FreeNAS MINI XL with more than 48TB?

[Barlog951]

Hi

I would like to buy FreeNAS MINI XL ( 8x HDD bay )
Is it possible to store in FreeNAS MINI XL more than 48 TB?
I would like to add 8x 8TB HDD

Thanks for an answer

 

[Dice]

Is it possible to store in FreeNAS MINI XL more than 48 TB?

yes

 

[jclende]

Currently the configurator on the IXSystems site only allows up to 6TB hard drives and 32GB of RAM. The motherboard spec says it supports 64GB of RAM. Is there a reason for this limitation? I assume the hard drive limitation is simply because the configurator needs to be updated.

I have a client who wants to buy a MiniXL with 8TB drives and 64GB of RAM.

 

[Ericloewe]

The motherboard spec says it supports 64GB of RAM. Is there a reason for this limitation?

The 64GB were historically only achievable by spending absolutely obscene amounts of cash. 400 bucks per 16GB DDR3 UDIMM, IIRC. Crucial/Micron now has 16GB DDR3 UDIMMs at a reasonable price, so you could get 64GB for ~400 bucks.

Larger disks are no problem at all. You'll obviously want to not stray too far from the 1GB/1TB rule, but larger disks are fine.

 

[jclende]

Ok that makes sense.

I'm not sure if you can answer this, but I would like to buy a complete system to keep billing simple. Can I contact IXSystems sales about a custom MiniXL or do they only handle enterprise/TrueNAS?

 

[Ericloewe]

I'd certainly try it. They might not be able to get the RAM you need, but they almost certainly can sell you all sorts of WD drives (that's who they work with).

 

[jclende]

Just wanted to follow up here with some official info.

I contacted IXSystems, and asked if I could share their response on the forums. I never got a reply either way, so I'm just going to share it anyway.

According to IXSystems:

"the default fan settings are not sufficient to cool 8TB drives and if they are used there is a high probability that it could cause damage to the Mini"

Unfortunate. Hopefully we'll see a fix to this in the future.

"FreeNAS Mini XL can support up to 64GB of RAM we can not easily source the 16GB dimms"

I was able to find 16GB ECC dimms, but I'm sure IXSystems is locked into specific vendors/quantities which makes it more difficult for them.

 

[tvsjr]

The good part about FreeNAS is you can turn the knobs yourself. I'm not sure of the hardware config, but you should be able to turn the fans up if they aren't running at full throttle. If not, you could always replace the fans in the case with similar units that are faster.

At the end of the day, it's all about drive temperatures. Watch the temps, if they start getting out of hand, add more cooling.

 

[Arwen]

...
At the end of the day, it's all about drive temperatures. Watch the temps, if they start getting out of hand, add more cooling.

And, as a final safety measure, you can add a dead man's script. Basically check if the drives are too hot, for too long,
(like perhaps >1 minutes), send an E-Mail notification and shutdown the server.

 

[MrToddsFriends]

I wonder if the 10TB WD Reds would be an option to reach more than 48 TB. According to the WD Spec Sheet there is not much difference between the 6 TB and the 10 TB models, neither in 12VDC peak current (in A) nor in average power requirements (in W).

 

[iHeartMacs]

The good part about FreeNAS is you can turn the knobs yourself. I'm not sure of the hardware config, but you should be able to turn the fans up if they aren't running at full throttle. If not, you could always replace the fans in the case with similar units that are faster.

At the end of the day, it's all about drive temperatures. Watch the temps, if they start getting out of hand, add more cooling.

Hi, how would you find a better cooling system for the MiniXL. I've heard of finding quieter fans but I'm unfamiliar with finding a fan that can go faster. I'm a total noob at this but will the faster fan put pull more voltage? Can the MOBO handle that? I'm asking because I want to do this exact same thing. Or even better does anyone have a link to a great build that Has 48TB Raidz2? Thx

 

[nojohnny101]

Assuming the thermal design of the FreeNAS Mini XL is sound (don't own one myself, but I haven't read widespread problems with cooling) then probably buying higher quality fans that are appropriately specd would drop your temps. Noctura is a popular brand that designs/sells high quality fans. That is the route I would go.