May 8, 201115 yr Hello dear reader! Pre-Post First of all, I know I have not used the topic layout as stated in the "Read Me First" topic. Since I'm currently still in the hardware selection phase ill use a text layout. In Stage 2, Ordering and Compiling stage I will change to the actual layout. Introduction Untill now I have been using a USB 1.5 TB HDD as my media drive and since it has been fully loaded I started filling up all free space on my laptop drive. Since thats full now aswell I think it is time to get a media server capable of saving my movie and tv serie collection in case of hdd failures. I would have big trouble sleeping if my whole library is lost! unRAID is the logical second step so i've read . Secondly I am trying to make the server as cheap as possible as we have recently moved homes I do not have alot of spare money left over. Purpose of the server Purpose of the media server: The Media frontend which I am using is XBMC on a Windows 7 HTPC. Furthermore I also use a laptop in the bedroom to watch my movies. The server which I am building must be the "can-do-it-all backend. This means I would like to run the well-known combination of Sab + SickB + CouchP. Furthermore I would like to run a single SQL database to synchronize the XBMC databases. Finally, it should keep my data safe ^^. The Build After alot of reading on the forums around here I have come to the following build: Product Price 1x Cooler Master Elite 335 € 30,50 1x Asrock 880GM-LE € 53,39 1x AMD Athlon II X2 245e € 48,20 1x Corsair Builder CX430 € 35,28 1x Kingston ValueRAM KVR1333D3N9/2G € 18,50 3x Hitachi Deskstar 5K3000, 2TB € 183,39 + TOTAL: € 369, Reasoning Behind Build CASE: I was looking for the cheapest option which is capable to store atleast HDD's. Furthermore it should be able to stand on the tray in my closet with a max height of 40cm. MOBO: Asrock is one of the cheaper brands and still of good quality. It has 6 SATA slots one PCIe 16x slot and an additional PCIe slot. CPU: This is one of the cheaper dual core processors and also has low power usage. As far as I understood in order to be able to stream media and download/unrar/par using sabnzbd simultaniously a dual core processor is a must? PSU: This is an oftenly used PSU and often recommended by Raj. It must be good, right... RAM: Kingston is a brand of good quality and its 1333Mhz. Why not spend the €2 extra and get the fastest possible for the mobo right? HDD: Hitachi are the HDD which are most care-free and have been proven to be working with unRAID. Furthermore this was the cheapest of the brands. Questions 1. Do you have any suggestions on the build. As said before I would like to make it as cheap as possible. Can I maybe cut some costs on something? 2. I have a SanDisk Cruzer 4gb laying around. Are these known to be trustworthy flash disk and good as an OS Flash Drive? What if the flash drive dies. Will I lose data? 3. Have I missed anything? Final Remarks I would already like to thank you for the time taken to read this thread and also my thanks in advance for taking the time to helping a first time unRAID user out with my first setup! I can't wait to start ordering and building to enter the world of unRAID and the idea of my library being in safe hands sounds good aswell! Cheers, Jan-Willem (Netherlands)
May 12, 201115 yr 1. Do you have any suggestions on the build. As said before I would like to make it as cheap as possible. Can I maybe cut some costs on something? Only thing I notice, this mobo has the Realtek 8111 chipset. If you search, you will see a bunch of us have had issues with this and had to go with external NIC cards - which in your case would burn that one PCI-E slot you have. The chipset may work fine, may not. Maybe check the post for Raj's Prototype Designs. Lot of good ideas there for mobo options. 2. I have a SanDisk Cruzer 4gb laying around. Are these known to be trustworthy flash disk and good as an OS Flash Drive? What if the flash drive dies. Will I lose data? Not sure about the drive itself, but if it does die, no, you will not lose your data. Most of us keep a backup of the contents of the disk. If it dies, load the backup into a new one. Your config is all maintained on files. If you get a Plus or Pro license, that key is tied to the GUID of the key, but Tom has been pretty good about replacing them. One of the reasons a bunch of us get the two key combo's. 3. Have I missed anything? Cables? OEM drives typically do not come with Sata cables... Otherwise build looks good. Shawn
May 12, 201115 yr I don't think you'll have an issue with the motherboard, NIC included. It's the 8111E (take note of the "E") that many seem to have issues with. The Cruzers are on the compatible list, what I would do though is boot up a free version of unRAID and ensure it produces a FULL GUID, that way you'll know incase you need to order another one. I do question whether or not that case will keep things cool though, despite its brand. If hell bent on it, I would definitely recommend a 120mm fan for the front. Here's one that isn't too loud at all and pushes a decent amount of air: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999346 Otherwise as Shawn mentioned, you'll want cables and such, so be sure not to forget those. I wouldn't recommend recycling old SATA cables, but, that's me.
May 12, 201115 yr Author Ok, thank you very much guys. I have just ordered the set including the missing cables. I still have a spare 120mm fan from my htpc which I can use. Once everuthing is delivered I will adjust the OP. So ill keep you posted
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