BUILD Hardware selection - 1st FreeNAS build

[DataKeeper]

I guess I don't understand? The 10GbE switch has 8 ports with a pfSense box, 1 Desktop PC, 3 servers (FreeNAS, Web/EMail, ESXi) and another 48-port 1GbE switch plugged into it. Thats 6 ports in use with 2 for future use. I don't see the waste...

 

[MtK]

@DataKeeper do you have any indication regarding how much noise does the whole server (Chassis) produce?

 

[MtK]

I just found these 3 videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNXAUAqEPj4 :(
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mDGW18JNgo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSxQSAYn0UA :)

 

[DataKeeper]

Hmm... I forget :D Systems are all in the basement! I have fans set to HeavyIO and sitting directly in front of the system I can clearly talk on the phone, hear the wife call me from upstairs or talk to her directly without raising my voice when she comes down. This is with the 24 bay running along with 2 other smaller rack servers, a RM APC and 2 RM switches. Unfinished ceiling, so only the plywood w/vinyl flooring, and I can't hear it directly above in the kitchen eating area. If I turn the fans up to full speed then yes.. It can be heard upstairs at night.

It's certainly quieter then a normal server room. I've found with my below grade basement everything stays cool without having to crank the fans up. I'd say my 24 bay itself is quieter then that 2nd video at the end. The 3rd vid is really useless as it's completely hacked with nowhere near the airflow of the stock fans.

Still, I'd not want it in my bedroom or main office. It would bother me watching TV. Lol this likely isn't much help! :D

 

[pclausen]

Hey DataKeeper,

So I got one of those Supermicro SATA DOM (the 32GB one, just a single one), and popped it into one of the Orange SATA connectors.

I enabled the SATA controller (not the sSATA one), and I can see it being connected to port 4 as seen here:

I also see it as a boot override option here:

But alas, like you , it does not appear under boot priorities. I think it is unlikely that I have a faulty SATA DOM as well, but I suppose its possible.

Sorry to bring this old post of mine back up, but I wanted to provide an update. I was never able to get the SATA DOM to show up on the boot pick-list. Last week I upgraded the BIOS to 1.0c (I was on 1.0a). That still didn't fix the issue, and now there is no longer a "Boot Override" when going to Save & Exit. Fortunately the F11 or whatever key it is, does work for picking the P4 SATA DOM I have installed. But is has been a pain for the last 6 months to always have to have a IPMI session open to go into BIOS on every reboot to manually pick the boot device.

I was curious if you had upgraded your BIOS to 1.0c and noticed any issues. I guess I'll eventually invest in another 32GB SATA DOM to see if the issue goes away.

On another note, I have gotten to the point where my E5-1620 is running out of steam with my Emby clients. So I rolled the dice and pick up an Engineering Sample E5-2683 v3 (14 physical cores) from eBay. Hopefully it will work.

 

[DataKeeper]

I haven't touched the system in ages. It just quietly works and does what I need it to do.

Suggestion... Don't reboot! Ehh sorry I know not helpful. I'm less then happy with Supermicro and their support with this issue. They seem to keep going back to I have bad Doms. I did order a new single replacement and had the same issues with that one in single and dual boot setups so I'm not buying its a bad Dom..

I'm thinking its a bug in their bios or the Doms personally. Sucks.

I've done a few reboots and thankfully haven't had further issues however I'm leery in making any changes to the bios at this point. I simply don't have the time to play with it lately.

 

[pclausen]

I hear you on not rebooting. About the only time I do it is when there's an update available. I try not to get too far behind. Moving to FreeNAS 10 will be interesting to say the least. Been playing with the Alpha on another box and it is very different.

I guess I might try my luck with SuperMicro support, but I'm not very optimistic that the outcome will be positive.

 

[DataKeeper]

I meant to call back and get someone else but life and family have kept me from it. Everything I went through with Supermicro was with one specific person and via email, some taking a week to hear back. Useless in troubleshooting something like this. If I pursue it I'll call and start fresh with someone else.

I haven't looked at FN10 yet. Not impressed with a few things with FN at this point and deciding which way I'll go soon. I've had issues with their definition of "stable" almost from the beginning however wanted to give the system the benefit of the doubt. The entire firmware issue from P16 to P20 is a perfect example especially with it having been left out of the changelog at the time. Updates to a Stable system should ONLY contain Security and Urgent fixes. bringing a system down, disconnecting & reflashing hardware isn't a Stable system.

FreeNAS 'Stable' is a testing release for ixsystems.

 

[depasseg]

I've found through some troubleshooting, that sometimes email to SuperMicro gets filtered and never is received. I was given the following link that can be used to open up a support ticket. Maybe that could help you guys a little in dealing with them.

https://webpr3.supermicro.com/Support/Default.aspx

 

[fx24]

DataKeeper,

I know you flashed your 1015 controller to P16, but did you also flash your SAS2 backplane?

I have done all 3 of mine, and they were on ancient versions. Here's a ftp site with the binaries:

ftp://211.214.88.34/bios/BP_FW/

And here's how to perform the actual upgrade:

Firmware Upgrade through running Linux system
i)For expander behind SAS HBA or On-board SAS Controller
1. Download and extract all files to a local drive.
2. Boot the target system to Linux.
3. Navigate to directory with the Linux utility.
4. Find SAS address of expander(s) in system.
a. Run "xflash -i get avail" command
b. The format of SAS Address is shown as below
(xxxxxxxx:yyyyyyyy)
c. Record returned SAS Address as "xxxxxxxxyyyyyyyy"
5. Update expander fw.
a. Run "xflash -i <SAS Address> down fw sas2xfwBasic.fw 0 -y"
6. Power cycle system once expander has completed firmware update.

What backplane is this for? I have the Norco 4224 and would like to update its backplane.

 

[Darren Myers]

What backplane is this for? I have the Norco 4224 and would like to update its backplane.

Supermicro Backplane, i would NOT attempt it on anything other then supermicro.

 

[fn369]

I haven't looked at FN10 yet. Not impressed with a few things with FN at this point and deciding which way I'll go soon. I've had issues with their definition of "stable" almost from the beginning however wanted to give the system the benefit of the doubt. The entire firmware issue from P16 to P20 is a perfect example especially with it having been left out of the changelog at the time. Updates to a Stable system should ONLY contain Security and Urgent fixes. bringing a system down, disconnecting & reflashing hardware isn't a Stable system.

FreeNAS 'Stable' is a testing release for ixsystems.

Hi. I'm brand new to the forum, and considering changing from Synology to FreeNAS. I read this thread with huge interest, as your build was one I'd like to emulate, even though it's likewise more than I need currently.

May I ask how this story ends, please? Did you 'decide which way to go'?

Thanks.

 

[DataKeeper]

Hi Edward. Don't read much into my statement. FreeNAS is a great software package just different from my expectations of stable. I come from Debian Linux where the stable tree is just that Stable. The only updates it gets is security updates and as a result one gets a rock solid system for years between updates. FN isn't quite the same with updates, fixes and security being added often. Which breaks things as in what happened with the required hardware firmware update crap. Doesn't matter it if it's 12 hours or 1 minute downtime they shouldn't have instroduced something like that into a stable release.

All that said.. I'm still running FreeNAS and it's been running great for me. I still have 37tib free. The system I built is fantastic and handles a dozen PLEX remote streams at any given time along with our internal use as well.

I'm mostly happy with the system and honestly couldn't tell anyone not to use it.

 

[fn369]

Thanks very much for the quick reply! I've spent the past couple of days working myself into complete confusion, and your build finally seemed to present a path forward. When I got to the final page and read your comment I almost gave up and called the QNAP dealer, although I could well understand your frustration!

That said, I think I'm going to have to try and find someone locally to set this up for me, and stop entertaining fanciful DIY ideas. FreeNAS really doesn't seem as straightforward as Synology, which is what I've been using for the last 3 years, and I have no idea how to hook up server parts, flash hardware etc.!

Really disappointing, because I'm itching to start ordering parts, and the chances of finding a FreeNAS expert in Thailand are remote. Thanks, anyway.

 

[SweetAndLow]

Do you have access to the freenas mini? It's like the synology but for freenas.

 

[fn369]

Thanks for the suggestion SaL, but, as per my first post, I'm looking to upgrade to a setup like DataKeeper's!

 

[TXAG26]

I've been happy with my latest build, which is similar to DataKeepers. I'd suggest contacting iXsystems as they may be able to put you in contact with a local (for you) reseller/partner.

 

[fn369]

Thanks, TXAG26, You've also got a great sounding set up.

I think that's probably a very sensible idea, although I did track down the local Supermicro dealer online, and thought it might also be worth asking them if they knew any FreeNAS whiz kids!

Having resigned myself to not DIY-ing 2 hours ago, I find myself still trawling through eBay and Amazon looking at server parts (that I don't understand)... It's a sickness!

 

[TXAG26]

Thanks, TXAG26, You've also got a great sounding set up.

I think that's probably a very sensible idea, although I did track down the local Supermicro dealer online, and thought it might also be worth asking them if they knew any FreeNAS whiz kids! :)

Having resigned myself to not DIY-ing 2 hours ago, I find myself still trawling through eBay and Amazon looking at server parts (that I don't understand)... It's a sickness!

A large build (done correctly) will require a financial commitment to the project and the correct selection of components. There is a steep learning curve to this (both in possible frustration and expenses), so good job in evaluating whether this is something you want to tackle.

I'll second the recommendation to pick up a FreeNAS Mini. I just noticed that there is now a Mini w/4 bays and a new XL Mini w/8 bays! I'd pick up either one of these to get your feet wet and then if you need something bigger, you can always custom-build a larger system when you know more of what you'll need. You can always use the Mini/XL Mini as a replication backup target for your larger FreeNAS server when that time comes around.
https://www.ixsystems.com/freenas-mini/

 

[fn369]

Thanks again for your feedback, @TXAG26, but I currently have 2 X Synology DS2413+ units with 48TB+ each, and I'm looking to upgrade!

@DataKeeper did a great job of detailing his build, so i understand the costs involved. What makes me hesitate is the thought of physically hooking it up and making it all work. ;-(