Thinking of Switching From ClearOS 7 Running On HP N40L

[Martin Webster]

Hello,

I'm Martin from Leicester, UK. I don't mind "tinkering" with the OS but above all want useful IT that sits out of sight and does its job with minimal intervention while keeping my data safe. I think FreeNAS may fit the bill.

I have an HP N40L and this runs ClearOS 7.2 Home (CentOS 7 base.) I really like the N40L -- it's quiet and efficient and well built -- but ClearOS isn't perfect and I need to add more storage. So, I thought I'd take a look at FreeNAS.

After some Googling I think the N40L is still up to the job because current performance with ClearOS is good; it runs Plex, Samba shares and CrashPlan on 10GB ECC with three 1TB drives in RAID5, an Intel NIC and APC UPS. I understand AMD isn't recommended but see that others have this working.

I'm thinking along the lines of ... upgrade to 16GB ECC and buy two 3TB drives to create two pools of mirrored vdevs (utilising 2 of the existing 1TB drives) in two steps. First create 1TB vdev, restore backup , then create 3TB mirror vdev in separate pool. Later, if needed I can increase the size of the first pair.

I think this gives me plenty of flexibility and will also reduce downtime as pulling data back from CrashPlan is a last resort. There's no rush though ... I want to get this right before I commit to anything.

As ever,
Martin

 

[Robert Trevellyan]

upgrade to 16GB ECC and buy two 3TB drives to create two pools of mirrored vdevs

Your plan sounds reasonable

Note that if you want all your storage in one pool, you can extend the initial pool with another pair of drives (i.e. adding a vdev to an existing pool). Of course, if you want two separate pools, by all means do it that way.

 

[Martin Webster]

Your plan sounds reasonable

Note that if you want all your storage in one pool, you can extend the initial pool with another pair of drives (i.e. adding a vdev to an existing pool). Of course, if you want two separate pools, by all means do it that way.

I probably need to reread the guide again to see the benefit of a single pool vis-à-vis two pools. But, I was mindful of the comment: "If any vdev in a pool is failed, you will lose the entire pool with no chance of partial recovery." But then I'd have to lose both drives in one vdev simultaneously for that to happen. Is that correct? If so, what steps do I take to protect the vdev when one drive needs replacing following failure? Can I take it offline while waiting for Amazon Prime to deliver a replacement? :)

I'm guessing that the main benefit of a single pool is that a given mount point has the total storage available, i.e. 4TB rather than 1TB or 3TB. And, if I later want to grow the size of a vdev I "simply" fail a drive, replace it with a larger model and rebuild the mirror ... and repeat for the second?

 

[Robert Trevellyan]

There's nothing wrong with having multiple pools, I just wanted to make sure you didn't overlook the possibility.

I'd have to lose both drives in one vdev simultaneously for that to happen. Is that correct?

Right.

what steps do I take to protect the vdev when one drive needs replacing following failure? Can I take it offline while waiting for Amazon Prime to deliver a replacement?

Sure, you can shut the whole box down if you like. You can also have a burned-in spare on the shelf, ready to go.

I'm guessing that the main benefit of a single pool is that a given mount point has the total storage available

Yes, and in general, it's simpler to manage. With multiple pools, all pool-level management tasks, e.g. scrubs, are repeated.

if I later want to grow the size of a vdev I "simply" fail a drive, replace it with a larger model and rebuild the mirror ... and repeat for the second?

Yes, unless you can rig up, say, an eSATA dock and use the procedure for Replacing Drives to Grow a ZFS Pool.

 

[Martin Webster]

Thanks, Robert. I'll see if I can fire-up FreeNAS in a VM and have a play. Then I'll start preparing my build steps. If it's okay with you I'll continue posting questions on this thread.

Having thought about the steps I think I will preserve the ClearOS system and make use of local storage on my laptop and PCs to backup the 1.1TB of data. I can then create FreeNAS with the 3TB drives knowing I can get back to the original data using the local backup or reinstating ClearOS.

 

[Robert Trevellyan]

If it's okay with you I'll continue posting questions on this thread.

It's fine with me, but also consider posting specific questions in relevant topics. For example, Help & Support/New to FreeNAS or Help & Support/Hardware might be a good place for a proposed build.

 

[Martin Webster]

Well, I've backed up my data and started the build. To start, I'm using a single disk; I'll add another once I'm happy by converting the stripe to a mirror. Then I'll add a further two new drives, again in mirror, to the same pool. So far, so good.

If I run into difficulty I'll post in the relevant thread.

 

[gpsguy]

It sounds like a plan. Good luck!

 

[RAWelsh]

Hello Martin,

Just came upon this message string and was wondering how things have gone. I started from the other direction in that I setup a server using FreeNAS a couple of years ago. The server was a piecemeal built system out of older hardware, but I've been running it pretty successfully with only a couple of minor bumps with the Plex Media service. I recently went to HPE and purchased a Gen10 server to migrate to. I have never had experience with ClearOS, and was wondering what insight you might have on your experience? I am trying to determine whether I want to invest the time into evaluating ClearOS, or stay with the FreeNAS platform.

 

[wblock]

The ClearOS docs do not really come out and say what filesystem it uses, but describe using "Software, BIOS-based, and hardware RAID". So it's not ZFS. I'm curious why you would consider switching to it after running FreeNAS.

 

[RAWelsh]

Hello wblock,

I am looking to make one transition to my next server, and have no relative experience with ClearOS. When I saw that Martin had already spent time with ClearOS and was thinking about migrating to FreeNAS, I wanted to compare notes. I was not planning on switching to ClearOS, but since HPE provided it with the server, I thought I'd seek some insight to see if there were any advantages. I see your point on ZFS and RAID. I have been quite pleased with how simple it has been to configure multiple drives in FreeNAS and setup a mirror RAID system. That was one of the key features that drew me to FreeNAS.