Newbie Hardware questions

[panda]

Hello to all.

I am planning to build an unraid server for media purposes and will appreciate the help regarding the folowing Hardware:

1. ?Core i3 550, 3.2GHz, s1156, 4MB, GPU Core, Tray?

2. Asus ?P7H55-M LX s1156 Core i3/i5/i7, Intel H55, DDR3 1333, PCI-E?

3. ?2x2GB Kingston HyperX Blu Dual Channel? DDR3 1600MHz

4. CoolerMaster ?CM 690 II Plus Black ATX Case

5. Corsair ?CX 600W Active PFC 12cm Fan ?

 

If there is a step by step guide regarding installation, HDD PreClear etc please direct me to it.

 

thank you

[rich.bingham]

I'm not familiar with your hardware selections so I'll let others comment on them, however the Configuration Tutorial should help get you up and running.

 

Other useful reference links

[Rajahal]

That motherboard has no onboard video, so I would recommend choosing something else.  I'm not terribly fond of that case either.  How many drives do you want to support, and what kind of add-ons (if any) do you want to run on your server?

[NodNarb012]

I'm not familiar with your hardware selections so I'll let others comment on them, however the Configuration Tutorial should help get you up and running.

 

Other useful reference links

 

Thanks for that link to the Configuration Tutorial.  I had some questions about the preclear process and was able to find the answers I was looking for.

[loadme]

here is another noob question for you guys

 

 

if i hot-unplug any drive from a cage, while unraid is running, what exactly happens?

will the array stop? is only data from that particular drive not available?

 

 

and what happens if i hot-unplug two or more drives from cages?

 

thanks

 

 

 

[Joe L.]

here is another noob question for you guys

 

 

if i hot-unplug any drive from a cage, while unraid is running, what exactly happens?

will the array stop? is only data from that particular drive not available?

 

 

and what happens if i hot-unplug two or more drives from cages?

 

thanks

 

 

 

First, unRAID is not a hot-plugable OS, so don't go unplugging and plugging drives in...  (especially plugging drives in)

 

If you were to disconnect 1 drive, unRAID would simulate it by reading from ALL the remaining drives.  You would still be able to read ALL of its files.

 

If you were to write to the missing drive unRAID would simulate it by first reading all the remaining drives and then calculating parity based on what it simulates and writing parity accordingly... That means you can still write to the missing drive as if it was still there.  If you did not look at the management interface, other than slightly slower performance, you might not know it was missing. 

 

I've played 4 different DVD ISO images simultaneously to different media players in my home from a simulated "failed" drive in a test I made when I first set up my server.

 

When you replace the missing drive, the simulated contents will be re-constructed and written back to it, including any "writes" you might have made while it was missing.

 

If two drives are disconnected/failed, the array will not start, you'll lose the data on both the missing drives (If they really are failed)

 

Joe L.

[panda]

Hi Rajahal

Thank you for your reply.

Regarding the Mobo i will try to find something else sutable with i3. Any recomendation will be appreciated (Asus prefered?)

As for the number of drives i will start with 6 (including parity and cach) and eventually step up to 8-9

I will add the Cooler Master STB-3T4-E3-GP Hard Drive Removable Storage for the rest with a SATA Expansion Card.

Regards

[Rajahal]

This may be way out of your budget, but I can personally vouch for this board being absolutely awesome for unRAID, especially when paired with an i3:

 

SUPERMICRO MBD-X8SIL-F-O

 

I actually haven't found a single Asus board that I like and would recommend to others, in general I've found Asus boards to be unreliable and finicky.  Maybe I've just gotten unlucky.  I prefer Supermicro and Biostar.

[ccruzen]

That motherboard has no onboard video, so I would recommend choosing something else.  I'm not terribly fond of that case either.  How many drives do you want to support, and what kind of add-ons (if any) do you want to run on your server?

 

I was also checking out that board since it's got a PCI-e x16 and PCI-e x4.  I might be wrong but as long as you use a compatible (i3) processor it sort of does have on-board video right?  Also, my question, with the two > PCI-e x4 slots, shouldn't this be able to handle 2 of the SUPERMICRO AOC-SASLP-MV8's?  Please correct me if I'm wrong.  Looking to put together my first unRAID build and want to be future-proofed without breaking the bank and thought this mobo looked good.

[Rajahal]

That motherboard has no onboard video, so I would recommend choosing something else.  I'm not terribly fond of that case either.  How many drives do you want to support, and what kind of add-ons (if any) do you want to run on your server?

 

I was also checking out that board since it's got a PCI-e x16 and PCI-e x4.  I might be wrong but as long as you use a compatible (i3) processor it sort of does have on-board video right?  Also, my question, with the two > PCI-e x4 slots, shouldn't this be able to handle 2 of the SUPERMICRO AOC-SASLP-MV8's?  Please correct me if I'm wrong.  Looking to put together my first unRAID build and want to be future-proofed without breaking the bank and thought this mobo looked good.

 

You are right, I always forget about the built-in GPU in the i3 CPUs.  No onboard video needed, the i3 takes care of it.  The board just has to have the appropriate video out ports, which this one does.

 

Yes, the board should be able to handle two Supermicro cards.  However, the only way to know for sure it to try it.  Alternatively, you can contact Asus and ask if it will work.  The only potential issue is if the x16 slot is designed to only accept video cards, which is an issue I've seen with other budget Asus boards.  Newegg was great about giving me a full refund, though, so it still might be worth a shot even if it doesn't work.