NASLite Network Attached Storage

I am wondering if anyone know of a 1U server which takes 4 HD's, uses 500mh CPU (or around that), supports USB boot and large HD's.

I want to use slower CPU due to the much lower power consumption. The problem is, of course, those older servers don't support USB booting or don't support large HD's.

Take a look on eBay - Maxtor MAXAttach systems show up fairly frequently.

These are 1U, 4 PATA systems with either PIII or Celeron processors - I can't vouch for the USB boot, and the way I understand it, large hard drive support in the BIOS is not necessary with NASLite.

But it doesn't have a CD drive, and probably won't boot from USB, so how do I boot NASLite?

You could use a CF (Compact Flash) IDE adapter. or a disk on chip Module. But! you will lose one IDE slot. you could use an extra IDE controller to gain the HD's back.

Wouldn't that be the same as installing NASLite on a HD? I doubt the USB boot image will work because the system is treating the CF as IDE HD.

I have a MaxAttach 4100 converted to run NASLite USB, I put a slim floppy drive in the back I/O port and attached my Lexar Jumpdrive via a cable to the motherboard. The kicker disk is required to boot from USB, but it has worked flawlessly.

JSykes

That's an excellent idea. I just learned about the kicker disk.

Where did you get the slim floppy? What's its height. Did you mount it inside the case or outside?

NASLite-2 HDD is mentioned in the downloadable manual as booting from, and storing configuration on, a hard disk

If we assume that a CDROM drive can be temporarily attached to one of the ATA ports in the MaxAttach, we can presumably install NASLite-2 HDD on the first hard disk, and then remove the CDROM drive and attach three more disks and NASLite will recognise them and allow them to be used.

My experience with NASLite is limited to the free floppy version as I have no access to PayPal and I am waiting (and hoping) that an alternative payment method will be introduced, along with a NASLite-2 Server Suite, so that I can buy a single license to be used on which ever version - CDD, HDD or USB my hardware will actually permit - so I don't know if what I am suggesting (as regards the HDD version) will actually be possible.

If it's not currently in the plan, perhaps it should be, I'm sure other persons using the HDD version would be interested in something along those lines - I find that most of the time the CDROM drive on a server is only used to get the OS loaded initially, and many commercial NAS products aren't equipped with them.

Goto http://www.caseoutlet.com

Look under the ACCESSORIES and find the slim floppy with adapter.
Price is $25.

This is the exact same one I used for my 4100.

In the bottom picture you see the small ribbon cable fom the slim FDD, then the adapter that you plug a regular floppy disk cable into. On the back of the adapter their are exposed circuits. I took a piece of plastic from the case of one those AOL disks I am constantly getting in the mail, and made a back for the adapter, a couple of holes to match those on the adapter, (2) all-plastic push tabs, and wham I had a adapter that would just lay in the case next to the FDD socket, without shorting anything out.

If you get a MaxAttach 4100 with a gigabit adapter then it will be in the slot where your floppy will go. In the back of the case! It's the about a 1/2" x 4" slot on the back of the computer. The slim floppy will fit here with a bit of coaxing, it rests on the empty PCI slots. Version 2 HDD of NASLite coming out soon will eliminate the need for a floppy, and boot from a HDD. I'll be glad when it becomes available.

Hope this helps,

JSykes

This is the first time I heard about the HDD version. That will solve a lot of problems.

I want to use PowerEdge 350, ($70 shipped on eBay) replace the floppy/CD with a 3rd HD, so I will end up 1.2 GB (400GBx2) in 1U. Although that's one less drive than Maxtor, I will be OK with that.