I was wondering if anyone had any ideas if it were possible to mirror one complete RAID array to another in real-time.  I am building a new house and their will be two structures on the property.  I would like to build two identical RAID arrays and place one in each building.  The second backup array will be connected to the network via direct burial CAT6 cable.  This way if the house were to burn, the backup array should be secure.  It's unlikely a fire would breakout in both locations, unless it was arson or some horrible disaster.

 

I already have a software application where I can schedule a backup at a certain time and each day, any new or modified files can be sent to the backup array.  I currently use this software, and I know it will work fine.

 

However, it would be nice if I could have real-time mirroring.  Basically I want a write to go to two unRAID arrays, and all reads to just come off the primary array in the house.

 

Any ideas if this is possible, or how complex it might be.

Since the backup system is not being loaded the simplest solution is to run rsync on it very often. Every 10 or 15 minutes. It could even run every five minutes.

Since the backup system is not being loaded the simplest solution is to run rsync on it very often. Every 10 or 15 minutes. It could even run every five minutes.

 

I'll look into that.  My only concern is what the load would be on the main server when rsync runs.  This is a media server.  I currently only write to it, when no one is reading from it, so no one has to worry about any hiccups in the stream.  However, if rsync tries to do its thing to a drive while people are streaming from it, it might cause a hiccup or prolonged problem.

 

I guess maybe I could just run a script when I leave the terminal, let it do its thing once and be done.  I guess I was looking for a WHS duplication type feature that immediately performed the duplication.  It is probably overkill to do that, but it does provide the most protection.

rsync lets you limit the bandwidth that is uses in kBps. Setting a low enough limit should not effect performance on the source server.

 

Your initial plan would require all of the client PCs that write to the server set be modified...