I have low end hardware serving many containers via TrueNAS, why would I want UnRAID?


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I purchased a FreeNAS Mini about 6 years ago. It has given me no problem. It uses containers to provide the illusion of entire VMs and multiple installed OSes. That’s tremendously simplified in ways I’m too ignorant to explain.  There are many well-informed individuals in FreeNAS forums. 

 

I know enough to get by, and very little more. I know my FreeNAS runs on an Atom 8 core processor with 32MB RAM, and the storage is 2 mirrors such that each mirror provides 4TB using 4 drives that are all 7200 RPM Western Digital Red NAS. I’ve closely followed the latest released OS train, so maybe I should call my FreeNAS Mini a TrueNAS Mini?  I run PLEX hosting about 400 DVDs I own, 20 years of family videos and photos, and many more server containers supporting my software development.  The FreeNAS also serves Cloud and NAS needs to my family of 5.

 

I have a friend I enormously respect, saying I should be running UnRAID. I don’t understand why I would want to on my very low-end hardware. He and I are swamped. Our spare time to talk is limited. Is there someone out there who can help me deeply understand what UnRAID is so I can decide whether to go this route? The money to purchase UnRAID software ($129) IS NOT currently a concern. Money to buy hardware (>$200) IS a concern. I’m looking to UnRAID to efficiently contain and serve many software stacks so my low-end hardware can be repurposed on the fly in the way I need it simply by me trying to use it in that different way.

 

In my home, the reality is we don’t ask the FreeNAS server to do more than one or two things at a time because there are only 5 of us.  So long as the FreeNAS server can wake the needed one or two sleeping containers in a reasonable time, the illusion remains unspoiled.

 

To who it may concern, I need to learn, but I seem to be looking in the wrong places for the information I’m looking.  I find troubleshooting stories that end in success or just dead-end all too often.  I need information similar to what can be obtained about the workings of Docker.  I quickly came to understand what a Docker container is.  And VirtualBox is no mystery to me.  Hypervisors Type 1 and 2 would be a mystery if there weren’t much documentation explaining them.  The internet covers it over and over. I have begun to imagine that UnRAID cannot be faithfully summed up in a few metaphorizes.

 

I suspect UnRAID is a Type 1 Hypervisor.  The web site probably says that somewhere in plain sight.  I digress.  So my previous point means I need disk space for the OSes for every one of my software stacks.  Someone help me out, please?

 

Thank you guys!  I'm sure someone will enjoy responding :)

 

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20 hours ago, Vega Alpha said:

help me deeply understand what UnRAID is

You can start here and dig as deeply as you want to.  Here are the highlights:

 

unRAID lets you do the following:

  • run a pure NAS doing nothing more than serving up files to various clients from unRAID storage
  • host Docker containers (basically self-contained application environments) for applications such as Plex/Emby/Jellyfin, cloud backup, downloaders, and many, many other uses (there are hundreds if not thousands of available docker containers and plugins for unRAID)
  • host VMs (very hardware dependent)

unRAID runs on virtually any hardware but hardware can either limit or expand its capabilities.

 

unRAID, as the name suggests, is not RAID.  RAID is not supported in the unRAID array.  However, the unRAID array can be protected from the failure of one or two data disks by one or two parity disks.  Each array drive contains its own files ystem and can be read outside of unRAID by anything that recognizes the file system (Reiser FS - no longer recommended but still supported, XFS or Btrfs).  ZFS is also supported via a plugin.

 

You may be perfectly happy with what you have or you may find that unRAID gives you something you do not have.

 

The Atom is a fine processor for pure NAS functions but it may struggle a bit with a lot of Docker containers and would generally not be recommended for VM use.

 

Once you have a general idea about what unRAID can do, posting specific questions in these forums will get you some additional and more detailed responses.

 

One of the best things about unRAID is this forum and the very helpful people standing by to answer your questions and help with problems.

Edited by Hoopster
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53 minutes ago, Vega Alpha said:

Is it possible to run a Docker container on unRAID without it being wrapped in a VM?

Docker containers and VMs are completely separate and you can run one without the other. 

 

VMs are for running other operating systems and associated applications.  Docker is built-into unRAID (as is a hypervisor for VMs) and does not require a separate OS install although many docker containers are built on scaled-down Linux distros such as Alpine.  In many ways a docker container can be thought of as lightweight VM because they can contain OS, application and file system; however, they are not nearly as hardware intensive as a VM.

 

Here is a good explanation of Docker and how it compares to a VM.

 

I have about 20 Docker containers installed and two VMs.

Edited by Hoopster
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