Small form factor backup machine

[AngusBuchanan]

Hello,

I need a small, preferably silent machine into which I can install two (or better 4) disks, to run as a local backup server in a hybrid solution, backing up its contents offsite.

Data volume is very low (like 100s of GB) but space in the office is at a premium.

Performance not an issue either, although multiple network cards would be advantageous and integrated or easy to add wireless network would also be good.

Of course, needs to run FreeBSD 8. And the office is in England.

Any recommendations for what hardware to use?

 

[vermaden]

Get a case like that:
http://www.chenbro.eu/corporatesite/news_release_det.php?serno=64

You will be able to use 4 x 3.5 HDDs.

Get some ZOTAC mini-itx motherboard with WiFi or MSI mothermoard and mostly You are done.

Supermicro creates great motherboards, but they are not cheap.

 

[aragon]

I recently built a NAS using components similar to what you're after:

[thread=22847]http://forums.freebsd.org/showthread.php?t=22847[/thread]

Small and silent are contradictory unfortunately. You can't have both... either it's small and noisy from the necessary forced convection (fans) to keep all the components cool, or it's large and heavy from all the heatsinks and heatpipes that'll be needed to dissipate enough heat through unforced convection.

If heat and cooling are an issue, don't use a Core i3 like I did - go with an Atom D510 or D525 fanless board.

 

[wblock@]

Hello,

I need a small, preferably silent machine into which I can install two (or better 4) disks, to run as a local backup server in a hybrid solution, backing up its contents offsite.

Data volume is very low (like 100s of GB) but space in the office is at a premium.

Performance not an issue either, although multiple network cards would be advantageous and integrated or easy to add wireless network would also be good.

Of course, needs to run FreeBSD 8. And the office is in England.

Any recommendations for what hardware to use?

You could add memory and drives to one of the existing machines and run FreeBSD as a VM. Zero footprint.

That Chenbro vermaden pointed out looks nice, but the Newegg reviews are mixed. Internal power supply is nice for space, but proprietary and bad for cooling, and SFF machines often have cooling issues anyway. The Dell GX620 USFF is a classic example, and it has an external power supply!

You might find some pointers on the FreeNAS forum.

 

[aragon]

Internal power supply is nice for space, but proprietary and bad for cooling

Yes. Personally I will be stocking up on a spare one. Chenbro also make the 34069, which is almost identical, but with an external power supply.

 

[carlton_draught]

Angus, if it must be (near) silent, you might want to check out silentpcreview.com. I think here would be a good starting point. Anything they recommend is pretty much
a) silent
b) runs cool
c) good for gear longevity/reliability in general, due to less vibrations as well as good temperatures.

 

[zennybsd]

I recently built a NAS using components similar to what you're after:

[thread=22847]http://forums.freebsd.org/showthread.php?t=22847[/thread]

Small and silent are contradictory unfortunately. You can't have both... either it's small and noisy from the necessary forced convection (fans) to keep all the components cool, or it's large and heavy from all the heatsinks and heatpipes that'll be needed to dissipate enough heat through unforced convection.

If heat and cooling are an issue, don't use a Core i3 like I did - go with an Atom D510 or D525 fanless board.

D525MW has only 2 SATA ports and that is the limitation using the board. I could not find one with 4 SATA ports built in mobo.

Found this (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128452) but without passive cooling (with fan).

I think like this could be an ideal for chenbro case (http://www.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=9BmKhMwWCwqyl1lz)

 

[sang]

My server/firewall is an Mini-ITX machine with only one fan for the PSU. It is not a disk server though, as it only has one SSD drive.

The motherboard I use is SuperMicro X7SPA-H, with a passively cooled Atom D510 CPU, six SATA II -ports, and two integrated Intel 1Gb NICs. With no fan based airflow the CPU keeps between 36°C idle and 46°C heavy load (if cputemp is to be believed). It has one PCIE card slot so you could plug a WLAN card in there.

A similar motherboard in a bigger case with a fan for the hard drives would probably suit you well.

The only problem I have with my machine is that due to the small size of the case, Flex ATX form factor, the PSU fan noise is noticable.