[9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[Axel Belinfante]

I'm finally producing data at home that I care about (DSLR, shooting RAW)
so I'm wondering how to construct a robust file server that allows
heterogenous access (windows, mac, linux, plan9), is affordable,
low-power, ideally low noise, low-maintenance (I like kenf) and preferably
can be built with little effort using of-the-shelf items.
robustness being the main criterion.

I've been looking at coraids products but they seem a bit high-endish...
something like that but then 'smaller' might be nice.
I'm unsure about plugging usb-drives into wireless access points
(what is apple's bonjour? open in any way?)


any thoughts, experiences? (does, don'ts?)

Axel.

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[Gabriel Diaz]

hello

i found this one interesting:

http://www.amazon.com/LaCie-Ethernet-External-Drive-300963/dp/B000BKJ5Z0

1TB for about 650USD (about 400USD second hand)

is still a bit expensive, but may be it works. I don't know if coraid
has something like it (i think the 1U appliance was about 2kUSD). I'm
would love something like that too, i lost three hard drives on my
last move, including the 9grid.es one :(.

slds.

gabi


On 8/9/07, Axel Belinfante <Axel.Belinfante@cs.utwente.nl> wrote:
> I'm finally producing data at home that I care about (DSLR, shooting RAW)
> so I'm wondering how to construct a robust file server that allows
> heterogenous access (windows, mac, linux, plan9), is affordable,
> low-power, ideally low noise, low-maintenance (I like kenf) and preferably
> can be built with little effort using of-the-shelf items.
> robustness being the main criterion.
>
> I've been looking at coraids products but they seem a bit high-endish...
> something like that but then 'smaller' might be nice.
> I'm unsure about plugging usb-drives into wireless access points
> (what is apple's bonjour? open in any way?)
>
>
> any thoughts, experiences? (does, don'ts?)
>
> Axel.
>
>

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[Abhey Shah]

  drobo
Looks really easy to use and very robust to hard drive failure but  
the bad things about it are: It doesn't work with linux, is  
overpriced and only uses USB.

On 9 Aug 2007, at 14:58, Axel Belinfante wrote:

> I'm finally producing data at home that I care about (DSLR,  
> shooting RAW)
> so I'm wondering how to construct a robust file server that allows
> heterogenous access (windows, mac, linux, plan9), is affordable,
> low-power, ideally low noise, low-maintenance (I like kenf) and  
> preferably
> can be built with little effort using of-the-shelf items.
> robustness being the main criterion.
>
> I've been looking at coraids products but they seem a bit high- 
> endish...
> something like that but then 'smaller' might be nice.
> I'm unsure about plugging usb-drives into wireless access points
> (what is apple's bonjour? open in any way?)
>
>
> any thoughts, experiences? (does, don'ts?)
>
> Axel.
>
>

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[erik quanstrom]

> hello
> 
> i found this one interesting:
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/LaCie-Ethernet-External-Drive-300963/dp/B000BKJ5Z0
> 
> 1TB for about 650USD (about 400USD second hand)
> 
> is still a bit expensive, but may be it works. I don't know if coraid
> has something like it (i think the 1U appliance was about 2kUSD). I'm
> would love something like that too, i lost three hard drives on my
> last move, including the 9grid.es one :(.
> 
> slds.
> 
> gabi

the lacie doesn't seem to have raid or hot-swappable disks.

coraid sr appliances have both and export a block device
not a filesystem.

to make something smaller than the 1U sr0420, one would need
to have fewer than 4 disks.  4 disks is unfortunately the minimum
required for raid5+1 hot spare.

- erik

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[Gabriel Diaz]

hello

you're right, i just was pointing those disks looks more for home use
than coraid products, iirc lacie has also some raid thing with 4 disks
for 200USD more.

i just found the link: http://www.lacie.com/us/products/product.htm?pid=10876

but their description is a bit confusing:

"Comments :   	1TB (Terabyte) = 1000GB. 1GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes.
Total accessible capacity varies depending upon operating environment
(typically 10–15% less).
*compatible through SMB, AFP not supported. Not compatible with the
Windows(r) Backup & Recovery Software
**Only one client license is provided. Additional licenses can be purchased.

Box Content :  	LaCie Ethernet Disk RAID with 4 hard disks in trays;
Ethernet cable & power cord; Utilities CD-ROM with User Manual;
Windows(r) Backup & Recovery Software**, Quick Install Guide"

will it support that windows backup thing? :-D if not, i wonder why it
is included hehe.

gabi



On 8/9/07, erik quanstrom <quanstro@coraid.com> wrote:
> > hello
> >
> > i found this one interesting:
> >
> > http://www.amazon.com/LaCie-Ethernet-External-Drive-300963/dp/B000BKJ5Z0
> >
> > 1TB for about 650USD (about 400USD second hand)
> >
> > is still a bit expensive, but may be it works. I don't know if coraid
> > has something like it (i think the 1U appliance was about 2kUSD). I'm
> > would love something like that too, i lost three hard drives on my
> > last move, including the 9grid.es one :(.
> >
> > slds.
> >
> > gabi
>
> the lacie doesn't seem to have raid or hot-swappable disks.
>
> coraid sr appliances have both and export a block device
> not a filesystem.
>
> to make something smaller than the 1U sr0420, one would need
> to have fewer than 4 disks.  4 disks is unfortunately the minimum
> required for raid5+1 hot spare.
>
> - erik
>

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[Lucio De Re]

> to make something smaller than the 1U sr0420, one would need
> to have fewer than 4 disks.  4 disks is unfortunately the minimum
> required for raid5+1 hot spare.

I hope this doesn't sound like teaching grandma to suck eggs, but
would laptop-sized disks not help at least with dimensions, I'm not
sure about price?

++L

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[erik quanstrom]

> I hope this doesn't sound like teaching grandma to suck eggs, but
> would laptop-sized disks not help at least with dimensions, I'm not
> sure about price?

that's a good point.

our first product used laptop drives.  at the time one could get more
bytes/u of rack space with laptop drives.  that's no longer the case.
sata drives have gotten much larger and faster.  laptop drives have
gotten a little bigger but not much faster. 

if you want a really cheep aoe device.  use vblade on a pair of
fs(3)-mirrored sata drives.  i do that at home.

- erik

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[Lucio De Re]

> if you want a really cheep aoe device.  use vblade on a pair of
> fs(3)-mirrored sata drives.  i do that at home.

Yes, that's on my wish list.  And if I read the documentation
correctly, using two vblades would give me RAID-5 with a live spare.

Sadly, by the time one adds up all the necessary components, specially
the 1Gb network adapters, the price is still a little out of
home-developer range.

++L

Still, I think a really small footprint device will have geek appeal.

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[erik quanstrom]

> > if you want a really cheep aoe device.  use vblade on a pair of
> > fs(3)-mirrored sata drives.  i do that at home.
> 
> Yes, that's on my wish list.  And if I read the documentation
> correctly, using two vblades would give me RAID-5 with a live spare.

fs(3) has no raid5.

> Sadly, by the time one adds up all the necessary components, specially
> the 1Gb network adapters, the price is still a little out of
> home-developer range.

you can get an intel gbe adapter for $39.  you can get an rtl8169 for
about $10.

- erik

Re: [9fans] robust heterogenous home file server?

[Lucio De Re]

>> > if you want a really cheep aoe device.  use vblade on a pair of
>> > fs(3)-mirrored sata drives.  i do that at home.
>> 
>> Yes, that's on my wish list.  And if I read the documentation
>> correctly, using two vblades would give me RAID-5 with a live spare.
> 
> fs(3) has no raid5.
> 
Yes, I realised that was the case after I mailed off :-(

>> Sadly, by the time one adds up all the necessary components, specially
>> the 1Gb network adapters, the price is still a little out of
>> home-developer range.
> 
> you can get an intel gbe adapter for $39.  you can get an rtl8169 for
> about $10.
> 
Not where I come from, at least not easily.

But it all remains firmly on my wish list.

++L