Question on setup

[Bizquick]

Okay not sure this is the place to get into this question.
But I'm still really new to using FreeNAS and I like what I have tested and used so far.
Ive added this to my home network before with some older desktop hardware and 1 TB of storage.
I found after using it shortly I dont know why I didnt make a media box sooner.
So now I've made something I'm testing now required.

Anyway back to my question or 's.
Now I have FreeNAS installed on a Old Dell T310 with 16gb ram.It seams to run fine for me on this old hardware.
I dont feel I need more of anything.
I only do file sharing and plex. my playback devices are a Roku box (not a stick) and a Nex95 Android TV box.
Usable storage is about 5.4 tb.
Now I installed it on a 16GB USB flash drive.

My only complaint is how long it takes to boot up because its on a USB 2.0 flash drive.
When I was testing it on my old desktop hardware. I had the boot on a SSD. and it was nice. it came up quick.
I kind of would like to recreate that. but I'm not really sure how to backup all the media I have been storing and then restore.
I dont know enough about installing this. So I end up doing a total reinstall and recreate everything from scratch.
But I'm back to my problem I want to back up the data first.
Is there a way I can hook up a USB drive and like back all of it up?
I have a USB 3.0 card in there. I cant use it for boot. But I can use it to plug in external storage.

Or is there a easy way I can like transfer my settings to a new boot install disc?
Just trying to figure out the best way to do this.
One more question to add to all this
The SSD I would use is a 240 GB. Is there a way I can like use 40GB for the boot and the other 200GB for like a Jail store or something? Or is all of this a really bad Idea?
I just don't like the slow boot up. (5-7mins I think)

 

[chris crude]

Save your system config settings to the client that you use to connect to FreeNAS. Install the SSD, install FreeNAS to the SSD. Import your saved config settings to the new setup. Thats it. Very easy. Save/import Config buttons reside at the System>General tab. http://doc.freenas.org/11/system.html#general
I dont recommend partitioning the drive into 2, I *think* it can be done but it adds an extra layer of complexity that isnt needed.

 

[Bizquick]

I just found a small issue.
I have added a SSD already I setup for Jails.
that SSD is already using my last power port. I'm not sure I can do this.
I think I might have screwed myself.

 

[chris crude]

I just found a small issue.
I have added a SSD already I setup for Jails.
that SSD is already using my last power port. I'm not sure I can do this.
I think I might have screwed myself.

maybe change your jail location to another pool? https://forums.freenas.org/index.ph...to-move-my-plugin-jail-to-another-pool.32906/
I don't use jails, but i've read that you don't get a huge improvement from putting them on their own special SSD. I created an SSD stripe of 2x250GB for my VM's, but those are full blown operating systems not a program running in a jail. Maybe someone who knows more about jails can add something or correct me if i'm wrong.

 

[Inxsible]

My only complaint is how long it takes to boot up because its on a USB 2.0 flash drive.

It's a NAS box. Shouldn't your system be up all the time? Mine is and I use a 16GB usb2 as well.

 

[chris crude]

It's a NAS box. Shouldn't your system be up all the time? Mine is and I use a 16GB usb2 as well.

As much as I agree with this statement, you must understand that some people do only turn things on once a week to do backups. Or if there is an update, waiting 15 minutes for something to reboot and you are in anticipation the whole time. Or in the rare cases where updates have broken certain setups, hard to pinpoint problems when you are waiting.
Again, I agree with your statement, but in my opinion the boot drive upgrade is worth the extra cost of only for how much faster FreeNas updates are.

 

[garm]

What about adding the SSD as a mirror to the boot pool and then remove the USB from the mirror when your done? No reinstall needed.

But I do stand in the “why bother” corner. Boot time is for me a non issue.

When it comes to power just get a Y splitter and share the other SSD’s supply, they don’t use that much

 

[Inxsible]

What about adding the SSD as a mirror to the boot pool and then remove the USB from the mirror when your done? No reinstall needed.

Once you create a mirror, you will need 2 SSDs if you plan to remove the USB or your boot pool would be in DEGRADED state.

As for me, I have 6 drives in my NAS and only 6 SATA ports on my board. I have no option but to use a USB for my boot pool. I mean, I could add a PCIE sata card, but again, "why bother?"

 

[danb35]

Once you create a mirror, you will need 2 SSDs if you plan to remove the USB or your boot pool would be in DEGRADED state.

No, you could just zpool detach the missing device.

 

[Inxsible]

No, you could just zpool detach the missing device.

D'oh !!
I am so inclined to having a mirror in my boot pool that I keep forgetting this bit ;)

 

[garm]

The SSD I would use is a 240 GB. Is there a way I can like use 40GB for the boot and the other 200GB for like a Jail store or something? Or is all of this a really bad Idea?

No, you won’t be able to use the SSD for anything other than storing the OS. So most of the space would be wasted.

 

[SweetAndLow]

As much as I agree with this statement, you must understand that some people do only turn things on once a week to do backups. Or if there is an update, waiting 15 minutes for something to reboot and you are in anticipation the whole time. Or in the rare cases where updates have broken certain setups, hard to pinpoint problems when you are waiting.
Again, I agree with your statement, but in my opinion the boot drive upgrade is worth the extra cost of only for how much faster FreeNas updates are.

Only booting the system once a week is terrible. You will never run smart tests or scrubs. These are the biggest features for using freenas/zfs. Just switch to a USB enclosure it will work better for you.

 

[chris crude]

Only booting the system once a week is terrible. You will never run smart tests or scrubs. These are the biggest features for using freenas/zfs. Just switch to a USB enclosure it will work better for you.

Agreed. I do not participate in or endorse this practice. Just adding things i've read people try to do into this conversation.

 

[Chris Moore]

I'm late to the party and I didn't read all the posts but I think I should probably put it out there, the Dell T310 server, if that is what you have, is just slow to boot because of all the system checks it does.
There is no advantage to fast boot media on FreeNAS.
Also, boot drive can't be used for any other purpose.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk

 

[Chris Moore]

I just don't like the slow boot up. (5-7mins I think)

I replied earlier from my phone, but have more ability to type now I am at a desk. The Dell PowerEdge T310 server (I have one at my desk) and is several generations (6 ish) old and is slow partly because of that but also because it is a server. Servers run many system integrity checks during post that slows the process down but FreeNAS also is slow to boot because of many of the things it is doing. It might improve slightly with a faster drive, but don't waste a 250GB SSD on it.

I just found a small issue.
I have added a SSD already I setup for Jails.
that SSD is already using my last power port. I'm not sure I can do this.
I think I might have screwed myself.

You might also want to look into getting a SAS controller for the system, so you are not limited by the number of SATA ports on the system board. Those systems (when new) were almost always equipped with a SAS adapter of some sort. The one I have is sporting a SAS 6iR which is not a good one but there it is. I was actually about to send this one out for recycling. As a FreeNAS server it could probably be used for several years yet, but it is just not doing the job here at work any more.
Did your unit come with the 370watt non-redundant power supply or the more powerful redundant unit?

 

[Bizquick]

Okay I won't waste the SSD on it. its A T310 with A Perc700 I had to set all the drives as raid 0 so I could let freeNAS do the raid.
I have 4 Sata ports open on the main board so I'm good there.

its a single power supply but its more than 370 I want to say 450 or 475 Not sure I'll check again tonight.
But the slow boot is the USB. After checking again its not that bad. I thought it was bad at first. but after a few reboot tests last week I think its just fine now. I do have a SSD I use for the jails though. not sure thats a good thing or not. its a 240 gig one as well.
the only jail though is plex so far. so not sure what its really doing for me yet.
only complaint I had with the box was I had a hard time just getting 16 gigs in it.
the CPU just didnt want to take certain types of PC3 DDR sticks. But in the end I found that it didnt pass one of the VM tests in FreeNAS. So not really a big deal anyway.

So should I be scheduling a daily reboot or something?
Something I was reading above seemed to suggest something there.

 

[Bizquick]

Never thought I could mirror the USB boot. I have 2 internal USB ports. I could plug in another 16 in there but would know how to mirror that.

 

[Chris Moore]

Never thought I could mirror the USB boot. I have 2 internal USB ports. I could plug in another 16 in there but would know how to mirror that.

There is an option in the GUI. It is easily done.
http://doc.freenas.org/11/system.html#mirroring-the-boot-device

 

[Chris Moore]

Perc700 I had to set all the drives as raid 0

That is specifically recommended NOT to do. Are you able to check the drive SMART status with that configuration? I bet not. This is something you should have been aware of before you setup your system. You need a regular SAS controller, NOT a RAID controller. This is a catastrophe in the making.

 

[Bizquick]

I didnt want to buy the parts to build this so I used what I had. I wanted to use the back plane in the T310 for the drivebays and stuff. also drives can be hot swapped with using the backplane.

I wonder if have a PCIE Rocket controller. but the interfaces are all SATA. I need something I can plug the back plane into and still give me disc access.
And my options are limited. maybe I'll end up spending some money and building a new box. I was just trying to avoid doing that though.