New build, new to FreeNAS

[dantzler]

Editing hardware to reflect what I actually bought / installed...

I'm familiar with Linux & UNIX and would like to build a file server to keep all of my files in one place. My research led me here because I like DIY and I want to reap the many benefits of FreeNAS & ZFS. Hat tip to John Ramsden for his excellent and inspiring guide here:
https://ramsdenj.com/2016/01/01/freenas-server-build.html

My goal is to store my files safely and serve them to a mostly Linux network. I may be interested in tinkering with jails, etc. I don't anticipate a lot of trans-coding loads. Mostly single user. Current server is a Minnowboard Max (intel Atom) USB 3.0 connected to a 2 TB Hitachi drive and an AWUS wifi adaptor with a custom directional antenna in a separate building. I mount sshfs shares from it onto my other machines which include a desktop PC, laptop, & a Pi3 running motion and storing the image files remotely. I realize FreeNAS won't work nicely with wifi and I only get about 30MBps throughput, so I'm using a couple of MoCA adapters to connect the 2 buildings using an existing, unused coax aerial cable between them.

Mobo:
Supermicro X10SDV-4C-TLN4F
Mini-ITX SoC Intel Xeon D-1518 4-Core, Single Socket FCBGA 1667
http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/Xeon/D/X10SDV-4C-TLN4F.cfm
http://www.wiredzone.com/supermicro...s-embedded-processor-x10sdv-4c-tln4f-10025822
The X10SDV-4C+-TLN4F version comes with a 4-pin CPU fan plugged into 'fan 2' header. My board also came with 6 SATA data cables.

Case:
Fractal node 804
https://www.amazon.com/Fractal-Desi...d=1485314055&sr=1-1&keywords=fractal+node+804
I see these have dropped to an even $100...
The CaseLabs stuff is sheer beauty, but not in my budget.

Memory:
I'd like to use Supermicro recommended Samsung DDR4 2400 registered ECC RAM and I think 32 GB should be sufficient for my needs. Would it be better to use 2x16 GB to take advantage of interleaving or a single 32 GB stick? Upgrades would be limited to 64 GB vs. 128 GB in those scenarios although I can't imagine needing 128 GB of RAM.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00X04FO9K/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Boot device(s):
Left M.2 unpopulated for now.

Used a 9-pin adaptor to plug into the USB 2.0 header on the motherboard and use a pair of mirrored USB sticks for booting. I'd rather not have USB sticks protruding from the back of the case.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016RPA2N6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s03?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00F3F3FC2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

HDDs:
Leaning heavily towards 6 x 6 WD RED drives in RAIDZ2; the slower spinning, cooler drives. Mobo has 6 SATA sockets and even though the DOM-ready (i.e. powered) one is cool, I want all 6 for HDD drives.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1070898-REG/wd_wd60efrx_intellipower_6tb_3_5_64mb.html
B&H Gave me a $25 on 7 of these drives.

Power Supply:
Sea Sonic Platinum 400 fanless (I own this already and it should supply enough power for this rig; cpu is only 35W)
https://www.amazon.com/SeaSonic-SS-400FL2-Active-Platinum-Fanless/dp/B003ZWQXUQ

Misc:
I will probably buy 4 PWM controllable fans like John did to ensure adequate cooling during the summer and power savings when it is cooler. Noise is not much of an issue, but I imagine that it will be relatively quiet.
2 120mm PWM fans:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BEZZBFO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
1 120mm PWM fan:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KFCRMSG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

UPS:
https://www.amazon.com/CyberPower-CP1500PFCLCD-Sinewave-Compatible-Mini-Tower/dp/B00429N19W

Thanks for any suggestions or constructive criticism. This will be my first FreeNAS build and I'd like it to last a while with minimum fuss.
Dantzler

 

[Stux]

X10SDV-4C+-TLN4F

The '+' means there is a fan on the heat sink.

You should go for a single 32GB stick. Channel interleaving makes almost no difference to FreeNAS. Assuming you're not going to do something in a VM which would benefit from the VM

I'd save the M.2 as well.

6 red drives is a good idea. Can also consider seagate NAS HD.

Node 804 gets good reviews.

 

[wblock]

Will that header adapter will actually work for two USB sticks at the same time? Doesn't look like it has any circuitry on it, like a hub chip, so it might only work with one. (Why would they build it with two? The two-USB connector might be cheaper because it's so common.)

Fanless power supplies have had some negative comments here. To me, it also seems a bit small for six drives, but maybe not.

That Ramsden article is probably the best overall end-user setup articles I've seen. The only thing it gets wrong is thinking that FreeNAS still runs out of RAM, which is minor and doesn't hurt anything. Thank you for posting that!

 

[Stux]

9 pin motherboard usb2 headers contain the wiring for two ports. No hub necessary

 

[dantzler]

Will that header adapter will actually work for two USB sticks at the same time? Doesn't look like it has any circuitry on it, like a hub chip, so it might only work with one. (Why would they build it with two? The two-USB connector might be cheaper because it's so common.)

Fanless power supplies have had some negative comments here. To me, it also seems a bit small for six drives, but maybe not.

That Ramsden article is probably the best overall end-user setup articles I've seen. The only thing it gets wrong is thinking that FreeNAS still runs out of RAM, which is minor and doesn't hurt anything. Thank you for posting that!

You're welcome. Can you clarify why FreeNAS doesn't run out of RAM? The minimum recommended RAM is still 8 GB.

I think the header adaptor just breaks out the pins to 2 USB ports--I was going by the motherboard manual header description (p. 2-12) that defines pins 3 & 5 as USB_PN2 & USB_PP2 and pins 4 & 6 as USB_PN3 & USB_PP3. Am I wrong in assuming that the hub would be on the motherboard? Alternately, there is another 9 pin USB 2.0 header on the motherboard for USB 4/5.

I will search for concerns with fanless power supplies. Does it involve adequate cooling or reliability perhaps?

My power estimates were based on the WD REDs taking around 6 W each, for a total of 36 W.
http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/6592/western-digital-red-6tb-nas-hdd-raid-report/index5.html
CPU spec'd @ 35W, 32 GB of RAM I estimate @ 13 W, so I'm at ~85 W less fans and the USB sticks. I'll probably wait on populating the M.2 slot, but an additional SSD should not take much power. The tested Toshiba 256 GB drive that uses the PCIe 3.0 bus draws 5 W during read/write.

Is the concern due to HDD spin up power usage? I have not been able to find a good reference for how much power a hard drive takes to spin up vs. read/write.

Thanks for your comment.

 

[dantzler]

X10SDV-4C+-TLN4F

The '+' means there is a fan on the heat sink.

You should go for a single 32GB stick. Channel interleaving makes almost no difference to FreeNAS. Assuming you're not going to do something in a VM which would benefit from the VM

I'd save the M.2 as well.

6 red drives is a good idea. Can also consider seagate NAS HD.

Node 804 gets good reviews.

Thanks for your comment and the RAM recommendation.

In a roomy case with good air flow, is there a compelling reason to get the CPU heat sink fan?
I've seen the + version for slightly cheaper than the - version. Do you know if the heat sink is the same for both?

 

[wblock]

You're welcome. Can you clarify why FreeNAS doesn't run out of RAM?

Earlier versions of FreeNAS did run from RAM. This was changed in FreeNAS 9.10 (or after 9.3, anyway).

I think the header adaptor just breaks out the pins to 2 USB ports

Doh! It seems obvious now that there are two ports per header, just hadn't thought about it before.

I will search for concerns with fanless power supplies. Does it involve adequate cooling or reliability perhaps?

Cooling, as I recall.

Is the concern due to HDD spin up power usage? I have not been able to find a good reference for how much power a hard drive takes to spin up vs. read/write.

Spin-up power. See https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?threads/proper-power-supply-sizing-guidance.38811/. But by that guide, 400W should be adequate. It just seemed low.

 

[droeders]

Thanks for your comment and the RAM recommendation.

In a roomy case with good air flow, is there a compelling reason to get the CPU heat sink fan?
I've seen the + version for slightly cheaper than the - version. Do you know if the heat sink is the same for both?

I wouldn't recommend these boards without a CPU fan unless you're using a 1U chassis with case fans blowing directly over the CPU.

I (among others) have had problems with overheating CPUs without the fan. See this post and others in the same thread:

https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?posts/333251/

 

[Stux]

Thanks for your comment and the RAM recommendation.

In a roomy case with good air flow, is there a compelling reason to get the CPU heat sink fan?
I've seen the + version for slightly cheaper than the - version. Do you know if the heat sink is the same for both?

You should get the Plus version, or budget for an aftermarket fan.

Re: power estimates, there is a thread on this, but a more accurate peak estimate is 36W per drive

 

[ccssid]

You should get the Plus version, or budget for an aftermarket fan.

Re: power estimates, there is a thread on this, but a more accurate peak estimate is 36W per drive

Just out of curiosity, after having read through the forums, many times, I see the figure of approx 35w start-up for wd red. Not that I believe everything I read on the net, but, this article state less than 15w start-up. can you help me out on this one.

http://www.storagereview.com/western_digital_red_nas_hard_drive_review_wd30efrx

thanks

 

[Bidule0hm]

Just out of curiosity, after having read through the forums, many times, I see the figure of approx 35w start-up for wd red. Not that I believe everything I read on the net, but, this article state less than 15w start-up. can you help me out on this one.

http://www.storagereview.com/western_digital_red_nas_hard_drive_review_wd30efrx

thanks

I made some measurements some time ago: https://forums.freenas.org/index.ph...drive-spin-up-peak-current.38885/#post-237516

 

[Stux]

Notice the other drives do have startup peaks of 25W according to the article. (Add 12V + 5V usage)

If you want you can size based on that number

 

[dantzler]

Thanks for the recommendations to get the CPU fan + version!