Plex Media Server and Own Cloud FreeNas

[MontyD]

Hey Guy,

Im new here and I am looking to build a freenas box that will allow me use PMS, OwnCloud, and time machine. I know both of these are plugs in but I'm not sure about time machine. So far through some research I've come up with the following components for an build.

• Thermaltake Core V1 Extreme Mini ITX Cube Chassis, Compatible with air and Liquid Cooling Builds (CA-1B8-00S1WN-00)
• GIGABYTE GA-H170N-WIFI (rev. 1.0) LGA 1151 Intel H170 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX Intel Motherboard
• Intel Core i3-6100 3M 3.7 GHz LGA 1151 BX80662I36100 Desktop Processor
• G.SKILL Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2133 (PC4 17000) Intel Z170 Platform / Intel X99 Platform Desktop Memory
• CORSAIR CX series CX500M 500W ATX12V v2.3 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC CP-9020059-NA

As for a cooler I am not sure yet because I'm considering overclocking. I want to build something that is compact and at the same time consumes low power.

Also, is it possible to run Windows/hackintosh on the system at the same time freenas is running? Totally new to this thing so excuse the noobiness.

 

[Kevin Horton]

Hey Guy,

Im new here and I am looking to build a freenas box that will allow me use PMS, OwnCloud, and time machine. I know both of these are plugs in but I'm not sure about time machine.

Time Machine compatibility is built in - it's just a matter of following the instructions in the docs. I've been using it as one of my Time Machine destinations for many months, and it seems to be working well. I have tested restoring individual files, but have not tested a full disk restore.

 

[nojohnny101]

Just from looking at your build as well, you are advised to go with ECC ram. FreeNAS is designed around ECC ram and it is a bit risky to use non-ECC ram.

 

[Kevin Horton]

Just from looking at your build as well, you are advised to go with ECC ram. FreeNAS is designed around ECC ram and it is a bit risky to use non-ECC ram.

This will also require a different motherboard. The GigiByte GA-H170N-WIFI will run with EEC RAM, but it runs in non-EEC mode so you don't get the benefit. Non-EEC RAM is OK, as long as the data is not important. If you want to ensure the data does not become corrupted by a RAM error during some operation, then EEC RAM is a must. More info here.

 

[danb35]

FreeNAS is designed around ECC ram

Not really. ECC RAM is important for data integrity with any OS and any filesystem, and there's nothing unique to FreeNAS to make that significantly more or less the case. However, with ZFS, we have a kick@$$ filesystem that provides guaranteed data integrity. Using that with non-ECC RAM is rather like putting a screen door on a submarine.

If you care about your data, you should be using ECC, no matter what OS or filesystem you're using.

 

[pirateghost]

Also, is it possible to run Windows/hackintosh on the system at the same time freenas is running? Totally new to this thing so excuse the noobiness

Let's get this out of the way first. FreeNAS is an OS. You will not be using a mouse/keyboard/monitor hooked up to it. There is no way to run another OS on it in that fashion.

That being said, you can run a virtual box jail VM(eww), on it but you will have to access it using vnc or rdp and you will not have the performance you would like. Hackintosh is probably NOT going to happen on it.

Do not think of FreeNAS as a general purpose server. It is a file server. It has some plugins to perform some extra duties, but it is a file server. Don't try to extend on that given your hardware. It's not going to be a pleasurable experience.

 

[danb35]

I'm considering overclocking.

Don't.

 

[MontyD]

Don't.

why not?

Ok will change the motherboard and ram and update the build once i find something suitable. What do you guys think of the processor I'm planning to go with? Also what kind of RAID should I put my drives in? What I'm looking to do right now is having a hard drive for just my PMS files, mycloud, and a separate one to fully backup my macbook. I was thinking of using RAID 1 but I am a university student so I cant afford something too expensive.

Im going to use a 120gb kingston hyperX SSD for my PMS software (apparently a SSD will help with bottlenecking) as for the rest of my build Im thinking of going with WD drives. I won't be able to afford WD Reds at this time, do you guys have any other recommendation in terms of what type of WD drive to go with? (Blue, Black, Green, etc.)

Btw thanks for saving my ass with the ECC ram.

 

[MontyD]

Ok so did some looking around and found a new motherboard that will support ECC Memory:

GIGABYTE GA-Z170M-D3H (rev. 1.0) LGA 1151 Intel Z170 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.tomshardware.com/news/gigabyte-100-series-motherboards-launched,29771.html

New chassis was needed:
[URL='http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133274&_ga=1.126416397.1097618332.1460681102']Thermaltake Core V21 Black Extreme Micro ATX Cube Chassis CA-1D5-00S1WN-00 [/URL]
(love how you can support unto 5 drives)

As for RAM:

Kingston Value 8GB 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM ECC Registered DDR4 2400 (PC4 19200) Server Memory Model KVR24R17S4/8

 

[jgreco]

Instead of trying to randomly pick some crappy consumer desktop board that happens to support ECC, why not just use a board designed to be a server?

 

[MontyD]

Instead of trying to randomly pick some crappy consumer desktop board that happens to support ECC, why not just use a board designed to be a server?

whats wrong with this one? I like the fact that i will be able to take apart my freenas and repurpose the board for a gaming pc

 

[Kevin Horton]

How many users will be using your Plex at the same time? Can you rip your media in a suitable format so no transcoding will be required when the files are played? Depending on the answers to those questions, you might be able to use a cheaper CPU and drop the plan for an SSD. As a point of reference, I'm using a G3258 CPU, and do not have an SSD. My Plex will happily serve up to five users at once (the most devices I could find to use for testing), as long as there is no need for transcoding. I'm pretty sure it could serve quite a few more than five users, but I never tested with more than that.

Terminology - FreeNAS does not use conventional RAID 1, RAID 5, etc. It uses RAIDZ1, RAIDZ2, etc.

If your data is important, you should strongly consider RAIDZ2, which will require at least four disks (but you lose two disks worth of space to parity, so it is more efficient to use a larger number of disks).

How much storage space do you need?

If you don't need a huge amount of storage space, you could use small disks, and keep the costs down. In the future, when money is available, replace the smaller disks with larger ones, one at a time, and the available storage space increases once all disks have been replaced with larger ones. Then you could use the small disks you removed to make a new vdev to add to your pool.

 

[jgreco]

whats wrong with this one? I like the fact that i will be able to take apart my freenas and repurpose the board for a gaming pc

In five years when a well-built FreeNAS box might be nearing middle age, I'm guessing that it will no longer be a real good choice for a gaming PC.

Would you go down to the big box electronics store and buy the first random crap-PC you see and use it as a gaming PC? No? Why not?

In that same way, the things that make a good FreeNAS box are unique as well. Gaming PC's are not built for 100% duty cycle, the things you want the board to do are server-oriented, etc.

 

[MontyD]

How many users will be using your Plex at the same time? Can you rip your media in a suitable format so no transcoding will be required when the files are played? Depending on the answers to those questions, you might be able to use a cheaper CPU and drop the plan for an SSD. As a point of reference, I'm using a G3258 CPU, and do not have an SSD. My Plex will happily serve up to five users at once (the most devices I could find to use for testing), as long as there is no need for transcoding. I'm pretty sure it could serve quite a few more than five users, but I never tested with more than that.

Terminology - FreeNAS does not use conventional RAID 1, RAID 5, etc. It uses RAIDZ1, RAIDZ2, etc.

If your data is important, you should strongly consider RAIDZ2, which will require at least four disks (but you lose two disks worth of space to parity, so it is more efficient to use a larger number of disks).

How much storage space do you need?

If you don't need a huge amount of storage space, you could use small disks, and keep the costs down. In the future, when money is available, replace the smaller disks with larger ones, one at a time, and the available storage space increases once all disks have been replaced with larger ones. Then you could use the small disks you removed to make a new vdev to add to your pool.

Looking at 3 users max in the house, I have an extra SSD laying around at home so I won't have to go buy one. As for transcoding I will like to have that option there if needed (it most likely will). As for storage I will need atleast 250gb to fully backup my 13inch macbook. Im looking at having 1.5tb for cycloid and 1.5tb for plex. I will add on more space if needed in the future depending on my needs. I did not look into the laptop drives, but that is a great idea. As for performance of those drives do you think they will be enough for my needs?

 

[MontyD]

In five years when a well-built FreeNAS box might be nearing middle age, I'm guessing that it will no longer be a real good choice for a gaming PC.

Would you go down to the big box electronics store and buy the first random crap-PC you see and use it as a gaming PC? No? Why not?

In that same way, the things that make a good FreeNAS box are unique as well. Gaming PC's are not built for 100% duty cycle, the things you want the board to do are server-oriented, etc.

Do server boards not cost more? Im using a desktop board because of the cost of the server boards.

 

[MontyD]

Looking at 3 users max in the house, I have an extra SSD laying around at home so I won't have to go buy one. As for transcoding I will like to have that option there if needed (it most likely will). As for storage I will need atleast 250gb to fully backup my 13inch macbook. Im looking at having 1.5tb for cycloid and 1.5tb for plex. I will add on more space if needed in the future depending on my needs. I did not look into the laptop drives, but that is a great idea. As for performance of those drives do you think they will be enough for my needs?

sorry autocorrect, my cycloid i meant mycloud

 

[danb35]

You can buy a complete server, with suitable CPU, motherboard and RAM, for under $200 in the form of the Dell Poweredge T20.

 

[jgreco]

Do server boards not cost more? Im using a desktop board because of the cost of the server boards.

As with gaming boards, they vary. Unlike gaming boards, you cannot easily buy hideously overpriced and under-featured server boards if you follow the stuff we recommend. An entry level board like the X10SLL (Haswell) is on sale for $130 at NewEgg right now. There are various prebuilt options that are also highly attractive.

 

[MontyD]

As with gaming boards, they vary. Unlike gaming boards, you cannot easily buy hideously overpriced and under-featured server boards if you follow the stuff we recommend. An entry level board like the X10SLL (Haswell) is on sale for $130 at NewEgg right now. There are various prebuilt options that are also highly attractive.

Yes, in the states it is but sadly not here in canada. Lol our exchange rate is shit right now. What do you guys recommend in terms of a build with the performance I'm looking for?

 

[pirateghost]

You know. I think it would behoove you to read the stickies around here. You appear to just have jumped in the deep end of the pool without knowing whether the pool is even fit for you to swim in.