FreeNAS Media build

[Remamian]

Hello! So working on setting up a new FreeNAS for myself, first time building instead of buying a NAS. This will be running Plex server, primarily 4kHDR content. I will be running a 4k HDR transcoding/ripping VM on the system (Allowing me to put in my physical media and rip it to my plex. I just want to confirm the below build will be enough to do this and maybe have some other capabilities in the future.

i7-8700T (Was looking for low TDP processor with build in graphics for potential vGPU VM's) (Passive cooler)
ASUS H370-I miniITX mobo w/ sata 3 controller card for additional sata ports
32gb DDR4 (Non-ECC) 3200
1x BD drive max read speed
4x 12tb IronWolf Pro (Potentialy more in the future depending on need)

The plex will only be local, streaming to LG tv's with plex app. So will not need to be on-the-fly transcoded. All TV's are connected wired over gigabit. Plex is connected Via 5gbe to network.

Alternately if the transcoding/ripping the BD's is an issue I do have a i7-8086k/64gb system as my main desktop which will soon be a i9-9900k.

 

[kdragon75]

Was looking for low TDP processor with build in graphics for potential vGPU VM's

Not going to happen with bhyve any time soon.
Overall thing looks more like a small gaming system than a reliable server. Ill let others call out better hardware but generally supermicro and Xeon E5s are what get recommended.

w/ sata 3 controller card for additional sata ports

Many of these cards are poorly supported in FreeBSD. I would stick with the recommended HBAs. Almost anything LSI 2008 based with IT firmware is top of the list.

 

[Remamian]

Not going to happen with bhyve any time soon.
Overall thing looks more like a small gaming system than a reliable server. Ill let others call out better hardware but generally supermicro and Xeon E5s are what get recommended.

Many of these cards are poorly supported in FreeBSD. I would stick with the recommended HBAs. Almost anything LSI 2008 based with IT firmware is top of the list.

Well i was initially recommended a i5 processor for freeNAS since i was looking into a vGPU for a VM in the future. Even without the vGPU capability your saying this processor does not have the capability of running FreeNAS and and doing transcoding?

 

[kdragon75]

Im saying you can haul gravel in a Ferrari, but its not best way to do it. If your buying new parts, there is no good reason to select server grade parts and ECC memory. I think you need to do a bit more research on bhyve and FreeNAS before just buying random hardware that you are familiar with.

 

[kdragon75]

I also see your selection of 12 drives. What do you plan to use for a case and PSU? I cant think of any cases (off the top of my head) that will take 12 drives but require a micro ITX board.
I just want to make sure were looking at the whole picture.

 

[Remamian]

I also see your selection of 12 drives. What do you plan to use for a case and PSU? I can't think of any cases (off the top of my head) that will take 12 drives but require a micro ITX board.
I just want to make sure were looking at the whole picture.

Maybe you didnt read? 4x 12tb Ironwolf pro drives

 

[kdragon75]

Maybe you didnt read? 4x 12tb Ironwolf pro drives

Maybe I'm a bit dyslexic.
Maybe you didn't read the manual or do any research.
See what I did there?
Maybe making unnecessary accusatory statements does not help you.

 

[warllo]

@Remamian

I do something very similar to what you are looking to accomplish. I found the best way was to go with two separate machines.

I use FreeNAS to store my video rips along with all of my other data since it's what FreeNAS does best.

I then use Proxmox for the ripping vm along with several other vm's I run including plex. There is a great automated ripping machine build here (https://b3n.org/automatic-ripping-machine/) that I use and it works great and is pretty much fully automated.

The issues I had with getting this working among other things with FreeNAS revolved around the Bhyve hyper-visor being in it's infancy compared to kvm, exsi, proxmox and not being able to get udev info to pass through to the vm's.

If this is something that you are interested in looking into I would be more than happy to recommend some hardware, I really have enjoyed purchasing used server gear off eBay as it's provided great value compared to buying new. I have also found that most times used server gear is far more reliable than even new "gaming grade" or consumer level gear and I'm sure almost everyone around here would second this.

 

[xerox445]

After reading a bunch of threads, I still don't understand where this massive amount of CPU power is required to run this software. Seems like most of the guys come here because they do not want to shell out 7-900 bucks on a stand alone NAS with decent storage, plus have a few more features, so they want to use older hardware to get the job done. Guys with server builds want to run these overbuilt systems, and act like they are protecting the human genome data... I don't get it. I just wanted an expandable home built nas server I can run plex on and store pictures on. This software is not what I thought it was I guess.

 

[TK-24601]

There isn't a lot of power needed. You can get a board, RAM and a cpu for very cheap on the used market. Storage will eat the $$$ quickly. There are hardware recommendations that are simple to follow.

 

[JohnK]

After reading a bunch of threads, I still don't understand where this massive amount of CPU power is required to run this software. Seems like most of the guys come here because they do not want to shell out 7-900 bucks on a stand alone NAS with decent storage, plus have a few more features, so they want to use older hardware to get the job done. Guys with server builds want to run these overbuilt systems, and act like they are protecting the human genome data... I don't get it. I just wanted an expandable home built nas server I can run plex on and store pictures on. This software is not what I thought it was I guess.

FreeNas does not require massive CPU power nor does it have to be expensive. My backup server was about $700 without drives new and works just fine. 2nd hand you can pick it up for less that $300 for the processor, board and Ram. See below.

Intel Pentium G3420 @ 3.20GHz - New $60
Supermicro X10SLM-F - New $135
32 GB Kingston DDR3 ECC 1600 MHz RAM 8gb module - New $90 per 8gb

I think that the CPU requirements come in when you use the word Plex. If you need something to transcode, you need processing power. Even here it is important to understand what you are trying to do. If you are trying to watch 4k movies on a rasberry pi, you need serious cpu to transcode, though you could stream 4k movies to a Nvidia shield with minimum CPU power. A few years ago, I posted the results of streaming 1080 movies to 3 devices with maximum transcoding using an i3 and it worked just fine. It all depends what you are trying to do.

 

[kdragon75]

The whole obsession with protecting the data is not because we are obsessed (well not all of us...), its because when you're storing and accessing 10s og terabytes of data, you do start to see real risks of in-flight corruption. Hence ECC ram, server quality parts, and xeon CPUs. as noted above the Pentium G3420 supports ECC and can still be a cheap option. The issue is that people like the versatility of FreeNAS, jails, and VMs. Once you factor that in, its extremely easy to become CPU bound by something as small as the G3420. It's still a great CPU for a storage only build but thats not whats being discussed by the OP.