Just added yet another computer to our house and later this year I'll be building a HTPC. Thinking about building a file server now. This will be a first for me and while I have a good understanding I would appreciate any input from you guys.
What I want:
-Cheap: I want to use quality parts, but no overkill. Needs to do the job intended and no more.
-Small: Will start with 2 storage drives (dual 2tb in raid 1), but will possibly want 2 more.
-Silence: don't even want to hear the HDD's (only part I don't want to hold back on, extra expense on sound dampening case is ok)
Concerns:
-Speed of file access: If I look at the music on my girlfriends computer there's always some lag when I first open the main music folder. Granted she is using my 7 year old gaming rig with a Q6600 on a 680i. Is this an issue I will still be looking at?
-Maintenance: Trying to decide how I want to set this up monitor wise. I don't want to have a dedicated monitor and would probably go with wireless keyboard and mouse. Thinking about using the TV I have in our computer room as it's monitor.
Questions:
-If I run Raid 1 using say 2x 2tb drives, would I be able to change one to a 4tb and then replace the other with another 4tb (upgrading my space w/o adding extra drives)
-Has anybody had any experience with fanless PSU's?
-Would it be a better idea to just roll my server and HTPC into one build? Case size wouldn't be a huge issue as long as it isn't a full tower.
I've already started looking into this and going to continue. This build will probably take place 2+ months from now being that I'm currently without a pay day, but I don't see any reason for needing to switch anything to "tomorrows" tech within my time frame.
Any suggestions, builds and general help would much appreciated.