Sanity check for FreeNAS/FreeBSD NAS build

[tman5005]

Hello,

I've been thinking I want to get in to all of the ZFS goodness. I currently have a Synology DS1813 which has served me well but is linux mdadm RAID6, so not ZFS. :) That is running 8 x 4TB HGST NAS drives.

As it's getting to be 4 years old, I've been looking to upgrade it.

So, here is my current idea for a build. Comments welcome:

Case: Node 804 (already purchased), room for 10 HDD and 2 SSD
Motherboard: Supermicro X11SSL-CF (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=2W2-0014-00023)
CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V6 (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117788)
CPU cooler: Noctua NH-U12S (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608040)
RAM: 32 GB, 2x of Supermicro MEM-DR416L-SL01-EU24 (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA7S67Y99082)
OS drives: 2x in mirror vdev, SAMSUNG 860 Pro (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147684)
Storage drives: 10x in RAIDZ2, 6TB HGST Deskstar NAS (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822146118)
Power supply: Seasonic PRIME Snow Silent 750W (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151221)
Case fans: case comes with 3, maybe will replace if too noisy

For the case fans, the Node 804 already has some included, so I am not sure if I need any at the moment. If I decide I do I would be going with Noctua something or other.

One of the goals of every computer I have is as much as possible it should be silent. So always 120mm+ fans everywhere, including the CPU cooler, on low speed settings, assuming no heat issues. Of course speed is adjusted as necessary.

The power supply I believe should be adequate based on power calculations as described here: https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?threads/proper-power-supply-sizing-guidance.38811/

A lot of these numbers are just guesses based on that article and some other internet lookups, but probably could be more accurate with more research time:

Max load:
Motherboard: 25w
Onboard LSI: 10w
CPU: TDP 72w
CPU fan: 15w ???
Case fans: 45w (3x15w) ???
RAM: 12w (2x6w)
HDD: 350w (10x35w)
Total: 529w

Idle load:
Motherboard: 25w
Onboard LSI: 10w
CPU: ??? using 30w for calculation
CPU fan: 15w ???
Case fans: 45w (3x15w) ???
RAM: 12w (2x6w)
HDD: 73w (10x7.3w) per data sheet (https://www.hgst.com/sites/default/files/resources/DS_NAS_spec.pdf)
Total: 210w

The idle draw seems a bit high but maybe not for 10 drives. I didn't include anything for SSD's, but online articles seem to show around 1-2w, so I didn't really bother including it.

Anyways comments welcome on my build and also my power math.

 

[jgreco]

The idle draw is a lot harder to calculate and also somewhat less important. You're mainly looking to make sure that you haven't driven off the cliff into a range where the PSU can't even cope, but that's less of a problem these days than it used to be. The case fan draw is an area where there can be a lot of variability. Your idle and max numbers are probably both off. Don't freak out though. The big point is just to avoid the trap of undersizing your PSU, which can potentially end up damaging stuff and my imprecise estimation is that you're in a good size range.

 

[DrKK]

There is no way you even remotely approach 210W at idle. I guarantee it. DrKK guarantees it.

 

[Stux]

One of the best things you can do to minimize noise with a SuperMicro board is to use pwm fans and one of the many fan control scripts which monitor cpu and hd temps to control the speeds of the fans.

That way they run at the minimum speed necessary to maintain the set points, even when under load.

 

[anmnz]

OS drives: 2x in mirror vdev, SAMSUNG 860 Pro (https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147684)

You'll never use 512GB of OS drive. Or even 32GB. You might want to look in to a SATA DOM instead to avoid using up drive bays. Most people would say mirroring the OS drive is overkill if it's SSD or similar but that's your call..

 

[tman5005]

You'll never use 512GB of OS drive. Or even 32GB. You might want to look in to a SATA DOM instead to avoid using up drive bays. Most people would say mirroring the OS drive is overkill if it's SSD or similar but that's your call..

I've already maxed out the case's 10 3.5 inch drive slots. It has 2 2.5 inch slots left so those are being dedicated to the OS. Not really anything else reasonable I can dedicate those to anyways.

I might consider switching to the 256 GB Samsung Pro 860's. Would save $100.

 

[anmnz]

I've already maxed out the case's 10 3.5 inch drive slots. It has 2 2.5 inch slots left so those are being dedicated to the OS. Not really anything else reasonable I can dedicate those to anyways.

Hm not sure I was clear about the SATA DOM idea. They don't need a drive bay so you could keep your 2.5" bays for future use.

 

[tman5005]

Hm not sure I was clear about the SATA DOM idea. They don't need a drive bay so you could keep your 2.5" bays for future use.

No I understood that SATADOMs don't take slots. The point is this is a dedicated NAS box basically. I have the 2 SSD slots and the 10 HDD slots, so it seems like an easy choice to just have a mirror for the OS and RAIDZ2 for the main storage pool. No single points of failure where reasonable.

Anyways, I'm just now realizing that the newegg page for this PSU says "10 x SATA" so will have to figure out something for powering the SSD's.

 

[IQless]

so will have to figure out something for powering the SSD's.

You could go with a Molex to Sata splitter like this one:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/20inch-4-P...580843?hash=item415d8fd26b:g:48IAAOSwPc9WznLG

 

[Ericloewe]

I'll guesstimate 70 W idle. My X11SSM-F system idles around 45 W or so, measured at the UPS. Add 10 W for LSI and 15 W for more disks...

OS drives: 2x in mirror vdev, SAMSUNG 860 Pro

Phew, that's pretty high-end for a boot device, but no complaints here! Two of them, no less! If this isn't for a business, you can definitely get along with just a single SSD.

As for SATA DOMs, they're usually overpriced and the quality is very dubious. Not worth the hassle, in my opinion, when you can just velcro a 2.5" SSD to the chassis in a convenient spot.

 

[tman5005]

I'll guesstimate 70 W idle. My X11SSM-F system idles around 45 W or so, measured at the UPS. Add 10 W for LSI and 15 W for more disks...

How do you get 70w for my setup? My 10 disks alone are 73w based on 7.3w per disk according to the spec sheet. If you think it really is 70w total I better rethink the PSU since that would be under 10% of its rating.

As for SATA DOMs, they're usually overpriced and the quality is very dubious. Not worth the hassle, in my opinion, when you can just velcro a 2.5" SSD to the chassis in a convenient spot.

The SSD slots in this case are in a pocket on the front panel. No need for velcro in this case.



Next step is figuring out a UPS.

 

[Ericloewe]

My 10 disks alone are 73w based on 7.3w per disk according to the spec sheet.

That figure really seems excessive. Probably a "disk is at full-tilt" figure. My systems with six 3 TB WD Reds both idle at less than 50 W with heads flying. HGST NAS drives aren't going to be much worse than WD Reds.

The SSD slots in this case are in a pocket on the front panel. No need for velcro in this case.

Even better.

If you think it really is 70w total I better rethink the PSU since that would be under 10% of its rating.

If you're going to stick to 10 disks, you can definitely scale down the PSU somewhat. A 650 W model would be perfectly appropriate. Staying with the larger one won't hurt, though.

 

[tman5005]

That figure really seems excessive. Probably a "disk is at full-tilt" figure. My systems with six 3 TB WD Reds both idle at less than 50 W with heads flying. HGST NAS drives aren't going to be much worse than WD Reds.


Even better.


If you're going to stick to 10 disks, you can definitely scale down the PSU somewhat. A 650 W model would be perfectly appropriate. Staying with the larger one won't hurt, though.

I struggle with how you get down to 70w. Do you have an Atom or Xeon D?

I'm not sure what other figure I should use for my disks except from the spec sheet. I don't plan on ever spinning down the drives or letting them go idle, so they will be always spinning.

 

[Ericloewe]

I struggle with how you get down to 70w. Do you have an Atom or Xeon D?

Nope. X11SSM-F with an i3-6300 and an X10SLM+-F and i3-4330. The latter is slightly more power-hungry.

 

[tman5005]

Nope. X11SSM-F with an i3-6300 and an X10SLM+-F and i3-4330. The latter is slightly more power-hungry.

Well, I should just read your signature. :p

I wonder if the difference is first less drives, but also WD Red look to be 5400 rpm whereas HGST are 7200.

Regardless, I struggle with my build getting to less than 100w. My Synology looks around 90w while its running and that's with an Atom CPU and 8 HGST 4TB which are also 7.3w.

 

[Ericloewe]

They're 7200 RPM? That's weird for NAS drives... You can probably add a Watt or two more per drive, then.