Increase In performance

[illmatic6596]

Hey Guys , I am a newbie , just got my first NAS up and running today , I mounted just one hard drive on UFS (Not enough RAM for ZFS) , I plan on using only one drive for a couple of weeks before putting any of my personal information on it . I messed with some plugins , updated from 8.3.2 to 9.1 but I plan on going back to 8.3.2 seems much more stable to me and I really don't like the Idea of having a jail per plugin. I am currently running on 2 GB of Ram on a AMD athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor . During my transfer run today I never got pass the 12 MB/s . So I was wondering what do you guys think might improve speed :
-A network card : Nothing but awesome review about the Intel PWLA8391GT .
- More Ram : unfortunately I am running on a old AM2 socket motherboard that doesn't support more than 4 GB of Ram . I can always pickup a new motherboard during black friday tho and add more ram later.
- A better CPU : I was closely monitoring the CPU activity and the CPU never got pass the 5% usage . So I doubt that is an issue here .
- A better HD : For this test I used a old 2.5' 5400 RPM hard drive I pulled from an old Laptop . Do you think I need a 7200 RPM .

Looking forward to your suggestion.

 

[gpsguy]

Do you have a gigabit ethernet network, with gigabit components? NIC's and switch? If so, it sounds like something might be running at 100, or you might have a bad cable in the mix.

If you replaced the NIC, buy a pro/1000 CT instead. It runs on a PCI/e bus.

Yes, new hardware would be nice, especially something that supported ECC RAM. But, look at your current network first.

 

[illmatic6596]

Do you have a gigabit ethernet network, with gigabit components? NIC's and switch? If so, it sounds like something might be running at 100, or you might have a bad cable in the mix.

If you replaced the NIC, buy a pro/1000 CT instead. It runs on a PCI/e bus.

Yes, new hardware would be nice, especially something that supported ECC RAM. But, look at your current network first.

Thanks for you quick reply gpsguy , No as of right now I don't have a gigabit ethernet network , my router is a Belkin F5D7234-4 and I don't thing support gigabit internet connection . So getting a new network card for the NAS might not be ideal . But on another note how much of an increase I can expect increasing my Ram from 2 to 4 GB DDR2 ?

 

[pirateghost]

Thanks for you quick reply gpsguy , No as of right now I don't have a gigabit ethernet network , my router is a Belkin F5D7234-4 and I don't thing support gigabit internet connection . So getting a new network card for the NAS might not be ideal . But on another note how much of an increase I can expect increasing my Ram from 2 to 4 GB DDR2 ?

If you are running 10/100 and don't have gigabit networking 12MB/s is as fast as you will ever see. 8bits for every byte. 100mb tops out at 12MB/s. Nothing will make you faster except gigabit networking

Sent from my Nexus 5

 

[gpsguy]

You are correct, you're Belkin router contains a 10/100 connection. Even if your added a new NIC, etc. the router would limit your performance to about what you're getting now.

Start with a 10/100/1000 switch. Inexpensive 5-8 port switches can be found for less than $60 USD. And, at a minimum, add a gigabit NIC to your FreeNAS box. If you've got a PCI/e slot the Intel Pro/1000 CT is a good choice. Cost for an OEM version is ~$25 USD. You'd also need a gigabit NIC in whatever machine you're accessing your server from.

If you can't get to 6Gb or so - stick with UFS. To get the caching benefits of ZFS, you need 4Gb free (meaning you need more than 4Gb total). If you can swing it, financially, look for a modern motherboard/CPU during the Black Friday sales. My guess, is your current rig is 6+ years old.

See the thread "So you want some hardware suggestions" for some recommendations.

Consider adding another drive and mirroring your disks. If this is the only location where important data will reside, please remember to backup the FreeNAS server.

 

[illmatic6596]

If you are running 10/100 and don't have gigabit networking 12MB/s is as fast as you will ever see. 8bits for every byte. 100mb tops out at 12MB/s. Nothing will make you faster except gigabit networking

Sent from my Nexus 5

Pirateghost , So even If I grab 2 more Gb of DDR2 Ram for a total of 4 GB I will still top at 12 Mb/ s doing transfer under UFS ?

You are correct, you're Belkin router contains a 10/100 connection. Even if your added a new NIC, etc. the router would limit your performance to about what you're getting now.

Start with a 10/100/1000 switch. Inexpensive 5-8 port switches can be found for less than $60 USD. And, at a minimum, add a gigabit NIC to your FreeNAS box. If you've got a PCI/e slot the Intel Pro/1000 CT is a good choice. Cost for an OEM version is ~$25 USD. You'd also need a gigabit NIC in whatever machine you're accessing your server from.

If you can't get to 6Gb or so - stick with UFS. To get the caching benefits of ZFS, you need 4Gb free (meaning you need more than 4Gb total). If you can swing it, financially, look for a modern motherboard/CPU during the Black Friday sales. My guess, is your current rig is 6+ years old.

See the thread "So you want some hardware suggestions" for some recommendations.

Consider adding another drive and mirroring your disks. If this is the only location where important data will reside, please remember to backup the FreeNAS server.

Gpsguy , unfortunately I have a modem and router both from Time Warner cable who is my TV, phone and Internet provider , I doubt they will let me change the setup they have going .The Modem they set me up with is also limited to 10/100 . I plan on getting a new case do you think I can fit a TFX power supply into a case say for example a HAF series . I never had a third party before so i don't want to invest only to find out the TFX power supply cable are short .

 

[pirateghost]

Pirateghost , So even If I grab 2 more Gb of DDR2 Ram for a total of 4 GB I will still top at 12 Mb/ s doing transfer under UFS ?


Gpsguy , unfortunately I have a modem and router both from Time Warner cable who is my TV, phone and Internet provider , I doubt they will let me change the setup they have going .The Modem they set me up with is also limited to 10/100 . I plan on getting a new case do you think I can fit a TFX power supply into a case say for example a HAF series . I never had a third party before so i don't want to invest only to find out the TFX power supply cable are short .

The bandwidth limitation is at the hardware level on your network gear. RAM won't do a damn thing for that.

As far as changing out your router, of course you can do that. There are many tutorials out there on doing just that.
It involves keeping your existing modem/router combo, disabling the WiFi on it, setting up the modem as a bridge, and putting your own router behind it. Quite trivial actually.

Sent from my Nexus 5

 

[gpsguy]

No need to replace your time warner equipment. Just connect a gigabit Ethernet switch to their router and move our computer and FreeNAS server to the gigabit switch.

I didn't understand your question about cases and power supplies. Can you provide a link.


Sent from my phone

 

[illmatic6596]

The bandwidth limitation is at the hardware level on your network gear. RAM won't do a damn thing for that.

As far as changing out your router, of course you can do that. There are many tutorials out there on doing just that.
It involves keeping your existing modem/router combo, disabling the WiFi on it, setting up the modem as a bridge, and putting your own router behind it. Quite trivial actually.

Sent from my Nexus 5

Pirateghost ,my initial plan was to bridge the current 10/100 router that is hooked up to the 10/100 modem by Ethernet cable ,keep the WIFI on , and hook up a Trendnet TEG-S50G Unmanaged 10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit GreenNet switch . But since my current Time warner modem and router are both limited to 10/100 hooking up a 10/100/1000 switch will not give me a 10/100 connection speed ?

No need to replace your time warner equipment. Just connect a gigabit Ethernet switch to their router and move our computer and FreeNAS server to the gigabit switch.

I didn't understand your question about cases and power supplies. Can you provide a link.


Sent from my phone

Gspguy , I currently have a Athena Power AP-MTFX30 300W TFX12V power supply made for slimline type case , I plan on getting a new mid size case during black friday sales and I was wondering if you had ever used this type of power supply in a mid size case . The cable seems a little short to me .
I can also spend a little more and get a case from a reputable company with a power supply already included in the case . What are thoughts ?

 

[pirateghost]

Pirateghost ,my initial plan was to bridge the current 10/100 router that is hooked up to the 10/100 modem by Ethernet cable ,keep the WIFI on , and hook up a Trendnet TEG-S50G Unmanaged 10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit GreenNet switch . But since my current Time warner modem and router are both limited to 10/100 hooking up a 10/100/1000 switch will not give me a 10/100 connection speed ?



Gspguy , I currently have a Athena Power AP-MTFX30 300W TFX12V power supply made for slimline type case , I plan on getting a new mid size case during black friday sales and I was wondering if you had ever used this type of power supply in a mid size case . The cable seems a little short to me .
I can also spend a little more and get a case from a reputable company with a power supply already included in the case . What are thoughts ?

That's not how networking works.

If you hook up a GB switch, you will have GB networking for anything attached to that switch that supports it. The router is for getting routed out to the outside networks. It has no bearing on local traffic unless the devices are attached to it and running through it.

Sent from my Nexus 5

 

[illmatic6596]

That's not how networking works.

If you hook up a GB switch, you will have GB networking for anything attached to that switch that supports it. The router is for getting routed out to the outside networks. It has no bearing on local traffic unless the devices are attached to it and running through it.

Sent from my Nexus 5

ok , I will pickup a GB switch and a GB NIC at my Local Best Buy or Newegg and test it out . Based on your post #4 , I should be getting about 100 mbps under 'ideal' condition or a least a significant increase in transfer speed from my 12mbps right ?

 

[pirateghost]

ok , I will pickup a GB switch and a GB NIC at my Local Best Buy or Newegg and test it out . Based on your post #4 , I should be getting about 100 mbps under 'ideal' condition or a least a significant increase in transfer speed from my 12mbps right ?

Mbps =\= MB/s

There are 8 bits to every byte.

100 Mbps =12MB/s under ideal circumstances
1gbps = 125 MB/s under ideal circumstances

It's important to know the difference

Sent from my Nexus 5

 

[illmatic6596]

Mbps =\= MB/s

There are 8 bits to every byte.

100 Mbps =12MB/s under ideal circumstances
1gbps = 125 MB/s under ideal circumstances

It's important to know the difference

Sent from my Nexus 5

Hey Pirateghost , today I had some spare time so I made the trip to Best Buy and purchased 2 TPlink GB NIC and a Netgear gigabit switch , I am not really a fan of the Netgear brand but It is the only gigabit switch they had in stock. Connected the switch to my 10/100 Router using a cat-6 cable . The max speed I got was about 55MB/s with a single 1.6 GB file . Tried to transfer a folder of about 10k + files of a size of 36 GB the max speed was about 52MB/s . It certainly is an improvement over the 12MB/s I was getting with my initial setup but I am really looking for that 100+MB/s transfer rate . Will a faster CPU do the trick or a faster HDD ?

 

[gpsguy]

More than likely, the TPlink NIC's use a Realcrap chipset - the Intel that I mentioned, probably wasn't much more than you spent. But, at least it's a 4x + improvement over what you had before.

If you want 100 MB/s, you'll need to invest in newer hardware with a fast CPU. And, if you want to use ZFS, you'll want to rightsize the amount of RAM - don't skimp on it. Follow the sage advice and get a motherboard & CPU that support ECC RAM.