Local or network stored files? WD Mybook Live?

Tengis

Supreme [H]ardness
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Jun 11, 2003
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I bought one of these things for $75 brand new (awesome deal) and its been working pretty well to store and stream my files from:
WD My Book Live 3tb

Up until I bought that I just had all the media in shared folders on my main pc. Ide like to build a file server running Linux with a raid5 setup just in case drives fail. Part of me has been thinking that if the WD drive really works well enough for me as a network drive that I could just get another one or even one of their dual network drives that you can set up a raid 1 in.

Even though Ive got gigabit ethernet connected to everything I like the idea of having all of the media locally stored on the machine simply because of the speed. Thoughts on locally stored vs network? What are you guys using to implement decent reliable raid that doesn't break the bank? I haven't set up raid on any personal machines since my old Abit KR7a-Raid motherboard back in the day and I really don't want to spend a bunch of money on a decent raid card.

I know if I have a dedicated file server I could install Linux and have torrents and whatnot running all the time without issue. Im sure I could think of some other neat things to do with the machine as well.
 
My HTPC is also my media server. Raid 5 on a Dell Perc 6I. I use it for torrents, newzbin, FTP and Plex. One day it will be a server only and i'll just have extenders at the TV's.
 
They have the My Book Live Duo which is 2 HD in either raid 0 or 1 if you want something easy to raid. The my book lives should be able to support up to 4 simultaneous 1080p streams without issues. Otherwise get a file server, easy to upgrade storage space if needed. Only difference I see between a my book live and file server is power consumption (keep in mind file server has to be up 24/7 if you want access to the files anytime / anywhere on your network)
 
I went with a synology NAS, with a gigabit network running in my home it transfers files plenty fast and blue ray streaming is not a problem at all. I can stream multiple blue ray rips through the network with no problem.

I went with a synology NAS because it has low power consumption and a good OS with plenty of plugins as well as free hosting so I can access it outside of my network. It works just fine with most devices as well since it supports DLNA.
 
Synology isnt a cheap solution though. Its turn key but high entry cost versus a machine that you plug a couple of drives into.
 
True, I wanted a turn key solution that used little power so leaving it up 24/7 would not be a problem. I was looking at either building a file server which could cost a few hundred bucks or spend 600 on a NAS and drives, I went with synology because I figured I would save money in the long run with a lower power consumption and because I had some extra tax return money.

I agree that it isn't the solution for everyone, just offering some additional input :)
 
I kind of thought about taking an older intel atom all-in-one motherboard and building a file server with that. If I can find some used stuff that supports a decent raid1 or potentially a raid5 setup then Ide be in business. Worst case I just get something tiny with a PCIe slot and get a cheap raid capable sata card.

I recently moved to Japan and have a ton of pictures of Japan and of my daughters first year of her life. Ide hate to lose that stuff because I didnt want to spend a couple hundred bucks and have a decent raid setup.

My only issue is honestly hard drives. I hate spending a lot of money on drives so Ide probably wait a month or two at the very least until I see some large drives on sale.
 
Whatever you get make sure they are compatible with hardware raid like WD RE4's.
 
If you just have one computer accessing the data and you don't mind storing it locally (space, looks, etc) then do it local. I have 6 HTPCs so I keep all my data stored on a central server. Streaming media shouldn't even begin to tax a gigabit network. The only time gigabit is needed is when you're copying large amounts of data (TBs) over. You won't notice any difference running locally or over the network.
 
I kind of thought about taking an older intel atom all-in-one motherboard and building a file server with that. If I can find some used stuff that supports a decent raid1 or potentially a raid5 setup then Ide be in business. Worst case I just get something tiny with a PCIe slot and get a cheap raid capable sata card.

I recently moved to Japan and have a ton of pictures of Japan and of my daughters first year of her life. Ide hate to lose that stuff because I didnt want to spend a couple hundred bucks and have a decent raid setup.

My only issue is honestly hard drives. I hate spending a lot of money on drives so Ide probably wait a month or two at the very least until I see some large drives on sale.

I wouldn't count on RAID as a backup solution for precious photos.

Pay of an offsite backup ASAP. I use carbonite and backblaze and am happy with both of them. Last thing you need is 2 drives dying in a RAID 5 an you lose everything you really want.
 
I have some web hosting that I use to backup files as well.
 
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