Hi Gang:

 

Now that I have my movie data "copied" to my ReiserFS Disks, I have a General ? for anyone as to how they have ORGANIZED their system(s).  I have a 300 GB Disk Full and 250 Disk 2/3rd Full and the balance (another 250 + 3 x 160 (older files yet to be removed)) Empty. 

 

Parity (not started) is 500 GB.  Obviously I have lots of room which I intend to fill (stopped ripping while waiting to set-up UnRaid).  I also have a Win2K Server with most of my "important" data (totalling maybe 20 GB) that probably EATS ELECTRICITY  (dual power supplies, always on, yada yada, yada) and it would be nice to combine (plus obviously get more space) reduce # of computers etc.

 

Since I haven't invoked Parity yet, I can place my disks in pretty much any order (note I don't have the Big Stacker Case (smaller w/o trays - bit more difficult to access, but given my $ contraints and needs, seemed best alternative).

 

Advice and thoughts welcomed (I want to keep NTFS 160's intact until I verify data transfer, but then good to go).

 

Thanks

 

Dave 

 

I used DFS on my Windows Server 2003 machine (my domain controller) to make everything ripped to my Unraid servers appear like a single share on a single machine.  Well, actually 4 shares - I have one each for DVD, Music, Software, and Backups.  Works like a champ, I just put stuff whereever on the various machines and let DFS sort it out.

I used DFS on my Windows Server 2003 machine (my domain controller) to make everything ripped to my Unraid servers appear like a single share on a single machine.  Well, actually 4 shares - I have one each for DVD, Music, Software, and Backups.  Works like a champ, I just put stuff whereever on the various machines and let DFS sort it out.

 

I'll ask the stupid question (and then try Google too) - how does DFS work and how do you go about setting it up? Must it be used with 2003? Must it be used in a Domain environment? How does DFS "sort it out"? Does it simply know that certain directories should be displayed as certain shares or what? I have heard of DFS and know only a little bit about it so I would appreciate a better understanding as to how you've done this. I'm running XP Pro and not bothered to setup a Domain. I have WIN2K, XP Pro, XP MCE (XP Home basically), and an XBOX w/XBMC on my network. I will also likely have Linux in the near future...

DFS (Distributed File System) is basically a method of linking over a network.  You add links (which I do with a script) to a share on the server, and when a client tries to connect to that directory, the server replies with a redirection to the actual location of the resource.  I believe it's in Win2K Server and up.  You don't need a domain, but if you do have one you can publish your DFS roots in the Active Directory, which presumably provides some benefit that I have yet to discover.

 

So I have a share called \\DC\DVD.  In that share appears a directory called "2001 - A Space Odyssey", which redirects to my Unraid server at \\media-one\disk4\DVD\2001 - A Space Odyssey.  And there's another fake directory in there for every other DVD in my collection.  From the client machines, it looks like everything is stored in \\DC\DVD.

 

 

Ouch, one directory at a time?

 

I just lost interest.

Ouch, one directory at a time?

 

I just lost interest.

He said he adds the links with a script, not one-at-a-time...  It might still work for you.

 

Joe L.

Hi all:

 

I appreciate the comments back, it does begin to address the issue of how to create one share for Movies, TV, etc.  Someone posted not too long ago a means of creating a "share" called Movies (sorry, I've searched and haven't been able to find it again) with other pointers to 2nd/3rd/4th.... drives.  In WinXP and W2K if you create a "dynamic" drive, you can mount 1 disk with "sub-directories" of additional disks.  I've done this prior to my UnRaid and it works quite well (you can't write directly to the Dynamic Disk (read only) via that Share but you can separately mount the Disk X, Y, Z for that).  It does allow an UPnP device to see a single  entry point.  That would be a nice feature for UnRaid but may be a Linux problem??

 

My original question which went a slightly different route was how to physically set-up my disks or does it matter.  At the moment, I only have 2 with Movies, no Music transcribed yet and none of my Backup Files from my W2K File Server (which I think I will eventually sut down).  Should Movies be in disk 2,3,4 TV in 5,6, Music in 7 and Safety Data (File SErver) in 8??? or any other arrangement.  I've yet to place the drives in any order other than to copy data to the ReiserFS disks and have not started or ever created Parity.

 

Thoughts as always are welcomed and keep making suggestions along the other lines in this Thread! 

 

Dave