Hello ALL,
I am new to the forum.
After watching Paul's Hardware's NAS video,
I am wondering why he did not use ECC memory.
Was there a special exception?
I am also wanting to build a NAS, but ECC compatible hardware quickly adds up, and goes out of my price range.
If non-ECC memory is fine, according to Wendell that would be great.
Thanks
Edit: I also found this well written article: JRS Systems: Will ZFS and non-ECC RAM kill your data?
I'm no expert on ZFS but if it does rely on correct RAM data for the error checking and caching then it would be advisable to use it. Only you can decide on how irreplaceable the data is you are storing. Having a good backup strategy can mitigate that loss of course and allow the use of "cheaper" non-ECC RAM.
For me the requirements of FreeNAS have gone up so much that for my own NAS I use a Intel server board based Core 2 QUAD system with DDR2 ECC RAM. Which more than meets my needs with 4 x 1.5 TB HDDs plus replacement parts are cheap and readily available on Ebay.
Thanks for the good reply, gave me some insight.
I have been looking at used server components and used servers, but the servers seem to be loud and power hogs.
I am looking to backup 2 Macs and 1 PC.
Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated. :)
THx
The name is a bit misleading "Intel Server Board S3200SH" as it's an entry level server product with an LGA775 socket in an ATX format so very common and easy to build in a standard case.
I'm using XPEnology which boots from the USB stick and is light weight in comparison to FreeNAS but has a nice GUI and adds streaming features etc. via downloadable apps.
It's not pretty, the BIOS is clunky but it's fairly cheap to pick up a populated motherboard. I'm selling the desktop equivalent board on Ebay with a Core 2 Duo + non-ECC RAM for £25 or ~$40 as an example (not an advert).
OH you also use XPEnology?!?!
I was also trying to do research about it, that's great!
That's a nice and affordable system for basic home backup.
Can you give me more information about your experience on XPEnology?
Is there sufficient support from the Xpenology community?
Do all the features of Xpenology work? (ex: the Synology mobile applications, surveillance, multi-media functions, etc.)
Any particular Xpenology websites/guides that you recommend?
Thanks a lot!
To be honest I installed it over a year a go and mostly forgot about it as it's been so reliable :)
There's a bit of a learning curve to install it as it's boot image and install is separate but not too difficult. You have to be careful not to update with official patches from Sysnology as the interface looks at their servers by default. The site below is the best download resource and forum from what I remember.
The only app I added was Plex server but that installed, worked and was available ot all devices on the LAN via the uPnP protocol or directly via it's web interface.
http://xpenology.me/downloads/
I'm currently waiting for XPEnology 6.0 which will be a significant upgrade though I will probably do a fresh install rather than the upgrade process from the previous 5.x version.
That's great to hear!
I might go with XPEnonolgy.
Does XPEnology require any special hardware?
Have you tried the Synology mobile apps like the File transfer one?
Thanks again
Not special hardware just very common "industry standard" stuff such as Intel/Broadcom NICs, Intel CPUs with onboard video and common Intel chipsets should all work fine. Hence why those entry level Intel boards work so well.
It'll be fine, but if your data is super important, you'll want to use ECC
I might pickup a used PC and buy some new WD reds.
or build with i3, 8GB, etc
Try this guide. ECC if within budget is nice to have and adds that extra layer of security for peace of mind.
http://news.softpedia.com/news/how-to-install-xpenology-on-a-pc-499286.shtml
That's an awesome guide!
I will try to maybe get an i3 haswell, lga1150 server mobo and some ECC ram.
thx
FYI freenas and zfs have no requirement for ecc memeory. Freenas push it because they like to push he enterprise I mage.
If you can afford it sure go for it, but you won't have issues non ecc memory unless you buy complete crap.
I did skim read the ZFS Wiki and it didn't mention the requirement for ECC RAM but not having much experience with it I couldn't comment specifically. Modern file systems have error checking for every transaction and can roll back any bad reads/writes but then start to mix in hybrid-RAID and I guess it starts to get real complicated.
This ^^^^^^^^^^
I've been running two FreeNas servers for a couple years neither have EEC memory both are fine and healthy and the data is safe, sure if you have a lot of reads and writes it would be nice but as a extra safeguard but if your storing data and it's mostly reads like my file server it will be fine. My media server has really been a test of this since it gets writes and reads to it every day (new items added, and old items watched from different devices) and items deleted on a regular basis....the data integrity comes from the RAID mode you use and the amount of redundancy that mode gives you, the EEC as far as I know only helps with writes to the drive pool.
Of course it is the old adage garbage in = garbage out....lol
Do you recommend buying used servers?
like the dell r710?
I have no hardware recommendation.....it would totally depend on your usage, one of mine (media server) runs on a Intel Atom (D2550) and the other (file server) runs on a AMD 6300, both built machines in 4U cases rack mounted, both have to run 24-7/365 so it becomes what you can afford and how much power draw you are willing to pay for every month. The little Atom server draws less than 100w while the 6300 is about 180w and of course they run headless so no GPU or monitor to worry about unless there is a failure....(knock on wood)...lol
But there are lots of people here on the forum that run re-purposed commercial server gear, it does have some advantages like redundant PSUs and heavy duty built hardware made to run for years non-stop.
BTW...welcome to the Tek Syndicate forums.
That's nice, I also want an enclosure that is pretty quiet and doens't draw a ton of power.
I am still deciding what OS to use (XPEnology or Freenas) lol and the ECC or non-ECC memory dilemma.
The re-purposed server gear is a little bit cheaper but does draw a lot of power and also creates a lot of noise.
IDK if I have to purchase a new raid card for larger hard drive compatibilities, etc..
Thanks for your help!
Yeah that is a downfall most commercial servers are housed in 1U or 2U cases which make for a lot of noise and diminished air flow which is one reason I went with 4U cases it allowed the use of standard PC fans which can move a lot of air at slower speeds. Then yeah a lot of the used equipment uses SAS drives which are available but have a higher cost and normally a lower capacity compared to desktop NAS drives, the main advantages of FreeNas is of course the cost of the OS (free), it using software raid and the ZFS file system, then one other thing most folks don't realize is the use of jails which is a pretty cool concept that isolates the main OS from errant programs.
After two years of usage I can't think of a single thing I'd say that was a downside or problem in my setting using FreeNas...it just works as expected. I even had a drive in the pool on my media server (WD red) that started showing errors then finally failed totally but the data was still intact and replacing the drive was relativity painless except for the time it took to resilver the drive but the server stayed up running in a diminished state and was usable all the time...that's pretty impressive in my book.
That's a good idea, using a 4U case for slower fan speeds.
I have looked at some server hardware for a possible DIY server.
SuperMicro X8DTL-3F
Intel Xeon L5520
Would I need special cooling?
Idk what chassis I should get for this type.
Freenas just seems more robust than XPEnology with the ZFS file system.