E-Waste opinions.

[default_user8]

My company has abandoned full sized computers for the Dell version of the nuc. So now we have a few machines left over that will go out as E waste and are fair game. I can get a Dell T5600 with 4 GB of ram or a T3500 with 12GB of ram as a base to build off of and I also got a H310 raid card with one cable, and I can get 2 8gb sticks of ram that will work in either machine. I already have 4 1TB seagate barracuda drives that I plan on using, and i bought a 32gb SSD that i plan on using for the OS. I don't plan to use either case as I have some plexiglass sheet that I plan on using to build some sort of rack setup to house the system. My current setup is a rock64 with a 1TB usb drive mirrored to another 1TB usb drive that is running nextcloud and plexmedia server. I will keep that setup running nextcloud, but I will want to move my plexmedia server over to the new build, my main use for the NAS is pictures and home movies served up to my smart tv's, and as general file/backup storage. Looking forward to hearing your opinions and suggestions on my free to me e-waste build. Thanks.

 

[hervon]

As recommended did you read this:

CORE Hardware Guide

Describes the hardware specifications and system component recommendations for custom TrueNAS CORE deployment.

www.ixsystems.com

Valuable! Look for: ECC, RAID, etc

 

[default_user8]

As recommended did you read this:

CORE Hardware Guide

Describes the hardware specifications and system component recommendations for custom TrueNAS CORE deployment.

www.ixsystems.com

Valuable! Look for: ECC, RAID, etc

Yes i have read through that, thanks. That guide was why I picked the items in question, I was hoping others here would have had some experience with one of these MB's and could steer me one way or the other. Currently i'm leaning towards the T3500 mainly because of the power supply setup that MB uses.

 

[hervon]

hardware RAID ? IT mode?
ECC ram ?

 

[default_user8]

hardware RAID ? IT mode?
ECC ram ?

The PERC H310 card i have is straight out of a dell workstation (the T5600) and is not in IT mode but from what i've read is the optimal way to run this card. So yes i'm planning on using hardware raid, as for the ram I will have to do more research on it, but I'm pretty sure it is ECC ram because the T5600 only supports ECC ram and I was able to put the 2 8gb sticks in that machine and it read 24 gbs total. The T3500 accepts either type. I had originally compiled a parts list from a Post by Chris Moore when i first decided to start this project. I found one of his post that referenced a machine he had built that was very stable as a plex media server. The H310 card was on that list, and when i got the email at work about the e waste I started digging through the machines and found one. That was also when i decided I would ask here about suggestions and experience with these parts since they would be free. I understand doing things on the cheap isn't always the best path, but wasn't that how this whole project got started in the first place?

 

[hervon]

Hardware is not recommended because freenas doesn’t have direct access to the drives. Either flash it to it mode (if doable) or buy a cheap compatible raid card already flashed on eBay.

 

[default_user8]

Hardware is not recommended because freenas doesn’t have direct access to the drives. Either flash it to it mode (if doable) or buy a cheap compatible raid card already flashed on eBay.

Thanks for that, I must have misunderstood what I read I need to go back and read up, flashing the H310 shouldn't be an issue, I plan on taking care of that over the next few nights.

 

[Evertb1]

Thanks for that, I must have misunderstood what I read I need to go back and read up, flashing the H310 shouldn't be an issue, I plan on taking care of that over the next few nights.

Flashing a Perc H310 to IT mode wil not be a problem. I have done it with two of them and I am using them for some time now without any problem. Though they need sufficient cooling because they can run hot.