L2ARC/ZIL, how to configure, jail download slow

[Jim Q]

Hello Everyone,

i have been trying to get my NAS to work properly for a long time now. Initial issue was that the board i tried to use initially was handling only 8 GB. Now, after about two years of playing around, in finally found again the time to look at freenas again.
My hardware looks like the following:
Asus P9D-i, Core i3 3,1 GHz ECC Capable, 16 GB of ECC Memory, 3Ware 9650-8 + BBU + 256 MB C., 4x WD Red 4 TB, 4x Samsung 850 Pro SSD 256 GB, Transcend Mini Flash USB 8 GB
Discs currently configured to: Raid5: 4x WD Red, Raid 1: 2x 256 GB SSD another Raid 1: 2x 256 GB SSD

So far so good - currently, i am facing the following issues / questions:
- Is running ZFS via the 9650 on a RAID5 the best option ? - I have read that it should be configured "single" - however, i can't create the single mode via the controller.

- I want to use one of the two RAIDs as L2ARC and ZIL store - (e.g. 50%/50% partitioned) how is this configured ? - I tried to read a few guides, but could not find a clear description how to add this to an existing ZFS volume.

- The second SSD Raid1 is planned to be used for running a Windows VM via a Plugin / Jail (so the main discs can power down while the VM is still running). I managed to install Virtualbox and Windows, but i am not sure what to do with the VM Data. - Should the VM Datastore be in another ZFS Volume which i create on the set of SSDs or is it better to use another file system in this case ?

- In the end, i plan to backup (or ZFS send) the entire filesystem to a second backup NAS (Synology cheap one, running RAID0 to increase capacity as it is only really backup). My ZFS volume is encrypted. Is it possible to also "send" the ZFS e.g. every saturday evening via NFS to the synology box with the same encryption and key as used in the primary NAS ? - Which function is to be used best here ? - Is there a way how to save the complete config with the backup data as well automatically e.g. from a cron job or is there a better way ?

- I tried to install the Logitech Media Server in a Jail. (description here: https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?threads/logitech-media-server-for-freenas-9-2-1-1.19044/) - unfortunately, the download via WGET in the Jail is really unstable. Sometimes, it runs at 3-4 MB/s, but then is also just hangs for up to e.g. a minute, downloading nothing or eventually stops. I am quite sure it's not my internet connection. Is there anything what i can do in order to make this progress faster / avoid it waiting for a long time.
Up to now, i was never able to run the script above successfully due to it stopping always again due to stalls.

I would really appreciate an answer to any (or all) questions above - i really wish that i finally get my NAS working after such a long time.

Cheers

J.

 

[Ericloewe]

First of all, get rid of the RAID controller! This piece of advice is written pretty much everywhere and is non-negotiable if you value your data, and in this case performance.

You either use ZFS or RAID, not both. Since FreeNAS is to be used with ZFS, that means you have to choose between RAID and FreeNAS.

As for encryption, it's disk-level only. All accesses are bog standard.

 

[Jim Q]

Hi !
Thanks for the info, actually, getting rid of the raid controller is a bit an issue as i need 8 SATA ports. I understood from various other posts, that it is possible to put the controller in a so called single mode and still access the discs individually.
Is there someone out there who has some idea on my other questions (or maybe also on this one) ? - I guess, i can figure the first question out with even more time thrown on this, - however on my other questions, i am stuck.
Cheers
J.

 

[cyberjock]

I had a 3ware 9650. There's a reason I used the word "had". It's not fit for FreeNAS and needs to be replaced. Read our stickies in the hardware section of the forum for recommended controllers like the IBM M1015.

Keep in mind that if you pull the drives off the 9650 and put them on the M1015 your pool won't be available. Your pool is currently locked on the 9650, so you're going to have to pull the disks off one at a time and resilver them on another controller. Not easy but not hard- definitely time consuming though.

 

[Jim Q]

Hi !
Considering that i was for a long time only playing with Freenas as i got it never to take off, i want to do things right at this time - so getting the M1015 would not be an issue (it is only about 80 bucks so..) - also loosing the data is not an issue.
Old: How would i configure the M1015 ? Every disc in a RAID0 on it's own ?
New: I have found the manual for this now, so consider my first question solved..

Actually, my other questions are also quite important to me. My plan was to do a test setup of freenas and then to trash everything and start again with the lessons learned (in the meantime, maybe the M1015 would arrive as well). Do you or someone else also have an idea on my other questions ?

- I want to use one of the two RAIDs as L2ARC and ZIL store - (e.g. 50%/50% partitioned) how is this configured ? - I tried to read a few guides, but could not find a clear description how to add this to an existing ZFS volume.

- The second SSD Raid1 is planned to be used for running a Windows VM via a Plugin / Jail (so the main discs can power down while the VM is still running on the SSD). I managed to install Virtualbox and Windows, but i am not sure what to do with the VM Data. - Should the VM Datastore be in another ZFS Volume which i create on the set of SSDs or is it better to use another file system in this case ?

- In the end, i plan to backup (or ZFS send) the entire filesystem to a second backup NAS (Synology cheap one, running RAID0 to increase capacity as it is only really backup). My ZFS volume is encrypted. Is it possible to also "send" the ZFS e.g. every saturday evening via NFS to the synology box with the same encryption and key as used in the primary NAS ? - Which function is to be used best here ? - Is there a way how to save the complete config with the backup data as well automatically e.g. from a cron job or is there a better way ?

- I tried to install the Logitech Media Server in a Jail. (description here: https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?threads/logitech-media-server-for-freenas-9-2-1-1.19044/) - unfortunately, the download via WGET in the Jail is really unstable. Sometimes, it runs at 3-4 MB/s, but then is also just hangs for up to e.g. a minute, downloading nothing or eventually stops. I am quite sure it's not my internet connection. Is there anything what i can do in order to make this progress faster / avoid it waiting for a long time.
Up to now, i was never able to run the script above successfully due to it stopping always again due to stalls.

Cheers

J.