[Bob Zelin]

Hi –
the tuning file that you list was posted by Steve Modica some months ago. The 4000000 send and receive space is slightly wrong, but close enough. I build systems like this all the time – I just did a system for Good Great Grand in NY City with a Maxx Digital 8 bay thunderbolt array, and it’s working just fine – using the same promise SanLink2 that you are using.

I have seen the XS708E be problematic, which is why I now refuse to use the 708E and only use as a base model the XS712T, where I know that I can actually set things. Update your 708E firmware, and RESET the damm switch (I blame the switch at this moment, without knowing anything else). If you are using a Mac Pro 6,1 and have the Lacie on one buss, and the Promise on another buss (with your tuning file), you should have no issues. I assume you have tested the speed of your Lacie array, and that it is fast – correct ?

Are your clients 10GbE ? Promise boxes on your client computers ?
I have only seen the loading issue that you are seeing (30 – 40 MB/sec) when I use a Mac Mini as the server, not the Mac Pro 6,1.
I have done numerous installs like this with almost identical hardware (712T switch) and have not seen the loading like you are seeing UNLESS I use the Mac Mini as the server.

so when you play back your video on your clients, you are seeing stuttering video ? What editing software are you using ?

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

oh come on Jonathan, you are not a systems administrator.

Your Mac Mini is not fast enough to handle all this bandwidth. You have the SanLink2 and the Lacie 8BIG on the same x4 Lane Buss of the Mac Mini. Mac Mini can’t handle the bandwidth that you are trying to force thru it. Its fine at 20 – 30 MB/sec, but when you get into multiple 10G client speeds, it’s choking. You said that you have most of the clients on SanLink2 boxes, and the older Mac Pro on a Small Tree 10G card – you can’t push that kind of bandwidth.

And your Lacie can’t do more than 800 – 900 MB/sec (it’s thunderbolt and only 8 drives, AND it’s on the same buss and the SanLink 2 that connects to your XS708E). And do you really know that your XS708E is running at Jumbo Frames ? There ain’t no setting for it on the switch. Should have spent the couple of extra bucks for the XS712T !

Get off your Mac Mini (make it a client computer) and switch to a Mac Pro Cylinder 6,1 – put the SanLink2 on one buss, and the Lacie on another buss, and you will see instant improved performance.

and exactly what are your sysctl.conf files, and are you connecting via smb or afp ?

You kids think that this stuff just plugs in and works – you have now learned that it doesn’t.

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

I love posts like this, and I love to bash them. No matter how much I post, no matter how much money is spend by advertisers on Creative Cow, no matter how many people respond, there is always SOMEONE that insists that they must have an EMC/Isilon/NetApp server that is so
F#$%ing expensive, yet cannot perform the same duties that is readily accomplished by Facilis, EditShare, AVID ISIS, Studio Network Solutions, Small Tree, Maxx Digital, ProMax, Apace, GB Labs, etc, etc. – only to have a response by someone saying “so what is wrong with NetApp, what is wrong with EMC” –

You have 25 clients – EVERY ONE of the companies that you see advertise on Creative Cow can handle this workload. Everyone of the companies that you see discussed on Creative Cow – ON THIS FORUM can handle 25 clients of ProRes422HQ without issue. Yet your IT department (not you) has decided on EMC/Isilon/NetApp, and obviously you are having problems.

Here is your solution.
Step 1) – go to your boss, and have him FIRE YOUR IT MANAGER.
Step 2) – call ANY COMPANY that you see advertise on Creative Cow (no recommendations – call ANYONE – because ANYONE can accomplish exactly what you want to do that you see advertise here).
Step 3) – you are done. You will have 25 clients all working on the same Media at the same time without issue.

As many of you read this – you may say “why is this Bob Zelin idiot so angry all the time ” – because I know that many IT managers hate our “proprietary” solutions, and I was just “fired” from Robert Half and Associates, for having a perfectly working solution, but a solution that did not integrate with their PC Windows Open Directory Cisco switch environment, and they didn’t like it – EVEN THOUGH IT WORKED ALL THESE YEARS. I fully understand that these IT managers want a solution that matches a solution that works for their Microsoft Office environment, and GUESS WHAT – it doesn’t work.

Find ANY VENDOR that has a forum on Creative Cow. Find ANY VENDOR that you see discussed here on this forum. Call them. You will have a working solution for your 25 clients without issue. The most important thing is to NOT INVOLVE YOUR IT DEPARTMENT, because they do not have a clue, and you can see that you do not have a working solution.

There is not a single vendor here that will charge you $150,000.
I am telling you – the #1 thing you can do right now is to have your IT manager FIRED. Then you can get started.

Send him this link.

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

I guess FreeNAS isn’t free.
If you have a hard drive failure (which ALL systems have – even mine), you are at the mercy of the disk drive host adaptor, not the ZFS OS, or the home brew system that was created here. You simply contact the manufacturer (LSI Logic, ATTO, Areca, Highpoint, etc.) and say “I have a hard drive failure, how do I resolve this”. So now it is YOUR responsibility to say “gee, what disk drive host adaptor do I have, and how do I contact this manufacturer” (hint – Google). People often ask me “what exactly do you do for a living” – and I often respond “I read the manual”. If I was called by your company, and I had no idea of what was going on, but I had a hard drive failure in the RAID array, and I was unfamiliar with what to do, I would say “gee, what OS do I have” and then I would CALL (yes, on the phone, not an email) the company that made the disk drive host adaptor, and say “can you help me”. Not Creative Cow,.

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

this was an interesting article, and an interesting thread. My have used Seagate my entire career (because that’s what AVID used since day 1, until things changed). In 2009, I built two large drive arrays with Seagate Barracuda 7200 RPM drives, and had non stop failures. We blamed everyone in the food chain (because how could Seagate be bad) and ATTO, JMR, and Small Tree all said DONT USE SEAGATE DRIVES.

We switched to Hitachi (HGST) and never looked back. I have since occationally used Seagate drives, with usually poor performance. Some people, like Tim Jones from Tolis Group swears by the Seagate Constallations and says that they are currently the best drive.

And one name that is not mentioned here is Toshiba, who makes cheap drives, that I have not personally seen fail, but certainly gets bad reviews.

When people have their comments about Cal Digit, Lacie, G-Tech, etc. these companies DO NOT MAKE DISK DRIVES. They put drives from Seagate, WD and HGST into their boxes. People can say “well, I buy Cal Digit, and I trust them” – they have NO IDEA of what drives are in these boxes, and its usually the drive (and occationaly the power supply) that fail, not the metal enclosure. For the record – HGST owns G-Tech (which is all owned by WD).

And with all of that said, drives suck, and they all fail. Particularly in hi speed, hi performance RAID arrays. People that do RAID 0 are just crazy. That’s when I laugh when I see performance specs of thunderbolt RAID arrays doing 1300 MB/sec – you can only do this at RAID 0, and you just have an accident waiting to happen. You must use RAID protection, and you must backup your data, because disaster WILL happen – it’s only a matter of time. People say “well, which are the good drives” – there are no good drives, just ones that are a little more reliable than the others, but they will all fail. I use HGST Deskstar NA, HGST Ultrastar Enterprise, WD RE series, and WD RED NAS drives, depending on cost and application. But everyone one of these drives (including HGST Ultrastar enterprise drives) fail – if you don’t back up, it’s your own damn fault.

Bob zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

https://www.synology.com/en-global/products/RS3614xs+

this is a professional sinology product that supports 10GbE and will be fast enough for what you are trying to accomplish.

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

If you have a pre made NAS from a company like QNAP, Thecus, Synology, Netgear, etc. you can find someone. And of course, any of the name brand companies (SNS, Small Tree, etc.) will always help you.

But if you have a home made solution (an guy that built you a PC server with a 24 bay Supermicro chassis and a Highpoint host controller), and now things don’t work, I just don’t know anyone that can help you. I can only assume that he just doesn’t want to show up, or he will only show up if you give him a “support contract”, and it’s too expensive.

I assume that this is a Win 2008 or Win 2012 server – correct ?

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

if you state what NAS that you own (SNS, Small Tree, etc.) I can make a recommendation.

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

Hi –
as most of you know, I am crazy.

When I hear “but you don’t understand – the “bean counters” want to know what the 10 year plan is –
I get very upset, and as I get older (and I am getting really older these days) – I say

“let me tell you something – these accountants that are still running on Windows XP – if they don’t upgrade to Windows 7 or Windows 8 in 2015 – guess what – THEY ARE FIRED – they don’t get to run their accounting software, they don’t get to keep their jobs. They have to THROW OUT THEIR OLD COMPUTERS and old accounting software, and update to a MODERN service – and if they are something like QuickBooks – they have to go to a CLOUD SITE. The days of the 60 year old “bean counter” are coming to a close – these morons who think that they can keep their old accounting computers are OBSOLETE, and they will be fired long before the “young hot shot editor that want to keep spending corporate money”.

You update, or you are out of business. If you don’t like this fact, then open up a deli, because the meat slicer will not be outdated in 10 years.

Not recognizing that you must keep up with technology – no matter what part of the corporation you are in – is just stupid in 2015. You keep up, or you get out.

I would like to know where all those guys are that said that linear editing will never go away, or film will never go away, or VTR’s will never go away, or CRT’s are the best thing ever, and will never go away.
I want to go Al Quada on them ! Beheading’s on Creative Cow !!!!!!!! Keep up – or get out.

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com

[Bob Zelin]

I guess anything above $1500 is too much money for 50 Terabytes.

Bob Zelin

Bob Zelin
Rescue 1, Inc.
bobzelin@icloud.com