UFS with FreeNAS or use another NAS OS?

[VooDooAddict]

Home NAS

Here's what it will be used for:

- NAS will store windows backups and base images for family and friends. I always make backups of them while working on them. Often times they are thankful I've got a backup from a few months back when drives go and they haven't backed up.
- Backup of also locally stored pictures, music, important videos.
- Sole location for old DVD rips (that almost never get used anymore thanks to netflix, hulu, and amazon prime).
- Sole location for old archive of VM and development images.
- Backup location for current development images.
- Datastore target for some ESX and Hyper-V virtualization. Testing and training. Not production. If/When what I'm working goes live to the world it's hosted at another location. Would buy dedicated/proper hardware for Live production if I end up hosting my own stuff.

Hardware is already here, upgraded my virtualization platform/server and have extra bits to put to use on a NAS. (Just waiting on the drives, and deciding between 5 and 6).

ASUS P8H77-I 1155 H77 Mini-ITX
Intel Celeron G1610 2.6Ghz Dual Core (Ivy Bridge)
16GB (8GBx2 1600 1.35v) NON-ECC --- I know, I know ...
Intel Dual Gigabit NIC PCIe (sorry don't remember the exact model)
5-6x 4TB Seagate 5900RPM
seasonic gold 380W
Fractal Node 304

Due to both my NON-ECC ram and my desire to use it for a ESX and Hyper-V Datastore I've gathered so far that ZFS would be risky for the health of my datapool and problematic for performance as my ESX / Hyper-V configuration often changes.

What I haven't been able to find an answer to (yet, as I'll keep looking)...

Should I still go ahead with FreeNAS using UFS? Or would another storage focused OS/distribution be a better option?

A few colleges recommended I give FreeNAS a shot. Plus, I haven't toyed around much with BSD yet so, that intrigued me. I want an array capable of handling 2 drive failures where I can assign some Datastore targets for ESX and store some data. Not opposed to dropping under $100 on licensing either, just don't want to rebuy hardware.

 

[pirateghost]

If I weren't using zfs I would probably be using open media vault.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

 

[VooDooAddict]

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check that out too... I'm giving open media vault and OpenFiler a look as well now.

 

[pirateghost]

Save yourself the trouble. OpenFiler is not worth your time.
In order of personal rank:
FreeNAS
OpenMediaVault
NAS4Free
Roll-your-own (Debian for sure)

I would rather use Amahi than OpenFiler....I used OpenFiler for at least a year and a half...and it was nothing but trouble.

 

[VooDooAddict]

Glad you mentioned Amahi ... I can actually toss that on an old, at this point useless, HP MediaSmart Home server.

Looks like I'll go with ZFS and FreeNAS on the 6x 4TB NAS and use the old HP with Amahi and 2-3 2TB drives to backup the most critical of data from the FreeNAS to guard against a memory bit flip from the Non-ECC ram destroying the FreeNAS array.