Hi,

I've two UNRAID server:

-one with Intel Pentium G3258 and 18 disks that works very well

-other is a hpe proliant microserver gen10 with cpu amd opteron x3216 apu (only two threads as G3258) but 8Gb ddr4. It has two disks actually, one WD Caviar black 6TB (cmr) and second WD Blue 2TB (old model CMR), no parity for now. I use this pc only for storage, no plugin, vm or docker. Unraid versione 6.11. The problem is that the cpu go to 75%-100% usage only for write or read lots of file on Gigabit lan.

Yesterday I had to reboot cause WD blue give read errors (cpu at 100%) and then the disk didn't show me anything (no files, no temp, no possibility to do a smart test)...luckly after a reboot everythig restart to work. Disks are more or less 10000 hours, no smart errors.

My answer is: is the problem the cpu or something else? I want to add 2 more disks, but if the problem is the (slow) cpu i will switch to a pc with better hardware. I don't want to have problem to this storage cause i will use in production and I'm afraid that adding a parity disk and cache disk the situation will become worse....

Thanks to those who can help me

 

CPU should be fine. 

One of my backup servers is an  HP N40L with a Turion 1.5Ghz Dual core which is a slower AMD dual core for over 10 years ago.

That runs just fine with 4 HDD + Parity using 3-4TB drives.

 

I don't always manage to saturate the Gbit connection on upload, depending on the file sizes I'm transfering but it's been perfectly robust.

When I used it previous as my main NAS, It would struggle to stream hi-res video if I was dumping a lot of data to it but that's somewhat a limit of the drives if writing direct to the array.

 

Do you get the same issue from both drives? If possible test with files / directories that are on one drive or the other.

 

I would probably start with a SMART short self test on each drive, check/swap the sata cables etc.

Possible that if you are experiencing read errors then this will cause poor performance and the read error count does reset during a reboot so it would be consitant with a drive issue or drive connection issue.

 

 

 

 

It is possible that the AMD Opteron X3216 APU is the bottleneck in your system when it comes to file read/write operations. However, it could also be due to other factors, such as the amount of RAM, the speed of the disks, or the network interface.

Adding two more disks to the system may put additional strain on the CPU and exacerbate the performance issues. Adding a parity disk and cache disk may also worsen the situation.

Before making any decisions about upgrading your hardware, I would suggest trying to identify the root cause of the performance issues. You may want to consider monitoring the system's CPU, memory, and disk usage during file read/write operations to see if any of these resources are being fully utilized. You may also want to check if there are any bottlenecks in the network.

It's also worth considering if there are any software optimizations you can make to improve performance, such as changing the network protocol or tweaking Unraid settings.

Ultimately, if you are using the storage in a production environment and reliability is critical, it may be worthwhile to invest in hardware that is more robust and better suited to your needs. For any HPE related issues you can reach HPE Community experts.

Thank you for your answers. I took the time to do some tests:
I created two shared folders on unraid, one on the wd blue drive and one on the wd black drive. I then copied a 13GB folder of data (photos and videos) first to one share, then deleted it, and then did the same on the other.
Results (copy on Gigabit lan from computer with nvme ssd):
WD BLUE: write time 3m53sec, cpu usage 40-100%, lan max speed 109MB/s
WD BLACK: write time 2m52sec, cpu usage 40-100%, lan max speed 109MB/s

Ram usage: 22% of 8GB ddr4
VM: no
Docker: no
No lan traffic, only one pc and the microserver unraid

I really think the problem is the cpu, disks seems ok. 
Now I am facing a doubt: I have a dual xeon 2680V3 10core workstation, 20threads x 2, so 40threads, 64GB ram. I would like to use it, so that I can configure some VMs and dockers as well, but I am very concerned about the power consumption, which is around 200watts when it is on bios and 20w when it is off (unbelievable but true, measured via ups powerstation).

Is there any way to lower the consumption of the dual xeon by a lot, or should I sell both the hp microserver and the dual xeon workstation and buy new hardware, such as a Ryzen 5600G?

 

 

8 hours ago, Andreidos said:

Now I am facing a doubt: I have a dual xeon 2680V3 10core workstation, 20threads x 2, so 40threads, 64GB ram. I would like to use it, so that I can configure some VMs and dockers as well, but I am very concerned about the power consumption, which is around 200watts when it is on bios and 20w when it is off (unbelievable but true, measured via ups powerstation).

Is there any way to lower the consumption of the dual xeon by a lot, or should I sell both the hp microserver and the dual xeon workstation and buy new hardware, such as a Ryzen 5600G?

 

 

 

200W does seem high, can you remove one CPU? Most boards can be configured this way. 

Do you have a lot of high speed fans, 10G network, Raid cards, SAS drives etc?

Perhaps worth installing a fresh trial of Unraid on another cheap USB stick... only a few $ for a cheal USB 2 stick for 30 days to test the power consumption once booted and the powersaving is active. At least you know what you're dealing with then.

 

My single Xeon 2660 V3 in a supermicro workstation board idles around 50-55W with drives spun down and CPU governer set to Power Save.

Approx 65-70W at the wall as the losses are relatively high through the inexpensive UPS.

 

I also had another 2660V3 with 32GB (4 x udimm) in an X99 board (test system) and for just the board, CPU, cooler, memory + GT710 for video that was ~35W idle on an 15 year old Antec 80+ green power 380W PSU so the Xeons can be relatively efficient once tamed.

 

 

If you do build new, I would suggest Intel, the iGPU quicksync is best for transcoding should you host Plex etc. and AMD are no longer the inexpensive option.

Both PC's in the house have AMD CPU's but my server is likely to be intel as the linux compatibility has always seemed a little better.

Thanks, great suggestion to use the trial to test the workstation and real consumption (I should also have some old 80GB sata 3.5 disks somewhere).
The workstation has no add-on cards, it is an HP Z820 which has both the lsi sas sata controller and the intel controller integrated into the motherboard. So I think I could even mount sas disks.
It also currently mounts a GeForce 1080 video card, but I don't think I would use that except in a vm.
Thanks also for the suggestion for a new build, I would opt for an i3 12100 with integrated gpu, ddr4 and low power consumption
I will definitely do some testing this weekend.

Hi,
I did some testing today on the Z820 workstation. I checked more and the processors are two E2680v2 20core 40threads, 64GB ddr3.
I installed the unRAID trial, two 80GB 3.5 disks at 7200rpm, GeForce 1080, and the power consumption was 135-150watts
Then I started the following tests:
-installed cpu governor plugin and set to power save: no change in watts consumption
-bios: tests done in order and one at a time, enabled s5 power save status, disabled turbo mode, disabled hyper treading, enabled only one processor (so one out of two), enabled hp cecp (China Energy Conservation Program), lowered fan speed: no noticeable improvement in watts consumption
-removed video card to try headless boot: workstation won't start (rightly so)
-removed gtx 1080 and mounted a very old gt120: consumption dropped about 10watts.
Unfortunately 135-150watts/hours in idle are very high (126-140watts with the gt120), but this workstation also has many advantages, such as the ability to mount sas disks, many pci-e slots to mount 3 gpus and a 10Gbps card for example.

I have also noticed that using unRAID on this system is very fast, even in installations and in reading and saving parameters.

 

Small OT, on Friday I repaired a power supply to a customer and in return he lent/gifted me this build: i7 4820k, Asus p9x79ws (motherboard that I love). Could I use this for unRAID as a good compromise between performance and power consumption, combined with a good plus gold power supply?