Install warning

[melloa]

Just a thought ... with the cost of SSD going down every day, why do we still have the warning saying that it is advisable to install on a USB stick instead of a hard drive?

 

[Chris Moore]

Just a thought ... with the cost of SSD going down every day, why do we still have the warning saying that it is advisable to install on a USB stick instead of a hard drive?

Probably needs a bug report or feature request to remind the development team to modify the prompt.
If you look at the Hardware Requirements page, you see that the USB stick is still an option but not recommended:
http://www.freenas.org/hardware-requirements/

Also, it is entirely possible to use a spinning disk for a boot drive and they totally ignore that in the documentation, last I looked.

 

[melloa]

Probably needs a bug report or feature request to remind the development team to modify the prompt.

I'm just pick LOL. Will send an official reminder :)

 

[DrKK]

Well it's all overtaken-by-events. Almost everyone in my circle of associates has installed their FreeNAS on an SSD or DOM.

 

[Linkman]

May also have the side effect of discouraging new users from accidentally installing to one of the storage drives.

 

[DrKK]

May also have the side effect of discouraging new users from accidentally installing to one of the storage drives.

You know, it's a funny thing. We had THOUGHT we'd taken care of that by putting it basically on page 1 of the documentation not to do that. But documentation is for idiots, I guess...

 

[melloa]

May also have the side effect of discouraging new users from accidentally installing to one of the storage drives.

That's a thought ;)

You know, it's a funny thing. We had THOUGHT we'd taken care of that by putting it basically on page 1 of the documentation not to do that. But documentation is for idiots, I guess...

oh man ... don't get me started. Who many times I'd replied to my operators with: Read manual X, page Y, paragraph Z ... but wait ... that was when we had printed 400 pages manuals. :D

 

[Ericloewe]

Isn't this in the latest version? I could have sworn that this change had been made at some point.

 

[Ericloewe]

Yeah, the current text seems fine to me:

The FreeNAS® operating system is installed to at least one device that is separate from the storage disks. The device can be a SSD, USB memory stick, or DOM (Disk on Module). Installation to a hard drive is discouraged as that drive is then not available for data storage.

NOTE: To write the installation file to a USB stick, two USB ports are needed, each with an inserted USB device. One USB stick contains the installer, while the other USB stick is the destination for the FreeNAS® installation. Be careful to select the correct USB device for the FreeNAS® installation. FreeNAS® cannot be installed onto the same device that contains the installer. After installation, remove the installer USB stick. It might also be necessary to adjust the BIOS configuration to boot from the new FreeNAS® boot device.

When determining the type and size of the target device where FreeNAS® is to be installed, keep these points in mind:

• The absolute bare minimum size is 8 GiB. That does not provide much room. The recommended minimum is 16 GiB. This provides room for the operating system and several boot environments created by updates. More space provides room for more boot environments and 32 GiB or more is preferred.
• SSDs (Solid State Disks) are fast and reliable, and make very good FreeNAS® operating system devices. Their one disadvantage is that they require a disk connection which might be needed for storage disks.
  Even a relatively large SSD (120 or 128 GiB) is useful as a boot device. While it might appear that the unused space is wasted, that space is instead used internally by the SSD for wear leveling. This makes the SSD last longer and provides greater reliability.
• When planning to add your own boot environments, budget about 1 GiB of storage per boot environment. Consider deleting older boot environments after making sure they are no longer needed. Boot environments can be created and deleted using System ‣ Boot.
• Use quality, name-brand USB sticks, as ZFS will quickly reveal errors on cheap, poorly-made sticks.
• For a more reliable boot disk, use two identical devices and select them both during the installation. This will create a mirrored boot device.

NOTE: Current versions of FreeNAS® run directly from the operating system device. Early versions of FreeNAS® ran from RAM, but that has not been the case for years.

 

[melloa]

Yeah, the current text seems fine to me:

That looks great.