BUILD Yet another build validation request

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Slacker ITADM

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Jan 4, 2016
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Thanks to the many excellent post and guides I believe I am ready to move from my Synology DS214 to a FreeNAS system. Using bidule0hm’s guide it looks like a zfs2 configuration will give me about 6.3 TB of storage which is double what I currently have and should last for quite a while. Primary use will be for samba shares and backups for 3 Windows computers. I have been using Synology Video Station for local streaming but would like to learn Plex . That being said, I may need a bit more horsepower under the hood. Opinions and suggestions would be appreciated.

MBO-Supermicro X10SLM+-F
RAM-Crucial 16GB Kit (8GBx2) CT2KIT102472BD160B/CT2CP102472BD160B
CPU-Intel G3240
HDD-WD Red 4 TB x4 in ZFS2 (have two already)
Boot-Kingston Digital 16GB x2 as boot devices
PSU-Seasonic 360W 80PLUS Gold ATX12V Power Supply SSR-360GP
Case-Fractile Design Mini
UPS-CyberPower CP550SLG Standby UPS 550VA 330W Compact
 

Mr_N

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You might consider using 6 drive z2 pool from the start, it will give you space for the future as well as allowing you to keep your pool free space below the recommended level which will be good for performance also :)
 

joeschmuck

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Well when reviewing the list you provided, here are my comments, and they are with respect to the tasks you said you will be performing...

All the components are fine for this build. The RAM is not on the Supermicro site as being compatible however the Crucial site states it is. The CPU is fine for what you has asked it to do, it will run Plex just fine, but don't let me talk you out of buying something a bit faster, you may change how you want to use FreeNAS and enjoy a little more horsepower later on. I can't speak to the UPS, I have personally preferred APC, except the 550VA is a bit low for my taste, I prefer 1000VA or higher to allow for short 30 minute power drops. But 550VA should allow your system to shut down once a power drop occurs. If you have periodic power interruptions, get a higher VA value.

When you install your hard drives into your case, separate them evenly so you have a drive at top, empty drive bay, drive 2, empty drive bay, etc... This will reduce the drives in the center remain cooler than they would if packed together. Also, I believe that case can handle one more 120mm fan in the front, buy a good quality silent type fan to stick in there to allow good flow air flow, or you could just relocate the rear fan and move it to the front of the case. The positive air pressure will force the air out the top and rear of the case.

The hard drives and configuration are fine for what you are desiring to use this system for. I too have the same capacity but just in six 2TB drives and my system never gets above 5TB of storage, most of that in backup files because I hang on to the latest 6 months worth. and it's several computers in my home. I am toying with the idea of reducing my pool to 4 drives in the future just because my needs are modest like yours. I'm not ripping every Bluray disc I can lay my hands on, I actually rip DVDs and then only ones that I will truly watch again, and I have a few Blurays as well, just because it was purchased that way and I wanted to see if I could rip them without issue. It's nice to have bragging rights that you have a huge library on instant demand but if that library isn't being used, it's a huge waste of money.

My last comment about the boot devices... I'd go for a single small SSD (32GB to 120GB) and use that as your boot device, the bargain basement SSD will work fine. They are much more reliable than a USB flash drive and with prices being dirty cheap these days, and you not using all your SATA ports, that would be my best advice. Additionally software updates are significantly faster. A SSD will not boot your system faster over a USB Flash drive, well not faster that you would really notice it. Again, it's a reliability thing which is why I mentioned it, and not a pair of SSDs either, just one. The pair of USB flash drives is because they are not very long lasting in this environment.

Good Luck.
 

Slacker ITADM

Dabbler
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Jan 4, 2016
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Thank you both for the comments.

I would love to go with 6 drives however this build will use up all my discretionary cha-ching for a while. I don’t have so much data that I can’t use a couple of external drives to temporally hold the data while I blow out and recreate the pool with additional drives if necessary.

If I can squeeze a few more dollars out I was thinking of swapping the G3240 for an i3-4330.

I have always used APC’s at work and have a 750 for my home network backup. The CyberPower was highly recommended on this forum so I was thinking of giving it a try and dedicating it to the NAS. Here in San Diego we have a pretty stable power grid and outages are usually very short.

Again, thank you for the reply.
 

daniep3

Cadet
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Mar 9, 2018
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Did you ever get your system running with the CyberPower 550SLg? I can't seem to get it to work with any of the cyberpower drivers with the exception of once with the 400e but it stopped working after the system rebooted.
 

Slacker ITADM

Dabbler
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Jan 4, 2016
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I never did get that ups to work with FreeNAS. Once I upgraded to a Cyberpower 1000 (Costco) everything started working. Its been a while and I have since moved from FreeNAS to UnRaid. Why? Frustration with Jails in the version that was current in 2016 and then the cluster %#%^ with 10. UnRaid just works, VM's are simple to deploy and the community support is very positive. Good Luck!
 

daniep3

Cadet
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Mar 9, 2018
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Thanks for taking the time to reply Slacker, I also have no issues when using an older CyberPower 1000 I have lying around, was hoping to use the new 550's I have but it will probably be a lot less headache to just buy a different UPS. So far FreeNas 11 seems to do what I need it to. File sharing and a couple VM's. I will take a look at UnRaid though.
 
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