Building an Unraid NAS from scratch - Advice needed

[Daaadou]

Hey there, 

Brand new to Unraid, I'm starting this post to get a feedback about my hardware shopping list and to get some best practices.  

 

First of all, I need to install a NAS at home to isolate the HDD in a room where we are not spending our time because they are noisy. I would also like to have access to data from any computers in the house. 

It will mainly be used to store some media files, big one, like 1:1 mkv rip I am making from my media collection (900 blu ray, 400 dvd and 250 4k disks). I am using madvr on some other computer to do the playback, the image quality is better on a videoprojector than with my panasonic blu ray player...  

Also music files so it is possible to listen to my library from the bedroom or the living room. 

 

Why Unraid? First of all because it is flexible, I don't want to invest in all the disks at the same time like zfs would ask me to. I also don't want to have a giant pool like in a classical raid meaning if anything goes wrong, I lose everyting. 

I also want the disks to be in a dedicated hardware and software, I think it is better for them to be operated this way in the long run. 

Also, the ease of use of the operating system, the ability to have the data available 24/7 from a device that has a low consumption unlike the two other computers in the house equipped with recent GPUs. 

At this point, I have read some people are using their NAS with Proxmox and Unraid in a VM so that they can use it also for domotic purpose using another dedicated VM, I am not at that level so far But I could be interested in the future. 

 

I don't need the highest performance since the main usage will be to store massive amount of video files and make them available for the other computer over a 2.5Gbe network I've set up at home. No critical data. 

 

Here is the hardware I have chosen so far : 

Node 304 white

Asrock H670 M ITX

Intel 12100

Crucial DDR4 2400Mhz 2x8Gb

 

I chose the Node for its form factor and also because white is WAF compliant since the NAS will be in the main room right next to the router (a freebox delta, it has a SFP+ 10gbe output, I will use a Qnap switch to convert 10gbe to 2.5gbe). 

I chose the asrock even if it is a bit expensive because it supports recent Intel processor and it has 2.5GBe support. 

I chose the 12100 because it is a solid performer and requires very low electrical consumption. Plus it has an iGPU. 

The Crucial is something I got from a previous pc that died a few months ago, I think it is enough for what I intend to do. 

 

I am looking for a nvme, a power supply and an extension card to get the last two hdds in place since the mobo provides only 4 sata port. 

I guess 500GB for the nvme is far from enough, right? 

For the PSU, I'm not finding anything below 300watts nor fully modular. I guess I need to go with SFF PSU, what do you guys think? 

For the extension card, I don't know how it works, should I plug one in the PCIE port? And then connect all disks to it or also use the mobo SATA port? 

If you could propose some references or any insight. 

 

About the storage and the HDDs. 

I own one 4TB HDD but this one will only be temporary in the NAS. 

I own two Ultrastar HC560, 20TB each HDDs. These guys are loud

Currently, they are full, formatted in NTFS and in a Windows 11 operated full tower in the living room. 

 

My plan is to buy another 20TB disk, fit it in inside the Unraid NAS, format it to XFS (good choice?) and start transferring data from one of the full disk to this disk. 

Then get the disk I just emptied out of the Windows tower and put it in the Unraid NAS, format it and do the same trick. 

I'll probably use the last disk as parity or maybe not, the disks have been bought during the last six months (not at the same time) so I think it is OK to put a parity in place a bit later in the year. 

I'll probably go for a total of 6 20TB HDDs, one dedicated for parity. 

 

I'm here so you guys can give me a proper feedback, first of all about if my media storage use case will be OK, what about my shopping list, should I optimize it? Is the workflow I have imagined to transfer the disk from Windows to Unraid is doable? 

 

 

[Lolight]

On 1/13/2023 at 2:17 PM, Daaadou said:

Node 304 white

I chose the Node for its form factor and also because white is WAF compliant since the NAS will be in the main room right next to the router (a freebox delta, it has a SFP+ 10gbe output, I will use a Qnap switch to convert 10gbe to 2.5gbe). 

 

I am looking for a nvme, a power supply and an extension card to get the last two hdds in place since the mobo provides only 4 sata port. 

 

For the PSU, I'm not finding anything below 300watts nor fully modular. I guess I need to go with SFF PSU, what do you guys think? 

 

I'll probably go for a total of 6 20TB HDDs, one dedicated for parity.

 

Welcome!

 

I'm not a fan of small cases no matter how aesthetically pleasing they are.

Too many functional drawbacks IMO: limitations on storage expandability, airflow, upgradability and just generally harder to work with.

 

I'd say the Node 804 is clearly superior on all those factors - accepts bigger mATX motherboards (easily found with 6-8 SATA ports), has plenty of airflow for HD's cooling, lots of room for expansion and easy to work on.

You won't have a need for a HBA card either.

As for a PSU (probably the most overlooked component) get the highest quality ATX model meeting your budget, from a reputable brand.

Preferably of the tier A grade (single rail) in the lowest available at your local market wattage: https://cultists.network/140/psu-tier-list/

[Daaadou]

Hello lolight, 

Thank you for your answer. 

You're right, it makes a lot of sense going with the 804 instead. First, I'll save a few bucks on the micro ATX as it is cheaper and I won't need an expansion card. 
Second, and probably most important, you make a very valid point about having a better cooling over all, shall be a great thing for the disks on the longer run I guess. 

About the PSU, you are totally right, I won't overlook it, a good PSU will enhance the MTBF of all other components of the unit because it delivers a better current. 

I'll look at your link, thank you very much. 

About the motherboard, micro ATX, 8 SATA ports, 2.5GBe natively, would you know a reference? Is there a similar website for the tier list mobo? 

[Lolight]

10 hours ago, Daaadou said:

About the motherboard, micro ATX, 8 SATA ports, 2.5GBe natively, would you know a reference? Is there a similar website for the tier list mobo? 

As to finding a suitable motherboard and ensuring general system compatibility https://pcpartpicker.com/list/ could be real helpful.

I'm not aware of similar to PSU tiered mobo lists.