Hello, I wasn't really sure the exact location to post this, as its going to deal with storage, adapters, and a build. I apologize and feel free to move to a better location.
In summary (short version), I recently lost my father due to cancer. We were both computer savy, but he was in charge of all backups of his computers that included financial documents, tax returns, family photos, etc. I was able to help my mom get the basics set back up so could understand how he did his finances through Quicken and etc. There is a 2TB backup drive in the computer I built for him, so I thought everything I would need is on there. However, as I began to look through his office, I found a bundle of close to 50 different hard drives, dating back to around 1996. My mom said there are pictures and other documents on some of those 50 hard drives that he was just starting to look into going through before he got hit with cancer. I want to make a backup system that incorporates as much as I can get off those old drives, his current backup drive, and combine it all into creating a new backup/file server with my own stuff. I'm looking for help on if my dad's computer will work for the server, what kind of adapter I need to hook directly through USB these old hard drives, and how I should set up a backup and parity system.
Longer version:
So, what I'm looking to do is systematically go through both the 2TB hard drive to make sure I have recovered all pictures and important documents, as well as going through all 50 or so hard drives, and taking all the relevant and important data off the working ones, to make sure there are no missing pictures or whatnot that he never got around to backing up.
In totality, I want it take the computer I built for him (if possible), use it to go through as many of the 50 hard drives that still work, than turn it into a server/nas that will handle everything I recover from those hard drives, than develop a backup system to protect these files, as well as the files off other computers in the house. I'm going to be adding my computer, as well as my mother's, backups to this Server when It's done. I could also see using PLEX on this in the future as well. I have no idea how much space I will need from all my dad's old hard drives, but I will need around 3TB for my mother and I
I'll try and break this into 3 or 4 questions
First off, I want to try and use the computer I built him as the basis of the system I will use to began the archive process. Will this computer make a decent enough server for now?
Its specifications:
Corsair Carbide 200R (4 3.5" bays, 3 5.25" bays) (can hold at least 7 3.5" drives with adapters)
Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 AM3+ ATX Motherboard
AMD FX-8320 AM3+ 3.5GHZ (w/ Hyper 212 EVO Cooler)
EVGA 500w 80+ Power Supply
HyperX Blu (2 x 4 GB) DDR3 1600
Samsung 840 EVO 120GB SSD, (old) Seagate 7200.11 2TB
8800 GTX (this is temporarily, I'll replace with a lower power card)
I also have a Blu-RAY XL player lying around for making offsite backups
2nd) If I can use this computer, would it be fine to use Windows Server 2012 on it (have a license), or is there a better option for this file server, possible future Plex server.
3rd) What kind of adapter/hardware would you recommend for easily connecting each of these 50 hard drives to the computer? Considering some of these drives may be 15-20 years old. I will want to attach the old hard drives preferably through USB 3.0. Hopefully, making it a simple matter of hooking up hard drive, pulling off what I need, than going to the next one. I've thought about copying everything from these hard drives directly to a 2TB external I have, than transferring everything to the server when I'm done.
4th) Obviously I will need storage capacity for this. I found a Adapter for the Corsair 200R that will turn 2 of the 5.25" bays to 3 3.5" bays, so I'd have room for 7 hard drives. I would obviously need to setup some sort of parity system. Raid 5, Raid 10, Unraid, what should I use for parity? And what kind of hard drives (what size and how many) would you use in this? I'm a little open on budget on this, I just want everything with a reasonable level of parity (I WILL be using off-site and cloud backup as well, don't worry), and I want enough storage space where I won't be worrying about space for a few years.
That is what I've been mulling over in my head. I'm not entirely sure if there isn't a better way to go about this process. I know this was a long post, but I'm hoping someone would give me some reassurance or a direction in where to go.
In summary (short version), I recently lost my father due to cancer. We were both computer savy, but he was in charge of all backups of his computers that included financial documents, tax returns, family photos, etc. I was able to help my mom get the basics set back up so could understand how he did his finances through Quicken and etc. There is a 2TB backup drive in the computer I built for him, so I thought everything I would need is on there. However, as I began to look through his office, I found a bundle of close to 50 different hard drives, dating back to around 1996. My mom said there are pictures and other documents on some of those 50 hard drives that he was just starting to look into going through before he got hit with cancer. I want to make a backup system that incorporates as much as I can get off those old drives, his current backup drive, and combine it all into creating a new backup/file server with my own stuff. I'm looking for help on if my dad's computer will work for the server, what kind of adapter I need to hook directly through USB these old hard drives, and how I should set up a backup and parity system.
Longer version:
So, what I'm looking to do is systematically go through both the 2TB hard drive to make sure I have recovered all pictures and important documents, as well as going through all 50 or so hard drives, and taking all the relevant and important data off the working ones, to make sure there are no missing pictures or whatnot that he never got around to backing up.
In totality, I want it take the computer I built for him (if possible), use it to go through as many of the 50 hard drives that still work, than turn it into a server/nas that will handle everything I recover from those hard drives, than develop a backup system to protect these files, as well as the files off other computers in the house. I'm going to be adding my computer, as well as my mother's, backups to this Server when It's done. I could also see using PLEX on this in the future as well. I have no idea how much space I will need from all my dad's old hard drives, but I will need around 3TB for my mother and I
I'll try and break this into 3 or 4 questions
First off, I want to try and use the computer I built him as the basis of the system I will use to began the archive process. Will this computer make a decent enough server for now?
Its specifications:
Corsair Carbide 200R (4 3.5" bays, 3 5.25" bays) (can hold at least 7 3.5" drives with adapters)
Asus M5A97 LE R2.0 AM3+ ATX Motherboard
AMD FX-8320 AM3+ 3.5GHZ (w/ Hyper 212 EVO Cooler)
EVGA 500w 80+ Power Supply
HyperX Blu (2 x 4 GB) DDR3 1600
Samsung 840 EVO 120GB SSD, (old) Seagate 7200.11 2TB
8800 GTX (this is temporarily, I'll replace with a lower power card)
I also have a Blu-RAY XL player lying around for making offsite backups
2nd) If I can use this computer, would it be fine to use Windows Server 2012 on it (have a license), or is there a better option for this file server, possible future Plex server.
3rd) What kind of adapter/hardware would you recommend for easily connecting each of these 50 hard drives to the computer? Considering some of these drives may be 15-20 years old. I will want to attach the old hard drives preferably through USB 3.0. Hopefully, making it a simple matter of hooking up hard drive, pulling off what I need, than going to the next one. I've thought about copying everything from these hard drives directly to a 2TB external I have, than transferring everything to the server when I'm done.
4th) Obviously I will need storage capacity for this. I found a Adapter for the Corsair 200R that will turn 2 of the 5.25" bays to 3 3.5" bays, so I'd have room for 7 hard drives. I would obviously need to setup some sort of parity system. Raid 5, Raid 10, Unraid, what should I use for parity? And what kind of hard drives (what size and how many) would you use in this? I'm a little open on budget on this, I just want everything with a reasonable level of parity (I WILL be using off-site and cloud backup as well, don't worry), and I want enough storage space where I won't be worrying about space for a few years.
That is what I've been mulling over in my head. I'm not entirely sure if there isn't a better way to go about this process. I know this was a long post, but I'm hoping someone would give me some reassurance or a direction in where to go.
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