Hi All,

 

Been trawling through the forums and have settled on building an unraid server.  Just want some questions clarified though just to make sure.

 

Main requirement is that it is able to be a torrent box which is left on 24/7 and at the same time able to handle parallel streaming of 3 or 4 x 1080p videos to 4 different media boxes.  Cabled gigabit network is in place and I also want something that will not use much power.

 

I will have at least 6 x 2tb drives, 1 for parity and the other for cache.  So a board with 6 Sata ports is a must, expansion through PCI would be good.

 

I was looking at the Atom range from Supermicro and Zotac.  Will the grunt of the atom be enough to do the above?

 

Secondly, is there anyway to be sent notifications that drives are failing or running in a degraded state?

 

Thanks for the help guys.

 

 

 

Hi All,

 

Been trawling through the forums and have settled on building an unraid server.  Just want some questions clarified though just to make sure.

 

Main requirement is that it is able to be a torrent box which is left on 24/7 and at the same time able to handle parallel streaming of 3 or 4 x 1080p videos to 4 different media boxes.  Cabled gigabit network is in place and I also want something that will not use much power.

 

I will have at least 6 x 2tb drives, 1 for parity and the other for cache.  So a board with 6 Sata ports is a must, expansion through PCI would be good.

 

I was looking at the Atom range from Supermicro and Zotac.  Will the grunt of the atom be enough to do the above?

 

Secondly, is there anyway to be sent notifications that drives are failing or running in a degraded state?

 

Thanks for the help guys.

 

 

 

 

Atom will probably not be enough power to run torrents and stream to 4 different devices.

 

You can install email notification through unMenu, it is pretty straight forward to get running.  Have a look through the unRAID Wiki for a lot more information.

...Atom will be on a sharp edge, depending on the model.

Although with a SM board and two NICs, you can achieve it with a D525, I think.

If you want to play it safe, go for an i3...it will run at a low power level when idle, but has some headroom.

Combine it with a XEON UP board from SM and you will have a real steady workhorse.

If low power is the key there are a few websites that show an intel i3 will idle at clost to an atom.

 

Josh

Thanks for the replies guys.  Looks like I will go the i3-2100t then.  I will have a look at the Xeon Up board but not sure if we can get it here in Australia...

Another thing. Is the standard fan on the i3 quiet?  And what case do you recommend if I want hotswappable drives?

 

Cheers!

Ok guys,

 

I have decided on the following parts.  Let me know what you think.

 

1. Fractal Design Define Mini

2. Intel i3-2100t

3. Asus P8H67-I Mini ITX

4. Corsair CMSO4GX3M1A1333C9 4GB PC-10600 SODIMM

5. Seasonic S12II 430w Power Supply

6. 6 x 2TB Hitachi Deskstar 5k3000 or should I get 2 x 7K3000 for parity and cache and run these on the Sata III ports?

 

Thanks again

 

 

From what I've read the 2100 and 2100t have essentially equal power consumption at idle. That suggests that with the right motherboard (volt/clock options) you could get the same or better energy savings for less money, with higher potential performance, with a plain 2100.

 

I'll be helping a friend assemble a very similar system soon so would love to hear experience vs. rumor.

Yeah was thinking about the 2100 but didn't want to mess about as it was about 20 dollars cheaper only.  I hope the motherboard will have no issues.  Someone has tried the P8H67-M LE board and he had trouble with ethernet so is running the 5.0Beta.  I am assuming this board will be the same and will also run into that issue.

 

3. Asus P8H67-I Mini ITX

 

 

...looks like this mobo comes with a Realtek 8111E NIC.

There are mixed reports recently with that model from the 8111 family.

See the section under "Hardware known to NOT work" in the wiki: http://lime-technology.com/wiki/index.php?title=Hardware_Compatibility

If you want to play it save, go for an intel based NIC.

The SM boards normally have these. The X9SCL(-F) looks promising.

If you were able to source the Atom board, the sandy-bridge board should be available in AUS, too...won't it?

Another thing. Is the standard fan on the i3 quiet?  And what case do you recommend if I want hotswappable drives?

 

Cheers!

 

I had mixed results. All the standard fans seem to be of the same make/model up to 75/95W TDP.

My boxed fan of my L-XEON (45WTDP) was VERY noisy, while another boxed i3-540 (75WTDP) was much, much quieter.

Actually, I found that the boxed versions are cheaper ATM over here. Alternative quiet fans start from around 15USD

and you can always mount/exchange it later.

Hi Ford Perfect, thanks for the reply.

 

Bugger, I thought I had my build down pat haha.  The supermicro boards are very expensive in Australia. About double the price of the US.  I was unable to source the Atom SM bored here.  Saw them on Ebay.

 

I will see what other boards there are.  Not many in the mitx class.  Will see if Intel has a board with 6 sata ports.

 

I will be getting the noctua u9b se2 cooler, as I have another one of their other coolers which is quiet.  Just hope it will fit on whatever board I choose.

 

Bugger, I thought I had my build down pat haha.  The supermicro boards are very expensive in Australia. About double the price of the US.  I was unable to source the Atom SM bored here.  Saw them on Ebay.

 

I remember being in the same situation around 1.5 years ago, here in europe.

Now mostly all SM boards are listed in every price/retail-portal at reasonable rates.

One option could be to install an extra low-profile Intel-based NIC but you'll be loosing one(the?)PCIe slot to it.

I will see what other boards there are.  Not many in the mitx class.  Will see if Intel has a board with 6 sata ports.

Right! mITX was what you wanted...so an UP Xeon is out of the equation as well, sorry for that.

 

AFAIK there is none from intel or others, besides the Zotac boards.

The Zotac H55 mITX has 6 SATAs and Intel based NIC...but is based on the old socket 1156, so an i3-540 will do.

For the zotac H67 model (4xSATA3,2xSATA2), I could't find specs/model for the NIC.

 

I could go with an intel board and add a pci expansion card? However will that degrade performance?

I could go with an intel board and add a pci expansion card? However will that degrade performance?

 

OK, looks to me that we are mixing up some topics, like mobo/NIC make/model and PCI/PCIe expansions.

 

- An intel based mobo most likely will come with an intel based NIC (it does help to double check though  )

  In terms of networking you are on the safe side regards to hw-compatibility.

- if you prefer to go for a mobo with a non-intel based onboard NIC, you can always add another NIC (indet make/model) via an expansion slot.

  expansion slots are rare, especially on a mITX mobo (mostly they have only 1 pcs).

  You want to spare that slot to expand with a disk controller for future upgrades to your array, don't you?

  PCIe is beating PCI in performance and scalability (in PCI most likely all slots share the same bus, where PCIe slots are on different, independent lanes of the chipset)

  expanding your unRAID with a PCI based NIC is fine, performance wise, as long as it is a single port, I'd say.

  putting a sata controller on a PCI bank, would most likely result in a degration of performance (maybe one or two slots per card are fine for unRAID).

 

-> if you are willing to spend the expansion port to a NIC, performance is not an issue, regardless of PCI/PCIe types.

-> if expanding with a sata-controller, you wand a PCIe x4 or x8 slot (and card) if going for a 8port sata controller-card.

 

..most likely, with a mITX board you will only have ONE shot (NIC or disk ports).

Haha this is getting confusing.  Ok reason for going mitx was because of the fractal case but I just found out that it will accept micro and mini itx. So how about this board. intel dh67gd

http://www.intel.com/products/desktop/motherboards/db-DH67GD/DH67GD-overview.htm

 

Price is $115 and comes with 5 sata ports plus 1 pcie 16x graphic expansion and 1 pcie 2.0 expansion? I can then get a sata controller card with additional 4 ports. The maximum I can fit in the case is 8 drives provided I buy another adaptor for the case.  Which pcie controller card do you recommend which will not have any performance issues?

 

Do you think the sea sonic power supply I have chosen is enough to power the whole unit with say 8 drives?

Haha this is getting confusing.  Ok reason for going mitx was because of the fractal case but I just found out that it will accept micro and mini itx. So how about this board. intel dh67gd

http://www.intel.com/products/desktop/motherboards/db-DH67GD/DH67GD-overview.htm

 

Price is $115 and comes with 5 sata ports plus 1 pcie 16x graphic expansion and 1 pcie 2.0 expansion? I can then get a sata controller card with additional 4 ports. The maximum I can fit in the case is 8 drives provided I buy another adaptor for the case.  

 

I think it is not optimal...

- the PCIe x16 is noted for discrete graphics.

 You most likely do not need that, because the i3 has got an embedded GPU that should work with the mobo

 The slot might NOT work for other expansion than a GPU

- it has 2 pcs PCIe x1 slots...tooo slow for sata controllers....you would want PCIe x4 or x8.

 remember that each controller will also add to your electricity bill.

 

I know that some parts are hard to source at your side of the planet..

What about the professional variant with Q67 chipset?...comes with 1 pcs. PCIe x4 slots.

Price compared here in Europe is about 10% higher than the H67, though.

 

...there are some alternatives based on the older socket 1156.

 

Which pcie controller card do you recommend which will not have any performance issues?

 

...the SM AOC-SASLP-MV8 is one of the recommended cards.

It will give you connectivity for 8 additional drives. The performance penalty with it, compared to onboard-sata is minimal..

Best practice is to attach at least the parity disk to onboard-sata.

Newer unRAID (5.0 betas) have support for LSI 2008 based card....these are cheap floating around the bay...but it is beta still.

Do you think the sea sonic power supply I have chosen is enough to power the whole unit with say 8 drives?

 

...that PSU is reported as  being NOT a 12V single rail model.

You'll be wanting one.  

When you check specs...over here PSUs are often advertised with amps per rail,

like "12V1 17A, 12V2 17A", for your dual-rail PSU as an example.

However this only gives a "positive" for a non-single rail PSU.

Double check the specs upon purchase.

See the Wiki for measurements: http://lime-technology.com/wiki/index.php?title=PSU#Example

You want to be on the safe side upon spinning-up/boot. 8 Drives would draw (28W each, 28*8/12) approx 18A to 19A.

So one rail of your PSU with 17A is not quite fit for purpose and off by 10% of the original design.

With all green drives, it might do and survive  

Thanks so much for the assistance. I think I will get the super micro x9scm-f up xeon board from the USA. Will get it off ebay. I will also look at the seasonic fanless 460 watt psu. The build is now getting real expensive. Almost the same price as the synology ds1511 which I originally wanted to get haha

Thanks so much for the assistance. I think I will get the super micro x9scm-f up xeon board from the USA. Will get it off ebay. I will also look at the seasonic fanless 460 watt psu. The build is now getting real expensive. Almost the same price as the synology ds1511 which I originally wanted to get haha

 

Yes, I fully understand 

Is there a reason why you stick to 1155 socket...1156 would be cheaper and just as good, I think.

I am running a X8SIL-F with a XEON L3426 myself

But with a 1156 and i3-540 you have more boards to choose from the desktop family.

 

OK, final words...

Remember 2 things when still plan to go for a XEON server board.

 

- go for the "-F" model from SM, which has IPMI included.

  With this you do have a minimal GPU on board (not sure if the board would honor the i3 IGP)

- you will need ECC memory, even with the i3

 

...good luck!