NAS/KVM build - please advice

L

lollysticky

Weaksauce
Joined
Aug 23, 2008
Messages
65
my current NAS is getting old and the drives are getting full :D
hence my idea to make a new one, and also make it a visualization platform for my other servers (webserver, some linux test server,...). The idea
* a main server backbone running fedora. The OS would be installed on a USB stick plugged into the type-A USB port on the motherboard.
* BTRFS-RAID5 NAS solution (I want to use the new filesystem, I have backups so I should be fine just in case). I pondered moving the NAS into a seperate virtualised server but I don't want to over-complicate things for myself (as I have never done such a thing)
* KVM visualization platform (I'm quite up-to-date with KVM - not so much with ESXi - and I'm a really big Fedora-user, hence my choice). I'd get an SSD to store the virtual disks on.

My hardware
Motherboard: Supermicro X10SLM+-F
CPU: Xeon ES-1240V3
RAM: 2 x Kingston 8Gb DDR3 Unbuffered ECC 1600MHz (KVR16E11/8)
SSD: Samsung 840 EVO MZ-7TE120
HDD: 4x Western Digital Red 3Tb (WD30EFRX): would result in a 9Gb RAID5 pool which I can easily expand later on.


my questions:
1) My main concern: will the memory work with this board?
2) will the new(est) Linux kernel support the i210AT ethernet ports
3) Am I being stupid by going BTRFS?
4) any errors I made in chosing my hardware?


thanks for any advice!
 
Last edited:
Afaik, Supermicro boards can be quite picky on the RAM, so make sure it's on their recommended list just to be sure
 
WD Reds? I wouldn't do that. Actually there's no reason to use Reds at all on software based RAID solutions( at least not for MDADM, ZFS or likely BTRFS). Get faster drives. They will be cheaper anyway than those Reds.
 
kac77 said:
WD Reds? I wouldn't do that. Actually there's no reason to use Reds at all on software based RAID solutions( at least not for MDADM, ZFS or likely BTRFS). Get faster drives. They will be cheaper anyway than those Reds.
Click to expand...

any particular suggestion?
I choose them because they're cheap and low-power.

Reviews (http://www.storagereview.com/western_digital_red_nas_hard_drive_review_wd30efrx) did indeed indicate a lower performance, but I'm using this for the storage of movies/music/... so it's not meant for fast write/read access :)

but please do suggest a better alternative and I'll look into it!
 
lollysticky said:
my questions:
1) My main concern: will the memory work with this board?
2) will the new(est) Linux kernel support the i210AT ethernet ports
3) Am I being stupid by going BTRFS?
4) any errors I made in chosing my hardware?
Click to expand...

1. Probably, but no guarantees with something like a Kingston SKU that isn't on a locked BOM.
2. Yes. The igb driver in 3.13 is a whole major rev newer than is required for i210AT support.
3. Well at least BTRFS doesn't have "HIGHLY EXPERIMENTAL" in the ncurses config menu for the latest kernel, haha. I haven't played with BTRFS so I can't really comment other than it's still fairly new (less proven) when compared to something like ZFS.
4. I'd go with Hitachi over WD for a storage box.
 
3. Well at least BTRFS doesn't have "HIGHLY EXPERIMENTAL" in the ncurses config menu for the latest kernel, haha.
Click to expand...

Hmm. I did not notice when I configured 3.13.X.

I haven't played with BTRFS so I can't really comment other than it's still fairly new (less proven) when compared to something like ZFS.
Click to expand...

In the ~2 years that I have used BTFS daily at home and work I have seen a few bugs related to btrfs taking a very long time causing the kernel to be unresponsive. One such situation happens when btrfs decides (for whatever reason) that it does not like the on disk space cache and it wants to reinitialize that on a system with TBs of space and hundreds of thousands of files. In this case I have seen a mount take 10+ minutes. Also deleting a snapshot containing TBs of data also has a long wait..
 
drescherjm said:
Hmm. I did not notice when I configured 3.13.X.
Click to expand...

It was fairly recent. Here's 3.10.7 side by side with 3.13.0:

btrfs-kernel_zps2d7de153.png
 
Volkum said:
1. Probably, but no guarantees with something like a Kingston SKU that isn't on a locked BOM.
2. Yes. The igb driver in 3.13 is a whole major rev newer than is required for i210AT support.
3. Well at least BTRFS doesn't have "HIGHLY EXPERIMENTAL" in the ncurses config menu for the latest kernel, haha. I haven't played with BTRFS so I can't really comment other than it's still fairly new (less proven) when compared to something like ZFS.
4. I'd go with Hitachi over WD for a storage box.
Click to expand...

thank you for these answers! Any suggestions on which hitachi drive?

drescherjm said:
In the ~2 years that I have used BTFS daily at home and work I have seen a few bugs related to btrfs taking a very long time causing the kernel to be unresponsive. One such situation happens when btrfs decides (for whatever reason) that it does not like the on disk space cache and it wants to reinitialize that on a system with TBs of space and hundreds of thousands of files. In this case I have seen a mount take 10+ minutes. Also deleting a snapshot containing TBs of data also has a long wait..
Click to expand...

I know that the BTRFS development has had some shaky moments, and it still isn't upto par with other systems like ZFS. But I feel it's mature enough now for me to start using it :)
 
lollysticky said:
thank you for these answers! Any suggestions on which hitachi drive?



I know that the BTRFS development has had some shaky moments, and it still isn't upto par with other systems like ZFS. But I feel it's mature enough now for me to start using it :)
Click to expand...

Hmm, I had I looked at pricing first I may not have said Hitachi. Seems they're quite a bit more expensive than the competition these days. I'd have to look into what desktop drives work well in storage boxes these days. Sorry, not much help :/
 
Expensive? $151 seems like a good deal for 4TB drives. More expensive than 3TB certainly.

I'm looking to upgrade my 6x2TB array, figure I'll slowly start swapping in 4TB drives.
 
raiderj said:
Ah, didn't think about that. Shipping would probably not make them a good choice.
Click to expand...

Tbh, ordering in america would be very beneficial for me (as the euro/dollar ratio saves me quite a bit), but I haven't been able to find a decent store that ships all the stuff I need (xeon, supermicro-motherboard,...) and also accepts paypal :D
 
1. Probably, but no guarantees with something like a Kingston SKU that isn't on a locked BOM.
Click to expand...

I'm also looking for this kit of RAM with a SuperMicro board. What do you mean by "that isn't on a locked BOM" ? Sorry for my ignorance, but this is the first time I see this.

Thank for your explanations :)
 
Ghost26 said:
I'm also looking for this kit of RAM with a SuperMicro board. What do you mean by "that isn't on a locked BOM" ? Sorry for my ignorance, but this is the first time I see this.

Thank for your explanations :)
Click to expand...

as far as I could google it's a 'Bill-of-Materials' that makes sure the memory fits the exact specs required by the motherboard. I however don't understand the rest of the sentence :D

@ Volkum, could you elaborate?
 
I have almost exactly the same setup.
I have 4x KVR16E11/8I in the same motherboard. It works well.

Kingston 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 1600 ECC Unbuffered w/TS Intel Model KVR16E11/8I
 
lollysticky said:
as far as I could google it's a 'Bill-of-Materials' that makes sure the memory fits the exact specs required by the motherboard. I however don't understand the rest of the sentence :D

@ Volkum, could you elaborate?
Click to expand...

Yes, bill of materials. Locked BOM means that the manufacturer will (should) use the same list of components with each manufacturing run for the life of the SKU. Most of Kingston's SKUs are not BOM locked and thus each manufacturing run may have differing ICs, PCBs, or other components which can create compatibility issues.

Most recently, I've seen this be an issue with Kingston SO-DIMMs on the Supermicro X7SPE-* boards. We received a large order of DIMMs from our distributor at work and they were from two distinct batches. I mean completely different PCBs and they even had different density ICs. As expected, the systems wouldn't even post with half of them so they had to be returned.
 
Thanks for the explanation!

So which memory should I get to make sure it is 100% compatible? I though Mingston was the leader in compatibility. Is Micron/Crucial would be better ?
 
Ghost26 said:
Thanks for the explanation!

So which memory should I get to make sure it is 100% compatible? I though Mingston was the leader in compatibility. Is Micron/Crucial would be better ?
Click to expand...

Supermicro's compatibility list is tiny, but guaranteed. Based on my experience, Micron and Samsung ICs are a safe bet whereas I've seen some issues with various Hynix and Elpida ICs on Supermicro boards.

Keep in mind, the Kingston memory will probably work. I just wanted to make you aware that there is potential for an issue though. Kingston does have a list of modules validated on Supermicro boards here as well. These all appear to be BOM-locked SKUs (note the ending characters on the SKU which indicate the IC manufacturer and die revision) and should be 100% good to go.

Depending on the cost, it may be cheaper for you to try the Kingston memory and if it doesn't work out just return it and buy something else. Unfortunately, since you're overseas, I can't really make a recommendation on what to purchase since I don't know the total costs involved nor the selection you may have available to you.
 
Volkum said:
Supermicro's compatibility list is tiny, but guaranteed. Based on my experience, Micron and Samsung ICs are a safe bet whereas I've seen some issues with various Hynix and Elpida ICs on Supermicro boards.

Keep in mind, the Kingston memory will probably work. I just wanted to make you aware that there is potential for an issue though. Kingston does have a list of modules validated on Supermicro boards here as well. These all appear to be BOM-locked SKUs (note the ending characters on the SKU which indicate the IC manufacturer and die revision) and should be 100% good to go.

Depending on the cost, it may be cheaper for you to try the Kingston memory and if it doesn't work out just return it and buy something else. Unfortunately, since you're overseas, I can't really make a recommendation on what to purchase since I don't know the total costs involved nor the selection you may have available to you.
Click to expand...

the supermicro 'certified' memory list for X10 boards is indeed very tiny :/
I decided to go ahead with ordering the Kingston, as I found other reports that it would work with this motherboard. And as you said, the price is not THAT enormous so you could buy another brand/unit if needed

as for the kingston site -> no X10 boards + not all kingston memory is mentioned :)
I hope it works :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top