Is FreeNAS for me?

[duder1982]

Hello,

I am new to the NAS thing, I have dabbled a bit with a external harddrive attached to my network via the router. But that wasn't working out so well. So I wanted to build and actual media server. At the time I started looking at server software the easiest seemed to be Linux or Windows with Plex. But now I have stumbled across FreeNas and wanted to find out if the gear I have will work (which I think it might but may need tweaking). Any ways maybe a little for what I intend to do with it. Store movies, music photos, documents basically all sorts of documents. File sharing between different platforms such as Linux and Windows, and even android devices. Back up of the real important things. I am sure for a dvr like, I would need to use my desk top then just use the media server to store the product, which shouldn't be to tough.

So here is what I have,
Board-X8SIE-F SUPERMICRO SERVER MOTHERBOARD INTEL XEON LGA1156 DDR3
Processor-Intel Core i3 540 SLBTD / SLBMQ CPU Processor 3.06 GHz
Ram-So far I have 2-2 gigabyte ecc sticks in, I have two more, I just need to figure the proper configuration, but can up to 16 or 32 gigs down the road.
I have a 1.5 terabyte hard drive to start with.
I was thinking of looking for a good used 160 gb ssd, but was wondering if a good ole 160 gb sata hard drive would work for the OS. If so tonight I will pick one up along with some cables and have this bad boy up and running in the next day or two.
One more thing what do you recommend for a power supply, as of right now I have a 250 that seems to be working. But was wondering if more power was needed.

If I am missing anything or way off let me know

My computer building skills are limited, but have learned quite a bit. I think this would be a great next step as it is something that my family could use.

Thanks

 

[solarisguy]

Use USB memory for your FreeNAS installation. Or even better, two of them = mirrored during initial installation.

I have looked up your processor at http://ark.intel.com/products/46473/Intel-Core-i3-540-Processor-4M-Cache-3_06-GHz and it does not appear to support ECC. At least on that page there is no information whether it supports ECC, and the listing of processors with ECC does not list Intel Core i3-540 either http://ark.intel.com/search/advanced?ECCMemory=true&MarketSegment=DT

 

[HoneyBadger]

@solarisguy - the Clarkdale i3's and Pentiums of that era are an oddity. They do support and utilize ECC, but only if used with an Intel 3400, 3420, or 3450 chipset motherboard.

SuperMicro answer: http://www.supermicro.com/support/faqs/faq.cfm?faq=10712

Intel PDF, specifically addressing the ECC use with 3450 chipset: http://download.intel.com/newsroom/kits/embedded/pdfs/Core_i5-660_Corei3-540.pdf

@duder1982 - you will want to add more memory. 8GB is the minimum recommended for current builds of FreeNAS.

 

[duder1982]

Sounds like i got lucky with second hand components.

Thanks folks and yes HoneyBadger, i do plan to upgrade the ram, i just need to find more of the same.

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk

 

[HoneyBadger]

If you're concerned about the "quasi-supported" state of ECC on the i3, a compatible Xeon from the X3400/L3400 series would be a compatible option although you wouldn't want to spend too much on one.

 

[duder1982]

Use USB memory for your FreeNAS installation. Or even better, two of them = mirrored during initial installation.

I have looked up your processor at http://ark.intel.com/products/46473/Intel-Core-i3-540-Processor-4M-Cache-3_06-GHz and it does not appear to support ECC. At least on that page there is no information whether it supports ECC, and the listing of processors with ECC does not list Intel Core i3-540 either http://ark.intel.com/search/advanced?ECCMemory=true&MarketSegment=DT

Does the usb memory stay plugged in like an actual hdd? Just never done anything like that, but not a bad idea as it leaves more space for 3.5" hard drives.

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk

 

[solarisguy]

Does the usb memory stay plugged in like an actual hdd? Just never done anything like that, but not a bad idea as it leaves more space for 3.5" hard drives.

Yes.

If you have two USB 2.0 ports it is very easy to install FreeNAS (since you are doing an installation from a USB, to a USB), and even better if you have three (3) USB ports, as then you can mirror your FreeNAS OS storage while installing.

Under normal usage, the USBs would be read-mostly.

 

[duder1982]

Well it turns out that hard drive is defective. As it wont mount.

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk

 

[solarisguy]

Well it turns out that hard drive is defective. As it wont mount.

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk

Was that disk ever used in a hardware RAID ? ? ? If yes, then you might need to attach it again to that RAID controller and remove RAID configuration before you are able to use the disk somewhere else.

Or the disk could be just dead...

Are you able to get S.M.A.R.T. information from the drive ?

 

[duder1982]

The disk was never used in a raid.
How do i go about obtaining smart info.

Thanks for your help.


Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk

 

[solarisguy]

On a stable system (Windows or Linux) you are familiar with, please install the smartmontools package from https://www.smartmontools.org/wiki and also see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S.M.A.R.T.

Connect the disk, preferably directly through SATA.

Use command line or http://hddguardian.codeplex.com/ (Windows GUI). For a command line

• smartctl --scan
• smartctl -a /dev/DISK_FROM_THE_PREVIOUS_STEP

P.S.
A Linux system might have the smartmontools package already installed. FreeNAS already has the smartmontools package installed, too. However, since something is not working, I was thinking about trying on a known working system first.

You can actually install the smartmontools package on Windows or Linux before any hardware changes, and see (learn) how it works

 

[duder1982]

Hello all,

Back at it again, it's been awhile. Anyways, I have a new 2 terabyte hd in, and the system is up and running. Still need to update my ram, but for now, I am testing this out. I can log in and access via GUI. I have "built files, " but for some reason, I can not access them from other computers. They show up, and once I click on them, it says I can not access due to the name not being correct. I could use some help on this. I am almost there, and once I figure out this issue, I am on my way. Another issue I have, is that the fans run all the time. Is there a way in bios settings to have them shut down when not needed?

@HoneyBadger are you the same honeybadger on the Klipsch forum?

Thanks for your help, if necessary I can start another thread.

 

[duder1982]

OK, I do not know what I had done, but now I can access one of the two files. But apparently, I don't have permission to transfer data to it. Going to attempt to add some screen shots, so that you can see what is going on.
What I see in Freenas via GUI

What I see on my laptop

What I get when trying to access the homes folder.

What happens after I open the movies folder and try to transfer a movie to it.

 

[duder1982]

I figured it out, it had to do with selecting users/groups with my folders. I changed my folders to nobody and I was able to transfer data to the files. I learned a lot about my setup and how to make it simple for myself. It had taken some time to reread the guides, but eventually it all made sense.

Now I just need to figure how to control my fans. Is it all right for them to run constantly?