• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

Need Advice on NAS Box Build

crazymonkeyzero

crazymonkeyzero

Senior member
I'm looking too build a cost effective NAS computer with freenas and was wondering what parts I should put into it. Although I have built many desktops before, I have no experience in the world of NAS. I don't have any old computers lying around to convert, so I am planning to build it from scratch. My max budget is $300 and I will be purchasing parts from the US. Any suggestions on the parts would be greatly appreciated. Also I think 1tb of space is enough for me, but I would like to run RAID1 if possible with two 1tb hdds for security if this is works in my budget. If not I would just as eailiy settle for a single hard drive. Thanks for the help.
 
Last edited:
Given that you're basically stuck spending almost half your budget on HDDs, you're really looking at building a system from scratch for ~$150, and that's just not easy. Doable, but not easy. I'd rather just get a refurbished prebuilt and relax.

What I would do:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?inv...2-PB-R&cat=SVR

w/ 2x:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148337

In the garage or basement.

It's way overkill, but it's (almost) within your budget and there are probably a few other things you can find to do with a server like that.

Otherwise, a base system like this with the same two drives added:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?inv...-MAR-R&cat=SVR

Would be quieter, a few bucks cheaper, and easier to find a place for in a home. (We bought a bunch of these at work. They're quiet, work well, pretty reliable.)
 
Another question, is it possible to start with one drive and then add another for raid in the future easily w/o problems cloning data to the new drive? This way I can get it up and running and then buy another drive later. Sorry for double post.
 
Last edited:
You cannot create a RAID array by adding a new HD to the system and clicking some boxes to say "Make this a RAID array." It doesn't work that way. Trying to build a complete new system with a budget that small is almost impossible.

But the link that Dave provided, this one, http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=SM-QC200X2-PB-R that is just a STEAL. OMG! 10 years ago, that same system would run you $3K. No kidding. I don't need it but I'm tempted to buy one just because. Seriously, it's a STEAL! The box will be loud, but you'll learn a whole lot from messing with a REAL server. That box with 2 additional HDs for the RAID1 storage array would be a formidable NAS. Faster than what I run at home, guaranteed.
 
crazymonkeyzero said:
Another question, is it possible to start with one drive and then add another for raid in the future easily w/o problems cloning data to the new drive? This way I can get it up and running and then buy another drive later. Sorry for double post.
Click to expand...

Nope. Adding or removing drives from an array will require a reformat.
 
crazymonkeyzero said:
Thanks for the reply. I think I'll just go with one hard drive.
Click to expand...

The reburb workstation is $150 and the two HDDs would be $140, making the total $290. Since you have $300 to play with, you should be good to go.

BTW, I agree with the other users that there's not much point in getting a full-blown NAS if you're not going to have some sort of disk redundancy.
 
mfenn said:
The reburb workstation is $150 and the two HDDs would be $140, making the total $290. Since you have $300 to play with, you should be good to go.

BTW, I agree with the other users that there's not much point in getting a full-blown NAS if you're not going to have some sort of disk redundancy.
Click to expand...

Ok, I think I'll do just that.

Also, do I need to buy a raid card to run raid1 with 2 drives? Or are raid cards for more advanced features?
 
dave_the_nerd said:
You don't need a raid card. The motherboard on oars controller supports it, and should work fine.

RAID cards have their uses.
Click to expand...

You shouldn't be use any sort of hardware RAID or mobo FakeRAID with FreeNAS. FreeNAS uses ZFS, which has its own far more comprehensive and high performance RAID implementation.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top