NAS Hardware Questions

[Schuyler]

Hi everyone,

I've spent the last few months researching FreeNAS and reading forum posts and have decided it's time to build my own server. I'm in college and would like to use stuff I already have laying around, rather than buying everything new. So I just have some questions regarding the hardware I already own.

I'm planning to use the server for streaming music and movies and also for file storage.
Initially I'm planning to buy two, 2tb HGST sata 3 hdds which will be configured in RAID 1. But I would like to add an additional 2 drives within the year and switch to RAID 0+1.

Here's what I already own for hardware:
MBA: Intel S1200KPR
CPU's: i7-3770, i7-2600, i5-2400S (all these work with the mba)
Case: BitFenix Mini-ITX Tower Case BFC-PRO-300-KKXSK-RP
RAM: two sticks of KVR1333D3N9/4G (tested with memtest)
I also have the psu and cables, fans, etc.

Now for the questions:
- According to what I've read, 8gb will be enough RAM for the first two hard drives, but will I need to upgrade to 16gb when I add the additional 2 drives?
- Are there any additional benefits to using a RAID card over the mba sata ports?
- Is the i5 cpu adequate for what I'm doing?

Thank you for reading!

 

[NiKiLLst]

I'm not an expert here. But I studied a lot before posting.

I think you should have read this: https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?threads/hardware-recommendations-read-this-first.23069/
It answers almost all your questions.

Long story short, no ECC ram, no party.

 

[Schuyler]

I should have clarified. I'm not looking to build a server that is unlikely to fail because I don't have a $500+ budget for this project. I know the risks of using non-ecc and I am prepared to lose all data on the server.

 

[DifferentStrokes]

NAS4free would be a better option, I believe. FreeNAS isn't for everyone. It's like your saying I want a Cadillac, but only have a Honda Civic budget.

 

[Schuyler]

Alright I'll do that, thanks

 

[NiKiLLst]

Ok, that's clear.
BTW, just to answer your question:

#1 will be enough but "If you plan to use Plex you should have at least 12GB of RAM", the more, the better.
#2 more ports available. "Random RAID controllers that are operating in RAID mode (showing virtual or logical devices to FreeNAS) are a very bad idea"
#3 yes it should. But it mainly depends on number of trascodes, and type you need to do. There's a long chapter on CPU requirements in the guide I linked before.

Anyway, your mobo supports ECC.
If you plan on upgrading ram, think about buying ECC ram and swapping CPU with something that can support it. Costs won't be too high imho.