Question about home servers

[Draugauth]

In the past I've ran a home server to act as a file server and to install programs to that I use on multiple systems IE Office etc.

My current baby server is running R6 with 4 drives (hope to add 5 more in 2 months). At some point I would like to set it up again to handle essentially "Program Files" for my Win7 systems.

I am looking at moving back to Linux as well. Now ZFS, is that available under linux natively or will I have to do something to add it in?

Converting the current NTFS system to another format. Is it possible without data loss?

I have a Highpoint Rocketraid 3560 for a raid controller. That will probably stay in the current server but when I build a new server, thus making this one a FTP backup for my family, what SAS/SATA3 HBA controller would you recommend? I am also interested in expanders but are there expanders that could be powered simply by a molex plug?

Also would it be advisable for a constant use server to have multiple NICs or would the limiting factor in all honesty be the HDDs themselves?

My goal in a nutshell is to build a server that is a backup, media host for movies/music, file server, and have various programs installed as a host for the other systems in the house. If it is possible to use a linux based media center for my 360's and PS3's that would be a plus.

Also a way to setup a backup to a network server for my Win7 systems. Apparently Win7 Home does not have the ability natively to backup to a network. Win7 Pro and above does.

Thank you all in advance. I know I ask a lot of questions and I really do appreciate the fact that you take the time to answer them or provide suggestions.

 

[unhappy_mage]

In the past I've ran a home server to act as a file server and to install programs to that I use on multiple systems IE Office etc.

My current baby server is running R6 with 4 drives (hope to add 5 more in 2 months). At some point I would like to set it up again to handle essentially "Program Files" for my Win7 systems.

Many programs in Windows install registry keys. This means they're not easily shareable between machines, and if you reinstall the OS you'll have to reinstall the programs.

I am looking at moving back to Linux as well. Now ZFS, is that available under linux natively or will I have to do something to add it in?

It's not installed by default, but it's possible to install it. Most people run FreeBSD or OpenIndiana, both of which do ZFS natively.

Converting the current NTFS system to another format. Is it possible without data loss?

Not directly. You can make a zpool, copy your data off the NTFS disks, and then add them to the pool, although it's difficult to expand cleanly. A zpool is composed of vdevs, and each vdev can't change stripe width. So if you were to buy your 5 new drives, you could make a raidz2 vdev out of them, and then add a second raidz2 vdev of your old 4 drives. But the widths are then fixed; you can't buy just one more disk and add it to the pool without adding another vdev, which is then a single point of failure for the entire zpool.

I have a Highpoint Rocketraid 3560 for a raid controller. That will probably stay in the current server but when I build a new server, thus making this one a FTP backup for my family, what SAS/SATA3 HBA controller would you recommend? I am also interested in expanders but are there expanders that could be powered simply by a molex plug?

The LSI 2008 series is widely regarded as a good option. You can buy an M1015 for cheap off Ebay. The CK23601 is powered by a Molex, but I haven't used one. There are threads from people who have, though.

Also would it be advisable for a constant use server to have multiple NICs or would the limiting factor in all honesty be the HDDs themselves?

One gigabit ethernet connection can handle 100 MB/s of network traffic. Would you need or want more than that? One disk can push that in sequential writes, but since you have several, multiple network interfaces could make network traffic faster. I should point out that it's very difficult to use more than one network interface with a single connection; this means two ethernet interfaces will only get used if you do two different things with them. I'd start with one, and go buy an add-in Intel dual-port card if you decide you need more.

My goal in a nutshell is to build a server that is a backup, media host for movies/music, file server, and have various programs installed as a host for the other systems in the house. If it is possible to use a linux based media center for my 360's and PS3's that would be a plus.

That should be possible. There are a variety of UPNP or DLNA servers that should do the job.

Also a way to setup a backup to a network server for my Win7 systems. Apparently Win7 Home does not have the ability natively to backup to a network. Win7 Pro and above does.

I use and enjoy CrashPlan, but there are lots of options.

 

[Draugauth]

Ok what is a DLNA server? Is that what is needed to allow 360's and PS3's to connect for media?

 

[Unknown-One]

Many programs in Windows install registry keys. This means they're not easily shareable between machines, and if you reinstall the OS you'll have to reinstall the programs.

Not if he sets up an App-V server

 

[Draugauth]

Well I know when I last ran a Linux server back in 04-07 I could install things like Office to the server and have access from the system. Granted I had to install it on each system but the installs were all to the same directory which saved space.

I'll check out the App-V thingy.

 

[BecauseScience]

You might be able to do something similar with sandboxie by using a shared drive for sandbox storage. http://www.sandboxie.com/

Regarding ntfs fileystem conversion, you might want to look at this:http://tzukanov.narod.ru/convertfs/ The methodology seems good but I would not try it without a backup.

Linux does have native ZFS but you have to compile it yourself. It is not included in binary kernels due to license conflicts.