Question about storage/drives for ESXi server build

[thecoffeeguy]

Hello everyone.

Hoping i have a easy question here.
Quick summary:

Building out a new ESXi server, last piece is storage.
I purchased:

SuperMicro board that supports up to 512gb memory and has 10 SATA connectors.
3U Chassis for cooling and lots of storage options.

Running ESXi 6.0

I purchased a ICY DOCK 5.25 bay cage that supports up to 4 SSD drives. I currently have 1 SSD drive in that cage. There is a sale going on with newegg right now on some decently priced SSD's.

My question is, is it a good idea or a bad idea to mix and match SSD brands and sizes?
For instance, my current SSD in the box is a 512 Samsung SSD.
There are a few Mushkin SSD's on sale right now at Newegg that go from 512gb to 1TB in size.

Just looking for suggestions or items to consider.

Not entirely sure how I am going to do my storage setup yet. I do know IO is going to be critical (a few databases will be running, so i need fast IO for all the reads and writes).

Hope this is the right forum to ask.
Cheers,

Coffee

 

[T_Minus]

If you need IO then I would consider enterprise drives not bargain basement. Some of those cheap drives will slow to 1000 IOPs or less during consistent access/usage.

I would look at Intel S3500 as a minimum performance level for reads, and S3700 for write intensive database / workloads.

 

[pricklypunter]

I agree, Intel or perhaps Samsung enterprise level disks are really what you want. You need consistent performance from these disks, although on paper the consumer level disks look like a good investment, they will very quickly slow down when given a serious sustained workload, ultimately leaving you both disappointed and out of pocket. Good used/ refurb disks is where I would be putting my money

 

[thecoffeeguy]

Good to know.
So something like these two items?

Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more - Newegg.com

SMaller in size (tight budget) but i could put a bunch of these together to increase storage. Or if i can swing it for now, just buy one as big as i can afford to get started.

Thanks

 

[T_Minus]

@thecoffeeguy check ebay you can get 300GB S3500 for $90-110 and the 160gb are $60-90.

 

[thecoffeeguy]

@thecoffeeguy check ebay you can get 300GB S3500 for $90-110 and the 160gb are $60-90.

awesome...heading there now