First FreeNAS System

[ScottBaxter]

Hey Guys,

I'm just in the process of setting my first FreeNAS system up and wanted to get some expert opinions on how It should be setup...

Here is the spec:

- Acer SYSTEM
- Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU 3.06GHz
- 2GB RAM
- 2 x 1TB WD Cavier BLACK
- 10/100 On-Board LAN
- SKY Hub Router 10/100

I'll be connecting to the unit from my laptops via WiFi.

I'm just wondering if there are any settings that enable a better performance for my system spec.

Would it be best for me to use UFS instead of ZFS?

Thanks,

Scott

 

[William Grzybowski]

Yes, I wouldn't recommend ZFS for anyone with this hardware spec.

But FreeNAS without ZFS loses a lot of its features...

 

[ScottBaxter]

Yes, I wouldn't recommend ZFS for anyone with this hardware spec.

But FreeNAS without ZFS loses a lot of its features...

OK no problem - What transfer speeds would you expect across the network and is there anyway to test this?

 

[jgreco]

Uh, for someone with a 100Mbps network, that actually seems like it could be fine... I would actually think you might get the ~12MBytes/sec that your system ought to be capable of, or, at least, if you don't get that, it is probably the hub/router device at fault...

You might want to read up on FreeBSD ZFS tuning for smaller systems though (see: Google).

 

[gpsguy]

The speed jgreco gave you, was based on a 100Mbps wired connection.

Which 802.11 protocol are you using? G,N, or ?

I'll be connecting to the unit from my laptops via WiFi.

 

[unijabnx2000]

How many drives? Which way are you connecting to them?

With that little of RAM, I would use iSCSI to connect and directly share the drive(s) using device extents. That way the RAM isnt being used for caching and you are getting the actual read/write speed of the drive itself. (which could be limited by your wifi connection)

 

[ScottBaxter]

How many drives? Which way are you connecting to them?

With that little of RAM, I would use iSCSI to connect and directly share the drive(s) using device extents. That way the RAM isnt being used for caching and you are getting the actual read/write speed of the drive itself. (which could be limited by your wifi connection)

Cheers man - is there any tutorials on this?

- - - Updated - - -

OK no problem - What transfer speeds would you expect across the network and is there anyway to test this?

I'm using N on my MacBook Pro... I was getting about 3mb a second last night?

Is that normal?

 

[unijabnx2000]

You can find youtube videos that give you the general idea of setting up iscsi, but there are many steps they show, that can be skipped.

Like this video / start at 5m33
but instead of using a file extent: use device extents and share the drive directly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_uEUJMl7io

 

[cyberjock]

I'm using N on my MacBook Pro... I was getting about 3mb a second last night?

Is that normal?

That's about right. Welcome to wifi! It's great for your cell phone and tablet, but just about nothing else. :)