Mac Pro :: RAID5 NAS Recommendations?
Jul 30, 2008
I'm about to pull the trigger on a RAID5 card for my MacPro (4x750GB) and I want an external (different building) RAID5 for network backups. I'm not quite in the market for a full >4TB RAID system as the price points still seem quite high. I was thinking of this system:
[URL]
Any thoughts? Would 4TB RAID5 be a good Time Machine back-up for my 3TB RAID5 MacPro in terms of space?
Can anyone recommend a better system? We can afford to spend more, but I'm hesitant to pull the trigger on a ~$15k 16-drive RAID system. Part of my was thinking (hoping!) the Netgear system may support 2TB drives if they become available and that system would continue to support our needs for many years.
View 16 Replies
ADVERTISEMENT
Jan 2, 2011
I recently bought the Areca 1880ix-16 card and the backplane cable to hook to the mac pro internal drives - hooked up 4 x seagate ST32000644NS 2TB enterprise drives for an internal RAID5 with 6TB of space. Used the DX4 from transinternational to hook up my 2 SSD drives. The initial raid build time was just about 2 days (!) for the raid 5. Shortly after that I left town for a few days and came back to an alarm in my computer - one of the disks had dropped out. The rebuild time was again close to 2 days!. At thipoint I realized that if I was sitting there with that much data at risk for a 2 day rebuild, it would be agonizing and so I needed to go raid6 (which had been my goal from the start, but only 4 internal disks is very limiting). So I gave up on managing my storage internally and bought an istorage pro it8SAS external box connected by miniSAS cable. The raid5 had to complete the rebuild before it would let me expand to raid6. I added another seagate ST32000644NS 2TB enterprise drive (interestingly the drive that was originally listed as failed has caused no further problems at all) and expanded the raid to RAID6 with the same capacity but one extra drive for parity. The rebuild now has been going on for almost 48 hours and it's at 53% I had NO idea the rebuild times would be this long. I do have 2.3TB of data on the array, so I'm not sure if that prolongs it vs. an empty array. But just for others info, take into consideration these times when deciding what your own needs are - I bought a high end (AFAIK) raid card, running in a high end computer (mac pro 3ghz octocore with 16GB RAM) and quality enterprise drives, and it's still maddeningly slow to rebuild. Hopefully once it's up and running, this will all be forgotten, and if I ever have a drive fail, I know I can still lose another one without any data loss. RAID6 seems the only way to go given these times for rebuild. FWIW, I also put in another 3 drives - old 500gb drives I had sitting around and built a secondary RAID5 array since I had the space, that completed in around 36 hours or so, and was done during the original raid5 rebuild.
View 14 Replies
View Related
Nov 4, 2009
I just need a bit of help deciding between a software RAID5 vs software RAID1 array for archival purposes. the RAID will be installed into my hackintosh and shared over the network for TimeMachine backups as well as extra backups from my multitudes of external HDDs. i am thinking 3x1TB WD Greens (RAID5) for $103Aus each, or 2x1TB WD Greens (RAID1). my main concern is data loss and speed of the drives. most setups will clearly equal 2TB of total data storage, we feel that will be enough for a few years (will be backing up 2x laptops + 2x iMacs + the hackintosh). which one will be faster? (i guess this wont matter as the network will be the bottlebeck) which one will be more secure in the end? (our house tends to have power dropouts). the network is a gigabit network over cat5e, we may upgrade to cat6e in the future if the speed benefits are THAT great. i am forced to go with a software RAID via OSX at this point in time because a RAID card is just too costly. my current motherboard in the hackintosh is a GA-EG31M-S2 Gigabyte. it has 4 SATA ports and no RAID support - will OSX still be able to do a software RAID? i am presuming that it can. anyway, what are the main pros and cons for this sort of setup?
View 24 Replies
View Related
Sep 11, 2009
My server that i currently have is seems to be on its last leg (4 years old with old slow hdd). Anyway, I'd like to replace it but would rather just use my mac pro. I need about 4TB of storage space. Ideally I'd have one hdd to kick in if another began to fail. From my readings it sounds like I need Raid5 (correct me if I'm wrong). I know this can be done but I've already used 3 drive bays that came with my mac pro, anyway I can setup a raid 5 and have the storage space? I guess what I'm looking for here is some type of RAID card (Arcea 1210?) and then a storage solution. Once thats figured out, I'll need to know how to power the hdds.
View 2 Replies
View Related
Sep 10, 2003
Could some of you tell me a good FTP for OSX? I just upgraded to X and used Fetch in OS9.
View 22 Replies
View Related
Nov 14, 2010
I have decided and ordering a MacBook Pro 13", 2Ghz, 250GB HD; I am upping ram with aftermarket plus I want to upgrade to a SSD drive. I mainly will be doing parallel 6, windows vista pro, surfing, emailing, minor Photoshop... I have a iMac 27" as my workhorse...
View 2 Replies
View Related
Mar 27, 2009
I just switched from the PC to an iMac. I have a web site [URL] to which I periodically upload updated photo galleries. On the PC I used a very simple and elegant FTP program from Ipswitch, called WTS (I think that was the name). That program doesn't come in a Mac version. It was very simple in that it contacted my site and opened up a double paned window which showed me the files on the server and an explorer type view of my computer. I selected the files and dragged them to the proper place on the server, and VOILA! a minute or so later my site was updated. What's available for the Mac which would be comparable? I saw a program called "Fetch" and the APPLE site has one called Classic FTP. I'm interested in low cost, ease of use, and reliability.
View 23 Replies
View Related
Jan 3, 2010
I want to back up my IPOD and I'm wondering if anyone could recommend software like 'xport' or something.
View 4 Replies
View Related
Nov 1, 2010
I've been using a PC all my life. I currently have a 5 year old Dell 3100 desktop. I've decided to make the switch to a Mac. I have a lot of problems with my current computer, but it's 5 years old so it's expected I guess.
I'm pretty much decided on the Macbook Pro 13 inch model. I'm not a "hardcore professional" computer user, but more of a personal user. Here are some of my concerns:
1. I'm leaning towards the 2.4 Ghz model. The upgrade to a 2.66Ghz with an extra 50 Gb hard-drive is several hundred $$$ more expensive. Do you guys think the added $$ is worth the little extra processor speed and hard-drive size for a non-professional user?
2. Some people are telling me to wait for the 2011 Macbook Pro to be released. Obviously nobody knows exactly when that will be. I can wait a few months, but I'm not sure how much would change. Some people seem to think the processor on the 13' model is "outdated" and needs an i5 or i7. 2011 is just around the corner, so perhaps it might be worth "waiting" to see what upgrades come available.
View 5 Replies
View Related
Nov 14, 2010
On my Windows 2008 server desktop, I use a Core i7 i980 and SSD hard disk. I spend lots of time compiling in Visual C++/Windows.
Due to nature of my work (making apps), I need the highest possible CPU speed, highest possible HDD speed.
What kind of Mac do you recommend for such a user?
I need at least a Core i7/995 and SSD hard disk...
View 1 Replies
View Related
Jan 7, 2011
Ive been reading a few different posts on the forum with regards to this, but thought I would ask the question anyway.
Just got my first MAC, Got the 13". Decided I didnt want to wait anymore, If the new ones are that good then I might sell the 13" in 12 months and get one of the new 15"s.
View 4 Replies
View Related
Dec 14, 2006
I'm now in the need of a USB hub for when my PowerBook is on it's iCurve. I just got a MightyMouse and Printer and a few other things but the mighty mouse cord is soo short it really does not reach over to the USB port of the PowerBook.
I'm looking for something to compiment the other things on my desktop (Apple White and Sliver). Maybe a USB hub I could mount on the desk or near it's built-in bookshelf.
View 2 Replies
View Related
Mar 7, 2008
I'm not really a heavy gamer or anything, but I'm planning a few long flights in the coming weeks and considering getting some 'entertainment' in advance for use on the flight. As I've seen mixed reviews of games on the Air so far, I'm wondering if anyone can post games that they've used on the Air that perform reasonably well and are worth getting.
View 1 Replies
View Related
Feb 23, 2009
What are some recommendations for wireless n routers? I currently have a NetGear WPN2000 and it's a pain in the butt. My MacPro accesses it through its Airport Express card, and nearly every day I get the error message, "Airport has a self-assigned IP address and cannot connect to the Internet." If I reset the router, everything then usually works okay for about a day or two. I'm getting sick of resetting the router. I have an iMac and a printer attached to the router's ethernet jacks, and those work okay but seem pretty sluggish.
So I was looking into the Airport Extreme Base Station. On Apple's website, there are a [I]lot[I] of really negative reviews. So I'm hesitant to spend that much money on something that might not work.
So what do you think? Airport or Linksys or D-Link or ... what?
View 10 Replies
View Related
Dec 7, 2009
Title pretty much says it all, the superdrive in my Mac Pro has become unreliable. I figured I'd swap it out myself with something from Newegg, but I'm not sure which ones are compatible and am looking for recommendations
View 1 Replies
View Related
Apr 13, 2010
Just in the process of going to be getting a new MacBook Pro and was wondering what you guys think of either Office or iWorks. Which one would you recommend?
View 26 Replies
View Related
Jun 8, 2010
Can anyone recommend a brand of wired routers that is super easy to set up for the Mac?
View 3 Replies
View Related
Apr 11, 2008
I am a new mac user. Which email program would anyone recommend? I check my email at home and out of town on vacations. I have the mail that comes with Mac also Entourage. On windows I used Eudora but feel it's time to change.
View 2 Replies
View Related
Sep 14, 2008
I wanted to find out some of your opinions on a basic approach to organizing images I am considering doing with my images in iPhoto '08...any pros and/or cons you can respond back. I am looking at my events in iPhoto and I see about 7 different one's for each of 7 different weddings I've attended; I see about 30 total events for each of the major family holidays over the last several years (X-Mas, etc.); and so on and so on. I was thinking about perhaps keywording each of the images in each of the wedding events using the names of the people who got married, then simply merging all 7 wedding events into a single event (perhaps creating an album out of each before doing so)...I'd then do the same thing for each of the family holidays (merging 30 events into a single event, after keywording appropriately and creating albums out of each event as necessary). Anyone have any thoughts on this approach? Pros? Cons?
View 3 Replies
View Related
Oct 4, 2010
I am looking for optibay recommendations for my MBP 17" mid-2010. I am not sure which one to get. MCE offers one, which I have looked at, but they are pretty pricy at almost 100 bucks. Then I saw another website, [URL] selling optical bay caddies for almost half that (~50 dollar range); and lastly even some on eBay for the 12$ range from US sellers.
View 7 Replies
View Related
Dec 3, 2006
I'm looking to buy an eMac for a friend and trying to decide between two options. They're both combo-drive:
1. 1.25ghz with 1ghz ram with about 10 months left on the Applecare warranty;
or
2. 1.25ghz with 256 ram with basically zero mileage on it but no warranty (it's owned by a family friend who tried it for about a week and then went back to her old computer.)
Option 2 would be a little more expensive, plus more memory would be needed. I'm leaning toward 2 because hey, it's brand new, but I'm concerned about the lack of warranty.
I've run Hardware Test on it, got online, played around with the applications, and there are no issues. Is this about all I can do to test it out?
Also, how much of a factor is usage? Option 1 has been in use every day with some bigger applications- is it more likely to fail sooner? I realize there's no way to predict longevity, and from my own experience I know that Macs last forever, but I'm not familiar with eMacs and maybe there are some issues that I'm not aware of with them.
Note also that my friend plans to use this for a long time. She had an older eMac until now that she loved before it got stolen, and doesn't do anything more intensive than email-internet-digital photos.
View 4 Replies
View Related
Feb 20, 2008
A friend of mine wants to buy a "vintage" iMac. He's an interior designer so going for the iconic look rather than specs and looking at the original G3 style or the "pod" style G4s.
Now this will be used primarliy for web browsing, email, iPhoto and iTunes (streaming his music collection to Apple TV - about 50GB of music). He'd like it to run OSX and preferably Leopard.
I'm guessing (from memory) that the original iMacs are out of the question but can anyone suggest a spec he might look for? Maybe somebody that's still using one of these machines could give an opinion? Also, what's the max spec (cpu, hard drive, RAM) that he could expect to pick up?
View 6 Replies
View Related
Jun 14, 2008
I have a 1st generation Mac Pro, 3gHz, 4GB RAM. I'm looking to get another hard drive in the machine, 500GB. I was looking at macsales.com, and I have a preference toward Seagate with my background. Unfortunately, I don't know much about the subtle difference in speed or performance with newer drives (ES-2 Enterprise-Class, for example). I was looking at a couple on there:
500GB Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 SATA II 7200RPM 32MB Cache - 5yr Seagate Warranty
500GB Seagate Barracuda ES-2 Enterprise-Class SATA II 7200RPM Hard Drive with 32MB Cache
Do you have any recommendations for me? Obviously, speed and it being quiet are my top preferences.
View 8 Replies
View Related
Jun 18, 2008
Can any recommend a free, good and preferably an easy to use video converter for the mac? Especially looking for applications that I can download videos onto my iphone and psp.
View 3 Replies
View Related
Oct 3, 2008
I was wondering if anyone had any good recommendations for a computer desk/workstation. I'm willing to spend some $$ on something, and am just wondering if there are any pieces out there that you guys really like. I use a Mac Pro, which I like to keep on the desk. Besides that, I don't have that much hardware -- MFC printer that's pretty big, but that will probably be replaced by something that has a smaller footprint. I'll be putting it in my basement, so size isn't really a huge concern.
View 6 Replies
View Related
Oct 30, 2008
I just bought the new aluminum Macbook.I currently use the black cloth that came with it to clean the glass screen.I was wondering though whats the best method to clean the outer shell and keyboard. I think I got some oil stains/spots on the black keys, which I'm not sure how to wipe off
View 24 Replies
View Related
Oct 31, 2008
I have a shiny new macbook and i need a good software phone that supports either SIP or IAX (prefer both) is reliable and can record calls. It would also be nice if it has support for G729.
So far I've found ZoIPer Business, which will set me back 36GBP($58 USD). I'm a bit wary of purchasing it, as I've used ZoIPer FREE and it seems to crash sometimes (i.e. it wont cleanly exit)
I've also tried X-Lite although this also seems very buggy and havent been able to make a successful call.
Is there something someone can recommend that they've used? or should i shutup and buy ZoIPer & not complain about the price?
View 1 Replies
View Related
Dec 23, 2008
Okay, I've recently re-discovered the 250gb drive that came with my Mac Pro, which I immediately switched out for four 750gb ones. Anyway, I now have need of a new external drive, so my thinking was to simply get a drive-enclosure rather than a whole new external drive. My need isn't urgent, but it's one of those things I really like to have and do find useful from time-to-time, though this may change. My requirements are:Supports 3.5" form-factor, SATA-300 drives, as that's what I've got. Is boot-able, as I'd like to use it as an emergency drive, and possibly install Windows to it, though I may change my mind on that as the procedure looks fairly complicated. I read somewhere that whether a computer can boot from it or not may depend on a chip in the enclosure but I'm unsure how to find out about that. USB 2.0, as while it's not a compact drive I'd like it to be portable. Additionally on this front, being bus-powered would be great, but not an absolute requirement (I'm not incapable of carrying a power-adaptor Just hoping to get any recommendations from people that have bought USB enclosures recently, or otherwise know of some good ones to investigate.
View 2 Replies
View Related
Feb 15, 2009
since i switched to mac about two months ago ive been looking for a good p2p client. Back in the windows days i used ares and loved it. So now ive downloaded several other programs like: Acquisition, Hedera, Posioned, iSwipe and Limewire.
At least two of those are for different networks and none of them have worked except for limewire, but there is too much virus and spam in it. The best option would be a working client for ares network. Every other program just wont connect. Does anyone use iswipe by the way?
View 8 Replies
View Related
Jul 31, 2009
I've been trying to find a good, solid powered-USB hub to use with my Macbook Pro. I tried the Belkin 7-port, which had good reviews, but it just stopped working after 2 weeks, and it was never powering self-powered USB hard drives properly (even though it was supposed to).
So I'd like some recommendations for a good USB hub that has sufficient power to use with self-powered USB hard drives and that won't slow down or stop working when i connect too many devices.
View 6 Replies
View Related
