we have tried the backblaze route (we built 5) and would neither do it
again nor advise anyone to do teh same.
if i were to offer advice (and you really have not supplied enough details),
i believe that most of the issues in a SAN are
1) cheap reliable attachment of disks
2) balancing of disk to (storage) cpu/bus
3) managing the connectivity to clients
the answer to 2) depends on your environment.
the answer to 1) is either sticking storage in storage servers or using a JBOD
disk cage, like http://www.netstor.com.tw/_03/03_02.php?MTA3 (and i
have seen ones that support humungous bandwidth to the disks,
such as 4-6 SAS interfaces to the box for 42ish disks).
the answer to 3) is more problematic, and where the tradeoff for build
your own versus payng some money for a production grade product
is most visible. i would still give the nod to isilon for that.
On Jan 25, 2013, at 9:47 AM, Jack Coats wrote:
> On Fri, Jan 25, 2013 at 8:07 AM, Craig Cook <[email protected]> wrote:
>> We have around 200TB of dev/QA storage that is across 3 SAN's. (EMC VMAX and
>> IBM XIV's)
>>
>> Servers are AIX, Solaris and VMware.
>>
>> We are looking to replace it with cheaper storage.
>>
>> I would be interested in build-your-own-NAS solutions, but I am not sure
>> what to start looking at. (Netapp is too expensive)
>>
>> Failing that, what does a cheap SAN look like?
>>
>> We don't need SAN replication, or many fancy features.
>>
>> Any ideas?
>>
>> Thanks
>>
>> Craig
>
> For low to medium performance NAS (and you could make it high if you
> have more skills than I do) look
> at the blog.backblaze.com
>
> Depending on the drives you us, they get 137T in a 4U cabinet. The
> cabinets are about $850 or so
> from the folks they purchase from, if you get 1-off pricing. Full
> detail and parts listings are on the
> site. So for about $8K you can get the thing made up (plus your time).
>
> They run Debian with Tomcat over LVM volumes. Their business is the
> 'special sauce' software
> they run to make it more than a simple NAS. And only by doing a DIY
> solution for the storage
> servers can they afford to do a home grown network backup business.
>
> http://blog.backblaze.com/2011/07/20/petabytes-on-a-budget-v2-0revealing-more-secrets/
>
> And an interesting build log of someone who build one on their own...
> http://bioteam.net/2011/08/why-you-should-never-build-a-backblaze-pod/
>
> I am not saying that this is the best or only solution, but if you
> have a NEED, it is the low price spread, but consider you are
> providing all the support you purchase by buying from someone that
> sells support contracts. For some that is a bigger deal than others.
>
> If it is just going to hold your Donnie Osmond ripped singles
> collection and Gene Autry and Roy Rogers movies, go for it. If it is
> your family jewels I think I might go with a store bought solution.
>
> If you do roll your own and uber-security isn't a big issue, rather
> than build a second 'stand by box', you might spend $5/mo and use
> their service to backup your 'almost unlimited storage' on their
> 'unlimited storage for $5/mo' system!
>
>> <> ... Jack
> Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart... Colossians 3:23
> "If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the precipitate"
> - Henry J. Tillman
> "Anyone who has never made a mistake, has never tried anything new." -
> Albert Einstein
> "You don't manage people; you manage things. You lead people." -
> Admiral Grace Hopper, USN
> Life is complex: it has a real part and an imaginary part. - Martin Terma
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-----------------------
Andrew Hume
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973-236-2014 (NJ)
[email protected]
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