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Post by baygins on Jan 19, 2011 1:10:31 GMT 7
Great guide. Thinking about converting my N7700, so this helps a lot.
Did you do any changes to the mount points and file system layout to address DOM wear leveling?
Things like /usr or /tmp tend to have lots of read/write cycles. I am wondering if they can be handled in RAM. I remember the Thecus FW doing something similar.
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Post by raisinman on Jan 29, 2011 2:35:39 GMT 7
No, I didn't do anything special with it.
I reckon it should be fine though, from what I have read, RAM seems a lot more resilient that a lot of people worry about. Worst case: the DOM breaks, you get a new one, install Ubuntu again and remount the RAID with everything still on it.
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Post by nibbles on Feb 22, 2011 1:20:30 GMT 7
Hi Gideon It may seem a little eary task but in principle, if you've not soldered before, I would suggest pratice a few times on an alternate board. With a little practice, you should be able to do it with relative ease. Just make sure soldering iron your using has small tip ideal for soldering cirtuits and extra fine solder. The key to soldering the header is to solder the center connections 1st. I also decided to bend outside connectors a little as well to give me a little more clearing and this simply made it a little easier and lest likely to mess up when soldering. Also if possible, I would suggest using a magnifier if you have one. When you're soldering... you will find that it will fill in a little for each connection point and it when it begins to swell on the top is your queue to stop feeding the solder. In my case, I've managed to get the VGA header added. I could not find the short profile one to add to it but nevertheless it works. I had to simply use my dremel to make a modified cut to allow the new VGA connector to stick out but works great. I don't have much experience with soldering but nevertheless... just need to be patient and take your time with it and you will be just fine. I would encourage you to consider. The only alternative method otherwise is to use an old VGA cable and expose the pins and use that with some paper line up again it when you're plugging it into the board and you will be able to establish a video connection as well. Personally I truly appreciate all the input everyone has been adding and sharing with us some good info on converting the N5200 to an alternative OS as well. Now I just need to order the DOM and have a couple of spare drives for next step and then find the time to do the conversion. ;D. Nibbles For me the VGA thing is the thing why I'm not too keen on tinkering with the hardware. Other than that I'm sure I can pull the other stuff off. So if I could just copy an image on a new DOM, plug that in and be done I'd be happy... though thinking about it I'm not sure how I could just flash a DOM (I'm not sure but I think I could just plug that into an ide controller right?) That link goes nowhere now For me the VGA thing is the thing why I'm not too keen on tinkering with the hardware. Other than that I'm sure I can pull the other stuff off. So if I could just copy an image on a new DOM, plug that in and be done I'd be happy... though thinking about it I'm not sure how I could just flash a DOM (I'm not sure but I think I could just plug that into an ide controller right?) That link goes nowhere now
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Post by gideon007 on Feb 23, 2011 18:39:59 GMT 7
yeah, but if someone were to make an image of a working dom with vnc it would be much easier
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borry
New Member
Posts: 5
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Post by borry on Mar 13, 2011 15:41:16 GMT 7
Hi,
I was wondering if i put ubuntu on my thecus5200 are the drives still hot swapable? Does ubuntu support that?
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Post by shinger on Mar 13, 2011 18:34:19 GMT 7
Hi, I was wondering if i put ubuntu on my thecus5200 are the drives still hot swapable? Does ubuntu support that? Well Ubuntu is also linux and it has one of the more recent linux kernels so im 100% sure of it. Maybe you would have to configure something or install something but im sure it supports it.
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borry
New Member
Posts: 5
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Post by borry on Mar 16, 2011 2:21:00 GMT 7
Hi, I was wondering if i put ubuntu on my thecus5200 are the drives still hot swapable? Does ubuntu support that? Well Ubuntu is also linux and it has one of the more recent linux kernels so im 100% sure of it. Maybe you would have to configure something or install something but im sure it supports it. Thnx. Just had my first experience with linux. Installed ubuntu on a old pc and got i running with webmin, sabnzbd en spotweb. Gonna give ubuntu a chance at my thecus5200 as soon as my dom module arrives and my VGA connector. thnx for the great guide.
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Post by nobbypop on Mar 23, 2011 19:14:39 GMT 7
Hi together, so far - so good. I'm still in the evaluation and testing phase phase, as I'm also about to install Linux on my N5200pro. I'm simulating within a VM. A few questions still exist: - What about iSCSI and - above all (for me) - USB targets? How to setup those?
- Will there be a solution for the LCD display?
- How to support the hardware buttons on the device (e.g. Copy)
- Webmin is easy to install, but does not cover all the needs, like ACL, easy to use SAMBA, NFS and AFP. HowTo?
As you can see, we've only gone the half way. Who is/was able to go further? greetz, NobbyPop
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Post by shinger on Mar 29, 2011 5:29:18 GMT 7
Hi together, so far - so good. I'm still in the evaluation and testing phase phase, as I'm also about to install Linux on my N5200pro. I'm simulating within a VM. A few questions still exist: - What about iSCSI and - above all (for me) - USB targets? How to setup those?
- Will there be a solution for the LCD display?
- How to support the hardware buttons on the device (e.g. Copy)
- Webmin is easy to install, but does not cover all the needs, like ACL, easy to use SAMBA, NFS and AFP. HowTo?
As you can see, we've only gone the half way. Who is/was able to go further? greetz, NobbyPop - What about iSCSI and - above all (for me) - USB targets? How to setup those?
- Im not sure what you mean.
- Will there be a solution for the LCD display?
- Havent seen anyone yet that got the LCD display to work. I heard you needed the drivers of it that are installed on the original DOM module. I really haven't been trying to fix it because when i used the original thecus Linux i did not use the LCD Display. So i stopped there but i do understand that we as a community have to get the LCD Display to work. Maybe email Thecus about those drivers?
- How to support the hardware buttons on the device (e.g. Copy)
- Well also with this question i NEVER used it when i got the original version of thecus firmware so i did not miss anything. But also with this all the options need to work. Maybe Ubuntu 12.04 LTS will (next year) help a bit more because of a even newer Linux Kernel. In the summer when im free from school ill try to spend some time to figure out some of the options.
- Webmin is easy to install, but does not cover all the needs, like ACL, easy to use SAMBA, NFS and AFP. HowTo?
- Well if i look on my webmin-->Servers-->Samba Windows file sharing. You will see the options you need. And if you want a HowTo then maybe i can make a HowTo. But do you just want to see how the ACL works? A lot of the options i just tried till i managed to get it to work. It wasn't hard but you just have to explorer a bit.
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Post by nobbypop on Mar 29, 2011 22:52:57 GMT 7
Hi shinger,
thanks for the reply, you've got me convinced. I banished my NAS out of sight and hearing range. So there is no more need for the LCD and the hardware buttons to work properly.
First of all (sorry to forgot this in my previous post) I would like to thank all the guys here for their effort. I appreciate it very much.
I also yesterday got debian installed on my 5200pro with all the things I need, including netatalk support (first tested everything in a VM). Also ACLs are working now. As usual RTFM did the trick ;-)
I've got now only one problem: Network Throughput - it sucks. The most I get is 16MB/s via AFP or NFS (10MB/s on SMB).
Is the filesystem on the RAID really the bottleneck here? I use ext3 as it was originally set up within the Thecus firmware. What about to expect when switching to XFS? This would be a - pain in the ass - job, because transferring Terabytes of data from my NAS-backup surely takes some time.
For the USB topic: I used the NAS on my AirportExtreme as a USB-HDD (which worked fine with the Thecus firmware. What is needed in my debian install to reuse this? The logical volumes currently still exist.
So many questions, I know. Any help appreciated...
regards, NobbyPop
PS: I'll post my step-by-step approach as soon as I'm ready with everything important. I documented everything while installing.
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Post by shinger on Mar 30, 2011 8:04:22 GMT 7
Hi shinger, thanks for the reply, you've got me convinced. I banished my NAS out of sight and hearing range. So there is no more need for the LCD and the hardware buttons to work properly. First of all (sorry to forgot this in my previous post) I would like to thank all the guys here for their effort. I appreciate it very much.I also yesterday got debian installed on my 5200pro with all the things I need, including netatalk support (first tested everything in a VM). Also ACLs are working now. As usual RTFM did the trick ;-) I've got now only one problem: Network Throughput - it sucks. The most I get is 16MB/s via AFP or NFS (10MB/s on SMB). Is the filesystem on the RAID really the bottleneck here? I use ext3 as it was originally set up within the Thecus firmware. What about to expect when switching to XFS? This would be a - pain in the ass - job, because transferring Terabytes of data from my NAS-backup surely takes some time. For the USB topic: I used the NAS on my AirportExtreme as a USB-HDD (which worked fine with the Thecus firmware. What is needed in my debian install to reuse this? The logical volumes currently still exist. So many questions, I know. Any help appreciated... regards, NobbyPop PS: I'll post my step-by-step approach as soon as I'm ready with everything important. I documented everything while installing. Hi NobbyPop, + I've got now only one problem: Network Throughput - it sucks. The most I get is 16MB/s via AFP or NFS (10MB/s on SMB). - You talked something about Airport extreme. I did not know what it was but after google-ing its just a pumped up wifi router from "Apple" =_+!. Wonderful names but you can just say wifi-router . Im not sure how you connected your NAS to the network. Did you just use the USB or using network cables?. I get speeds up to 30-40 MB/s and i still got ext2 filesystem. All my systems (Computer, Laptop, Playstation 3) have a Gigabit networdcard inside. My switch is a gigabit switch from Netgear. And the network cables i use are ALL CAT 6 cables ( These cables are made for a gigabit network. If i did not have these cables and the NIC's, gigabit switch I'm sure i would get speeds up to 10 MB/s at MAX. So if you maybe could explain it better how you have configured your network right now i or maybe other users could find a solution to your problem. +For the USB topic: I used the NAS on my Airport Extreme as a USB-HDD (which worked fine with the Thecus firmware. What is needed in my Debian install to reuse this? The logical volumes currently still exist. - I think you only need to activate it. Linux is Linux and if thecus version of Linux worked with your "Airport Extreme" (Wifi-router ) then Debian also should work. Could you also post what Debian version you are using and why you choose for that one?
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Post by nobbypop on Mar 30, 2011 19:06:57 GMT 7
I'm no noob with computers or networks. Actually I'm quite a pro with PC soft- and hardware, software development and networks, middlewares and servers in general. But not in Linux at all.
But OK, so be it.
My setup: I use the Apple Airport Extreme as my SPOC to the internet (which goes actually over a cable modem with 50Mbit/s). It is a wireless N router with an integrated 5-port gigabit LAN switch. I could easily change that setup to my old Netgear 5-port gigabit LAN switch with no difference.
Everything! (from my PCs over Macs and whatever device I attach to the network using a cable, is with CAT6 cables, of course (BTW: CAT5 should also work with gigabit).
I previously also suggested, that my uplink speed is only 100Mbit/s (with a theoretical maximum of 12.5MB/s), but the rates using NFS or AFP tells otherwise. My Macbooks are all connected via Wi-Fi @300mbit/s (with a theoretical maximum of 37.5MB/s).
Nevertheless, I will try to use my old switch for testing and come back with the results then.
For the other topic of using the NAS USB Target feature, I have no clue on how to enable it.
I'm using Debian 6 (stable netinstall) with latest updates and patches.
Thecus N5200pro: 8GB DOM (Transcend) RAID5 = 5x1000GB WDxxxxEADS external standard silent PSU
greetz, NobbyPop
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Post by nobbypop on Apr 12, 2011 1:32:23 GMT 7
Back again after a few tests.
It seems that my transfer rate issue is mainly related to WLAN. My HTPC, which is connected via LAN cable transfers well with approx. 50MB/s.
Anyway, my last main issue is the one with making the USB Target work again with my Debian install.
I Googled whole evenings for Linux and USB Target stuff and found NOTHING.
Anybody able to help with that?
greetz, NobbyPop
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Post by shinger on Apr 17, 2011 7:00:12 GMT 7
Back again after a few tests. It seems that my transfer rate issue is mainly related to WLAN. My HTPC, which is connected via LAN cable transfers well with approx. 50MB/s. Anyway, my last main issue is the one with making the USB Target work again with my Debian install. I Googled whole evenings for Linux and USB Target stuff and found NOTHING. Anybody able to help with that? greetz, NobbyPop hi nobbypop Last time i did not read your problem about USB target stuff very well. But now im wondering why you wanted to use your NAS as a ¨USB HDD" and not as a "NAS - Network Attached Storage". I dont see any good things about it. What i do see are the "bad things" good things:... Bad things:- If your "router" takes a ticket to heaven then your NAS is useless until you configure the "Network part". - the N5200 non/pro are both USB 2.0 i think. USB 2.0 has a speed up to 480 Mbit/s (60 MB/s theoretical speed) Which the network port (Rj45) has a speed of 1 GBit (128 MB/s theoretical speed) Shinger
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Post by nobbypop on May 3, 2011 21:29:53 GMT 7
The main reason is, that I may use it directly as a TimeMachine backup media over WLAN (like the original TimeCapsule from Apple).
If my router crashes, the USB target of the NAS can still be used directly.
See the PRO here!?
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