Low power consuming NAS DIY - vs Qnap 809 pro

[blank]

Hi,

I have read through alot of topics soon, and searched that google thing too :-O

When building DIY NAS, 1 thing that seems to be forgotten is the power consumption (or else I am just blind)

Well.. I have taken a look at the Qnap 809 Pro, I like the idea of using a core2duo with alot of ram, and and idle, the power consumption on that thing is quite OK.

But.. can a DIY do this cheaper?

My main purpose is:

1. File Storage (would like to rip all my movies (250+ DVD and 20+ Blurays)
and quality at 100% both picture and sound) and my music library (Connected with Sonos)
2. Media server (obviously) for the movies to stream to a client (Haven't decided yet what to get, maybe popcorn hour) and Sonos
3. Apache server running a few sites (used as showcase, and testing before publishing) right now, I am using a synology ds 207+, but it lacks power to run drupal etc.
4. running 24/7 - low power would be great. and at idle about 40-50 watts.
if that is possible using DIY components.

Based on the amount of space I will need, it would be nice to have the possibility to start at ex. 4 discs at raid 5, and later expand to more discs and maybe raid 6.

The software to run would preferable be Ubuntu server edition.
and just install FTP, and add users through shell.
I dont need any freenas interface (although webmin would be ok to have)

the transfer speeds is not the most important, just enough to stream movies.

but.. can this be done..?
or is the better solution a Qnap or similar NAS.

thanks for all replys...

 

[00Roush]

Yes you should be able to build a NAS that uses around the same amount of power as the Qnap 809 Pro. Maybe even a bit less. The guys over at Silent PC Review have many reviews that show both Intel and AMD with idle power consumption in the 40 watt range. http://www.silentpcreview.com/intel-dg41mj

For reference my main PC idles at around 55 watts with Cool N Quiet enabled and using the integrated graphics. AMD Athlon X2 5400+ with a 790GX based motherboard. With a newer CPU and a more power efficient motherboard I don't doubt I could be in the 40 watt range at idle. My current server idles at around 100 watts. AMD Opteron 165, Asus A8R32-MVP motherboard, Radeon 3400 video card, and 3 hard drives. Power consumption drops to around 65 watts if I remove the video card and enable Cool N Quiet.

You should be able to get the CPU, motherboard, and ram for $300 or less.

00Roush

 

[blank]

Thanks for the quick reply..

Some additional questions..

What is the advantage of buying the Qnap or any other NAS solution like that, when the price for the Qnap compared to $300, is outrageus.?

is it just the easy to use software interface available on the Qnap that makes the difference..?
what is preferable.. DIY or Qnap/Synology and so on..?
what is the main advantages, and disadvantages..?

how about raid, is software raid the best solution, or what is the best solution..

 

[msl]

Have a look at this thread for details of my DIY NAS build with power consumption in mind and actual power consumption figures.

You will likely need a motherboard with more SATA connectors for the number of drives you are looking at, which means higher purchase cost and potentially slightly higher power draw from the integrated graphics since it will be a higher end part. The extra drives will also mean more power consumption. And you will need a case that can accommodate the drives.

To my mind, the selling points of the pre-built NAS are: easy to administer, no assembly other than perhaps fitting drives, a single warranty covering the whole package, and technical support from the manufacturer. Bespoke hardware can mean smaller/neater form factor and lower power consumption.

If you aren't reasonably confident with administering a Linux machine from the command-line, rolling your own DIY NAS using a full-blown Linux distro like Ubuntu Server might not be the best route. If you are confident with Linux administration, it buys you a huge amount of flexibility.

Hope that helps.

 

[maxxjr]

Consider Atom if going the DIY route

Hi,

I have read through alot of topics soon, and searched that google thing too :-O

When building DIY NAS, 1 thing that seems to be forgotten is the power consumption (or else I am just blind)

Well.. I have taken a look at the Qnap 809 Pro, I like the idea of using a core2duo with alot of ram, and and idle, the power consumption on that thing is quite OK.

But.. can a DIY do this cheaper?

My main purpose is:

1. File Storage (would like to rip all my movies (250+ DVD and 20+ Blurays)
and quality at 100% both picture and sound) and my music library (Connected with Sonos)
2. Media server (obviously) for the movies to stream to a client (Haven't decided yet what to get, maybe popcorn hour) and Sonos
3. Apache server running a few sites (used as showcase, and testing before publishing) right now, I am using a synology ds 207+, but it lacks power to run drupal etc.
4. running 24/7 - low power would be great. and at idle about 40-50 watts.
if that is possible using DIY components.

Based on the amount of space I will need, it would be nice to have the possibility to start at ex. 4 discs at raid 5, and later expand to more discs and maybe raid 6.

The software to run would preferable be Ubuntu server edition.
and just install FTP, and add users through shell.
I dont need any freenas interface (although webmin would be ok to have)

the transfer speeds is not the most important, just enough to stream movies.

but.. can this be done..?
or is the better solution a Qnap or similar NAS.

thanks for all replys...

Note that for your server requirements, even an Intel Atom 330-based DIY NAS should be more than up to the task. This is probably the lowest power option...maybe down into the 20-30W range before adding disks. I know of at least one Atom board with Nvidia's ION chipset that has Gigabit Ethernet, wireless and a 1x PCI-Express slot. Wireless gives you a nice option, and the PCI-Express will let you use a RAID card to get extra S-ATA ports.

Qnap and similar are nice in doing a lot of the work for you and put everything into a nice package, but you do pay for it.

A couple of other points...
1. You have more freedom to add odd or new services to a DIY box. With an off-the-shelf NAS, you are limited to what the vendor provides.
2. If there is an issue with the CPU/RAM/MB, you would have the option with a DIY to swap out the motherboard, and keep the drives in the same case. With off-the-shelf, (once the warranty expires), you would not have this option. But if you plan on moving to a new NAS every couple of years anyway, this may not be an issue.

 

[00Roush]

Note that for your server requirements, even an Intel Atom 330-based DIY NAS should be more than up to the task. This is probably the lowest power option...maybe down into the 20-30W range before adding disks. I know of at least one Atom board with Nvidia's ION chipset that has Gigabit Ethernet, wireless and a 1x PCI-Express slot. Wireless gives you a nice option, and the PCI-Express will let you use a RAID card to get extra S-ATA ports.

Qnap and similar are nice in doing a lot of the work for you and put everything into a nice package, but you do pay for it.

A couple of other points...
1. You have more freedom to add odd or new services to a DIY box. With an off-the-shelf NAS, you are limited to what the vendor provides.
2. If there is an issue with the CPU/RAM/MB, you would have the option with a DIY to swap out the motherboard, and keep the drives in the same case. With off-the-shelf, (once the warranty expires), you would not have this option. But if you plan on moving to a new NAS every couple of years anyway, this may not be an issue.

Just wanted to note that so far I have not seen an Atom based NAS (DIY or pre built) that is up the performance level of the QNAP 809 Pro. But as was mentioned they work just fine in a sever role and provide pretty good performance using very little power.

00Roush

 

[kievit72]

Don't know if you already found out, how to compete with a TS-809 Pro, but this can be done!

I build a DIY NAS with windows 2008 server R2 (64 bit), based on the atom platform, and with a hardware RAID card.

My setup exceeds disk performance of the 809 by far:
110 Read, Write over network

180 Read, Write direct disk copy

Power consumption: 49W idle, 59 load (3 data disk so far)
I used an old inefficient PSU. A nice matching low power / efficient can reduce power consumption with +/-12W. (PicoPSU i.e.)

see details:
http://nas.kievit.me