Some questions

[Geward]

Hi,

so I found unRAID on LinusTechTips and now after some research I think its the best OS for my planned NAS Build.

My planned config:

Xeon e3-1231_v3

16 gb RAM from Cruicial

Asrock H97 Anniversary Mainboard

(These are Components I have laying around soon)

4 x 4TB WD Red

500GB or so SSD for Cache

 

Im planning to store mainly large Video files and all my documents (I want to get rid of my data HDD in my PC)

 

So now the Questions I have:

1. Case

I searched alot for suitable cases. The Case should have space for an ATX Motherboard and the drives should fit well with some space for upgrades.

I think about buying the SilverStone Grandia GD08, but Im curious if there are any similar Cases in that pricerange in a similar formfactor.

2. Backup

Since I also want to store important Documents I thought about some online service which should be free (We are talking about max 50-100GB)

For the Videos and Documents I thought about some of these external Drives that you can connect to your PC (like the Backup Plus Hub). 

This thing would then be connected to my PC and should do automated daily backups or so. 

So has someone more tips for backups and/or experience with the 2 solutions im looking ahead to implement?

3. WiFi

The easyest way of implenting the unRAID Server in my Network would be via WiFi because my home network is a bit "complicated" but the powerful 5Ghz Network should be fast enough.

So is there any way to get this working. I could connect the Server via Ethernet the first time ofc.

4. UPS

Do you think a UPS is a thing you need? Sometimes I kill the fuse with my power strip where my PC and all this stuff is connected

 

Thats it for the first. Im thankful for every reply or answer

Thank you and have a nice day

[tdallen]

Hi and welcome!

 

1. Case - there are lots of good options.  You might also look at the Fractal Design Define R5 and something like an Antec 900 or 1200 stocked with front accessible hot swap bays.

2. Backup - I've got an 8TB drive in a USB3 enclosure that I keep offsite.  I bring it home periodically and run a RoboCopy script that copies over new/changed files.  I'm still looking for a good additional cloud option.  Crashplan was interesting but I don't think it will work for me.

3. WiFi - I'm a firm believer in having your server attached to your router with 1GB or better Ethernet.  I run my server headless - it just sits in the closet with my router.

4. UPS - yes, you want a UPS.  Your fault tolerant server won't be very tolerant of having the power pulled.  At a minimum it will result in a dirty shutdown and forced parity check, with the increased risk of data loss.  APC is the gold standard, but I've had luck with my less expensive CyberPower.

 

Regarding your build... That motherboard doesn't appear to support ECC.  Since an E3 Xeon is really just a Core i5/7 with ECC support that makes for an odd combo.  I'd either get a motherboard that supports ECC or a Core processor to go on that one.  Speaking of the Xeon, it is actually overpowered for a basic NAS unless you also want run Dockers/VMs as well (but overpowered is fun ).  16GB of RAM is good, though 8GB is fine for basic NAS duties.  Regarding a cache drive - personally I don't cache writes to my array - direct writes are fast enough for me (especially with turbo write).  Therefore, while I use a cache drive it is only as the de facto "application" drive in unRAID - i.e. for Dockers and their data.  It would help to know if you are really just targeting basic NAS duties, or plan to run applications via Docker/VM as well.