Building a Linux NAS

[Jason Dixon]

On Sep 30, 2004, at 10:39 AM, Brian McGrew wrote:

> Good morning:
>
> I've been unable to find any information on exactly what I want to do 
> so maybe you guys can help!  Our company is kind of small and we can't 
> afford megabucks to buy a Dell NAS or SAN do I want to build my own.
>
> I'm looking at taking a Linux box that I have here, a P4 1.6GHz with 
> 2GB of RAM, putting it in like an 8U rack mount case with 2x40GB 
> drives mirrored for the system and then cramming as many (I'm hoping 
> like eight or more) 250GB SATA drives in it for the NAS.
>
> My questions to you guys are:
>
> 1)  Is this a feasible approach to take or should I go buy a NAS at 
> any cost?
> 2)  Can someone make a recommendation of a nice 6U or 8U rack case to 
> look for?
> 3)  I was planning on using 2x40GB on the onboard IDE controller for 
> the system drive.  Is this alright or should I have a Promise RAID 
> controller?
> 4)  What about a SATA controller (or even ATA133) that will support 
> eight drives?  What about two controllers that support four drives, 
> would this work?
> 5)  What software for setup and management should I be looking at?  
> I've used Webmin but have never really had good luck with Samna.  I 
> need to share files via NFS, SMB and maybe AFP.

Honestly, it would save you more money (and hair) in the long run to 
hire someone who is already familiar with home-grown NAS/SAN solutions. 
  Make sure you get someone who understands what they're putting 
together (i.e., not just a reseller of someone else's hardware), so 
they can train you properly on the upkeep and scaling of the system.

P.S.  I am NOT attempting to gain your business, just trying to keep 
you from shooting yourself in the foot.  Weigh your options and choose 
a reputable provider.

--
Jason Dixon, RHCE
DixonGroup Consulting
http://www.dixongroup.net