BUILD Home media/backup NAS for family use, review/advice requested

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squeakyneb

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PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-4300 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($119.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99FX PRO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($179.00 @ PCCaseGear) Asus M5a78L-M for $79
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($229.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($229.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($229.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($229.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce 210 1GB Video Card ($39.00 @ PCCaseGear) no longer needed, GPU on M5A78L-M
Case: NZXT Source 530 ATX Full Tower Case ($109.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Other: Silverstone EC01P Internal PCIe USB3.0 Card ($29.00)
Other: Internal USB 3.0 to Dual USB 3.0 Cable ($15.00)
Other: OS flash drives ($15.00)
RAM: 2x8GB ECC RAM ($270.00) It was suggested that Kingston RAM might not be so great, now looking at this RAM instead for $340. Good RAM seems worth the cost.

Update: Alternatively considering a Supermicro X10SLM-F ($310) and Celeron G1840 ($50). It'd be an extra $200 but they seem popular parts (particularly Supermicro, I've seen a lot about them on IRC).

Disclaimers/notes:
  • The GPU is because that CPU family has no on-board graphics and I figure that being able to use the machine directly is worth a cheapo GPU.
  • The mobo has a Realtek NIC. I've seen some people say they're fine. I've seen some people say they're terrible. I have a couple of spare Intel gigabit NIC cards lying around from older PCs if I really need them.
  • I'm like 99% sure that the system is all compatible (including ECC support on both mobo and CPU) but if I've overlooked something, point it out.
  • It's an AMD build because I couldn't find competitively-priced parts for an Intel-based ECC-compatible build on the Australian market and even the best priced options elsewhere lost their price advantage once shipping's factored in. The cheapest Intel ECC mobo I've found is another $100 and the CPU for it would be an extra $150. I don't see any advantage to an Intel build.
  • The prices are a bit stupid, because Australia.
  • The drives are the one part I've found so far that would be cheaper to buy internationally with shipping factored in (specifically, from Amazon).
  • Please remember the Australia thing before suggesting specific alternate parts. If there's a fault with my build, please point it out, but replacement part suggestions should be in the form of features and specifications, not model numbers.
  • Someone on IRC also pointed out that it's only a bronze PSU. I know, and I haven't looked into the cost-effectiveness of better PSUs, but it is on my to-do list before buying. You can ignore the PSU.
 
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Z300M

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G'Day from another Aussie (but not in Oz).

It's not just the Realtek networking: I just read a new message today that warns that some AMD-compatible boards and/or the CPUs don't work well with FreeNAS. I don't know how much Supermicro motherboards are in Australia, but if you could bring yourself to spend the money for one (e.g., one of the X10-series), you would have a much more suitable system, and if you still had problems you'd be more likely to find people here to help. It would also have IPMI, which enables you to control the system remotely and eliminates the need for the video card, monitor and keyboard. Many (or at least most) of the newer SM motherboards have USB 3.0 on board, so that's another add-on board you wouldn't have to buy -- although what you'd use that USB for I don't know.

Another disadvantage of your intended motherboard is that you are paying for fancy sound capabilities that are of no use at all in a FreeNAS machine.

I see that the RAM to which you link is (a) Kingston and (b) low-voltage. Kingston has allegedly been guilty of dirty tricks wrt their SSDs recently, and RAM they used to recommend for certain Supermicro motherboards disappeared from their own recommended list and was discontinued altogether a little while later. Low-voltage RAM offers little, if any, real advantage.
 
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squeakyneb

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Ugh, really? Going with a supermicro x10 and avoiding Kingston RAM bumps the price up another 300 bucks. Still, better than a not-quite-working machine for cheap. "Paying for the audio" isn't really an issue if the build is still cheaper than the alternatives (although it's a moot point if the build wouldn't work).

How do these parts look?

http://www.scorptec.com.au/product/Motherboards/Server_&_Workstation/51265-X10SLM-F
http://www.scorptec.com.au/product/CPU/Server_&_Workstation/50991-BX80646E31220V3
http://www.scorptec.com.au/product/Memory/ECC_&_Registered/53030-M391B1G73BH0-CK0 (2 of these)

And yes, IPMI would be cool, but not 300 bucks cool. I'm ok with plugging a spare monitor and keyboard into a server every now and then. It's just a home setup, after all.
 

gpsguy

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You might want to look at joeschmuck's build. He lists it on his profile. It's an Asus desktop mobo with a similar CPU to the one you chose and works with ECC ram.
 

squeakyneb

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Ooh, neat (link to his profile for the lazy). That's the same CPU and it turns out that my usual parts dealer has that same mobo too (not sure how I missed it before). Seems to have everything I want on a mobo. I'm vaguely annoyed that pcpartpicker didn't list that. Grr. I wonder if his Intel NIC is because the realtek one didn't work, or if he just bought it anyway.

Anyway, I've sent him a message to ask if he's got anything to say on it.

EDIT: that mobo also has an integrated GPU of its own. Awesome.
 
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Z300M

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Ugh, really? Going with a supermicro x10 and avoiding Kingston RAM bumps the price up another 300 bucks. Still, better than a not-quite-working machine for cheap. "Paying for the audio" isn't really an issue if the build is still cheaper than the alternatives (although it's a moot point if the build wouldn't work).

How do these parts look?

http://www.scorptec.com.au/product/Motherboards/Server_&_Workstation/51265-X10SLM-F
http://www.scorptec.com.au/product/CPU/Server_&_Workstation/50991-BX80646E31220V3
You don't have to put a Xeon in one of those motherboards: even a Celeron will work, I think. What CPU is needed to do what gets discussed here often, although I don't recall the specifics.
Here in the US, I've sometimes found the recommended Hynix RAM for less than the recommended Samsung. How about in Australia?
And yes, IPMI would be cool, but not 300 bucks cool. I'm ok with plugging a spare monitor and keyboard into a server every now and then. It's just a home setup, after all.

I assume that those prices include tax, which US prices don't. And the Australian Dollar is worth somewhat less than the US Dollar these days.
 

squeakyneb

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Oh, crap. I hadn't seen mention of ECC on Celeron pages before. That makes the supermicro setup SIGNIFICANTLY more feasible.

I've never heard of Hynix. The Samsung RAM I linked is the cheapest ECC non-buffered non-Kingston RAM I could find on a (reputable) Australian site.
 

Dennis K.

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Instead of the X10SLM-F you can also try to get the X10SLL-F. The only difference is the chipset being C222 to C224 which results in 2 to 4 SATA6G ports (Well, and less USB3 ports). This might save you some bucks.
 

Starpulkka

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How about this http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/Xeon/C220/X10SL7-F.cfm I would go for that witch has sas2 LSI 2308 chip. So you dont need put LSI 9211 card in a new machine. And for memorys put only for sk hynix or kingstone what uses sk hynix chips. As for case i would put easy maintenance case fractal define r4 or antec p280 mid. Also i would not trust corsair psu for weak wd hdds (wd harddrives are know to be touchy for bad voltages or spikes from psu) pick seasonic psu it should have japan caps witch last much longer than that corsair psu caps.. And for processor buy intel xeon. As for ups i only know apc ups so dont have any recommentations on ups brand.

Edit:Of course you might have to put that motherboard lsi chip on IT mode if i have understand correctly, and you should check is it mode doable before you byu that board. Im poor and happy with my amd nasses.
 
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joeschmuck

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My system work rather well but I did have to step off my high horse once my RealTek NIC (built in the MB) didn't work very well under 9.2.1.6 and I added an Intel NIC. Something happened between 9.1 and 9.2.1.6 where likely RealTek driver support went away, or at least that is all I can figure out.

With respect to AMD CPUs not being supported by FreeBSD, all I've heard of are certain "A" series CPUs, not the FX series. The one I purchased was based on price as it definitely is a powerful CPU and as far as I can tell, will handle everything FreeNAS can throw at it.

I just had my Gallbladder removed yesterday so I may not reply again for a few days but if you have any questions about my configuration, there are a few others here who have the same or very similar configuration. Search those out and ask them how they like it, what they would do differently. Take advantage of the experiences others have had, don't just take my word for it.
 

squeakyneb

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Saving bucks with a few specific parts is a long shot and no online store I like the look of carries those particular boards. The X10SLM-F is the cheapest X10 I can find locally. Amazon carries a few, with $95 shipping (if it ships here at all). As I said in the OP, suggesting features (maybe brands and part families) is good, but model numbers are useless to me.

Joeschmuck, that's good to know :) thanks. Hope you recover quickly. Don't die :P
 

joeschmuck

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I know the Supermicro boards are good and if I have the money when I built my system, I would have gone that route. Unfortunately there are no cheap systems, they all will feel like they are costing you a fortune.

If you choose a system that someone else has already built (listed in their tagline) you should send them a message and ask them some basic questions like "what is good, bad, and what would you do different". That last one is a biggie.

Not dying yet. I'm good enough to use my daughters laptop to get on the internet.

-Mark
 

diedrichg

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I love pcpartpicker but it does not have support for most server parts. Reading though build threads in this forum will be your best resource for build suggestions and mistakes.
 

joeschmuck

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I think pcpartpicker might be fine for someone building a standard home computer but when it comes to specific requirements like needed ECC RAM, the site doesn't validate if the MB and/or CPU support the ECC RAM. Sure, the RAM may work in the MB but it may not be operating with ECC enabled. I've seen that once here last month. I guess the picker could be fine but the user cannot go in uneducated about the hardware.
 

squeakyneb

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Busy few days, but I'm still here. I'm aware that PCpartpicker doesn't have anything for server support, but it does provide a good listing (sortable and searchable and such) of parts. Seemed to miss a few good parts though (like the mobo currently listed in my OP) for no apparent reason. Also doesn't list Scorptec bits at all, and they seem to have all the good server components. I guess I'm assembling part lists by hand :P
 
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