First NAS Build - Looking for Expertise and Advice

[cinemafunk]

I’m in the process of completing my first DIY NAS Build. I’ve built many computers before so I’m not terribly new the process, just to non-Windows builds. I’m upgrading from a Netgear NV+ w/ 4x 1TB hard drives using their proprietary RAID-X which - from what I understand – has some similarities to RAID 10 where one drive can fail and it can be rebuilt. With the 4x 1TB drives, I have roughly 2.6 TB of space.

My requirements are as follows:

• Playback video and music to my PS3 or Chromecast – Perhaps through Plex?
• Provide a backup solution for a 1 PC and 1 laptop – Bacula? Not adverse to using Acronis
• Host OwnCloud for remote music and video streaming – Google Music replacement
• Potentially download videos – ideally automatically
• Music and video will be output through a media center w/ 7.1 and projector
• Possibly record security video
• 6-7 year longevity

Potential components:

• 16GB USB Drive
• ASRock B150M-ITX LGA 1151 Intel B150 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX Intel Motherboard
• G.SKILL Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2133 (PC4 17000)
• Intel Intel Celeron G3920 Skylake Dual-Core 2.9 GHz LGA 1151 65W BX80662G3920 Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 510
• Dynatron K2 75mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler for Intel LGA Socket 1151 / 1150 / 1155 / 1156
• Fractal Design Node 304 Black Aluminum/Steel Mini-ITX Small Form Factor Computer Case
• 4x Seagate NAS HDD ST2000VN000 2TB 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive

Essentially, I want to make sure I have all my bases covered. Like I said above, I’m new to non-Windows builds, and builds in such small spaces. This machine will also be setup near a UPS.

Any advice or expertise would be helpful, especially advice on RAID configurations and what would be best for performance and redundancy. I’m not adverse to increasing the amount of HDDs to ensure data lose is minimized.

 

[Ericloewe]

Have you read the Hardware Recommendations guide?
https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?resources/hardware-recommendations-guide.12/

 

[nojohnny101]

Welcome to the forums!
It is good that you have some experience building computer, you're further along then most. However, building and understanding server software/hardware is quite different in some aspects.

I'll expand on the what @Ericloewe said and give you a bunch of links you need to read. people on here are very friendly and are willing to help but will be much more likely to help if you have done your homework. You don't have to understand everything in all of these links at first, but it shovel give you a foundation and answer most of your questions.

I can tell from a glance a number of things about your build:
- it is recommended to use ECC RAM
- you're processor might be underpowered for what you want to do (given that you seem to want to run a bunch of jails)
- you could start off with 8GB of RAM to save money. In any case, you should always buy one stick of RAM vs two sticks of RAM that equal the same size to guard against expandability problems in the future
- power supply?

All of the things i stated above could have been answered by reading some of guides for getting started on here. Read through the link that @Ericloewe posted as well as these:
FreeNAS Manual
Slideshow for Noobs Intro
PSU Sizing Guide
ZFS Abbreviations and Terminology

Good luck! Post back if you have specific questions and/or after you revised your build.

 

[melloa]

@cinemafunk - Welcome to the FreeNAS world. Your requirements are very processor/memory intense, for 16GBRAM/Intel CPU. Do read the recommended material above to better understand what you will need.

When you say Plex and Owncloud and states that you would be using Owncloud for remote music and video streaming, that's exactly what Plex is and does, so if you are looking only for a way to host a media server, stick with Plex.

Add to that the security system you are planning, like Zoneminder, and more memory and processing power will be required.

I'm not familiar with the case you mentioned, but looking at it on-line, I'd think won't be a good choice due to ventilation. Keep in mind that your server will be running several HDs inside and you must keep them from over heating.

One last though: Always think on expansions.