NAS build check (GPU required?)

[danhendo888]

Budget NAS Build:

https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/ZXGQ4s

CPU Intel Core i3-10100

Motherboard Asus TUF GAMING B560M-PLUS

Memory TEAMGROUP Elite 8 GB (1 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL22 Memory

SSD Kingston NV2 250 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive

HDD 6 x 10TB SATA HDD




Building a NAS for storing movie files only (mkv, mp4)
Need to be able to watch 8K VR movies from main PC (using Reverb headset and DeoVR on SteamVR)
I can keep the NAS turned off most of the time since I won't access the NAS very often
No WIFI. Only ethernet cables used wherever required.
4 x 10TB SATA HDD

Would the NAS need a GPU?

 

[CyklonDX]

if you plan on transcoding; i.e. plex, jellyfin like then yes.
(for zfs and storage, the more ecc memory the better.)

 

[danhendo888]

if you plan on transcoding; i.e. plex, jellyfin like then yes.
(for zfs and storage, the more ecc memory the better.)

I just don't understand what transcoding is. If my PC doesn't support the file format of the movie on the NAS, then the NAS has to convert the file format or something. All my movies are either MKV or MP4. Most PCs are capable of playing these files on VLC player, right? And so would not need transcoding? Am I understanding it correctly? (Or what's a simpler example of how transcoding works)

Using Windows 10 on main PC.
On the NAS, I will use unraid (if not, then will use Windows 10)

 

[CyklonDX]

its like playing netflix on your browser. (you can make your own netflix at home.)

Your browser does not always support proper/same codecs, doesnt have native resolution or can't handle native playback bitrate and so on.
The transcode handles that or gives you tools to handle that - and deliver playback of source in the browser.

 

[i386]

I just don't understand what transcoding is. If my PC doesn't support the file format of the movie on the NAS, then the NAS has to convert the file format or something. All my movies are either MKV or MP4. Most PCs are capable of playing these files on VLC player, right? And so would not need transcoding? Am I understanding it correctly? (Or what's a simpler example of how transcoding works)

Transcoding means to change the format of the media to another. The tools CyklonDX mentioned are tools that can be used to organize medialibraries and usually consists of a server and a client component. An example: there is a client for android and not all android phones support the new video format av1. In that case the client reports the information to the server and the servers converts it to something compatible like avc/h264. The converting can happen on a gpu (if the gpu supports the specific format) or on the cpu.
Mkv and mp4 are container formats that can contain many different types of video, audio and "metadata" (think chapters, subtitles and a lot more).
What you described with the pc and vlc usually describes "directplay": there is no transcoding involved, the file is directly played

Without more information it would be hard to tell if you really need a gpu or not for transcoding

 

[danhendo888]

Thoughts on the below build?

https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/NtWQ4s

CPU	Intel Core i5-3570 3.4 GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard	Gigabyte GA-B75M-D3V Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard
Memory	G.Skill Ripjaws X 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR3-1333 CL9 Memory
Storage	Kingston A400 480 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive

 

[T_Minus]

If he's loading the 8K media file via VLC on a Windows PC then why would he need a GPU ?
Why does it matter what the other hardware is in this case, he's already described his consumption of the media on the client said as VLC.


That system is very old, if you have it sitting around it would work to host files at gigabit speeds.
I wouldn't pay money for any of those components in 2023 though.

 

[danhendo888]

If he's loading the 8K media file via VLC on a Windows PC then why would he need a GPU ?
Why does it matter what the other hardware is in this case, he's already described his consumption of the media on the client said as VLC.


That system is very old, if you have it sitting around it would work to host files at gigabit speeds.
I wouldn't pay money for any of those components in 2023 though.

Updated with a newer build:

https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/HGZbJM

For the SSD, which form factor should I use/does it matter?

-M.2 SATA
-SATA
-M.2 PCIe x4

CPU	Intel Core i3-10100 3.6 GHz Quad-Core
Motherboard	Asus TUF GAMING B560M-PLUS Micro ATX LGA1200
Memory	G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16
Storage	Kingston A400 480 GB 2.5" SSD

 

[CyklonDX]

SATA SSD = 500MB/s R/W under 600TBW
SAS SSD = 800-1100MB/s R/W over 10PBW (requires sas3 controller)
consumer NVMe M.2 PCIe3 x4 = 2500-3500MB/s R/W under 600TBW ~ can overheat
consumer NVMe M.2 PCIe4 x4 = 3500-8000MB/s R/W under 600TBW ~ can overheat
U.2 PCIe3 x4 = 1000-3500MB/s R/W under 8PBW ~ less heat than nvme, but still can overheat


TBW / PBW = Endurance writes.

 

[danhendo888]

TBW / PBW = Endurance writes.

Oops. For storage I will be using SATA HDDs.

SSD would be for OS, cache but I read unraid will run off USB.

 

[CyklonDX]

Yes, unraid will run from usb stick - i recommend sandisk cruzer fit usb 2.0
(its better in terms of durability, and operation temps, vs usb 3+ disks)

For unraid you will still want a fast disk or 2 for parity.
(for kvms / applications)

I would recommend sas ssd's or u.2, but as long as you don't do a lot of writes sata ssd should be good enough.
Native unraid cache disk ain't that great.