[NTLUG:Discuss] Software Raid/Small NAS box ideas

[Darin Smith]

On Sun, 2003-01-26 at 01:00, Val Harris wrote:

> What are you going to use to backup your NAS?  I was astonished by how
> fast my backup solution turned into full up storage of rarely accessed
> info in a previous employment incarnation.  Once that happened, the info
> only existed on my backup solution; and my backup solution needed to be
> backed up.
> 

There are obviously different levels of paranoia one can employ.  My
plan is that very old, static data, will reside primarily on the NAS,
exported read-only, ensuring that it will remain static.  Since I'm
planning on getting one of those Sony combo DVD+R/RW, -R/RW, CD-R/RW
drives, then I'll make a couple of permanent archives of all static
data, one of which will be kept off-site, and the other in a fire-safe
(or maybe a small fire-safe inside a larger fire-safe for further
thermal protection).

Dynamic data will have the working copy on my desktop box, and be
incrementally backed up to the NAS.  I want to make an archive of that
once every two weeks on DVD+RW, again, one off-site and one on-site,
rotating those.  That way, I should never lose more than 1 month worth
of data, and have a 50% probability of only losing 2-weeks worth of data
in a catastrophe.  For my personal use at the present, that is
acceptable for me.  If I have more critical data, I'll have to increase
the frequency of my more permanent backups.

Note that this is primarily for storing my personal data, though that
goes back to 1994 or further.  I occasionally go through it and cull
what I won't need any more or don't know what it is anymore.  On the
other hand, since I fantasize about starting my own company someday, I'd
like to experiment and find something that really works, is efficient,
reliable, and inexpensive.

> Bad power and heat are the 2 biggest drive killers I know of.  What are
> you going to use to dissipate heat in the closet?
 
As for power, I'm going to go with a good quality PC Power and Cooling
p.s. and put it on a large UPS (already existing with this guy in
mind...right now just backing up my cable-modem and router).

As for heat, it just so happens that this closet has a 7 foot ceiling,
because the other 1 foot is part of an A/C return.  I re-built the A/C
return when I remodeled the closet, and added a grill in the ceiling and
in the closet door, so that the closet itself acts as part of the A/C
return.  It's also a fairly spacious closet, not too stuffed...so I
think airflow is plenty-well addressed.

> I'd go with RAID5, but that's merely my preference.  This sounds like a
> great project!  I hope you'll keep us informed as to how it works out.

I may go with RAID5 yet...looking at it again, it is probably a better
overall solution since it has less of a bottleneck in write.  I would
guess it would be easier to use varying sizes of drives in this than it
would with RAID4.

--Darin