Recommendations on zpool configuration, with only 8GB ECC RAM

[vnas]

@cyberjock
First of all, I want to thank you for your activity on this forum. I have read every word of your guide and numerous of your posts; your services have been invaluable as I have cobbled my system together from an old box.

System Specification:
Asus M2N32SLI
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 5000+
8GB Crucial ECC (maxed-out, per motherboard specification)
RAIDZ2: 4 x 2TB Western Digital Red (currently 4 drives in my zpool, but have two more drives)
FreeNAS is running on a usb

Use Case:
1. Rsync, archival of laptop and desktop home directories, family photos, music collection, etc. Never read, just write; well, I'd read it if I had a disaster.
2. Storage of ripped dvd collection and a jailed Plex Media Server, streaming to various set-top boxes throughout the house.
3. Jailed instance of crashplan, for offsite backup.

Finally, my question:
I'm considering rebuilding my zpool with all six drives, as a RAIDZ3. In your opinion, would this be appropriate, given the RAM limitations? If not, considering the above system restrictions, how would you proceed with configuring the zpool?

Cheers!

p.s. Anybody else please feel free to comment and/or provide your opinion... I only specify @cyberjock because I have gained considerable respect for his expertise, and I'll likely invoke a very direct, no-bull, response, especially if he thinks I'm a moron. :)

 

[Robert Trevellyan]

2. Storage of ripped dvd collection and a jailed Plex Media Server, streaming to various set-top boxes throughout the house.

Unfortunately your RAM limitation is not compatible with your intended use case. Plex is a memory hog and you need more than the minimum requirement of 8GB if you plan to add it to your system. Adding a CrashPlan jail into the mix just makes it worse.

 

[vnas]

Unfortunately your RAM limitation is not compatible with your intended use case. Plex is a memory hog and you need more than the minimum requirement of 8GB if you plan to add it to your system. Adding a CrashPlan jail into the mix just makes it worse.

Okay. Given the hardware limitations, what is the maximum, but safe, use-case within guidelines? I.E., limit the zpool capacity, drop plex off of the use-case, or scrap the machine? I'll eventually build a new system; just using the hardware I have to limp by. Ultimately, the purpose of my question is that I can't find a straight answer for what the 8GB RAM minimum supports. Is it just for the FreeNAS OS, and nothing more? Or is there an implied zpool allocation in the specification that I'm missing?

Cheers!

 

[cyberjock]

I, personally, wouldn't use that hardware at all with FreeNAS. Too many problems with AMD that come up.

That being said, if you want to use that hardware, using jails or plugins are basically out of the question. You have the minimum amount of RAM, so expect to only be able to use the minimal amount of features. That means no Plex and no Crashplan.

It seems a bit crazy to go with RAIDZ3 redundancy when you could have done RAIDZ2 and bought better hardware instead with the extra money. But it is what it is.

 

[vnas]

I, personally, wouldn't use that hardware at all with FreeNAS. Too many problems with AMD that come up.

That being said, if you want to use that hardware, using jails or plugins are basically out of the question. You have the minimum amount of RAM, so expect to only be able to use the minimal amount of features. That means no Plex and no Crashplan.

It seems a bit crazy to go with RAIDZ3 redundancy when you could have done RAIDZ2 and bought better hardware instead with the extra money. But it is what it is.

That's what I was looking for. Thank you for confirming a six drive RAIDZ3 is a bad idea.

BTW: The current configuration and use-case has been running, nonstop, without problems, for over a year. Per your recommendation, I'll leave it alone and work on building a new box instead of rebuilding what is working.

Cheers!

 

[cyberjock]

I think you misunderstand what I was trying to say.

RAIDZ3 isn't a bad idea. It's just not what I would consider the "best" idea. When you have X dollars I prefer to go with more reasonable RAIDZ2, buy one less hard drive than I would have needed with RAIDZ3, then bought slightly better motherboard, CPU, and/or RAM. It's about putting the money in the right place and not spending it in areas that don't add value. ;)

 

[Robert Trevellyan]

+1, I would stick with your existing RAIDZ2 pool for now with no plugins or jails.