A few weeks ago, Geeks (great site to get pc hardware) had a decent deal on a old 2008 workstation so I decided to buy it. The workstation is great and does what standard graphical editor would need. The system worked great for the short time it was being used we managed to acquire a better machine so now I have this machine laying around. So I thought;why not turn this into a server? Pretty much I would like to turn this into a NAS server running FreeNAS and a security server or something that will protect my machines. I realized the D10 did not come with an onboard RAID controller so I bought a IBM M1015 raid card. And I will be flashing it so it can work (http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=12767.msg124393#msg124393) I want to utilize 4 SATA drives but need suggestion on what raid I would run this at and how can I both use this machine as a file server and a firewall or something.
Is this machine too much for a simple FreeNAS server or should I do something else with it?
Note: The D10 does not come with x8 slots, but according to Wikipedia, the Raid x8 should work with x16
From Wikipedia
A PCIe card physically fits (and works correctly) in any slot that is at least as large as it is (e.g., an ×1 sized card will work in any sized slot);
A slot of a large physical size (e.g., ×16) can be wired electrically with fewer lanes (e.g., ×1, ×4, ×8, or ×12) as long as it provides the ground connections required by the larger physical slot size.
In both cases, PCIe negotiates the highest mutually supported number of lanes. Many graphics cards, motherboards and bios versions are verified to support ×1, ×4, ×8 and ×16 connectivity on the same connection.
What are you thoughts? As a file server, It will simple host docx files, media content.
Also, is there a way that files can be back up automatically into my D10? So for example, I have a desktop and when I save say a doc, I would like that word document to be automatically saved into my D10 running FreeNAS. Is this possible? And what is the best raid configuration for what I want?
Thanks so much for the intput
Here are the specs
Features/Specifications:
http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?InvtId=D10-XQC233-X2-PB-R
Lenovo ThinkStation D10 Dual Xeon E5410 2.33 GHz Tower System
General Features:
No Operating System!
Tower form factor
Two (2) Xeon E5410 2.33 GHz quad-core processors
1333 MHz bus speed, 12 MB L2 Cache, Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x), Intel 64, Idle States, Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology, Intel Demand Based Switching, Thermal Monitoring Technologies, Execute Disable Bit
Intel 5400A chipset
8 GB DDR2 PC2-5300 Fully Buffered RAM (supports up to 64 GB)
Two (2) 73 GB 15,000 RPM SAS hard hard drives
DVD-ROM SATA drive
No floppy drive
NVIDIA Quadro FX 4600 768 MB PCI Express video card
Integrated audio
Integrated Intel 82563EB Gigabit Ethernet LAN
Rack mountable (with optional rail kit, not included)
Power button
Motherboard Features:
Two (2) PCI Express x16 slots (one occupied by video card)
Two (2) PCI Express x4 slots (x8 mechanical) (one occupied by video card)
Video card requires two expansion slots
Two (2) PCI-X slots
One (1) PCI slot
Five (6) SATA connectors (one occupied)
Five (5) SAS connectors (two occupied)
Eight (8) 240-pin DDR2 DIMM sockets
Front I/O Ports:
Two (2) USB ports
One (1) 6-pin IEEE 1394 FireWire port
One (1) Microphone in 3.5 mm jack
One (1) Headphone out 3.5 mm jack
Rear I/O Ports:
Two (2) PS/2 ports
One (1) 9-pin serial port
One (1) SPDIF optical in port
One (1) SPDIF optical out port
Two (2) DVI-I ports (on video card)
One (1) S-Video TV-out port (on video card)
Four (4) USB ports
Six (6) Audio 3.5 mm jacks
One (1) RJ-45 Ethernet jack
Case Features:
Three (3) 5.25-inch external drive bays (one occupied)
One (1) 3.5-inch external drive bay
Five (5) 3.5-inch internal drive bays (two occupied)
1000-watt power supply (100 - 240V, 15A, 50/60Hz)
Unit Dimensions:
19.4 x 8.1 x 22.5-inches (H x W x D, approximate)
Is this machine too much for a simple FreeNAS server or should I do something else with it?
Note: The D10 does not come with x8 slots, but according to Wikipedia, the Raid x8 should work with x16
From Wikipedia
A PCIe card physically fits (and works correctly) in any slot that is at least as large as it is (e.g., an ×1 sized card will work in any sized slot);
A slot of a large physical size (e.g., ×16) can be wired electrically with fewer lanes (e.g., ×1, ×4, ×8, or ×12) as long as it provides the ground connections required by the larger physical slot size.
In both cases, PCIe negotiates the highest mutually supported number of lanes. Many graphics cards, motherboards and bios versions are verified to support ×1, ×4, ×8 and ×16 connectivity on the same connection.
What are you thoughts? As a file server, It will simple host docx files, media content.
Also, is there a way that files can be back up automatically into my D10? So for example, I have a desktop and when I save say a doc, I would like that word document to be automatically saved into my D10 running FreeNAS. Is this possible? And what is the best raid configuration for what I want?
Thanks so much for the intput
Here are the specs
Features/Specifications:
http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?InvtId=D10-XQC233-X2-PB-R
Lenovo ThinkStation D10 Dual Xeon E5410 2.33 GHz Tower System
General Features:
No Operating System!
Tower form factor
Two (2) Xeon E5410 2.33 GHz quad-core processors
1333 MHz bus speed, 12 MB L2 Cache, Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x), Intel 64, Idle States, Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology, Intel Demand Based Switching, Thermal Monitoring Technologies, Execute Disable Bit
Intel 5400A chipset
8 GB DDR2 PC2-5300 Fully Buffered RAM (supports up to 64 GB)
Two (2) 73 GB 15,000 RPM SAS hard hard drives
DVD-ROM SATA drive
No floppy drive
NVIDIA Quadro FX 4600 768 MB PCI Express video card
Integrated audio
Integrated Intel 82563EB Gigabit Ethernet LAN
Rack mountable (with optional rail kit, not included)
Power button
Motherboard Features:
Two (2) PCI Express x16 slots (one occupied by video card)
Two (2) PCI Express x4 slots (x8 mechanical) (one occupied by video card)
Video card requires two expansion slots
Two (2) PCI-X slots
One (1) PCI slot
Five (6) SATA connectors (one occupied)
Five (5) SAS connectors (two occupied)
Eight (8) 240-pin DDR2 DIMM sockets
Front I/O Ports:
Two (2) USB ports
One (1) 6-pin IEEE 1394 FireWire port
One (1) Microphone in 3.5 mm jack
One (1) Headphone out 3.5 mm jack
Rear I/O Ports:
Two (2) PS/2 ports
One (1) 9-pin serial port
One (1) SPDIF optical in port
One (1) SPDIF optical out port
Two (2) DVI-I ports (on video card)
One (1) S-Video TV-out port (on video card)
Four (4) USB ports
Six (6) Audio 3.5 mm jacks
One (1) RJ-45 Ethernet jack
Case Features:
Three (3) 5.25-inch external drive bays (one occupied)
One (1) 3.5-inch external drive bay
Five (5) 3.5-inch internal drive bays (two occupied)
1000-watt power supply (100 - 240V, 15A, 50/60Hz)
Unit Dimensions:
19.4 x 8.1 x 22.5-inches (H x W x D, approximate)
