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I'm considering building a FreeNAS box to replace a Synology DS1511 - mainly because I'd like it as a project with more flexibility.
Couple questions: 1. Most people recommend a hardware RAID controller - is it worth it that much over using software RAID? I'd be running ZFS, and probably RAID-5. 2. Which RAID type would allow me to swap a single drive for a larger one, and rebuild to that? I.e. so I can replace my 2TB drives with 4TB over time, as money allows.
Thanks!
My experience with real hardware RAID cards (not fake-raid) is they are substantially less reliable than software RAID. – ChrisInEdmonton – 2013-11-06T16:48:54.857
Funny you mention that, because last I had a hardware RAID, I lost everything! – Pat – 2013-11-06T18:50:45.290
If you want flexibility, I wouldn't recommend ZFS. There are a lot of limitations to expanding and upgrading drives. What you may want to look into is LVM. I wanted a zfs drobo-like box, and never found the perfect solution. If you want zfs, you will have to make trade-offs. – Scott McClenning – 2013-11-07T04:11:55.017