Help a n00b (data server)

E

elchorizo

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 26, 2004
Messages
234
Hey guys, I've read through several threads but I'm a bit lost. I have a bunch of media spread across 5 or so computers in my house and I want to create some kind of single box data server which I can access from all my PCs. I'm not sure where to start but I'll list some constraints below.

1. Lots o space (at least 3TB, preferably 5)
2. Redundancy (sp?) I would like it so that if one of the drives goes bad I wont lose any data. That is my biggest concern. Does this mean I need Raid 5? This is more important than the space needs mentioned in #1 above.
3. Cost, I would like to start low and eventually spend more by adding more space. So, for instance, if I could get away with like $500-700 to start (with maybe only 1TB) that would be ok, then I could add more drives later as I get some cash.
4. Some kind of password protection. I want it so that you have to enter a password to get at the shares.
5. Some descent speed. I'd like to be able to watch HD content via streaming if possible. It would be cool if my HTPC could just mount a share and have access to content directly from the data server, and I could view it by streaming.

Things I DONT care about:
1. Backing up my other PCs, all I want is to make sure the data I put on the data server is safe from drive failure. I dont care so much about the data on the rest of my machines.
2. Noise, it'll be in an unused bedroom so noise doesn't matter.
3. Outside access. I dont care about accessing the data from ouside my house.

I've seen the HP MediaSmart mentioned on some threads, and it seems very reasonbly priced but I cant seem to tell if it has redundancy. Furthermore, I'm not sure it would store enough. It looks to come with a 500GB disk, so if I added 3 more TB disks I'd be at capacity and only have 3.5TBs

I'm ok with building something from scratch too. I dont mind playing around in Linux.

So I guess what I'm saying is, where should I start?
 
You sound like a candidate for Windows Home Server (what the HP MediaSmart boxes run).

1. MediaSmart if you can live with three 1tb and/or 1.5tb drives.
2. Redundancy in WHS, no RAID5 required.
3. WHS is great for starting small and expanding.
4. Built-in.
5. Make sure you are running gigabit and you're golden.

1. Included, you can use the backup feature or not.
3. Included, if you want to enable it.

Obviously Okie sets the standard, but he's shown that the Norco 4020 is a great case to go for max. expandability, but even a 10 bay tower case like my WHS box will hold plenty. See Okie's thread - the later posts (see post #188 on page 10) for the conversion to the Norco 4020 and cheaper 8 SATA port cards.
 
Well, there are 2 ways you can take this.

A lot of the folks who roam these forums will tell you to build your own server. This gives you the most options, but requires the most know how and effort.

You can also pick up a stand alone Network Attached Storage server which is a stand alone box that you hook to your network that any of your computers on the network can access.

I, personally went the NAS route after running a home built server for several years. You can find lots of good info about NAS boxes here at Small Net Builder.

Right now I am running a Thecus N5200 5 slot NAS. I initially stocked it with 3 1TB WD GP drives running in RAID 5. I have 2 TB of usable storage that can survive the death of 1 drive. I can also add up to 2 more drives as my data grows to fill the available space.

I went with the N5200 because it is one of the fastest NAS boxes available with lots of expandability with the 5 slots. It was a little pricey at $600 bux though. With the 3 drives I put in it, it cost me $1000 total.

I know I could have built something on my own for much less, but I wanted something that was easy, fast, energy efficient, and robust.

Don
 
For WHS you would need double the capacity to ensure redundancy since it just duplicates your data on another drive effectively halving your capacity. WHS would be the easiest to expand. My last build I went with RAID5 so that I could maximize capacity while ensuring redundancy. I don't have the ability to expand because all of the slots on my RAID card are occupied. You can expand your RAID but I am kind of a RAID noob so I opted to just max it out and if I need more space that means a new build.
 
WHS - I have one and it does exactly the things you mentioned and then some more
I like Ockie and lots of others on this forum have chosen the Norco RPC-4020 for my case as it provides maximun expandability for the $

Yes with WHS you need double the Capactiy for Redundancy just like RAID1 except you dont have to fool around with RAID and expensive RAID cards, pairty, rebuild failures etc. WHS simplifies all this.

Did I mention that it is way cheap too.
 
I would recomend WHS for your needs.

Also, don't shy away from the MediaSmart Server, you can replace the system drive to the current 1.5tb drives and you can have a total capacity of 6tb. You also have the option to wait till the end of this year for the 2tb drives and then you are looking at 8tb of storage. Also, do not forget that the MediaSmart has an esata port with expander capability so you can add 4 additional drives into the unit's storage pool.

As for WHS, you can set your own redundancy as you choose, so yes, the MediaSmart supports it.
 
Broken record...get WHS. I've been using it for over 6 months now (and beta'd in the past) and can't say enough good things about it. It is to the point of where I don't even think about it anymore...AT ALL.
 
Trepidati0n said:
Broken record...get WHS. I've been using it for over 6 months now (and beta'd in the past) and can't say enough good things about it. It is to the point of where I don't even think about it anymore...AT ALL.
Click to expand...

Same here. I can't justify going to anything else after using WHS. I've converted all my servers and it's an amazing piece of software for the price.
 
I think Trepidati0n pointed out something very important that I had forgotten about - before WHS I had to manage drives/files all the time. WHS works so nicely that I had forgotten about the reduction in mental overhead I had.

And about redundancy - you only need to turn on duplication for folders of stuff that you want duplicated on 2 separate drives. I have a bunch of DVD rips and stuff I've recorded on my PVR that I don't care that much about and I have them in folders that don't have duplication on. But it is true that if you want everything duplicated you need twice the drive space.
 
Also don't forget that a good RAID controller these days compared to space typically need is no longer a good ratio. You can buy a lot of data "redundancy" for the cost of a good controller.
 
Trepidati0n said:
Also don't forget that a good RAID controller these days compared to space typically need is no longer a good ratio. You can buy a lot of data "redundancy" for the cost of a good controller.
Click to expand...

Ive never thought of it that way....thats a really good point.
 
I dont mean to hijack your thread or anything but will any of the other Window Server products do this, cause i can get all those for free through school but not WHS and id like to set something up like that
 
greengolftee87 said:
I dont mean to hijack your thread or anything but will any of the other Window Server products do this, cause i can get all those for free through school but not WHS and id like to set something up like that
Click to expand...


Almost, but not the PC backup solution.
 
Hey guys, sorry it took me so long to reply, but I had a medical problem come up and ended up needing back surgery so I haven't been able to use my computers the last few weeks.

Anyway, I really appreciate all the responses. WHS seems to be exactly what I need. In fact, it sounds like an awesome product! I will probably try to set something like this up over the next few months as I'm able to get up an around better.

Thanks very much for your help :)
-Marshall
 
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