I was just wondering if anyone here has a home server be it for media, storage, or anything else. I am thinking of building my own but do not know if it is really worth the money. Anyone who has any input it is much appreciated.
If you know for a fact you'll be generating over 2 TB of data that you have a reason to save such as family pictures, videos, etc, then yes, having a home server for storage can be worth it.
They're fun projects but can be expensive. Typically, you'll want to have a RAID config for some reliability and backup in case one of your drives fails. The amount of drives you have will change the RAID setup you will want. You'll also want to buy a RAID card to manage the RAID. Drives are getting cheaper but still are expensive, especially if you are buying a lot of them.
They're fun projects but can be expensive. Typically, you'll want to have a RAID config for some reliability and backup in case one of your drives fails. The amount of drives you have will change the RAID setup you will want. You'll also want to buy a RAID card to manage the RAID. Drives are getting cheaper but still are expensive, especially if you are buying a lot of them.
RAID isn't really worth it before 5 or so drives and ~10TB total.
They're fun projects but can be expensive. Typically, you'll want to have a RAID config for some reliability and backup in case one of your drives fails. The amount of drives you have will change the RAID setup you will want. You'll also want to buy a RAID card to manage the RAID. Drives are getting cheaper but still are expensive, especially if you are buying a lot of them.
RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID 1 (which duplicates data onto multiple drives) is mainly for reading spead, also on mission critical applications it can be used so when one drive fails another can replace it with out a hitch. It's not needed for a home media server.
You can build a nice media server on the cheap these days. You can get 3TB drives for less than $200, throw in a motherboard and a low end CPU ($100-$200) and you're practically there (if you're doing something that requires video processing then you may need a slightly better CPU, but if its acting as a file server no need to bother).
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"Terminator like robots may one day rule the world, as long as they don't run Windows Vista"
I believe he was referring to the data duplication and drive replacement help presented by RAID1 as backup. Backup generally refers to data duplication for storage and use if original data is lost. RAID1 is not designed as backup, but it has a secondary function that acts similarly to backups.
I've got two Synology boxes acting as media/backup servers for my family. IMO building your own home storage/media server isn't really worth it if you need stability and compatibility with a multitude of devices, and it's definitely not worth it in cases like mine (I need low power use and a very compact form factor).
Yes, RAID is a good idea. Aim for something with failure tolerance for at least one drive if you're using it for media. If it's solely for backups, you don't have to use RAID, but it can help increase read and/or write speeds and having your backups on a RAID array brings additional data security (i.e. less chance of loosing all your backups from a drive failing). For a home user, software RAID is plenty, no need to pay for hardware RAID cards.
“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.” — Albert Einstein
"Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and it annoys the pig." — Robert Heinlein
I've got a home server that I use as a TV tuner (records shows over cable) and runs a Minecraft server. I leave it on 24/7 and it was built to be efficient so it doesn't take up nearly as much electricity as my gaming rig.
I've got a home server that I use as a TV tuner (records shows over cable) and runs a Minecraft server. I leave it on 24/7 and it was built to be efficient so it doesn't take up nearly as much electricity as my gaming rig.
I doubt that. It's likely using the same if not more.
I believe he was referring to the data duplication and drive replacement help presented by RAID1 as backup. Backup generally refers to data duplication for storage and use if original data is lost. RAID1 is not designed as backup, but it has a secondary function that acts similarly to backups.
99.999% of the times you will want a backup is when you accidentaly delete something. RAID1 will duplicate this delete to both drives, much more economical to use the second drive (plus another if needed) as a backup (done incrementally).
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"Terminator like robots may one day rule the world, as long as they don't run Windows Vista"
It usually isn't worth it, if you really just need backups from time to time use an external hard drive or even a networked drive. Using a full computer just to be a storage box is usually a massive waste of electricity bills.
RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID 1 (which duplicates data onto multiple drives) is mainly for reading spead, also on mission critical applications it can be used so when one drive fails another can replace it with out a hitch. It's not needed for a home media server.
You can build a nice media server on the cheap these days. You can get 3TB drives for less than $200, throw in a motherboard and a low end CPU ($100-$200) and you're practically there (if you're doing something that requires video processing then you may need a slightly better CPU, but if its acting as a file server no need to bother).
"Ninja"d from me, thanks.
OP, you probably don't need a home server but you can get a very cheap build (for a little under $300) and use it as one.
I doubt it because most gaming systems idle use around the same amount of power as a storage machine idle.
If he turns off his gaming PC once in a while but leaves the storage server on, over a month, the power draw between them would equal out to being just about the same.
Especially since gaming machines do not draw 500-600w the entire time they are on, most gaming sessions on average last less than 4 hours, and are usually in 1-2 hour bursts. The machine is still sitting there idle a good 70% of the time.
I ran a MC server on a phone before... and web servers on very old routers.
Yeah, no. You did not. Phones are not powerful enough to run a MC server, and the server itself will not even run on a phone, it won't even start up.
And no, you did not run a web server on an old router. I don't even know where to begin with this one. Routers have so little RAM the web server would not even be able to run, not to mention the CPUs are not designed for such things to be ran on them, usually they are hardware specific so not only would the code not even run but you would never get it to run.
Web servers use a LOT of RAM, and old routers have no more than 8-16MB of RAM, only newer ones have any more than that (and it's usually no more than 46MB or so). The web server couldn't even initiate with so little.
Not to mention the clock speed, older routers run anywhere from 20MHz to 70MHz. Only newer ones run higher, but even then only between 100MHz and 200MHz.
Yeah, no. You did not. Phones are not powerful enough to run a MC server, and the server itself will not even run on a phone, it won't even start up.
And no, you did not run a web server on an old router. I don't even know where to begin with this one. Routers have so little RAM the web server would not even be able to run, not to mention the CPUs are not designed for such things to be ran on them, usually they are hardware specific so not only would the code not even run but you would never get it to run.
Web servers use a LOT of RAM, and old routers have no more than 8-16MB of RAM, only newer ones have any more than that (and it's usually no more than 46MB or so). The web server couldn't even initiate with so little.
Not to mention the clock speed, older routers run anywhere from 20MHz to 70MHz. Only newer ones run higher, but even then only between 100MHz and 200MHz.
Really? I've seen 1GHz+ phones with multiple GBs of RAM. I can see a phone hosting a server fine, especially if its a bare bones custom implementation. Once you shoot down all the stupid GUIs and shine they put on phones even the ty low end android models are rather powerful devices.
Web servers use a lot of RAM? Since when? Think to yourself, what does a web server actually do? It reads files and pushes them over a network, ocaisionally it might have to send some 3 digit numbers when stuff goes wrong. Sure Apache with its 5 billion plugins might not load, but I'm sure a custom implementation would happily zoom along. Routers already run web services, or have you never port forwarded?
Really? I've seen 1GHz+ phones with multiple GBs of RAM. I can see a phone hosting a server fine, especially if its a bare bones custom implementation. Once you shoot down all the stupid GUIs and shine they put on phones even the ty low end android models are rather powerful devices.
GHz means nothing, and the RAM is still too low, but even then you are completely missing the point
You cannot run a Minecraft server on an ARM processor. They are simply not powerful enough.
Seriously, this isn't difficult to figure out.
Web servers use a lot of RAM? Since when?
You have never set up a web server. They can use upwards of 30GB of RAM.
Think to yourself, what does a web server actually do? It reads files and pushes them over a network, ocaisionally it might have to send some 3 digit numbers when stuff goes wrong. Sure Apache with its 5 billion plugins might not load, but I'm sure a custom implementation would happily zoom along. Routers already run web services, or have you never port forwarded?
It is clear you have absolutely no experience in this area. A router is not powerful enough to run a web server.
The services a router runs are NOTHING EVEN REMOTELY SIMILAR to anything I said, again, it is clear you have no idea what you are talking about here.
Port forwarding =/= running a web server.
You are basically trying to tell me this apple tastes like caramel because your car has 300 horsepower. You make no sense.
You didn't even hit on the fact that the processors and hardware in general for a router are of such low spec, they can barely run their own firmware. Some can't even have logs because they are so restricted by hardware.
Stop being such a pessimist.
Stop acting like you know what you are talking about when you in fact, do not.
“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.” — Albert Einstein
"Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and it annoys the pig." — Robert Heinlein
“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.” — Albert Einstein
"Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and it annoys the pig." — Robert Heinlein
I was just wondering if anyone here has a home server be it for media, storage, or anything else. I am thinking of building my own but do not know if it is really worth the money. Anyone who has any input it is much appreciated.
- Ian
If yes, then yes.
If no, then no.
Not at the moment since I re-installed windows recently but it gets up there fairly quickly.
"Programmers never repeat themselves. They loop."
RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID IS NOT BACKUP. RAID 1 (which duplicates data onto multiple drives) is mainly for reading spead, also on mission critical applications it can be used so when one drive fails another can replace it with out a hitch. It's not needed for a home media server.
You can build a nice media server on the cheap these days. You can get 3TB drives for less than $200, throw in a motherboard and a low end CPU ($100-$200) and you're practically there (if you're doing something that requires video processing then you may need a slightly better CPU, but if its acting as a file server no need to bother).
I believe he was referring to the data duplication and drive replacement help presented by RAID1 as backup. Backup generally refers to data duplication for storage and use if original data is lost. RAID1 is not designed as backup, but it has a secondary function that acts similarly to backups.
"Programmers never repeat themselves. They loop."
Yes, RAID is a good idea. Aim for something with failure tolerance for at least one drive if you're using it for media. If it's solely for backups, you don't have to use RAID, but it can help increase read and/or write speeds and having your backups on a RAID array brings additional data security (i.e. less chance of loosing all your backups from a drive failing). For a home user, software RAID is plenty, no need to pay for hardware RAID cards.
"Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and it annoys the pig." — Robert Heinlein
99.999% of the times you will want a backup is when you accidentaly delete something. RAID1 will duplicate this delete to both drives, much more economical to use the second drive (plus another if needed) as a backup (done incrementally).
OP, you probably don't need a home server but you can get a very cheap build (for a little under $300) and use it as one.
Why do you doubt that? I ran a MC server on a phone before... and web servers on very old routers.
Just a developer :-)
I doubt it because most gaming systems idle use around the same amount of power as a storage machine idle.
If he turns off his gaming PC once in a while but leaves the storage server on, over a month, the power draw between them would equal out to being just about the same.
Especially since gaming machines do not draw 500-600w the entire time they are on, most gaming sessions on average last less than 4 hours, and are usually in 1-2 hour bursts. The machine is still sitting there idle a good 70% of the time.
Yeah, no. You did not. Phones are not powerful enough to run a MC server, and the server itself will not even run on a phone, it won't even start up.
And no, you did not run a web server on an old router. I don't even know where to begin with this one. Routers have so little RAM the web server would not even be able to run, not to mention the CPUs are not designed for such things to be ran on them, usually they are hardware specific so not only would the code not even run but you would never get it to run.
Web servers use a LOT of RAM, and old routers have no more than 8-16MB of RAM, only newer ones have any more than that (and it's usually no more than 46MB or so). The web server couldn't even initiate with so little.
Not to mention the clock speed, older routers run anywhere from 20MHz to 70MHz. Only newer ones run higher, but even then only between 100MHz and 200MHz.
Really? I've seen 1GHz+ phones with multiple GBs of RAM. I can see a phone hosting a server fine, especially if its a bare bones custom implementation. Once you shoot down all the stupid GUIs and shine they put on phones even the ty low end android models are rather powerful devices.
Web servers use a lot of RAM? Since when? Think to yourself, what does a web server actually do? It reads files and pushes them over a network, ocaisionally it might have to send some 3 digit numbers when stuff goes wrong. Sure Apache with its 5 billion plugins might not load, but I'm sure a custom implementation would happily zoom along. Routers already run web services, or have you never port forwarded?
Stop being such a pessimist.
You cannot run a Minecraft server on an ARM processor. They are simply not powerful enough.
Seriously, this isn't difficult to figure out.
You have never set up a web server. They can use upwards of 30GB of RAM.
It is clear you have absolutely no experience in this area. A router is not powerful enough to run a web server.
The services a router runs are NOTHING EVEN REMOTELY SIMILAR to anything I said, again, it is clear you have no idea what you are talking about here.
Port forwarding =/= running a web server.
You are basically trying to tell me this apple tastes like caramel because your car has 300 horsepower. You make no sense.
You didn't even hit on the fact that the processors and hardware in general for a router are of such low spec, they can barely run their own firmware. Some can't even have logs because they are so restricted by hardware.
Stop acting like you know what you are talking about when you in fact, do not.
Please educate yourself. Thank you.
Ehh...
http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=27889
"Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and it annoys the pig." — Robert Heinlein
Good point, but it does seem to be enough for a few players.
"Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and it annoys the pig." — Robert Heinlein