Hi all,

 

 

The questions probably passes by often so my apologies up front for asking again.

On the other hand the matter feels so individual to everyone's needs that I started a new topic for it.

 

I'm very new to Unraid / have some experience with Plex since it was running on my previous desktop machine.

I'm reorganizing how we are doing stuff internally with all connected devices in terms of storage and file access.

What I would like to do is build a server (future proof) where I can use Unraid to store all our files.

It should be accessible both from inside as outside the network (remote access).

On that same server I want to use Plex that stores our Blu-ray backups in 1080p resolution compressed with Handbrake to about 4-6GB per movie.

I also want to run a VM where I can play around with Ubuntu/Elementary OS and other linux stuff. I'm a novice in it but I want to learn more about it.

 

So my question is. What components should I use to build the server?

I've read online about the NAS killer from serverbuild but they still use the LGA 1155 socket which is outdated?!

I want something future proof and don't really have a budget. But don't want to spend 2k on it either. Since I just build my new gaming rig which was already 4k.

So I don't have a specific amount of money in mind, but it doens't need to be outrages.

The most important thing for me is that I can use it and keep upgrading it the upcoming years.

I don't want to waste 500 dollars on old technology if that makes any sense?

 

In terms of storage I was thinking of getting around 4 * 4TB disk for storage. And I probably want an SSD for metadata of Plex and an NVME for caching of the Unraid? Is that correct?

 

Please advise me with some opinions so I at least have any idea on were to start.

Many many thanks. I much appreciate your advise and insights!

 

Regards,

Pieter

 

 

Edited December 18, 20196 yr by pietergoris
Typo's

6 minutes ago, pietergoris said:

And I probably want an SSD for metadata of Plex and an NVME for caching of the Unraid? Is that correct?

There is no need for these to be separate devices, and simpler if you just use the cache pool for both of these purposes. That's what most people do. You can have multiple disks in the cache pool. The default gives btrfs raid1 mirror so if you have 2 in the pool best if they are the same size.

Don't buy 1155 hardware at this point.  Virtually any modern setup can run unRAID, and would be much more future proof.

Thanks for your input. I was thinking the same about that 1155 socket. It doesn't make sense unless you are on an extremely tight budget.

Does it make any sense to go with an intel Xeon processor for my needs? Or does it make more sense to go with a consumer grade like i3/5/7?

 

Many thanks for the help. I kinda lost track with all the information I read online so far.

Edited December 19, 20196 yr by pietergoris

On 12/19/2019 at 1:24 PM, pietergoris said:

Does it make any sense to go with an intel Xeon processor for my needs? Or does it make more sense to go with a consumer grade like i3/5/7?

unRAID will work with either consumer or server grade (Xeon) hardware.  You can base your choice on cost and features.