Hello all,
New to the forum and looking for some help with a conversion. Two years ago, my son and I built a mini-ITX for just the usual home uses (internet and word processing). We are preparing to build a gaming PC and I would like to convert this prior build to an NAS with RAID 5 while using as much of the prior components as possible. I am hoping that I can just replace the one WD Blue 1TB HDD with three WD Red 2TB HDDs, but I have some questions about a hardware RAID controller with the current motherboard. Also, if anyone sees any other issues that I don't see, please feel free to point them out.
Current build as it is:
CPU: AMD A8-7600 Radeon R7
MB: Gigabyte F2A88XN-WIFI (mini-ITX, FM2+, PCIe x16 slot, support for RAID 0/1/5/10/JBOD, 4 x SATA 6 Gb/s connectors, USB3.0 x 4, USB2.0 x 2, HDMI x 2)
RAM: Crucial Ballistic Sport XT 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1600
SSD: Samsung 850 EVO 250GB
HDD: WD Blue 3.5" 1TB
ODD: Cheap LG DVD-RW
PSU: Corsair CX500
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 (120mm fan + 80mm fan, USB3.0 x2, USB2.0 x 1)
Plan: Remove the optical drive and the WD Blue in order to fit 3 x WD Red 2TB 3.5" HDDs. Add a RAID controller to run the three WD Reds.
Concerns:
1. From what I've read, the hardware RAID setup is the way to go. I don't need an expensive 16x RAID controller. Will a less expensive PCIe 8x work fine in the 16x slot? Any suggestions?
2. I've run the calculators and I think I'm fine with the CX500 PSU. Am I wrong?
3. Once the gaming PC is up and running, what is the most seamless way to have this server connected so that I can access/manage it on the same monitor(s), keyboard, mouse?
4. How easy will it be to have it on the local (home) network so that files can be accessed via phone, laptop, etc.? Can it be setup so that I can access files from out of town while still remaining secure? How?
New to the forum and looking for some help with a conversion. Two years ago, my son and I built a mini-ITX for just the usual home uses (internet and word processing). We are preparing to build a gaming PC and I would like to convert this prior build to an NAS with RAID 5 while using as much of the prior components as possible. I am hoping that I can just replace the one WD Blue 1TB HDD with three WD Red 2TB HDDs, but I have some questions about a hardware RAID controller with the current motherboard. Also, if anyone sees any other issues that I don't see, please feel free to point them out.
Current build as it is:
CPU: AMD A8-7600 Radeon R7
MB: Gigabyte F2A88XN-WIFI (mini-ITX, FM2+, PCIe x16 slot, support for RAID 0/1/5/10/JBOD, 4 x SATA 6 Gb/s connectors, USB3.0 x 4, USB2.0 x 2, HDMI x 2)
RAM: Crucial Ballistic Sport XT 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1600
SSD: Samsung 850 EVO 250GB
HDD: WD Blue 3.5" 1TB
ODD: Cheap LG DVD-RW
PSU: Corsair CX500
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 (120mm fan + 80mm fan, USB3.0 x2, USB2.0 x 1)
Plan: Remove the optical drive and the WD Blue in order to fit 3 x WD Red 2TB 3.5" HDDs. Add a RAID controller to run the three WD Reds.
Concerns:
1. From what I've read, the hardware RAID setup is the way to go. I don't need an expensive 16x RAID controller. Will a less expensive PCIe 8x work fine in the 16x slot? Any suggestions?
2. I've run the calculators and I think I'm fine with the CX500 PSU. Am I wrong?
3. Once the gaming PC is up and running, what is the most seamless way to have this server connected so that I can access/manage it on the same monitor(s), keyboard, mouse?
4. How easy will it be to have it on the local (home) network so that files can be accessed via phone, laptop, etc.? Can it be setup so that I can access files from out of town while still remaining secure? How?