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<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Last
fall for my “new” home server (mainly files and MythTV), I took an
existing tower with 1 drive and added a SATA controller & 4 WD Black 1TBs
(& did a fresh install). I configured software RAID 5 for a 3TB RAID.
This was the cheapest approach I found – main cost of course was drives,
and is your choice for needed size/quality/features.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>I
looked at external cases for the drives but found nothing reasonably priced. If
you find something, please let me know! Thankfully my case could fit
them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>I
infer your case can’t fit the drive(s)?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>I
also looked at devices, such as ReadyNAS and Buffalo, but found for the price,
the server approach offered me a lot more value and flexibility – just a
lot more of my time to initially setup. But you may just want a
ReadyNAS? My buddy bought one of the HP Windows Server NAS units.
He said it was easy to setup and use, and works great. But he paid more
than I did for less storage and flexibility, but I already had the server....
I used an old PC for the main server and an older PC for the backup server.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>My
configuration is a bit reversed of yours – my backup server (currently
toasted) has “regular drives” (vs RAID you are seeking) and I put
the RAID in the main server (RAID for reliability, backups for recovery of any “accidents”).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Also,
in case you are wondering about backup software, someone on this list
recommended BackupPC to me; it is a great backup product with tiered backups I
wanted (e.g. full backup, incremental backup, and keeping N of each).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>
tclug-list-bounces@mn-linux.org [mailto:tclug-list-bounces@mn-linux.org] <b>On
Behalf Of </b>Randy Clarksean<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Saturday, January 09, 2010 1:19 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> 'tclug-list'<br>
<b>Subject:</b> [tclug-list] SATA External Storage<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>I
am looking for suggestions on a “cheap” storage system. I
would like it to be <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>+
RAID 5 or 6 capable<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>+
easily used as backup for Windows / Linux<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>+
form factor does not matter (i.e. 2U vs. Tower does not matter)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>+
want to use “cheap” SATA drives<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>+
sits on network or attached to dedicated server<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>+
capacity of 1+ TB minimum (nearly 500-750 GB of useful information for
backup at present)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Yes
… I know I want everything and do not want to pay anything. This is
for a home office type environment, not a production or high availability
server environment. Everything runs over Gigabit network. I have
too much information to back up via burning a DVD, etc.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>I
have looked at Dell and HP storage solutions and they are a BIT pricey to say
the least – even used. I have a Dell SC1425 with ESXi on it that I
can easily attach it to as needed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Thoughts
or suggestions appreciated. Thanks in advance.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Randy<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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