Re: Storage server
On 9/8/2012 11:49 AM, Veljko wrote:
> Well, it did sound a little to complex and that is why I posted to this
> list, hoping to hear some other opinions.
>
> 1. This machine will be used for
> a) backup (backup server for several dedicated (mainly) web servers).
> It will contain incremental backups, so only first running will take a
> lot of time, rsnapshot will latter download only changed/added files
> and will run from cron every day. Files that will be added later are
> around 1-10 MB in size. I expect ~20 GB daily, but that number can
> grow. Some files fill be deleted, other will be added.
> Dedicated servers that will be backed up are ~500GB in size.
> b) monitoring (Icinga or Zabbix) of dedicated servers.
> c) file sharing for employees (mainly small text files). I don't
> expect this to be resource hog.
Stop here. Never use a production system as a test rig.
> d) Since there is enough space (for now), and machine have four cores
> and 4GB RAM (that can be easily increased), I figured I can use it for
> test virtual machines. I usually work with 300MB virtual machines and
> no intensive load. Just testing some software.
You can build a complete brand new AMD dedicated test machine with parts
from Newegg for $238 USD, sans KB/mouse/monitor, which you already have.
Boot it up then run it headless, use a KVM switch, etc.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813186189
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148262
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103888
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136771
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811121118
If ~$250 stretches the wallet of your employer, it's time for a new job.
> 2. There is no fixed implementation date, but I'm expected to start
> working on it. Sooner the better, but no dead lines.
> Equipment I have to work with is desktop class machine: Athlon X4,
> 4GB RAM and 4 3TB Seagate ST3000DM001 7200rpm. Server will be in my
> office and will perform backup over internet. I do have APC UPS to
> power off machine in case of power loss (apcupsd will take care of
> that).
Get yourself an Adaptec 8 port PCIe x8 RAID card kit for $250:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816103231
The Seagate ST3000DM001 is certified. It can't do RAID5 so you'll use
RAID10, giving you 6TB of raw capacity, but much better write
performance than RAID5. You can add 4 more of these drives, doubling
capacity to 12TB. Comes with all cables, manuals, etc. Anyone who has
tried to boot a server after the BIOS configured boot drive that is
mdraid mirrored knows why $250 is far more than worth the money. A
drive failure with a RAID card doesn't screw up your boot order. It
just works.
> In next few months it is expected that size of files on dedicated
> servers will grow and it case that really happen I'd like to be able to
> expand this system.
See above.
> And, of course, thanks for your time and valuable advices, Stan, I've read
> some of your previous posts on this list and know you're storage guru.
You're welcome. And thank you. ;) Recommending the above Adaptec card
is the best advice you'll get. It'll make your life much easier, with
better performance to boot.
--
Stan
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