[First time going unraid here need some advice!]

You mention a 2.5" 2TB drive. Is this separate from the 2TB green drive you mention? Also, you say you have a couple of spare 1TB disks. If I were you, I would go ahead put them all in the array, use the 4TB as parity, the SSD as cache. It is very simple to upgrade disks to a larger disk in unRAID. I have done it many times. My array was all 2TB drives when I started 3+ years ago and now it is all 3TB drives. I have found other uses for the old drives, such as offsite backups, building other computers, etc.

 

Since I am recommending a totally different approach than you have outlined in the steps in your post, I won't comment on them specifically, except to say that you should preclear anything you want to add to the array, let unRAID format the drives after you add them and don't try to format them yourself, and don't try to transfer any data to any drive before you have added it to the array.

 

You can add the 2TB drive after you have transferred the data from it to the other drives that you have already added to the array.

 

Rather than my going into further detail and speculation, I'll just suggest you take it slow and continue to ask questions as you go.

 

Ok sounds like a good idea i will start with 3 Hdds since i don't want to leave all of my computers without storage.

 

My only concern is that my 1TB HDD is 7200RPM so i don't really know if this might affect with temperatures inside the case with all the drives connected .

 

So my setup will be something like

 

4TB drive as parity

2TB and 1TB as the array and then ill add more HDDs or swap the 1TB for a larger one.

64 GB SSD as a cache drive. don't know if its big enough for the cache and a windows WM.

 

Ill try to set up the array tonight

 

 

 

[First time going unraid here need some advice!]

You mentioned formatting drives. unRAID will format the drives as needed. What you need to do is preclear them.

 

Parts of the wiki are a little dated, but this Configuration Tutorial is worth reading.

 

Ask lots of questions.

 

Thank you for the link that is good read indeed ...

 

So far if i have it right the preclear script should be able to determine if a new drive has some failure right??? how about a used drive should i also run the preclear script on that drive???

 

Also 2 more questions :

 

I read that the process of pre clearing a drive is long so i want to save some time and start by doing it right now is it possible to preclear a drive lets say from windows or a live cd??? I want to be ready for the setup over the weekend so i figured this might save me some time.

 

My current media resides in my 2tb NTFS formatted drive .. what would be the best route to transfer everything into the array ?? I have another gaming rig with a hot swap bay that i can use I also count with a couple of spare 1TB disks but i really don't plan on using them in unraid BC of the limited disk options i have now so i was thinking of :

 

1 Transfer everything into the spare 1tb disk that i have

2 Format the 2 tb drive with the correct format type that unraid uses ( don't know which one or if i should pre clear this drive also )

3 Transfer everything back into the 2tb Drive with the correct format type

4 Pre clear the new 4tb File

5 Put the 4TB and the 2TB in boot unraid and create the array

6 Profit???  ;D

 

I misread the specs on the server. Still seems small and would not be my first choice (not criticizing but without options to load the drives in removable cages, which greatly reduces the chances of having issues rebuilding drives after a failure, it is not one I would recommend).

 

But if you can get up to 5 drives in there it has a reasonable capacity.

 

Almost everyone that starts with unRAID underestimates their capacity needs. With a smaller server I recommend going with largest drives, even if the price per TB is higher (within reason, obviously). With 5 slots and assuming using an SSD for cache, you have the ability to have 4 data drives. You already have a 2 and a 4. Adding two more 6TB drives would get you to 18TB before having to swap out the 2TB for a larger one, whereas adding two more 4TB would only get you to 14TB. (You'd also need a 6TB parity). Swapping out smaller drives for larger ones gets very pricey per TB. Imagine having to swap a perfectly fine 4TB drive to a 6TB today because you are full and have no more room for another drive. That would cost $150 per TB of extra capacity! Better to spend $10-15 extra per TB now to avoid such tough choices in the future.

 

Yeah i know this isn't the best setup ever but i think it will cover my needs for a few years .... The other thing i could do is mod the case in order to use a 5 in 3 hot swap cage.... or try to buy a cheap case and move existing hardware to that case... The thing that i love about this case is that it is dead silent... i don't know if i could achieve it with another case.

 

I totally understand your point in spending big the first time but as of right now i would like to start with what i have because i am using the logic that by the time i am running out of space the 4Tb disk will be much more cheaper and maybe the 6tb drives also will be more afordable...

 

I would like to point out that this is the media that i have created over 2 years so i figured 4 more TB should last me long enough and i will cross that bridge when i get there with the current pricing options of that time being.

 

 

It is worth pointing out that one can only have 2 data drives (plus optionally 1 parity drive) on the free license.

 

But how about a cache drive??? I have a spare one and i have read it really increases the speed of the server plus i also would like to run some VM to play with windows home server essentials.. I also think that you should pay for an amazing solution like unraid since it has all of the features that i was looking for. Mixed HDDs only one Parity drive Cache drive ... I first considered using Freenas but man that ZFS is a pain for someone like me who wants to expand little by little plus no mixed HDDs and the way parity works over there really pushed me away. So i would like to support unraid

[First time going unraid here need some advice!]

Thanks for the quick reply and the arm welcome

 

The main purpose for this server will be to be able to download and stream all of my media content that as of right now consist in 2 TB of Movies Tv Shows and Emulators and Roms... I understand how parity works and i know parity will be important but i am waiting on a good deal for a 4tb drive hopefully soon (before black Friday) so i can add a parity drive  i also have a pretty fast internet connection and if i loose some data as of right now i think everything is redownloadable .... But i have a portable 2.5 2TB disc which i will use to hold most of the data until i can get a hold of the parity drive .... The downside is that it doesn't have a proprietary connection in order to use it inside the box  :'( ...

 

Also the reason i wanted to switch to a dedicated server is that i currently have a combo of HTPC and Gaming rig on a Bitfenix Prodigy case which i modded the hell up in order to take a full custom water cooling loop so i have no more space left for another 3.5 Drive inside.... So i first thought just to replace the 2tb drive with the 4tb drive but i really didn't want my whole gaming rig to be up and running 24/7 since it really uses a lot of energy.And a low power server that is powered on 24/7 will be ideal... Also i want to use my gaming rig purely for gaming ...

 

I also considered myself a bit of a hardware junkie since i am constantly changing and upgrading my rig ....  So i had some spare parts lying around the house and thats where i first thought of building the server with the parts that i had laying around but i was able to make some money by selling everything and that's where i took the opportunity to buy the Lenovo TS140 for $210 you cant really beat the price... Much better than the offerings from a big nas company.

 

I think you have the wrong server here is the link  of the one i got and inside there are 5 sata ports on the mobo. As for HDD space, there are no spots for 2.5'' drives but its an ssd and i really know my way around computers so i think i can mount it anywhere i want there are 2 spots for 3.5'' drives, then a 3rd if you don't put a card reader or 3.5'' floppy in the slot. There's also space for one more 3.5'' drive, but I'll need a 5.25'' adapter. I also could pull out the dvdrom as well after the os install and get a 5th HDD in there with another 5.25'' adapter.So i think i can be safe for a little while until my media collection outgrows this server and then i will move on to another solution. I also bought 8GB of more ECC ram since i also want to play around with windows server essentials in a VM

 

I understand where you stand on group buying so as of right now that wont be a problem ..

 

I hope i could explained myself better

 

Thank you for you patience

 

Shremi

 

 

 

[First time going unraid here need some advice!]

Hello Guys

 

Since there are no introductions on the forum i would like to introduce myself ....

 

I am a complete noob when it comes to Linux/Terminal commands .. but i am not afraid to learn and i know i will have some hiccups along the way so please bare with me ... I also have experience in assembling computers and in the hackintosh world so i guess there isn't anything with the proper guidance can be obtained ...

 

I was planning to go with a Qnap/Synology solution but when i saw the specs they offered and the price i really felt i they are asking way too much for what they offer ...

 

My first idea was to use some old hardware i had laying around to build a server so did the research and then a deal came up for the Lenovo TS 140 the i3 version and i really could pass it up ... So bought it and here is everything i have in order to use for my server :

 

-Levovo Ts 140 server with the i3 version

-2TB WD green formatted NTFS which currently holds my media collection

-4TB WD green brand new

-64GB SSD Crucial M4

- I also have a free copy of Windows Server Essentials 2012

 

I have also spent some time reading on the forums and correctc me if im wrong but as of right now the best way to go for a new build  would be to use the last beta and dockerize all of the plugins right ?

 

And if i undersstood right the process should be :

1.- Creating the USB ( I plan on purchasing a key i dont know if in the forum you allow to pony up with someone else to buy 2 keys so it can be a little cheaper)

2.- Installing unraid and make sure everything works from the WEB gui

3.- Format all of the drives i currently plan on formatting the 4TB and use the 64 SSD as cache formatted as Bfrs in order to use docker.

4.-Start by creating the shares and then transfer my current media to the 4TB drive

5.- Install the 2TB drive and create or add it to the array

6.- Enable Docker

7.- Install gfjardim pluging

8.- Try to add all of the docker containers that i want to use withing the plugin (Sab, Sickbeard,NZbget,Torrent, Couchpotato,Plex) Pretty much here is where i will run into all of the problems but i hope with the help of the forum i could get things to work.

9.- Profit ? ;D

 

Hopefully i could set everything and have it up and running over the weekend.

 

And then if everything works as it should i would like to experiment by adding a VM with the 2012 Essentials that i have.

 

Also if you guys are interested i could probably record the whole thing and upload it to youtube so we can have like a tutorial guide .

 

Let me know if i missed anything

 

Thanks all

 

Shremi