New to servers (and unraid) is it right for me?

[ReCoN]

I first came across unraid a few years ago when it was suggested as a good platform to base a home media server on it. I generally know my way around a pc, and know how to look up stuff if I come across something new, but I could literally write all of my technical knowledge of servers on a postage stamp. Things like hosting virtual machines sound cool, but I don’t really understand it. I would like to learn about these 'cool' things servers can do. I want to build a server that can:

 

1. Handle multiple blu-ray streams  over gigabit LAN

2. Allow users to Backup data to a dedicated area for each user.

3. Grant access to people on a different network, for example if someone is connected wirelessly to the internet they would still be able to access the files on the server

4.    Id like to be able to log into it and access files from miles away - is this even possible? what are the implications of doing so?

 

I am also interested in the idea of running programs off a server? In this way is it possible to use a lower powered laptop to run resource intensive applications?

I think Unraid would fulfil my needs, however I’m concerned that the read/write performance might be limited, how much would using a decent ssd as a cache drive help with write speed? Secondly the thought of running 18/9 data drives with only a single parity drive is of concern, from what I have read for an array this size dual parity is worthwhile. Is it possible to have hot spare drives within unraid in case of drive failure assuming it is at least as large as the parity drive?

 

Thanks

 

[Rajahal]

Any unRAID server using modern components will be able to handle 1, 2, and 3.  Since you say that you have little to no experience with servers, I would suggest that you put 4 on the back burner for now.  While it is technically possible to access your server and data remotely, it can also introduce a lot of risk if you don't know what you are doing.  unRAID is NOT a secure platform, and you should not connect your server directly to the internet.  Use a good quality router with built-in firewalls and other safeguards if you plan to use your unRAID server on an internet-connected network as most of us do.  If you need a router, I recommend the D-Link DIR-655.

 

There are a LOT of unRAID Add Ons.  Peruse this wiki page and see which ones catch your fancy.  No reason to use a laptop for extra processing power, a modest single or dual core CPU can handle most unRAID add-ons.

 

VMs (virtual machines) are another topic that I would suggest putting off until you are more familiar with the unRAID environment.  While there are some fabulous tutorials floating around, they aren't exactly a novice task.  Browse this thread and you'll see what I mean!

 

It is true that unRAID is currently limited to single parity no matter how many drives are in your array.  If you are really worried about it, your options are to use multiple smaller servers (maybe 5-10 disks each) or to manually duplicate your most critical data on multiple data disks within one server (which is the approach I take).  Hot swap is not currently possible, but some people have had limited success with 'warm swap' (meaning you have to stop the array before swapping disks).  However, one feature of unRAID that sets it apart from other RAID systems is that there's no lengthy downtime during disk management operations, such as parity syncs or data rebuilds.  Therefore, typically unRAID only requires minutes of downtime and in some cases a reboot as opposed to the 8+ hours of downtime required by most other RAID systems.  In this context, hot swap becomes less of a requirement and more of a luxury that you can afford to do without.

 

You can use unRAID's cache disk feature as a 'warm spare' (meaning a spare drive ready to take the place of a failed array drive, but manual intervention is still required).  Read this thread for all the pros and cons of using a cache drive.  SSDs are coming down in price and are being used more and more as cache drives.  They have a few unique benefits, namely lower power consumption, slightly faster performance (but not that much faster), and no spin-up lag.

 

If you are interested in building your own server, your first stop should be my Greenleaf Prototype Builds Blog.  Other important resources can be found stickied in the Hardware Forum.  If you are interested in purchasing a pre-built and pre-configured server, then my company as well as a few others would be happy to offer you our services.

 

Finally, and most importantly, welcome to the unRAID community!

[ReCoN]

Thank you Rajahal for your response. I should have mentioned that I live in the UK. I will buy a new router as the linksys one we have is quite a few years old, I have also been reading about installing third part firmware such as tomato to offer new features, as far as i can see getting QoS was a major feature but its included on the one you mentioned.  Are there any features in particular I should look for?

 

With regards to the networking im not entirely sure what i asked was clear. If i have my server attatched to network A can someone conected to the internet wirelessly via network B still wirelessly access the files on my server? My googling has led to creating a VPN but i'm not entirely sure if this is what I would need.

 

I have been reading your prototype builds for the past few months, however living in the Uk a lot of the parts, Norco don't seem to have any UK based distributers, are hard to source here. I am working on a build on paper and will post it before ordering to hopefully avoid any hardware synergy problems.

 

Another quick question if I have a full blu-ray rip ~50GB, how many people in different rooms could stream this file at once, is it as simple as calculating the read speed from that drive, and then dividing it by the bitrate of the bluray? So if a read speed of 30MB/s was possible and the blu-ray that everyone wanted to watch was 45Mbs (at the high end for bluray) then it could be streamed to 5 different devices simultaneously?

 

 

[prostuff1]

Thank you Rajahal for your response. I should have mentioned that I live in the UK. I will buy a new router as the linksys one we have is quite a few years old, I have also been reading about installing third part firmware such as tomato to offer new features, as far as i can see getting QoS was a major feature but its included on the one you mentioned.  Are there any features in particular I should look for?

 

With regards to the networking im not entirely sure what i asked was clear. If i have my server attatched to network A can someone conected to the internet wirelessly via network B still wirelessly access the files on my server? My googling has led to creating a VPN but i'm not entirely sure if this is what I would need.

 

I have been reading your prototype builds for the past few months, however living in the Uk a lot of the parts, Norco don't seem to have any UK based distributers, are hard to source here. I am working on a build on paper and will post it before ordering to hopefully avoid any hardware synergy problems.

 

Another quick question if I have a full blu-ray rip ~50GB, how many people in different rooms could stream this file at once, is it as simple as calculating the read speed from that drive, and then dividing it by the bitrate of the bluray? So if a read speed of 30MB/s was possible and the blu-ray that everyone wanted to watch was 45Mbs (at the high end for bluray) then it could be streamed to 5 different devices simultaneously?

 

 

I run a wrt320N with DDWRT installed on it.  I have VPN enabled on it now so that I can remote into my network from wherever I am.  It works pretty well and was fairly easy to set up.

 

Look here for Norco like cases in the UK.

[ReCoN]

Would that allow you to send a document to your home networked printer from work say, or restore your laptop from a backup on the home server whilst out of town?

[prostuff1]

Would that allow you to send a document to your home networked printer from work say, or restore your laptop from a backup on the home server whilst out of town?

 

print to a printer at home yes, do a full restore form a crashed laptop... depend on what you mean.  If there is still an OS on it and you can connect to the VPN then you could restore files yes.  It might not be very fast but it could be done.

[Rajahal]

Another quick question if I have a full blu-ray rip ~50GB, how many people in different rooms could stream this file at once, is it as simple as calculating the read speed from that drive, and then dividing it by the bitrate of the bluray? So if a read speed of 30MB/s was possible and the blu-ray that everyone wanted to watch was 45Mbs (at the high end for bluray) then it could be streamed to 5 different devices simultaneously?

 

Unfortunately this isn't a 'quick question' but is actually somewhat complex.  There are several ways to stream a BluRay ISO from your server to a media player.  If you are using a media player that cannot decode a full BluRay ISO, then the server will need to transcode the outgoing stream on-the-fly with software like PS3MS or AirVideo (and your server will need a dual core or better CPU).  If you are using beefier media players that can play the ISO natively, then the strain on the server is far less intense, and the network speed becomes the bottleneck (even green hard drives are much faster than your network will be able to handle).  Is it a realistic scenario that multiple people in your household will be wanting to watch the same BluRay ISO?

[ReCoN]

print to a printer at home yes, do a full restore form a crashed laptop... depend on what you mean.  If there is still an OS on it and you can connect to the VPN then you could restore files yes.  It might not be very fast but it could be done.

Excellent it sounds like a VPN is what I want, can i presume its possible to have different users with different logins and different privileges or would that require something more complex?

 

Unfortunately this isn't a 'quick question' but is actually somewhat complex.  There are several ways to stream a BluRay ISO from your server to a media player.  If you are using a media player that cannot decode a full BluRay ISO, then the server will need to transcode the outgoing stream on-the-fly with software like PS3MS or AirVideo (and your server will need a dual core or better CPU).  If you are using beefier media players that can play the ISO natively, then the strain on the server is far less intense, and the network speed becomes the bottleneck (even green hard drives are much faster than your network will be able to handle).  Is it a realistic scenario that multiple people in your household will be wanting to watch the same BluRay ISO?

 

Possibly, however it is perfectly realistic to have 3 different streams of 3 different files all from the same hard disc in the household for which read performance could be a limiting factor. I don't feel like it is good practice to build without headroom though and im trying to construct something which can handle everything I would realisticly throw at it and have room to breathe. Which should allow it to cope untill 4k video reaches consumer level, that should be some considerable way off. I'm looking at an i3 server based around your 20 drive 'beast' it should be capable of transcoding multiple files even though most devices it will be streaming to will be able to decode the hd audio and video files, I will look around for some tests to see exactly what it can handle. Thank you again for your help, there is so much knowledge here!

[dgaschk]

I use a Buffalo router. It comes with DD-WRT installed. It supports VPNs.