Thanks for all the help. I ordered the parts tonight (7/7/2008 7:00)
Final Build: 3.5tb of advertised space!
Abit IP35 Pro
Celeron 430 Conroe-L
2gb A-Data DDR2 800
HIS Radeon x1550
4x Western Digital 640gb AAKS
2x LaCie 500gb USB 2.0 Drives
1x Western Digital 200gb
1x Lite-On DVD/rw
EarthWatt 420 ew-420 Power supply
Windows Home Server
I Will post a little worklog when the parts come in from New Egg
Thanks again for all the help and suggestions.
Alright, currently I have
macbook w/ 160gb
2x external 500gb
2x external 200gb
All the drives are full, and none of the drives are backed up (Yikes! I know)
So, I have come up with 3 options, and I want to figure out what will be most cost effective and useful for my needs.
I have been doing some browsing here and over at 2cpu forums (some crazzzzy stuff over there), and it looks like my options are
1) More externals (meh, not really interested)
2) NAS box that supports 4+ drives and Raid-5 (yikes expensive)
3) Full blown file server with 1.5tb+ raid-5 storage (expensive too, but upgradeable later)
External Drives: Kind of over these little suckers, they work, but my desk is littered with them, and I want one big disk (JBOD seems kind of silly)
NAS: Did some looking around at these and the prices and limited upgradeability kind of scared me away.
File Server: FreeNAS or Windows Home Server look nice, but for hardware I am not really sure what I need.
What I want:
1.5tb+ of Raid-5 storage
Under $900ish
Set it and forget it, I don't want to tinker with it all the time, I want to turn it on in my network closet and just leave it running with minimal intervention
What I am thinking about buying
4x WD 640gb AAKS drives (about 1.8tb in raid-5)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218
1x Corsair 640hx 640 watt psu
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139002
1x Abit IP35 Pro (supports Raid-5 and has 6 sata connectors, +2 e-sata that support raid 0, 1 and JBOD)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813127030R
1x A-Data 2gb memory kit
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211066
What I already have
Huge coolermaster case (ATC-710sx2)
200gb system drive
2x 500gb drives I will toss in e-sata enclosures and run in Raid-1
cheapo pci-e video card
lite-on dvd/rw
TOTAL COST: 688.93
So what do you guys think, Will this system work out well for me? Will the motherboard's RAID Controller be good enough? (If the motherboard dies, can I just replace it and not loose the array?). If a dead mobo results in total data loss it looks like I would be looking for another solution like the Perc 5/i or something similar...
Thanks for any input you might have, I am a RAID noobie, and I am getting sick of all these "small" external drives floating around....
Final Build: 3.5tb of advertised space!
Abit IP35 Pro
Celeron 430 Conroe-L
2gb A-Data DDR2 800
HIS Radeon x1550
4x Western Digital 640gb AAKS
2x LaCie 500gb USB 2.0 Drives
1x Western Digital 200gb
1x Lite-On DVD/rw
EarthWatt 420 ew-420 Power supply
Windows Home Server
I Will post a little worklog when the parts come in from New Egg
Thanks again for all the help and suggestions.
Alright, currently I have
macbook w/ 160gb
2x external 500gb
2x external 200gb
All the drives are full, and none of the drives are backed up (Yikes! I know)
So, I have come up with 3 options, and I want to figure out what will be most cost effective and useful for my needs.
I have been doing some browsing here and over at 2cpu forums (some crazzzzy stuff over there), and it looks like my options are
1) More externals (meh, not really interested)
2) NAS box that supports 4+ drives and Raid-5 (yikes expensive)
3) Full blown file server with 1.5tb+ raid-5 storage (expensive too, but upgradeable later)
External Drives: Kind of over these little suckers, they work, but my desk is littered with them, and I want one big disk (JBOD seems kind of silly)
NAS: Did some looking around at these and the prices and limited upgradeability kind of scared me away.
File Server: FreeNAS or Windows Home Server look nice, but for hardware I am not really sure what I need.
What I want:
1.5tb+ of Raid-5 storage
Under $900ish
Set it and forget it, I don't want to tinker with it all the time, I want to turn it on in my network closet and just leave it running with minimal intervention
What I am thinking about buying
4x WD 640gb AAKS drives (about 1.8tb in raid-5)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218
1x Corsair 640hx 640 watt psu
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139002
1x Abit IP35 Pro (supports Raid-5 and has 6 sata connectors, +2 e-sata that support raid 0, 1 and JBOD)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813127030R
1x A-Data 2gb memory kit
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211066
What I already have
Huge coolermaster case (ATC-710sx2)
200gb system drive
2x 500gb drives I will toss in e-sata enclosures and run in Raid-1
cheapo pci-e video card
lite-on dvd/rw
TOTAL COST: 688.93
So what do you guys think, Will this system work out well for me? Will the motherboard's RAID Controller be good enough? (If the motherboard dies, can I just replace it and not loose the array?). If a dead mobo results in total data loss it looks like I would be looking for another solution like the Perc 5/i or something similar...
Thanks for any input you might have, I am a RAID noobie, and I am getting sick of all these "small" external drives floating around....