FreeBSD and large harddrives

[Ryan Coleman]

On Nov 18, 2010, at 11:29 AM, Peter A. Giessel wrote:

> On 2010/11/18 at 3:16, wodfer at gmail.com (Andy Wodfer) wrote:
> 
>> Total storage in version 1 of this server will
>> probably be 8-12 TB.
> ...
>> The processor will be a 64bit capable Intel processor and I plan on using a
>> Highpoint Rocketraid or 3ware Raid controller.
> ...
>> 1. Which FreeBSD version should I install?
> ...
>> 2. I know that the 3ware Raid controller supports larger drives than 2TB (or
>> was it 1TB?)... How can I create this huge partition/slice? I
>> don't think the installer (atleast on the standard FreeBSD version) supports
>> these large drives?
> 
> Just chiming in with my own experience... I built a "cheap" media storage server
> so I don't have to keep digging DVDs out of the pile and can just stream them
> from the server.  4x1.5TB Raid 5 disks.
> 
> I haven't updated it to FreeBSD 8.2 yet, so:
> [media: ~]> uname -a
> FreeBSD media 8.0-RELEASE FreeBSD 8.0-RELEASE #0: Sat Nov 21 15:48:17 UTC 2009     root at almeida.cse.buffalo.edu:/usr/obj/usr/src/sys/GENERIC  i386
> (its a Pentium 4... cheap but effective hardware... the processor is hardly
> ever significantly used.  Its just a file server).
> 
> To ease booting problems, I used 3ware's drivers to create a booting volume
> out of the bigger unit.  FYI: I used Seagate hard drives (I hear they are
> coming out with a 3TB internal drive any day now):


Yes, but a 5200-5400 RPM drive, I believe.