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bluesky2006 · (This post was last modified: 2013-01-11, 11:23 by bluesky2006.)

Ok after frankly very little persuasion from the board, and because my Synology 1-bay NAS is running out of space (even though I love the little guy), I have decided I want to build an unRAID server.

I have had a read through things and think I know roughly what I need to get. I intend to start with 3 x 2TB drives so I can try out the Basic version of unRAID (one of them for parity). I already have 2 x 2TB drives so I will only have to buy one more.

It's important to me that this thing is cheap and consumes little power, but I don't want a butt-ugly, large case as my flat is small and there's not much room to hide the thing. My Synology blends nicely with the colour of my fridge, where it lives on the top, by the router, so the new server will likely go where that is (or next to it). Also I just generally value aesthetics where possible so I don't mind paying a bit more for the case (just not loads). The cases I have been looking for cater for between 4 and 7 bays so I can expand in future), so I ideally want a motherboard with 6 SATA ports on it already. My PSU choice is fairly arbitrary so could probably be replaced with something cheaper I'd imagine.

Currently I am toying with the following build. Let me know if you think I've cocked something up or if I could go cheaper!

Case Lian Li PC-Q25 (£96)
PSU Corsair CMPSU-430CXV2UK (£40)
Mobo Asus C60M1-I with integrated AMD APU C-60 1.0GHz Dual-Core (£50)
CPU N/A (see above)
RAM 1GB DDR3 1333 ULP DIMM (£9)
HDD Western Digital 2TB SATA 6Gbps Caviar Green (£67)

Total £262

I'm also considering the Silverstone Precision PS07, but I think it might be a bit TOO big...

Thoughts?

EDIT: Updated with links.

**Dougie Fresh** · (This post was last modified: 2013-01-11, 05:45 by Dougie Fresh.)

Having built some of these mini-ITX servers, ideally for the Lian-Li PC-Q25 or PC-Q08 you want a SFX (aka microATX) PSU, not a full-size ATX PSU. In the one I built for me I have a FSP GHS 300W SFX PSU with an adapter plate that fits the SFX PSU to the ATX opening.

Here's my suggestion for you in the UK:
Be Quiet! 300W micro-ATX 80+ PSU:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/300w-be-q...plus-green

SFX to ATX (aka PS2) adapter plate
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SFX-to-PS2-bra...0877350082

You get much more room the in the case and better airflow with one of these.

My build (very similar)
Lian-Li PC-Q08
ASUS E35M1-I
4GB DDR3-1066
FSP GHS 300W SFX 80+ Bronze PSU
64GB SSD (O/S)
5 x 3.5" HDD (Data)

bluesky2006 · (This post was last modified: 2013-01-11, 11:43 by bluesky2006.)

Thanks Dougie, sounds like it makes sense from a space/heating point of view - will 300W feed the needs of possibly up to 7 drives though? (For that matter, will 450W?).

And are there any more corners I could cut? I stopped searching for a mobo when I came across the Asus C60M1-I simply cos it seemed so reasonable, though I assume there could cheaper ones that would do the trick too. Also, how much effect will the speed of the CPU I pick - and the number of cores - affect the speed of my server?

**Beer40oz** · (This post was last modified: 2013-01-11, 16:19 by Beer40oz.)

I recommend you buy a 3TB for your parity drive.... that way you can add 3TB later down the road.

**Dougie Fresh** · 2013-01-11, 16:24

(2013-01-11, 11:32)bluesky2006 Wrote: Thanks Dougie, sounds like it makes sense from a space/heating point of view - will 300W feed the needs of possibly up to 7 drives though? (For that matter, will 450W?).

And are there any more corners I could cut? I stopped searching for a mobo when I came across the Asus C60M1-I simply cos it seemed so reasonable, though I assume there could cheaper ones that would do the trick too. Also, how much effect will the speed of the CPU I pick - and the number of cores - affect the speed of my server?

My server as described has a startup of around 100W and then it settles down around 45-50W with all 5 x 3.5" HDDs spinning. 300W should be plenty. There is a 450W Silverstone micro-ATX available at Scan and it already comes with the SFX-to-PS2/ATX plate. It's a lot more expensive though but it's an option. It's not absolutely necessary to have the micro-ATX but it improves airflow and gives you more room to work with cables, etc. If you do go ATX the Antec NEO ECO 400W is a good choice.

If you're just serving files the the C60M1-I will be plenty. If you want to do anything fancier like transcoding then you'll need something beefier. It'll be hard though to find a mini-ITX motherboard with a built in CPU and GPU with 6 x SATA3 for the price. The ASUS P8H77-I with a Intel G530 would be the next step up and then you'd definitely want the micro-ATX PSU since you'd have a CPU cooler to deal with.

bluesky2006 · (This post was last modified: 2013-01-11, 16:31 by bluesky2006.)

Hmm, it does make sense but that's an extra £40. At the rate I accumulate data I think I should be fine with 2TB for a little while yet (famous last words). Also I will feel like that's a lot of wasted space if it's not being used immediately...

Basically, I need more money in my life.

(2013-01-11, 16:24)Dougie Fresh Wrote: If you're just serving files the the C60M1-I will be plenty. If you want to do anything fancier like transcoding then you'll need something beefier. It'll be hard though to find a mini-ITX motherboard with a built in CPU and GPU with 6 x SATA3 for the price. The ASUS P8H77-I with a Intel G530 would be the next step up and then you'd definitely want the micro-ATX PSU since you'd have a CPU cooler to deal with.

I don't think I'll need transcoding (I'm still not 100% sure what it is or why I would need it over streaming). I've been getting by with XBMC running files off my Synology 1-bay for this long so as long as it's at least as powerful as that then I should be fine.

bluesky2006 · 2013-01-11, 17:00

Thinking about it, could I not upgrade my parity drive to a 3TB model at a later date?

**Beer40oz** · 2013-01-11, 20:48

(2013-01-11, 17:00)bluesky2006 Wrote: Thinking about it, could I not upgrade my parity drive to a 3TB model at a later date?

Yes you can.... just swap it out. Running the latest release of unRaid

bluesky2006 · 2013-01-11, 21:05

Thought so! Good to know.

My last concern with unRAID is about power consumption. I've never had a computer on 24/7 before and I'd like not to be shocked at the end of the month by large bills. What steps can I take to ensure the carbon footprint is small?

**Beer40oz** · 2013-01-11, 21:08

(2013-01-11, 21:05)bluesky2006 Wrote: Thought so! Good to know.

My last concern with unRAID is about power consumption. I've never had a computer on 24/7 before and I'd like not to be shocked at the end of the month by large bills. What steps can I take to ensure the carbon footprint is small?

You will be ok.... especially with your hardware... Big Grin

...

**Dougie Fresh** · 2013-01-11, 22:48

Mine's usually running 40-50W. My disks are all always spinning though so if your software can spin them down when idle you'll do much better than that.

bluesky2006 · (This post was last modified: 2013-01-12, 00:56 by bluesky2006.)

(2013-01-11, 21:08)Beer40oz Wrote:
(2013-01-11, 21:05)bluesky2006 Wrote: Thought so! Good to know.

My last concern with unRAID is about power consumption. I've never had a computer on 24/7 before and I'd like not to be shocked at the end of the month by large bills. What steps can I take to ensure the carbon footprint is small?

You will be ok.... especially with your hardware... ...

Hehe, good to know! Almost plunge time...

(2013-01-11, 22:48)Dougie Fresh Wrote: Mine's usually running 40-50W. My disks are all always spinning though so if your software can spin them down when idle you'll do much better than that.

Is that something unRAID can do though?

**Beer40oz** · 2013-01-12, 05:05

Yes unRAID spins down the hard drives not in use... you can tell it to do so if you wan't every 30 minutes 1 hour etc.... by default I think it's set at 15 minutes... I set mine to 30 minutes...

Check out this thread.... it will guide you a little better.... there is more help there... I have been looking also at that ASUS C60M1-I mobo.... for a smaller rig.

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.p...ic=23477.0

bluesky2006 · 2013-01-12, 13:42

Ha, that's almost exactly the same build! And it has me thinking about more RAM... but again, does 4GB of RAM necessarily use more power than a 1GB stick?

wsume99 · 2013-01-12, 16:09

(2013-01-12, 13:42)bluesky2006 Wrote: Ha, that's almost exactly the same build! And it has me thinking about more RAM... but again, does 4GB of RAM necessarily use more power than a 1GB stick?

To save power with RAM you need to reduce the number of sticks you are using or get a lower voltage RAM. So a single 1GB stick will use the same power as a single 4GB stick and we're probably only talking about a few watts here anyways. I would recommend you get a single 4GB stick of RAM.

You are already using a very efficient CPU, a single green HDD, and a single stick of RAM. The only way I see to lower your power consumption further is to go with a 150 watt picoPSU. The downside is that you would be limited to maybe 4 or 5 drives in your server. I just replaced a 560 watt PSU in my basement HTPC with a 150 watt picoPSU and the idle power consumption dropped from 32 watts to 21 watts.