[geeks] Impressive...

[Nadine Miller]

On Mar 4, 2009, at 9:06 AM, Sridhar Ayengar wrote:

> Angel Martin Alganza wrote:
>> Hi, Sridhar, everybody,
>
> Hello.
>
>>> My latest configuration is capable of 24TB (after RAID 5 overhead)
>>> in a box the size of a largeish mid-tower PC.  I love it.
>> Which hardware and software are you using on that beast?  I'm planing
>> to build up a NAS box (I'm exploring FreeNAS, FreeBSD based, which I
>> very much like at the moment;  I've also found OpenFiler, Linux  
>> based,
>> which I haven't explored yet), although I would prefer a rackable  
>> box,
>> rather than a tower.
>
> I'm using NetBSD 4.0.1, and have configured Samba and NFS manually.   
> I prefer performing configuration tasks on command-line, however  
> there are tools available to make it more GUI- and Web-centric.
>
> I use an Antec Twelve Hundred case, which is a standard ATX case (as  
> in, it doesn't accept EATX or EEB motherboards) that has twelve  
> 5.25" open drive bays in the front.  The hardware is:
>
> (I don't remember manufacturer or model of the motherboard.)
> Dual-processor Dual-core Opteron Motherboard
> 4GB Registered ECC RAM
> 3ware Escalade 8-channel PCI-X 133 SATA RAID controller
> 1 Cheapie 5-in-3 drive cage (sits in 3 half-height bays)
> 5 Seagate 1TB SATA drives
>
> I have room for 3 more 5-in-3 drive cages, have more PCI-X slots for  
> RAID cards, and can upgrade to 1.5TB drives.  NetBSD supports the  
> RAID card out of the box.  So, 4 drives per drive cage (after  
> overhead) times 4 drive cages times 1.5TB per drive is 24TB.
>
> The machine sits behind a firewall, and the whole setup is quick  
> enough to serve up MPEG-2 compressed 1080p video (with AC3 or DTS  
> audio) over 100Mbps ethernet through the firewall, the router, and  
> to a machine outside the firewall without any hiccups or stuttering.

A buddy at work pointed out to me that SuperMicro makes both a 4-in-3  
and a 5-in-3 bay adaptor with fan for pretty much the best price I  
could find anywhere--~$100.  The 4-in-3 is $78 @ Amazon, iirc. (part #  
CSE-M35T-I for the 5, CSE-M14T for the 4).  They also have some nice  
SAS/SATA 2.5 in. mobile bays if you want to go with tiny laptop SATA  
drives (ghetto thumper, anyone?).

=Nadine=