New Build - NAS - Plex Media Server

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Migit78

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Aug 23, 2014
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So I want to build a NAS/Plex server for my home, to cut on power costs of running my PC 24/7
Will only be storing media to be used by Plex - TV, Movies,

Does this build look good?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($152.00)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3 Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($89.00 @ Centre Com)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Blue 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($57.00 @ CPL Online)
Storage: Kingston HyperX Fury 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.00 @ CPL Online)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($235.00 @ PLE Computers)
Case: Fractal Design Node 804 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($145.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: Corsair VS 350W ATX Power Supply ($47.00)
Total: $789.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-26 20:58 AEST+1000

Thanks

Longer Part / Extra Info: CPU chosen has a passmark of 6343, so should handle 3x1080p streams, currently only ever have 1 used at any given time.
SSD if for the OS, and to store the Plex software etc
HDD still struggling on this front, I'm kinda set on WD Reds, however can't decide which size drive to by, in my area 3TB drives are the best value in terms of GB/$, however larger drives mean more space with less regular expenses of adding more drives.

Finally OS, ive only ever used Windows, but am considering attempting something like FreeNAS or unRAID for this build. Anything I should be aware of? or contra-indications with my part list or Plex?
 
Solution
Hlsgsz


Look, i'm not really that versed in this as I haven't built a nas machine myself, but, as far as i understand, the most badass DIY NAS hardware available is the ASRock C2750D4I. It's a server part(big plus) therefore one can use ECC memory on it(also a big plus for both freenas and unraid) and is equipped with a passively cooled octa core atom with a TDP of 20W(!!!).
I would really look into that. If you find it too expensive, you can go with it's quad-core little brother the C2550D4I.
Also, i would get a...
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Hlsgsz

Hlsgsz

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Feb 29, 2016
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Why not just buy a NAS?
 
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Migit78

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Aug 23, 2014
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Because I enjoy PC Building, and this is cheaper than building another gaming PC
And looking at Plex's compatibility with premade NAS's, the reviews just don't sound very good, lots of stuttering and buffering issues etc
 
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Hlsgsz

Hlsgsz

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Feb 29, 2016
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IN that case, i would go with an atom or something else that can be cooled passively. the fx-6300 is too power hungry for such an application imho.
 
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Hlsgsz

Hlsgsz

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Feb 29, 2016
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51,415


Look, i'm not really that versed in this as I haven't built a nas machine myself, but, as far as i understand, the most badass DIY NAS hardware available is the ASRock C2750D4I. It's a server part(big plus) therefore one can use ECC memory on it(also a big plus for both freenas and unraid) and is equipped with a passively cooled octa core atom with a TDP of 20W(!!!).
I would really look into that. If you find it too expensive, you can go with it's quad-core little brother the C2550D4I.
Also, i would get a fanless mini-ITX or ATX PSU(depending on the case) 350w max, and i would house it in a case made with such an use in mind( http://au.pcpartpicker.com/part/lian-li-case-pcq25b or something similar)

Btw, i think this would be very interesting to build :)

p.s.
There's not really a need for an ssd for the os and software. A good quality usb stick will do very well.
 
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steelraptor1

Commendable
Apr 24, 2016
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Hello, I gave another guy some ideas about their plex server. I notice you have 2 hdd for media storage and was gonna ask if you're going to raid? Many opinions on plex forums say you shouldn't. Since you're sure you're only gonna run 1 client you should be fine. Remember if you run into format issues with your client you can trouble shoot it first by re-encoding the file with a basic format of mp4,h264 and acc audio. If that works then your problem will be your client not liking the original file. Direct play is the key on plex not transcoding cuz it will make your cpu cry.
 
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El-Terrible

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Apr 27, 2016
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Firstly, I went down the NAS route. I haven't owned a desktop for ages, and thought I'd carry on that way but needed something for redundancy and Plex. I decided to go down the bada$$ desktop route instead, as though I've made do without, I do enough programming and photo editing to make use of it.

Regarding the question from a previous poster, I completely agree with your need to build your own, Plex transcoding rules out any off the shelf NAS. If budget is tight, I think you've made a good choice of CPU, though an i5 will save you more on your energy bills, albeit not by an amount you consider worth it when compared to the added expense.

In your spec you only specify one WD Red? A big consideration of setting up a NAS is considering a RAID of some sort so you'll need more of these. Additionally your RAM is non-ECC - if you decide on FreeNAS you should ideally go down the ECC memory route (worth looking into this) as the file system FreeNAS supports works optimally with ECC RAM. So I would only consider FreeNAS if I wanted to go RAID, in which case I would invest in ECC RAM. Have you considered what sort of redundancy you want?
 
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Hlsgsz

Hlsgsz

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Feb 29, 2016
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I've looked into plex cpu requirements and, i must say, spending 700 on a system that doesn't even have ECC memory seems completly off. I would look into second hand server stuff. Here are two options:

cheapest(over 8000 passmark):
http://www.ebay.com/itm/SUPER-MICRO-X7DVL-I-SERVER-BOARD-WITH-DUAL-CPU-XEON-E5450-4GB-RAM-/231911719480?hash=item35ff040238:g:AAwAAOSwUUdXDV0-

most powerful(12000 passmark !!! ):
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.XE5-2670.TRS0&_nkw=E5-2670&_sacat=0
http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-GENUINE-Dell-Precision-T3600-Intel-Server-Motherboard-System-s2011-MNPJ9-/121946891871?hash=item1c6499e65f:g:Lk4AAOSwiylXBFgQ
http://www.ebay.com/itm/8GB-2x4GB-Memory-RAM-FOR-Dell-Precision-Workstation-T3600-ECC-Register-LTMEMORY-/281111313546?hash=item41738a3c8a:m:mUMJ17-WD0yL5OEBoRoLUBg

If you must buy new(over 6000 passmark):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813182973&cm_re=MBD-X10SDV-4C-TLN2F-O-_-13-182-973-_-Product
 
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steelraptor1

Commendable
Apr 24, 2016
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Hello again, I see you looked up the cpu requirements on plex. Remember those are the requirements if you plan to transcode everything and to multiple clients. You can avoid transcoding if you encode you're file to a compatible format as I mention before. Using handbrake is free but takes a while. I use Wondershare with gpu support, done in minutes. Direct play will only use ~0.5% of your cpu vs 15% transcoding to your clients. I say buy a cheap NAS then (re)encode your file to somthing easy and bam you have a awesome server machine.
 
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