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I am planning to build a big file server. (Windows or FreeNAS).

I need at lease 300T of space. what options do I have to RAID all disks together?

I mean on physical level what kind of connection topology can I use? what kind of devices support such huge amount of disks? It is not something that you only need 8 or 10 SATA ports on motherboard then you can just do a RAID, it must be some kind of special devices, right?

I am still doing research on this, anyone has any suggestion?

user206351
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  • Given [Backblaze is only up to 180 TB of space in a single server](http://blog.backblaze.com/category/storage-pod/page/2/) (45x4 TB drives), you'll either need multiple servers or at least multiple iSCSI targets totaling up to the 300 TB you want. You might be able to attach 75 4 TB drives to a single server with enough port multipliers, SATA controllers, and enclosures, but it'd be risky. – Mike Renfro Jan 21 '14 at 21:24

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For that much storage, you're going to need a storage solution, not a single server. Something like an Isilon installation, or a clustered/scale-out file solution on either Windows or Linux.

Given that you're not even sure how to do RAID for this, I'd recommend that you hire a pro, if this storage is going to be used for something professional. It will be cheaper to do it right the first time.

mfinni
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    +1 when you get into that kind of setup getting a pro to help will save money in the long run. Buying all the hardware and finding out it won't do what you need ends up being a very costly setback. – Grant Jan 21 '14 at 21:28
  • +1 to find someone that has actually done it at least once before because I'd hate to see what happens with 5 of these in my gaming rig. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GOQXPX8 – Krista K Jan 22 '14 at 01:46
  • Much of the solution also isn't just in how you build it, but how you utilize it as well. There are a lot of storage solutions capable of managing 300TB, but depending on how you'll access it, type of reads/writes, amount of clients connecting, size of files, etc, the solution you want will vary greatly. – MaQleod Feb 03 '14 at 21:56
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I recommend you try to build something like http://blog.backblaze.com/2013/02/20/180tb-of-good-vibrations-storage-pod-3-0/

The above link has some nice examples of how to hook up (topology) many drives to one machine, as well as the full design, parts list, and even CAD info for having a chassis built.

Jesse Brandeburg
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    Please provide some description of what you're proposing, besides just the link. That will allow your post to still be useful if the link should go away in the future. – Andrew Schulman Jan 22 '14 at 00:21