Hi,

i guess the lounge is the only place where my question fits the most.

At the moment i use freenas and like to switch to unraid because of the easy expansion capabilities. 

 

I read a lot thread here in the forum and on reddit but it seems all people use unraid with virutalisation for vitual machines and containers. So i would like to know if theres a number of people who just use unraid as a nas.

 

In my serverrack there is a dedicated system for workloads, so i dont have any need to put them on unraid (and i dont like to). Thats make my question more clear, i guess.

 

For all those who will awnser my question, whats you reasons behind your decision? 

My backup server is just a NAS. 

19 minutes ago, teqqyde said:

i would like to know if theres a number of people who just use unraid as a nas.

Yes, many do.  Until version 6 of unRAID, a pure NAS is all it really was with some limited app functionality via plugins.  I started out that way but have expanded into Docker containers for the majority of applications and an occasional use VM or two for experimentation.

 

NAS remains the primary function of unRAID with core development focusing on that functionality as well as providing the Docker and VM foundational pieces.  Virtually all Docker containers and plugins are provided by third parties.  VMs are used for running alternate operating systems with unRAID as the host.

 

The reason I and others make extensive use of Docker and VMs (not so much in my case) is the appeal of one hardware platform handling multiple functions which reduces the need for additional hardware.  Of course, if you want to do that , you have to have the hardware that can handle it but many user have combined multiple PCs into one with unRAID.

 

Again, NAS is its core functionality and is at the root of what unRAID does.  Docker and VMs take advantage of having the data and the apps that work with it all on the same hardware platform.

 

EDIT: Here is a nice overview of unRAID and its functionality with version 6.

Edited February 18, 20215 yr by Hoopster

I used to have a separate unraid NAS and gaming rig, i have recently consolidated to unraid with a gaming VM.

It’s for sale FYI.

I run a few dockers like Plex and plugins on mine. I don't run any VM's at all. 

NAS only

On 2/18/2021 at 8:37 PM, teqqyde said:

... and like to switch to unraid because of the easy expansion capabilities.

 

I never used freenas for a long time so i cannot judge it but swapping hardware with unraid is indeed fairly easy to do.

As for our usecase:

1. Started with unraid just as a NAS 5 years ago.
2. Then added a second UnRaid box just for backups.
3. Now, we are slowly moving away from the NAS/data storage and use it mainly just for docker apps, VM's (win10 & pfSense) and cloud services.

The reason is that we have a whooping 3.5TB of data with only 1TB that's important. So we now have 2 unraid setups which is totally overkill for our needs...

I've had my unRAID since 2011 and only have used it as a movie & music server. In all these years I've only lost 2 drives that were easily replaced and never lost a byte.

I have been using UNRAID strictly as a NAS for 10 years?  11?  not sure.  still on the same hardware but second replacement PS, LOL.  And of course, all of the disks have been replaced.  

 

I have just built a new server to start using a docker VM, and am already thinking about how best to upgrade my NAS, and use another docker or three.  I'd like to replace the functionality of a couple of windows boxes and my two servers will be on all the time anyway, so i am trying to put that wasted power to good use.

 

As a NAS, i am unable to imagine a better solution than Unraid for an individual moron like myself.

 

 

And can I just say that guys like Hoopster and JorgeB are just great to have around?  You guys are so helpful, really appreciated

Edited March 25, 20215 yr by PeteAron