Offsite backup advice

[Phobos]

I currently have an encrypted zpool consisting of 6x4TB WD Reds in a RAID-Z2. It works fantastically, but not having an offsite backup makes me very nervous. I have a few ideas that I’d like feedback on, and would also be interested in hearing about how you handle offsite backups. The offsite backup needs to have the same data integrity guarantees that ZFS provides, and the data must not be accessible by a third-party (so, no rsync’ing to a single external drive, and no cloud providers).

I currently see two ways forward:

1) Upgrade to a motherboard with more SATA ports (or buy a card), buy three 5.25” hot swap bays, and use 3x4TB or 3x6TB drives in a RAID-Z1 as a backup pool; keep these drives offsite. (And eventually buy another set of 3 drives so I can rotate the backups offsite.)

Pros:

• Can start cheap; and eventually upgrade to multiple rotating offsite backups
• Backups are offline

Cons:

• Backups are offline
• Transporting and attaching/detaching the backup disks is a nuisance; the disks could be damaged during transport
• I have to upgrade a perfectly good motherboard, or fight with an expansion card
• The backup pool is limited to three drives and RAID-Z1
• I have no idea if this would actually work

2) Build a new server, rent space in a colo, and pay for the colo every month for eternity

Pros:

• Online backup
• No worrying about rotating and transporting disks

Cons:

• Large upfront cost of building a new server
• Running monthly costs for colo space
• Overhead of remotely managing another machine
• I’ve never rented colo space before and don’t know what I’m doing (Can I colocate a midtower? Would I have to build a 2U server? I’ve never worked with rackmount hardware before and it seems very expensive. Do I have to colocate a router as well?)

Further details:
I’m currently using about 6TB of ~15.4 TB usable. I have an X10-SLH-F with 32GB ECC RAM and an E3-1231v3. I live in a large metropolitan area in the US PNW with ample upload speed, and I wouldn’t mind driving a few hours to a colocation center.

Thanks for any advice or insights!

 

[dlavigne]

Which solution did you decide upon?

 

[Phobos]

Which solution did you decide upon?

Going forward with the hotswap bays and rotating backups. Simpler and not prohibitively expensive.

Currently planning on getting an LSI-9207-8i, Mini-SAS to SATA breakout cable, three 6TB WD Reds, and either an Icydock 3-in-2 hotswap bay, or just three separate StarTech/Kingwin trayless hotswap bays. Backup pool will be encrypted RAID-Z1.

Biggest concerns right now are:

• Is regularly attaching/detaching an encrypted backup pool a recipe for disaster?
• Will the SATA connectors hold-up to insertion/removal a couple of times per month?
• Is it okay to run 9 WD Reds in one chassis (as WD says “up to 8”)?

I also think I need to update my PSU, as 460W probably won’t cover 9 drives spinning up simultaneously. Currently looking at a 650W Seasonic. Might also upgrade or buy a separate UPS, as mine is currently rated at 810W, and it’s also powering a pfSense router (APU1C4) and an Airport Extreme.