The original post, if you want to read it
Hi,
I'm planning to build a NAS with budget around 500€ - 1 000€ (MB & CPU only). I'm going to buy used DDR4 ECC ram from ebay, 32GB or 64GB sticks.
Of course, you don't have to use the entire budget, and even used devices could be an option as long as they are reasonably easily available in the EU area.
The purpose of the build is to be a home NAS for 1-2 users. The NAS is mainly used as a media server, but it also houses all personal stuff, backups, etc.
No apps or VM's are intended to be used in this machine, there will be a separate build where docker and VM's are used. This separate device also backup most important files from this new NAS.
I want the pools to be encrypted against physical theft. The NAS contains a lot of personal data and I don't want it to be used by potential thieves. Some time ago we had thieves and they were only one (locked) door away from the current Unraid NAS. I didn't think about encrypting NAS before, but this made me change my mind. This presumably has an effect on the required CPU power?
The motherboard should have at least two pcie ports for HBA and NIC (SFP+ because of lower power consumption). I prefer separate cards so that the update is easier than with the Embedded version.
I will possibly upgrade to a 10Gbe LAN. I already have a 24bay rack case and I will start with 6 wide raidz2. (HDD)
Electricity is relatively cheap here where I live. on average about 0.1€/kwh including all fees and tax. Nevertheless, I want the NAS to be energy efficient. However, the device is in idle mode for most of the day. For this reason, idle consumption should be as low as possible.
I know that peripherals and hard drives consume most of the electricity. However, it probably doesn't make sense to build a NAS with EPYC which idles without drives at 80w if only purpose of build is to be a pure NAS. On the other hand, options that consume very little power, such as Atom-based devices, cost almost the same as much more durable ones. Of course, they consume a little less power, but does this come at the expense of performance? Even if it's just a NAS, I still want the device to not sweat under any circumstances.
Minimum RAM requirement for me is 128GB, so consumer parts are not an option. I prefer Supermicro motherboards but also interested of Asrock Rack.
I have been watching Xeon Silver, Xeon W, Xeon E and EPYC lineup. I have no experience with any of these and the forums don't seem to have direct experience with my intended use. Almost all cases are more of a "home lab that includes a NAS" type of builds.
I'm planning to build a NAS with budget around 500€ - 1 000€ (MB & CPU only). I'm going to buy used DDR4 ECC ram from ebay, 32GB or 64GB sticks.
Of course, you don't have to use the entire budget, and even used devices could be an option as long as they are reasonably easily available in the EU area.
The purpose of the build is to be a home NAS for 1-2 users. The NAS is mainly used as a media server, but it also houses all personal stuff, backups, etc.
No apps or VM's are intended to be used in this machine, there will be a separate build where docker and VM's are used. This separate device also backup most important files from this new NAS.
I want the pools to be encrypted against physical theft. The NAS contains a lot of personal data and I don't want it to be used by potential thieves. Some time ago we had thieves and they were only one (locked) door away from the current Unraid NAS. I didn't think about encrypting NAS before, but this made me change my mind. This presumably has an effect on the required CPU power?
The motherboard should have at least two pcie ports for HBA and NIC (SFP+ because of lower power consumption). I prefer separate cards so that the update is easier than with the Embedded version.
I will possibly upgrade to a 10Gbe LAN. I already have a 24bay rack case and I will start with 6 wide raidz2. (HDD)
Electricity is relatively cheap here where I live. on average about 0.1€/kwh including all fees and tax. Nevertheless, I want the NAS to be energy efficient. However, the device is in idle mode for most of the day. For this reason, idle consumption should be as low as possible.
I know that peripherals and hard drives consume most of the electricity. However, it probably doesn't make sense to build a NAS with EPYC which idles without drives at 80w if only purpose of build is to be a pure NAS. On the other hand, options that consume very little power, such as Atom-based devices, cost almost the same as much more durable ones. Of course, they consume a little less power, but does this come at the expense of performance? Even if it's just a NAS, I still want the device to not sweat under any circumstances.
Minimum RAM requirement for me is 128GB, so consumer parts are not an option. I prefer Supermicro motherboards but also interested of Asrock Rack.
I have been watching Xeon Silver, Xeon W, Xeon E and EPYC lineup. I have no experience with any of these and the forums don't seem to have direct experience with my intended use. Almost all cases are more of a "home lab that includes a NAS" type of builds.
Options I researched before starting the build:
INTEL
Supermicro X12STH-LN4F + Intel Xeon E-2336 - support 128GB ECC RAM (~850€ NEW)
Higher clock speed than Xeon Silver, useful in file transfer?
Supermicro X11SPM-F + Intel Xeon Silver 4208 - support 1.5TB 3DS ECC RAM (~870€ NEW)
What 3DS mean???
AMD
Supermicro M11SDV-4C-LN4F - support 512GB ECC RAM (~630€ NEW)
Only 1 pcie slot but 10Gbe NIC can be used via m.2 riser?
Supermicro H12SSL-i + AMD Epyc 7252 - support 2TB ECC RAM (~910€ NEW)
Idle power consumption propably highest of all these options?
ASRock Rack X570D4U-2L2T/BCM + AMD Ryzen 5 5600 - support 128GB ECC RAM (~770€ NEW)
Does support ECC but not ECC logging if I understood correctly, does it matter if I don't even know what it means?
Supermicro X12STH-LN4F + Intel Xeon E-2336 - support 128GB ECC RAM (~850€ NEW)
Higher clock speed than Xeon Silver, useful in file transfer?
Supermicro X11SPM-F + Intel Xeon Silver 4208 - support 1.5TB 3DS ECC RAM (~870€ NEW)
What 3DS mean???
AMD
Supermicro M11SDV-4C-LN4F - support 512GB ECC RAM (~630€ NEW)
Only 1 pcie slot but 10Gbe NIC can be used via m.2 riser?
Supermicro H12SSL-i + AMD Epyc 7252 - support 2TB ECC RAM (~910€ NEW)
Idle power consumption propably highest of all these options?
ASRock Rack X570D4U-2L2T/BCM + AMD Ryzen 5 5600 - support 128GB ECC RAM (~770€ NEW)
Does support ECC but not ECC logging if I understood correctly, does it matter if I don't even know what it means?
Purpose of use
- Home NAS for my family- Mainly a media server (Movies, photos, office stuff etc.)
- Only NAS functions, all applications, VMs, Docker, etc. run on a separate Proxmox server in the same rack
Build goals
- As reliable as possible- Slightly overkill, but still "energy-efficient" build
- Snappy experience when browsing and moving files
Current state of build:
Feel free to suggest hardware which is not acquired yet!Used stuff is ok, but should be available in the EU. I try not to buy anything from China because of the risk of a cheap copy.
I prefer server grade components.
Acquired
Not acquired
Case | Logic Case SC-4324S - 24-Bay 4U case (6Gb/s backplanes) |
CPU | Intel Xeon Silver 4112 (4c/8t) |
CPU Cooler | Noctua NH-D9 DX-4677 4U + 3647 mounting kit from Noctua (Free) |
MB | Supermicro X11SPL-F |
RAM | 6 x Samsung 32GB DDR4 2400 MHz ECC REG M393A4K40CB1-CRC (192GB total) |
PSU | Seasonic 650W PRIME TX-650 |
SLOG | Intel OPTANE 118GB SSD P1600X (might add later if something needs sync writes) |
L2ARC | Can I use consumer grade NVME drives? Does the mirror bring any advantage? If I use special VDEV, I guess L2ARC is not needed? Otherwise, the idea would be to use L2ARC in "metadata only" mode. |
Special VDEV | Can I use consumer grade NVME drives in 3 or 4 way mirror? As far as I understand, special devices are normal VDEV (not a logging device), so the usage is not greater than with any other part of main pool? For this reason, there seems to be no need for an optane write duration? |
Pool | Start with 6 x Seagate Exos X 20TB (RaidZ2) OR striped mirror, which I can start with one pair of 20TB disks. What is your recommendation? 6 wide RaidZ2 and striped Mirror do not have a big difference in the usable space. The expandability of the Mirror and starting with a just one pair of disks would be attractive, because it will probably take me quite a while to fill even one pair. RaidZ2, on the other hand, would bring more peace of mind. |
Boot | Servethehome recommending the WD Blue NVME drive (~35€ Amazon.de) I prefer a widely and well-known brands |
HBA | Would prefer a one 24i HBA, LSI SAS 9305-24i could be a good option, but 12Gb/s is useless in my situation. |
10 GbE NIC | Will add later but will take suggestions |
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