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Dedicated NAS OS or Ubuntu Server

S

Sayth

Gawd
Joined
Oct 7, 2001
Messages
618
I have an AMD Phenom II X2 3.4GHz with 8GB of DDR3 on a Biostar board with 6x Sata connectors. Right now it's using an old crappy GPU but will be getting my 9800GT once I pull it from my main rig.

I'm trying to figure out if I want to build it with a NAS os like FreeNAS or one of the other recommended OSs on this forum or if I want to use Ubuntu server.

I figure dedicated NAS OS is nice but with Ubuntu, I'd be able to add services down the road like VPN, Web Server or other...

My main concern however is the RAID type. The board has built in hardware RAID, but is that worst using? or should I use software RAID? What do people use on NAS OSs? Do they have a built in RAID software or hardware? Speed isn't super important as the network will be the main bottle neck.

I have 4 1TB drives to use...

Thanks!
 
If you use Linux, you can easily use mdadm & lvm, ZFS on Linux, etc. My choice of the two would probably be FreeNAS, as the VPN would probably be on your edge device and I don't have much call for a web server at home.
 
Whatever you choose, don't use the RAID on the motherboard. These are crappy fake RAID added by the manufacturers as a selling feature.

If you are comfortable with Ubuntu, then stick with it. Especially if you want to add additional functionality down the road. Mdadm is great and support most (if not all) RAID features. I've been using it is it works great with my setup.
 
Thanks for the advice. I think I will likely use Ubuntu because, yes I'm quite familiar with it. And thank you for the recommendation to stay away from Mobo RAID. I worry that if the board fails, as did on my last server pc, then I would need to find that exact board again to access my data.

Is there much performance hit by using software RAID? That's handled by mdadm right? Or is it handled by ubuntu itself?
 
Yes, you can choose mdadm to handle your RAID. This is baked right in the kernel. I'm running a pair of LSI 9240 megaRaid controllers and mdadm runs circles around them in RAID mode. I simply use them as passthrough SATA controllers and let mdadm do the work. Same with my old RocketRaid 2320 (this is a horrible, horrible RAID card). Your Phenon II will hardly see a blip from mdadm with 6 drives.
 
That's awesome to know. What about mixing drive sizes? Does mdadm handle this well or should I avoid it all together?

I thought I had 4x 1TB, but it turns out I have three 1TB and two 2TB. If it can mix, should I run two 1TB with the two 2TB and keep my extra 1TB for my program files on my main PC with SSD?

Or run three 1TB in RAID 5 and use the two 2TB in RAID1 for my programs etc...?

Worst case I could buy a 4th 1TB

ideas?
 
You can mix drives, but mdadm will not give you the full space of the larger drives by default. You will have to partition the larger drives if you want the full space. I wouldn't mix the drives (unless you don't mind throwing away half the 2TB drives) because managing partition as you add larger drives to your RAID can become a challenge.

What exactly do you mean by "for my program files"? What directory(ies) are you going to put on the each RAID? 3x1TB RAID5 and 2x2TB RAID1 would give you the best distribution of storage and redundancy. You could throw LVM on top and it wouldn't matter where you put your programs.
 
Ah okay sounds like I'll steer away form mixing then.

Sorry I wasn't clear. I'm currently using one of my 1TB to compliment my SSD in my main PC. I need something for the Program Files directory and user data. Trying to keep only the OS on the SSD.

So I was considering using the 2TB as my "Program Files" or D: drive, but what I think I may do is what you said. 3x1TB RAID5 and 2x2TB RAID1 in my NAS. I have a spare 500GB WD Black to use as my program files drive.

I'll still run a backup of my user data to the NAS so if my 500GB dies, I'll be protected. Otherwise the NAS will hold my legit movie backups ;) and software etc...

Thanks for the advice. I appreciate the time you've taken.
 
Keep in mind that there is no such thing as "Program Files" in Ubuntu. I am not sure how you are gong to use your NAS, but your 500GB drive should suffice for your OS and most applications. You can use the larger drives for data and /home.
 
Sorry again I'm not being clear. Please forgive me.

My main rig is an i5 Windows 7 PC in my office. What I'm talking about building is a NAS in the basement using an old Phenom board and CPU I have collecting dust. I currently have half my drives sitting in my main PC since my last basement PC where I stored all my files via SMB had died. So I'll pull all my drives from my main PC and use them in the NAS. I'll leave my SSD and 500GB for my windows machine, and use all the 1TB and 2TB in the NAS.
 
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