Alright, this is my first FreeNAS build and after a bit of research I think I've settled on these parts. I want to double check here though and ask the experts! :)
Build:
Motherboard- Asrock C2550D4I *CPU on board (intel atom)
Memory - ??? ECC 16gb x 1 ddr3 (explained below)
Case- Fractal Design Node 804
HDDs- HGST Deskstar NAS 4tb
PSU - Corsair 800w
Flash Drive 8gb+
Reasoning behind part choice:
Context/Purpose/Use of NAS
Questions that I have:
Hopefully there's not that many issues! I've tried to do my homework and get as far as I can on my own but its time to ask and make sure I'm headed in the right direction. Any help is awesome! Sorry for the length but I wanted to be sure I gave as much info as I could so that I can get good help!
Build:
Motherboard- Asrock C2550D4I *CPU on board (intel atom)
Memory - ??? ECC 16gb x 1 ddr3 (explained below)
Case- Fractal Design Node 804
HDDs- HGST Deskstar NAS 4tb
PSU - Corsair 800w
Flash Drive 8gb+
Reasoning behind part choice:
The motherboard seems to be made for a NAS type of system, and after some research seemed pretty well supported. Plenty of room to grow. Also includes lovely intel NICs! I already purchased this as the first part in my system
The case was chosen for the size as well as growing room. Since the motherboard can support up to 12 HDD, I wanted a case that could best take advantage of that. Fractal design has a good reputation all around and seems to be a favorite on this site. Cooling seems pretty good but I worry about sound, since this will live in my room.
The hard drives were chosen as I have always had a good experience with Hitachi (HGST now) and they are priced in the same range as the WD reds. Considering 3 of my friends have had WD die within 2 years, and both my dad and I have 8+ year old Hitachi drives still running I've decided to work with these instead.
The PSU is just a fill in until I have the money to get a nice gold rated 500w, this is being bought across a few months so I should be able to swing it before the NAS is built, but just as a backup.
The case was chosen for the size as well as growing room. Since the motherboard can support up to 12 HDD, I wanted a case that could best take advantage of that. Fractal design has a good reputation all around and seems to be a favorite on this site. Cooling seems pretty good but I worry about sound, since this will live in my room.
The hard drives were chosen as I have always had a good experience with Hitachi (HGST now) and they are priced in the same range as the WD reds. Considering 3 of my friends have had WD die within 2 years, and both my dad and I have 8+ year old Hitachi drives still running I've decided to work with these instead.
The PSU is just a fill in until I have the money to get a nice gold rated 500w, this is being bought across a few months so I should be able to swing it before the NAS is built, but just as a backup.
Context/Purpose/Use of NAS
I'll be using this NAS for storing pictures, movies, videos, music, etc. The NAS will also eventually be configured to run as a seedbox or store/download torrents. I would like to set it up to be accessible over the internet (from an outside network), as this would break my dependence on other systems (google drive) and be immensely helpful as a student. There will be multiple users, but no more than 6. Media may not seem like an issue, but for example between my brothers, myself and my dad we share over 1.5tb of music across different discs. There are also hundreds of DVDs at my house I would like to back up and have a digital copy of, so the ability to grow and expand is huge. I want to have a server that I feel secure about and I feel is stable, but I cant afford to throw endless amounts of money at this.
Questions that I have:
1. I cannot for the life of me find any memory for this. I would like to use 16gb modules as this board supports 64gb, and at best this NAS will have 48TB of storage (4tb x 12). While I don't think the server will ever get that high, I would rather be limited by practicality than expandability here. If I go with 8gb modules then I would be locked into 32 as the max. I know the board supports 64gb, its all over the advertising and in the manual, but when I tried looking at the system compatibility tool on crucial's page it shows the board as only supporting 32gb. Any ideas here? Another note here, I was having a difficult time finding ANY 16gb modules, so I'm having trouble ball parking the price. If the price is absurd, then I'm sure the server would be just fine with a little less storage and 8gb x 4.
2. I've been thinking that a RAIDZ2 zpool would be best. This will give me 2 disk failure protection as well as the ability to add all the way up to 10 disks with max performance. While the motherboard supports 12, I think 10 used will be plenty. (this is how much the case supports as well) However, I wont have the money to get 4 4tb hard drives all at once (the minimum number for RAIDZ2 as I understand it). I've seen a solution that involves using "filler" drives and upgrading the vdev later (ie. 1tb drives to 4tb), so the number of disks in the vdev is still the same, is this a viable option? Is this the best set up, or would it be better to go with a different level? (biggest issue/worry)
3. I know that hard drive heat isn't too major of an issue anymore, but I'd like reassurance. I think with the open airflow design of the case and a few well aimed fans the system will be fine, but given that the drives I've chosen run at 7200 RPM as opposed to the standard 5400 RPM I'd like to be sure.
4. My motherboard has 3 NIC total, should I run 2 in LACP for better speeds? Or is it not worth the hassle? Getting a hold of the rest of the hardware to support it (ie. switch with LACP support) wouldn't be too difficult (as far as I can tell), as I'm already "renovating" the network in my house right now. But will I actually notice any performance boosts?
5. Small issue here, with say 4 or 6 drives how loud will the NAS be when not in use/heavy use, say at night. It's going to have to live in my room next to/near where I sleep so I'd like to know if i need to try to soundproof the case at all. If anyone has any experience with the Node 804 or the Node series in general I'd love to hear about it!
2. I've been thinking that a RAIDZ2 zpool would be best. This will give me 2 disk failure protection as well as the ability to add all the way up to 10 disks with max performance. While the motherboard supports 12, I think 10 used will be plenty. (this is how much the case supports as well) However, I wont have the money to get 4 4tb hard drives all at once (the minimum number for RAIDZ2 as I understand it). I've seen a solution that involves using "filler" drives and upgrading the vdev later (ie. 1tb drives to 4tb), so the number of disks in the vdev is still the same, is this a viable option? Is this the best set up, or would it be better to go with a different level? (biggest issue/worry)
3. I know that hard drive heat isn't too major of an issue anymore, but I'd like reassurance. I think with the open airflow design of the case and a few well aimed fans the system will be fine, but given that the drives I've chosen run at 7200 RPM as opposed to the standard 5400 RPM I'd like to be sure.
4. My motherboard has 3 NIC total, should I run 2 in LACP for better speeds? Or is it not worth the hassle? Getting a hold of the rest of the hardware to support it (ie. switch with LACP support) wouldn't be too difficult (as far as I can tell), as I'm already "renovating" the network in my house right now. But will I actually notice any performance boosts?
5. Small issue here, with say 4 or 6 drives how loud will the NAS be when not in use/heavy use, say at night. It's going to have to live in my room next to/near where I sleep so I'd like to know if i need to try to soundproof the case at all. If anyone has any experience with the Node 804 or the Node series in general I'd love to hear about it!
Hopefully there's not that many issues! I've tried to do my homework and get as far as I can on my own but its time to ask and make sure I'm headed in the right direction. Any help is awesome! Sorry for the length but I wanted to be sure I gave as much info as I could so that I can get good help!
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