mnemonic222000

Guys, I was attempting to access some photos and my share was not available. When I logged into my server I have the dreaded red ball showing next to Disk 5. I pulled a SMART report, but I don't have a clue what I am looking at. Please see the attached file and let me know what you think! 120127_disk5_smart.txt

John/boof, Thanks for the reply, I looked at your build very closely, so I hoped you would respond. I agree my server is very decent and can do everything I need it to, but at a LARGE cost of heat and electricity. This is why I am looking at building something new. Currently I don't have any real issues with my existing server using unRAID, so I don't think an i3 will outperform my Xeon, except in the heat/energy department. I guess I am just looking for confirmation that I won't be creating problems for myself my going down this road. Currently all my streaming is done to Windows 7 Media Center boxes thru the house via the My Movies plug-in. All ISO mounted and streamed thru Total Media Theater 5, so no transcoding is necessary. All streams are done over CAT6 wired connections with a Cisco Small Business Smart Gigabit Switch providing the network backbone. I also have Intel NIC on all my computers to help minimize issues, etc. All my infrastructure (server and network) were built while I was chasing WHS stuttering issues, which unRAID has resolved. And I don't want to go back to chasing my tail. I threw a TON of hardware, time, and money at this stuttering problem and I really don't want to go back, but I am willing to invest a few more dollars to build a new server to reduce electrical consumption and heat load (heat load is VERY critical with summer approaching, my upstairs office and server closet get quite warm due to the BTU output of all my machines or the AC runs constantly). On the drive front, I am torn. I still have 3-4 Green drives, but really want to move to a more Enterprise grade 7200 RPM HDD. Well I want to until I look at the price and the energy hit. I will probably re-evaluate this as I move forward and have my new server in place. I do appreciate the feedback and am open to hear more from anyone in the peanut gallery!

neilt0, Thanks for the reply. I had read that exact post about your experiences previously and it happens to be one of the thing I have been hanging my system change on (no pressure). One thing I noticed when I just re-read the post that may explain a couple of slight stutters I have had in my own unRAID testing is from John about controller cards playing a part. Up until recently, I had not considered my AOC-SAT2 as a weak link, but I have read a number of posts explaining that it doesn't supply the bandwidth the AOC-SASLP can. I already own unRAID Pro and have been conducting tons of test variations. And aside from a few slight stutters here and there, all is well, so I know my current equipment is up to the task (may swap out to the AOC-SASLP first for more testing). Again, I am just leery of creating problems that don't now exist. I have experienced similar results in my testing with number of streams from the same drive. I am trying to formulate a distribution plan for my movies across the physical discs to eliminate some of the possible issues in the future, but that will require A LOT of file moving, etc. Thanks again for the feedback and I look forward to more from the board! TC

Everyone, I am to a WHS "convert" after running into a number of limitations and frustrations with WHS, I luckily found unRAID. I am using my old WHS server as my unRAID box and am having great results, however I need something a little more efficient. My WHS experience led me to throw a TON of hardware at my stuttering issues; server quality MB, Xeon L3360 processor, lots of RAM, Intel server NIC, enterprise HDD, etc. None of these fixed the DE issue which caused an unbearable stutter on 1080P content and only added to my electric bill. I would like to move to an i3 Sandy Bridge solution for its power/efficiency ratio, but am nervous to downgrade hardware and have the stuttering issue crop up again. I have searched and searched, read and read, and know that I am going to hear plenty of "you don't need a ton of power to stream", however I am gun shy with my previous experience and just need a little more detailed reinforcement. My needs are fairly simple and pedestrian. I just need a large, bullet proof storage array that can provide 2-3 Bluray ISO streams to my Windows Media Centers. Needless to say WAF is high on the list, as well as having 3 boys that LOVE to watch movies when they are allowed. So stuttering, lag, and inconsistent results need to be minimal. As I am a Linux IDIOT, I will still keep a normal full time Windows machine in place for "other" server needs based on my comfort level. So long story short here is my existing build and what my proposed build would transition to, let me know what you think... (I have listed a few options on the CPU, both me being anal and overspec'ing and others based on what I have read on the board) Motherboard Current: ASUS P5BV-C LGA 775 Intel 3200 ATX Intel Xeon Server Motherboard Planned: SUPERMICRO MBD-X9SCM-F-O LGA 1155 Intel C204 Micro ATX Intel Xeon E3 Server Motherboard (only 1155 board with video and "compatible" with unRAID that I have found) Processor Current: Intel Xeon L3360 Yorkfield 2.83GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Quad-Core Server Processor Server Quality: Intel Xeon E3-1220 Sandy Bridge 3.1GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 80W Quad-Core Server (might not decrease my energy footprint 80w vs 65w TDP) Consumer Quality 1: Intel Core i5-2400S Sandy Bridge 2.5GHz (3.3GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 65W Quad-Core Desktop Processor (know its enough, but is it too much) Consumer Quality 2: Intel Core i3-2120 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz 2 x 256KB L2 Cache 3MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor (have one in a HTPC and am impressed, but is it enough) Consumer Quality 3: Intel Core i3-2100T Sandy Bridge 2.5GHz 2 x 256KB L2 Cache 3MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 35W Dual-Core Desktop Processor (like the 35W TDP, but is it enough horsepower) If you can't tell this is where I am struggling! RAM Current: Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM ECC Unbuffered DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Server Memory Planned: Kingston 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM ECC Unbuffered DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Server Memory SATA Controller Current: SUPERMICRO AOC-SAT2-MV8 64-bit PCI-X133MHz SATA Controller Card Planned: SUPERMICRO AOC-SASLP-MV8 PCI Express x4 Low Profile SAS SAS RAID Controller (improved throughput from existing from my reading) I will be keeping my NIC, power supply, case and drive cages NIC: Intel EXPI9400PT 10/ 100/ 1000Mbps PCI-Express Gigabit Copper Connection for Servers Power Supply: ENERMAX PRO82+ EPR525AWT 525W ATX12V Ver.2.3 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE (may upgrade to 80 GOLD?) Case: iStarUSA Storm Series D-400 (sure 20 drives would be AWESOME, but I really don't need it... Remember I said need not want!) Drive Cages: iStarUSA BPU-350SATA 3x5.25" to 5x3.5" SAS/SATA 6.0 Gb/s Hot-Swap Cage x 2 I will be replacing my hard drives as necessary, I really want to get to all server class HDD, but I am really struggling with the cost/benefit of it. Here is what I currently have Parity: WDC_WD2001FASS - WD Black 2 TB Drive 1: WDC_WD2003FYYS - WD RE4 2 TB Drive 2: WDC_WD20EADS Drive 3: WDC_WD20EADS Drive 4: WDC_WD2002FYPS - WD RE4-GP 2 TB (just precleared and installed to replace failed WD20EADS) Drive 5: WDC_WD20EADS Drive 6: WDC_WD20EADS (will be installed once I receive the RMA from the failed drive 4 listed above) Disk 7: TDB Disk 8: TDB Disk 9: TDB (moving to SSD Cache will free up drive bay) Cache: ST3500630AS - Seagate 7200.11 500 GB (was the fastest drive I had left over from other items) to be replaced by Intel 510 120GB SATA III in new build So based on board experience what should I choose? And if you have attempted to stream bluray ISOs with similar specs how have you fared? Also have you been successful doing so from more than 1 stream? I look forward to your response.