How would you configure these enterprise SSDs for best performance?

[IamSpartacus]

I'm in the process of upgrading my main Xeon D-1541 platform Unraid server to an E5-2860v3 platform and I'm looking for some advice on how best to configure the flash storage devices I have.  I have the following SSD's to use in this new upgrade:

 

• Intel Optane 900p 280GB NVMe (x2)
• Micron 5100 Pro 960GB SATA SSD

 

I'm currently using the Micron 5100 Pro as my cache drive and I bought it because my current motherboard only supports SATA from the M.2 slots and it was a decently reliable (4.4PB write endurance) SATA M.2 SSD.

 

The data to be stored on flash is all my dockers (HEAVY Plex server usage, heavy download usage), moderately used VMs, and Windows home folders for my Windows 2016 domain.  The downloading/extracting is something I'm focusing on in addition to ensuring the fastest possible Plex database.  I have a 1Gbps WAN pipe and when my nzbs are extracting I'll see my DL speed dip from 90MB/s down to 30-40MB/s.  Obviously my Micron Pro doesn't have the kind of write performance to keep up.

 

 

Looking for some opinions on which SSD(s) to use as cache and which to use as UD.  Only one VM (Windows domain controller) and just a handful of my 15-20 running dockers are what I'd call crucial and thus I want them "protected."  Do I just sell the Micron 5100 Pro and get two cheaper 2.5" SSDs so that I can have 2 protected, yet different performance tiered, BTRFS pools?

 

[trurl]

Seems like the 2 NVMe would be ideal for a btrfs raid1 cache pool if that is enough capacity for your cache usage. Some people like to write a lot to cache, others mostly use cache as fast storage for their apps. You can't pool them as Unassigned Devices. Actually, I seem to remember @johnnie.black explaining how to do an Unassigned Pool using the command line but don't remember where it was. Here it is:

 

https://forums.unraid.net/topic/46802-faq-for-unraid-v6/?tab=comments#comment-462135

 

Looks like there are some things missing from the FAQ TOC.

 

You could use the Micron as an Unassigned Device for whatever. With its capacity it might be a good download location, especially if you seed torrents. Or as a target for DVR if you do that.

[IamSpartacus]

7 minutes ago, trurl said:

Seems like the 2 NVMe would be ideal for a btrfs raid1 cache pool if that is enough capacity for your cache usage. Some people like to write a lot to cache, others mostly use cache as fast storage for their apps. You can't pool them as Unassigned Devices. Actually, I seem to remember @johnnie.black explaining how to do an Unassigned Pool using the command line but don't remember where it was.

 

You could use the Micron as an Unassigned Device for whatever. With its capacity it might be a good download location, especially if you seed torrents. Or as a target for DVR if you do that.

 

Yea I've read @johnnie.black's FAQ on how to pool UD's so that's why I'm considering selling the 5100 pro and getting two new SSD's to pool them together in addition to pooling the Optanes.  I'm wondering if I put my Incomplete and Complete download directories on different pools if that would mitigate the performance hit I'm seeing with the 5100 Pro during download extractions.

[trurl]

The 5100 could co-exist as a separate Unassigned Device along with a pool if you have the ports.

 

Of course, getting money for it would also be good if you don't have any use for it. I often just accumulate stuff I am not using. I have a 500GB SSD sitting here unused right now after I replaced it in my desktop with a 1TB SSD. Maybe I will turn it into yet another external drive that I'm not using.🤩

[IamSpartacus]

4 minutes ago, trurl said:

The 5100 could co-exist as a separate Unassigned Device along with a pool if you have the ports.

 

Of course, getting money for it would also be good if you don't have any use for it. I often just accumulate stuff I am not using. I have a 500GB SSD sitting here unused right now after I replaced it in my desktop with a 1TB SSD. Maybe I will turn it into yet another external drive that I'm not using.🤩

 

Yea I think I am going to keep it and use it as place for my DVR and maybe my Windows Home drives as those get backed up daily anyway so they don't need to be protected.  Now I'm just shopping for a pair of 500GB-1TB SSD's with decent write endurance so I'll probably look at the Intel DC line.

[bman]

28 minutes ago, IamSpartacus said:

 

Yea I think I am going to keep it and use it as place for my DVR and maybe my Windows Home drives as those get backed up daily anyway so they don't need to be protected.  Now I'm just shopping for a pair of 500GB-1TB SSD's with decent write endurance so I'll probably look at the Intel DC line.

$0.02 on write endurance - Samsung 850 or 860 Pro series wins.  I've only seen one dud out of a couple dozen I've used over the past several years. Write endurance seems to be a Sammy strongpoint: https://techreport.com/review/27909/the-ssd-endurance-experiment-theyre-all-dead

 

Edited February 1, 2019 by bman

[IamSpartacus]

52 minutes ago, bman said:

$0.02 on write endurance - Samsung 850 or 860 Pro series wins.  I've only seen one dud out of a couple dozen I've used over the past several years. Write endurance seems to be a Sammy strongpoint: https://techreport.com/review/27909/the-ssd-endurance-experiment-theyre-all-dead

 

 

Samsung Pros are good "prosumer" drives but the 500GB-1TB drives are only 600tbw and 1.2pbw respectively.  Not really THAT great.  I'm looking at the newer Intel D3-S4510 960GB which is 3.4PBW on the endurance.  The Samsung Pros are better on write performance but I don't need that as I'll have the Optanes for my higher write performance needs.

[bman]

tbh I haven't given Intel SSDs a fair shake since premature failure on 6 of 8 purchased 520 series products left students without their days' worth of video footage upon returning.  Swore off them because even though the warranty was good, the reliability wasn't.

 

Seeing the price of the D3-4510 960G versus the competition has me rethinking things, albeit for different use cases.  I think you're on the right track with that one.

[Shunz]

On 2/2/2019 at 3:31 AM, bman said:

tbh I haven't given Intel SSDs a fair shake since premature failure on 6 of 8 purchased 520 series products left students without their days' worth of video footage upon returning.  Swore off them because even though the warranty was good, the reliability wasn't.

 

Seeing the price of the D3-4510 960G versus the competition has me rethinking things, albeit for different use cases.  I think you're on the right track with that one.

 

Don't mean to necro this thread, but some really good deals for HPE (HP Enterprise) drives - similar to your Intel D3-4510 SSDs available here at a steal. (actually, better performance, for the Samsungs)

 

These enterprise drives have crazy endurance (e.g. the Micron 5100 Max is even more over-provisioned than the 5100 Pro you were looking at).

 

Posted these on the Good Deals forum.

 

 

Micron 5100 Max 1.92TB - Around $200 to $220

https://www.amazon.com/HP-Micron-2-5-inch-Internal-MTFDDAK1T9TCC-1AR1ZABHA/dp/B07R3BYPM6/

17.6PB (17,600 TBW)

 

Samsung SM863 1.92TB - Around $215-229

https://www.amazon.com/HP-Samsung-MZ-7KM1T90-2-5-inch-Internal/dp/B07SNH1THV

12.32PB (12,320TBW)

 

 

 

 

Edited June 11, 2019 by Shunz