VirtualMachines, configurations, etc

  • I realized too late that OMV does not need very much space for the OS, and that others have used a USB drive to store the OS. My build is a mini-ITX build in a small form-factor ThermalTake case.
    OMV4.x is installed on a 120GB (or similar size) SSD, but since it's barely taking up much space on that drive, I was wondering if I could use the remaining space to host other images of Linux (e.g. CentOS, OpenSUSE, etc) and use virtualbox or VMWare.


    My build has primarily been used for media storage, but I was hoping to give myself more options, or to play around with what OMV has to offer.


    A related question that I couldn't find solid answers for online is concerning a HDD I ordered from amazon. I received a 4TB drive that when plugged in will heat up very quickly. It's not scalding, but it's considerably hot.
    I did not catch this when it was initially installed into my case next to my other drives, so I am concerned about the health of the other drives.

    • Offizieller Beitrag

    OMV4.x is installed on a 120GB (or similar size) SSD, but since it's barely taking up much space on that drive, I was wondering if I could use the remaining space to host other images of Linux (e.g. CentOS, OpenSUSE, etc) and use virtualbox or VMWare.

    What you're suggesting will work fine and is a good use for an SSD. OMV's virtualbox plugin will allow you to select the folder to be used for storing VM's.
    Keep in mind, there are a number of ways to boot OMV to include using a USB thumbdrive to boot. In that scenario, the SSD could be dedicated for use with VM's.


    A related question that I couldn't find solid answers for online is concerning a HDD I ordered from amazon. I received a 4TB drive that when plugged in will heat up very quickly. It's not scalding, but it's considerably hot.
    I did not catch this when it was initially installed into my case next to my other drives, so I am concerned about the health of the other drives.

    Under Storage, SMART, in the Devices Tab, you'll find temperatures for installed hard drives. Anything is the high 20's to 30's C is fine. I'd start to get concerned in the low to mid 40's and up. I believe keeping drives in the 30's C is best. If your drive is 40C or hotter, moving it into the air stream of a case fan (if possible) might help. This -> web page, has the general temp ranges, and a link to a Google study where hard drive temp was considered.

  • What you're suggesting will work fine and is a good use for an SSD. OMV's virtualbox plugin will allow you to select the folder to be used for storing VM's.Keep in mind, there are a number of ways to boot OMV to include using a USB thumbdrive to boot. In that scenario, the SSD could be dedicated for use with VM's

    I'm really glad to hear that. I was worried I would have to resource the SSD or redo my NAS.
    I didn't see the virtualbox plugin at first, but I will take another look. At first I was thinking maybe partitioning the SSD so that the boot sector wasn't touched but then the other 80% of the drive would hold images, but I wasn't sure if that was possible, or as you pointed out and I have read before that using a USB to boot and then repurposing the SSD to hold all the disc images.



    Under Storage, SMART, in the Devices Tab, you'll find temperatures for installed hard drives. Anything is the high 20's to 30's C is fine. I'd start to get concerned in the low to mid 40's and up. I believe keeping drives in the 30's C is best. If your drive is 40C or hotter, moving it into the air stream of a case fan (if possible) might help. This -> web page, has the general temp ranges, and a link to a Google study where hard drive temp was considered.


    I think part of my issue was that I either configured one drive to be used as redundancy and it wasn't being read, or one of my drives was not being read from the get-go, and the one that is overheating was being read. I took it out and plugged it into a dock to check it out on my system. Using a temp reader I saw within about 1-2 minutes it approached 40 C or higher. It wasn't scalding but it was definitely much hotter than I've seen a HDD get, and this was after opening the box it came in.


    Thank you for that source, I had read various articles online, but a lot of them were not very conclusive or came across as vague and unhelpful. I will check the SMART readings from the webGUI and see what I can find out.




    I really appreciate you getting back to me so quickly. I'm looking forward to checking out all the info available here.

    • Offizieller Beitrag

    I saw within about 1-2 minutes it approached 40 C or higher. It wasn't scalding but it was definitely much hotter than I've seen a HDD get, and this was after opening the box it came in

    7200 rpm drives and those with faster spindle speeds, run hotter than 5400 rpm drives and "green" drive versions. I like green drives for home use. They're not the fastest around, but their power consumption is lower which, in general, has a side benefit of running cooler. If the drive you installed is in a part of your NAS that has no airflow, it will run hotter.


    For comparison, this is what I have in one server:




    The Toshiba drive is a 7200 rpm NAS drive and it's not in the air stream of a case fan. It's living in dead air. I gave thought to putting a small fan on it, but the highest it's ever been is 42C. It usually runs between 38 and 41C. The other two are 5400rpm and they're in the air stream of a slowly turning case fan. The difference is obvious.


    You can find min/max stat's in SMART, Devices Tab (click on the drive), click on the Information button, then under the Extended Information Tab.
    For the Toshiba, the range is: Power Cycle Min/Max Temperature: 32/42 Celsius
    Depending on the OEM, extended info. may reveal the rated "max temp" for your drive. The Toshiba is rated at 55C which, since I'd like it last for more than 6 months to a year, I wouldn't believe for a minute. :)
    ________________________________________________________________


    On another subject of importance, don't forget about backup. You might find useful info on this topic - here.

  • If the drive you installed is in a part of your NAS that has no airflow, it will run hotter.


    I think the case I have has decent airflow, so I'm not entirely sure. The HDD also makes clicks (fairly loud) as it reads sectors, which didn't seem like the click of death, but the read/write speeds slowed down the longer it was plugged in for.
    For reference, this is my case:
    https://www.walmart.com/ip/The…CA-1D5-00S1WN-00/44578098




    You can find min/max stat's in SMART, Devices Tab (click on the drive), click on the Information button, then under the Extended Information Tab.
    For the Toshiba, the range is: Power Cycle Min/Max Temperature: 32/42 Celsius
    Depending on the OEM, extended info. may reveal the rated "max temp" for your drive


    I think I saw some of that information for at least one of the drives, but this one has had some various issues. I think in a windows environment when I wiped the drive and tried using it outside of the case to troubleshoot, device manager and other means of reading SMART weren't working. I can double check later though.
    I am planning to get another fan or more to improve cooling for my drives, but I think I will follow your advice and rate my drives for long term longevity.


    When I am able to work on my NAS config and hardware I will update with more concrete info. Thanks again for the adv

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