First, then all I'm new to unRaid and this is a testing scenario.

-I got my unRaid up and running. 2 win 10 VM's for gaming each one with its own GPU, etc etc etc. 

-My server is running with only 1 7200 rpm 64 cache drive for both VM's and I have noticed that this drive hits 100% write/read which I was expecting to be honest.

- I have been reading a lot of posts about this, however, has been unable to find the information I need or the terminology escapes me.

-I purchased an SSD disk and expecting it soon, my question is as follow: Since I don't have a parity drive should I install the new SSD as cache drive or reinstall the VM's on this disk instead and use the 7200 rpm 64 caches one for expanding storage purposes. 

-Would it be faster to use the SSD as the main disk for the VM's or as a cache drive in this scenario?

Speaking from personal experience, best case scenario, I would suggest purchasing a second SSD and having one for cache, and one for your VM. If the VMs rarely operate at the same time, they can probably share the SSD. If they are both in use at the same time, you might even want to consider separate SSDs for each VM as well.

 

If purchasing extra SSDs is not in the cards, then I would use the SSD for the VMs, and 7200rpm drive for cache. You'll still get a "faster feel" when writing to the array, because the 7200rpm cache drive should still perform at or above network speeds (gigabit), and you'll get a much snappier performing VM.

Soo, in the case I purchase a secondary SSD I will be using one for each VM and no cache driver or should I still use a cache driver?

I know this isn't related to your questions about optimization of VM functiionality, but remember that without parity drive, you can't recover from any data disk failure. That makes your unRAID installation a rather poor storage server.

20 hours ago, Jose Jimenez said:

Soo, in the case I purchase a secondary SSD I will be using one for each VM and no cache driver or should I still use a cache driver?

 

Depends on your use scenario.

 

Scenario 1: Both VMs get used simultaneously. In a perfect world, you would have 3 SSDs. 1 for each VM, and 1 for the cache drive. If budget is an issue, I would use both SSDs for VMs, and use the 7200RPM drive for cache (with the plan to upgrade cache drive when budget supports it)

Scenario 2: VMs rarely/never get used simultaneously. 2 SSDs. 1 for both VMs, 1 for cache drive.

Scenario 3: Budget currently doesn't support purchasing more drives. Use existing SSD for VMs (Whether they are used simultaneously or not), use 7200RPM drive for cache. Consider saving for cache SSD and moving 7200RPM drive to array when ready.

 

The biggest problem you'll encounter using the 7200RPM drive is if docker lives on it, they will perform a bit slower than if they were on an SSD. That said, lots of people use a 7200RPM drive for cache and dockers, so definitely doable...

 

Re: SSDs: For VMs, you don't need massive SSDs either. As you should store all your data on your server, the only thing in the OS drives (SSDs) are apps. In my case, one VM uses a 120GB SSD, and the other uses a 256GB SSD (And only because that's what I had available), and that's more than enough space.

 

Cache drives are nicer to have a bit bigger, especially as a portion of it will be taken up by Docker. If you do a lot of large file transfers, you could run out of space if you go 120GB for one of these. Cache I would look at 256GB or more (500GB should probably be more than enough, unless you get an amazing deal on something bigger).

 

How big is the SSD you ordered?

 

HTH!

 

11 hours ago, pwm said:

I know this isn't related to your questions about optimization of VM functiionality, but remember that without parity drive, you can't recover from any data disk failure. That makes your unRAID installation a rather poor storage server.

 

Thank you very much for the information! although I'm aware of this since the VM´s use will be for Gaming I´m not really worried about data loss. In case the VM fails I will just create it again from scratch.

50 minutes ago, DoeBoye said:

 

Depends on your use scenario.

 

Scenario 1: Both VMs get used simultaneously. In a perfect world, you would have 3 SSDs. 1 for each VM, and 1 for the cache drive. If budget is an issue, I would use both SSDs for VMs, and use the 7200RPM drive for cache (with the plan to upgrade cache drive when budget supports it)

Scenario 2: VMs rarely/never get used simultaneously. 2 SSDs. 1 for both VMs, 1 for cache drive.

Scenario 3: Budget currently doesn't support purchasing more drives. Use existing SSD for VMs (Whether they are used simultaneously or not), use 7200RPM drive for cache. Consider saving for cache SSD and moving 7200RPM drive to array when ready.

 

The biggest problem you'll encounter using the 7200RPM drive is if docker lives on it, they will perform a bit slower than if they were on an SSD. That said, lots of people use a 7200RPM drive for cache and dockers, so definitely doable...

 

Re: SSDs: For VMs, you don't need massive SSDs either. As you should store all your data on your server, the only thing in the OS drives (SSDs) are apps. In my case, one VM uses a 120GB SSD, and the other uses a 256GB SSD (And only because that's what I had available), and that's more than enough space.

 

Cache drives are nicer to have a bit bigger, especially as a portion of it will be taken up by Docker. If you do a lot of large file transfers, you could run out of space if you go 120GB for one of these. Cache I would look at 256GB or more (500GB should probably be more than enough, unless you get an amazing deal on something bigger).

 

How big is the SSD you ordered?

 

HTH!

 

I purchased a Samsun 960 EVO m.2 250GB and although is not like I can´t purchase a second SSD  that is not actually on my anytime soon plans! Since the second VM will be used for mostly watch movies and play League of Legends I don't think I would ever worry about an SSD for it. 

About the storage part, I need to keep it budget for now! For the information provided, I think that I will:

 

1- Install the SSD as the main drive for the main VM. 

2- Install a spare 2.5 old HDD from a laptop I got broken on the closet for the second VM.
3- Install a 200 GB 7200 RPM 64 drive as a cache drive that as well got in the closet.
4- Use my 2 TB 7200 RPM 64 cache drive as storage for both VM´s.

I need to purchase 2 monitors, 16gm more RAM, and a better cooling system since I´m using the stock one since the AIO solution I had gone wrong. After that, I might consider the purchase of more SSD drives. 

 

In my opinion, I think this will be the best I can do at the moment for the setup. I really appreciate all the help! If there's any further recommendation I'll be glad to hear it.

 

5 hours ago, Jose Jimenez said:

1- Install the SSD as the main drive for the main VM. 

2- Install a spare 2.5 old HDD from a laptop I got broken on the closet for the second VM.
3- Install a 200 GB 7200 RPM 64 drive as a cache drive that as well got in the closet.
4- Use my 2 TB 7200 RPM 64 cache drive as storage for both VM´s.

This is a good plan! The beauty of UnRaid is how flexible it is. Use what you have for now, and down the road, start replacing parts that are not performing.

 

Don't forget, without parity, you have no protection against drive failure. I'd move getting another drive for parity protection as the number one next purchase.

 

Enjoy your new system!