Ideal storage system for editing

[Zorro]

If you're looking for a cost effective NAS then have a look here:

http://www.thecus.com/products_over.php?cid=1&pid=8

I use a RAID 5 adaptec system. It's 2 TB...i use it to back up all my stuff, and i intend getting another 2tb to mirror that...just in case...like the bank:)

[Jared McClure]

Guys,

I've been posting on www.techreport.com forums, looking for the best storage and working solutions. I must have about 2TB tied up in a whole unruly pile of 250GB external 2.0 USB disks. It's impossible to keep the data organised well and if one disk goes I don't have a leg to stand on. I'm looking for a centralised NAS type system that will replace all these cables and stuff littered over my desks. Ideally it would contain all my live Edius projects and some archived footage. the exteranl disks I could then use to put on a whole bunch of important stuff and tuck them away on a shelf if and when I might need them.

Chris,

I ran into this problem a while back and did exactly as you are suggesting. I built a NAS in a server box with 16 x 400GB SATA II drives configured in a 50 RAID. It currently runs on a Tyan server board with 2 dual core Opterons and 8 GB of memory.

To speed up output to my other 4 stations, I purchased a 10 GB fiber optic card that goes from the NAS to the Gigabit switch. Granted, this was a bit overkill, but I wanted to get the most out of it that I could. That was enough to feed HD footage in the HQ codec to my machines and get real time playback. The 50 setup allows me to hot swap a drive if one fails and I can work on a single project from multiple stations by simple saving the Edius file to the NAS. It keeps me organized and although we still save Edius files to the local machines to speed up the saving process, we always save an updated file to the NAS at the end of the day, so I always know where to go to get the latest file of my edit. It also allows me to save SD footage from any local station across the network directly to the NAS. HD in the HQ codec is too much across the network, however, with everything else going on.

I called around and got quotes of around 25k to have it built and wound up building it myself for just under 12k. It is an investment, but I could never go back!

Jared

[Roy Colquitt]

How much do the K2 servers cost?

How much space do they offer?

That is for broadcast environments. The server is one part of the system that costs something like $40K. K2 RAID storage is another piece. That would determine how much space it would offer.

I'm just spitballin' here, but I'd guess that an entire typical system would be 6-figures.

[Bassman]

How much do the K2 servers cost?

How much space do they offer?

[Aristotelis]

If you can afford it just go for a Grass Valley K2 Server. The features of that system are amazing!

http://www.grassvalley.com/products/servers/k2/

[Chris Barnard]

Guys,

I've been posting on www.techreport.com forums, looking for the best storage and working solutions. I must have about 2TB tied up in a whole unruly pile of 250GB external 2.0 USB disks. It's impossible to keep the data organised well and if one disk goes I don't have a leg to stand on. I'm looking for a centralised NAS type system that will replace all these cables and stuff littered over my desks. Ideally it would contain all my live Edius projects and some archived footage. the exteranl disks I could then use to put on a whole bunch of important stuff and tuck them away on a shelf if and when I might need them.

Part of a post is below. Being editors I thought you guys might be better placed to understand what I might need. My business has grown much larger than I had anticipated and I just didn't have the time or knowledge to implement an organised and professional solution, but I know I simply have to get to that stage now or I am going suffer at some point.

Madwand wrote:
If you're concerned about backups, I think you should start by thinking of a system which can be kept separate and disconnected most of the time.

MY REPLY:

RAID 10 seems interesting, but I think what I am looking for is what is described above: Storage Space 1 that holds all my video files (current working projects and archived final films) and from which I can utilise in editing programs etc, and Storage Space 2 that is an exact replica of the Storage Space 1. If I wake up in the morning and turn on the Storage Space 1 and nothing happens I will not have to kill myself because it is all right there on Storage Space 2: all my live projects, raw working footage and finished and rendered films.

It does not have to be an automatic process. If it means every other day I have to synch the drives and tell Storage Space 2 to replicate Storage Space 1, that is not a problem.

If anyone can help, that'd be very good!