I have always used QNAP (someone suggested them back in 2010 and stuck with them) and I currently have:
TS-453Bmini: 4x 8TB, RAID-5
TR-004: 4x 4TB, RAID-0 (offline copy)
My Plex server has always been with my media in a single 4 bay/RAID-5 pool, but I am becoming more sensitive to transcoding issues for remote users.
I managed to snag 6x 14TB drives in an offer and am thinking about a 6-bay NAS.
Questions:
How important is it that Plex runs in a separate pool to the media (for transcoding etc)?
Should Plex be in a M.2 pool (with media in 6 bays, RAID-6) or in a separate HDD pool (with media on 4 or 5 bays, RAID-5).
Should Plex run in a single bay/slot or 2 (RAID-1)? I am less worried about rebuilding Plex than I am about my media.
If buying a new NAS, would the QNAP TS-664 be a good choice or should I consider jumping to another make (Synology or other…)? The TS-664 fits my budget but I can be a little flexible if there is something better suited.
ChuckPA’s comments in March suggest using the M.2 for Plex and a spare HDD bay for transcoding? Did I understand that correctly?
Any and all answers/suggestions deeply appreciated.
@ChuckPa May I ask you for some advice? If this approach is inappropriate, please just ignore me and accept my apologies.
I’ve continued to read online and am currently thinking:
x5 (of 6) bays for the media pool (RAID 5)
6th bay for a transcoding pool
x1 (of 2) M.2 slots for the Plex app
2nd M.2 slot spare
Does the above make sense?
Would it be better to use the 2nd M.2 slot for transcoding and have all 6 bays for media, RAID-6? …or for caching?
Is there something other/better than the TS-646 that you would consider appropriate? …I’ve looked through the compatibility spreadsheet but not sure how QNAP compares to other makes and whether the -644 is now considered ‘old’ (I’m thinking about something newer or better for the long-term).
QNAP TS-646 – or did you mean TS-664 ?
( I will continue as if you meant TS-664. Advise if not)
If you have 6 bays and are thinking of using 4 for media (if that’s going to be enough), then may I suggest:
M.2 SSDs
WD-SN750’s are on the approved list, WD-SN850X’s are the successor. WD-SN850x 4TB - 2280 ( 2400 TBW ) would provide you at least 5 GB/sec performance
I would not use the version with heat sinks. WD heatsinks are tall. Instead, I would get heatsinks direct from QNAP. QNAP heat sinks are shorter and allow airflow from multiple directions (better than WD)
Heatsinks are not included with the NAS and must be purchased separately. For
details, contact an authorized reseller or go to https://shop.qnap.com/.
Setup & Config
Install the QNAP heatsinks on the SSD
Install the SSD in the first SSD 2280 slot
If you’re going to install more memory, now would be the time (Also from the QNAP shop – or elsewhere if you know which memory to get )
When done, close it back up
With NO HDDs in the unit,
Install QTS on the M.2 SSD (This will be DataVol1)
Shut it down,
Insert the HDDs in their carriers and into the NAS
This is point of discussion -
RAID is not backup.
HOWEVER, Dual parity (RAID 6) allows two drives to fail without data loss therefore giving you more time to replace failed drive(s) and rebuild.
Having 6 drives to share the Transcoder Temp load is better than 5
– 5 drives @ 100 MB/sec worst case = 4000 Mbps of video transcoding
– 6 drives @ 100 MB/sec worst case = 4800 Mbps of video transcoding
– Putting the transcoder temp on HDD saves wear and tear on the SSD which does have a finite life.
This is a decision point. I don’t know your planned usage and how much transcoding you’ll be needing.
– Spread the transcoding load over 6 HDDs
-or-
– Put it on that 2.4 Petabyte lifespan SSD.
Final step:
Install the HDDs
Power it up
Create DataVol2 ( RAID-6 ?? ) ext4 formatting, Increase inode size to max
