bad idea but it has higher TDP, old platform, less features, OP wants ITX board with WiFi which may be a problem too.

[Ashiella]

Just now, WereCat said:

Not a bad idea but it has higher TDP, old platform, less features, OP wants ITX board with WiFi which may be a problem too.

1: lolidk, i mean, you right, these chips hot asf. Noctua nhd14 1366? Ehh, features unlikely to be used.

2: I mean, it lacks actual sata 3, but im pretty sure with hard drives its not gonna matter.

3: butwhy.

4: who the fuck? Server = use ETHERNET

[WereCat]

Just now, Ashiella said:

1: lolidk, i mean, you right, these chips hot asf. Noctua nhd14 1366? Ehh, features unlikely to be used.

2: I mean, it lacks actual sata 3, but im pretty sure with hard drives its not gonna matter.

3: butwhy.

4: who the fuck? Server = use ETHERNET

Depends on what you go for. As a platform, its not bad for server.

 

I would miss USB-C

WiFi is a must, I dont want to throw another cable over the wall to the living room

Server has to fit in the cabinet under TV so ITX is a must...

 

As I said, depends on the user and usability

[Bugses]

Just to clarify. I don't need WiFi on the NAS. It will be hooked up via Ethernet. The WiFi is just what the board is called, that I already got. It's just a coincidence.

[Ashiella]

Just now, WereCat said:

Depends on what you go for. As a platform, its not bad for server.

 

I would miss USB-C

WiFi is a must, I dont want to throw another cable over the wall to the living room

Server has to fit in the cabinet under TV so ITX is a must...

 

As I said, depends on the user and usability

Yeah, it is.

 

butwhy, its not needed, ive never really wanted it except for my phone, but thats it.

WiFi is cancer. But why a cable over the wall? 

How small is your cabinet? Jesus....

 

just leave the pc near the router, tucked in a corner or something?

[Ashiella]

2 minutes ago, Bugses said:

Just to clarify. I don't need WiFi on the NAS. It will be hooked up via Ethernet. The WiFi is just what the board is called, that I already got. It's just a coincidence.

Eyyy thats pretty good. So my idea?

[WereCat]

Just now, Ashiella said:

Yeah, it is.

 

butwhy, its not needed, ive never really wanted it except for my phone, but thats it.

WiFi is cancer. But why a cable over the wall? 

How small is your cabinet? Jesus....

 

just leave the pc near the router, tucked in a corner or something?

This is how I have done it and the reasons are.

WiFi router is in the room in which I sleep, to route etherned to living room, I would have to drill trough multiple rooms to get it in there.

I could have server next to router but if its runing 24/7 I dont want to sleep next to it.

It is nice to have PC look like a DVD player under the TV or something simmilar instead of a tower next to it, especially when there isnt much room.

[Ashiella]

3 minutes ago, WereCat said:

This is how I have done it and the reasons are.

WiFi router is in the room in which I sleep, to route etherned to living room, I would have to drill trough multiple rooms to get it in there.

I could have server next to router but if its runing 24/7 I dont want to sleep next to it.

It is nice to have PC look like a DVD player under the TV or something simmilar instead of a tower next to it, especially when there isnt much room.

Its in my room on 24/7 next to the router. Its practically silent. I also have a ceiling fan on 24/7 and i cant even hear it when its off.

smart tv?

understandable, have a great day.

[AshleyAshes]

1 hour ago, KirbyTech said:

also if you plan to run high bitrate 1080p to multiple streams then you might hit a network bandwidth issue. 

Again, I am kinda shocked with how many people in this scene think that consumer grade video consumes a tremendous amount of network resources.

 

For reference, the maximum bitrate on a Blu-Ray disc is 54mbps and a UHD Blu-Ray disc is 128mbps.  And those are, for sure, your 'worst case scenario' bit rates.  So on a 1000mbps LAN, you will have no problem running 6, maybe 7, maximum bitrate UHD Blu-Ray streams.  So your piddly Plex 1080p transcoded streams?  Yeah, NOT gonna be a problem.  Even a 100mbps LAN would PROBABLY be okay since with Plex you're usually looking at more like 10-30mbps.  

 

Think about it this way guys: Movies, in their highest quality available to consumers, are stored on optical discs and optical discs are very, very slow. (Relatively speaking)