G5 Mobile Server

[Bob Zelin]

Wow –
I was told by a VERY good source (that you know) that the PXG6 card in the old MAC G5 would not work very well. Wow – so you are saying that it is working, doing “the usual stuff” that we always do ?

bob Zelin

[Sean Oneil]

Thanks for sharing. I do have a couple questions.

1. Have you done an AJA speed test running from a client machine? You can enable network drives in the AJA System Test preferences.

2. Have you tried capturing to the server using a client machine (not the server itself)?

Thanks again.

Sean

[Marc Bostrøm]

Hi,

A note on ProRes on G5’s.

https://forums.creativecow.net/readpost/8/1024925

Have a nice day.

Marc Bostrom
-| just another PRO FCP user |-

[Eric Hansen]

hey bob – its a Quad 2.5 G5, which is PCIe. i’m using a rev 1.0 card.

hey sean – i have not done either of these tests because for this particular server they are not really necessary. a few weeks ago i installed a Mac Pro version of this server setup and the speed tests from the client were between 80 and 102MB/s over Gigabit (this is also on my blog). i assume that the tests with this G5 would be similar since all the hardware is the same (well, minus the processor, but these transfers are not taking much processor). i have not tried capturing from a client machine to this server because for this particular server, it will not be used that way. it will do file transfers, but not live captures since none of the edit systems have capture cards. but using the Mac Pro server in the office, everything is awesome!

the next time i’m at the facility, i will run these tests and let you know. we tested a Dual 2.7 G5 initially and had no problems. we just went with a Quad instead to guarantee bandwidth while at a location. Small Tree says that you should have 1GHz of processor on the server for every 1Gb/s ethernet connection. its my experience that this is pretty conservative. for the Quad 2.5 G5, that would be 60% of processor with 6 connected computers. with a Mac Pro, its 27%. during use, the processors don’t seem to get anywhere near these numbers. but i should also note that its essential to use attached storage thats in a hardware RAID. using a RAID card that only supports software RAID will adversely impact your server because it will suck processor power. thats why i went with CalDigit RAID cards for these systems. if i was building something that needed more storage, i would probably go with a Maxx Digital Evo2.

e

Eric Hansen, The Audio Visual Plumber – http://www.avplumber.com

[Parker Gowan]

Looks like fun stuff Eric,

I have what most likely will be a stupid question but I have been trying to follow along from Bob’s article through the boards – and I feel as though I am missing something. This is my first exploration into these sorts of SAN, or as I see you calling it VEoE.

question: it looks as though you are using the server – both your mobile and mac pro – without using the managed switch Bob talks about – by simply pluggin straight into the 4/6 port card.

Am I getting that right?

I know we will need to pay up front for several things to make this work but we will save over going to someone like Editshare.

I run a small production group within a larger media company.

We aren’t doing anything complicated – SD capture from three dedicated G5 systems – one laptop and an imac for some work. We are looking to add a couple more stations – possibly laptops – but that probably isn’t in the near future. We encode into flash for the web.

I’m trying to be realistic about what we would need to spend for the all out Bob version so I can make my proposal accurate without any surprises. But if I get a rejection off the bat – I’m looking for the next best thing – or at least a 2nd proposal that could “work for now” by spending less money.

could the 6 port switch be something I could seriously use as a back up plan – taking out the cost of the switch and software? or have I missed something in the details here?

Parker

Thanks just for reading!

[Sean Oneil]

I know you directed this at Eric but I can answer. You do NOT need a switch. You can connect directly.

If you have more clients than you have ports on the server, then it will make more sense to use link aggregation, in which case you will need a switch.

Sean

[Sean Oneil]

Thanks, I’ll try to check out your blog from time to time.

[Eric Hansen] “i installed a Mac Pro version of this server setup and the speed tests from the client were between 80 and 102MB/s over Gigabit”

I haven’t been able to achieve that. Using a Mac Pro, I connected to another Mac Pro and mounted it’s MaxDigital disk. Read speed was around 100, but write speed occasionally dipped to less than 40. Could be a number of factors. Maybe that sustained transfer feature on the CalDigit card helps it out a lot.

[Eric Hansen] “i assume that the tests with this G5 would be similar since all the hardware is the same (well, minus the processor, but these transfers are not taking much processor)”

I think the processor actually has a lot to do with TCP performance.

Sean

[Eric Hansen]

i’m not super familar with EditShare. i did a quick look at their site and it looks like Final Cut Server and Xsan rolled into one, but it runs over either 1Gig or 10Gig ethernet. is that correct? but it seems like EditShare is mostly a software solution for asset management (like FCSvr) and shared storage (Xsan or MetaLAN/SAN). the stuff i have been installing has no software to it. it just runs Apple’s built-in file sharing protocol called AFP. i called up MetaLAN before my first installation, and they said it was too small to require their software. it sounds like your installation is even smaller than mine. btw, the Mac Pro installation i did uses a smart switch because they wanted the ability to access the server from any computer in the office (FCSvr is in the future for these guys). but if you only need 6 or less connections, you can direct connect. you can also use the 2 built-in ethernet ports on the Mac Pro, and you can even add more ethernet cards if you wish. in addition to the ethernet card, we had a capture card and a RAID card on both systems, so more connections was not an option. on a side note, i’m a bit bummed to see that the new “early 2009” Mac Pros don’t have more PCI slots, or built-in eSATA ports. we had to take out eSATA cards on both systems and are a bit bummed on that.

if you’re having trouble getting your head wrapped around this, which is fine because many of my clients have a hard time understanding it, don’t hesitate to call up a company like Small Tree or Apace, which offer all-in-one solutions for editing over Gigabit Ethernet. they’re service is great. yes they are more expensive than a Build-It-Yourself option, but the labor and work saved is worth it for many. for my clients, having me nearby is a better value than an All-In-One option from these guys. but if theres no one in your area that does this kind of work, these can be a great option.

e

Eric Hansen, The Audio Visual Plumber – http://www.avplumber.com

[Eric Hansen]

i’m surprised by the write of only 40. i don’t know how much the CalDigit weighs on that. originally we tested with a Dual 2.7 G5 with a Fibre Channel RAID and got similar speeds to what the Mac Pro is getting. of course, i didnt write them down so i dont know EXACTLY what we were getting. we also set both systems to Jumbo Frames and have Flow Control enabled.

e

Eric Hansen, The Audio Visual Plumber – http://www.avplumber.com

[Bob Zelin]

Eric has offered excellent advice (and so did Sean).
For once, I have nothing to say !

If it was me, I would bite the bullet, and buy a new MAC Pro to act as the sever. Don’t even attempt this on a G5 unless you have OS-X 10.5.4 or later running on it.

Bob Zelin