Home "Do Most anything" server

[moshiach]

Once I get past the problem of not being able to flash the uImage, my little plug will become:

1) Internal mail hub
2) Portage Mirror (with usb storage)
3) DNS&DHCP
4) Mysql server
5) NTP sync for local network
6) Squeezecenter (with files located off of a NAS)

I'm fairly certain that none of that will push the plug past what it can achieve since I currently have it all runnning on an older computer (power hungry) with pretty much the same stats.  I do need to figure out how to pivot the root properly so that instead of using the flash it uses my usb hard drive.  Yes I know this bumps the power usage up by 3-5 watts but I'll trade 5-15 watts for 50-100 watts anyday.  You should see my power bills.

[superpat]

@moshiach

I thought that the plug has 512mb flash AND 512mb DDR2 memory.

Is it not possible to run any volatile data in the ddr2 and run read only stuff out of the flash?

I am very interested in doing exactly the same as you. At the moment I have FreeNAS server running on a mini-itx m/b and 4  x 3.5 Raided sata drives.  I only power it on when I need to move files or run my squeezebox. Raid is an overkill, but it was an technical exercise. I think two drives and a chron timed incremental backup every day would suffice!

I have my own domain, hosted on Webmania, with our mail on it. I would like to bring that in house, and have an "always on" server running a mail server and one "green" drive, the new Samsung green sata drives only take about 3-5 watts, or even a USB stick, they are cheap enough to throw away when they wear out.

An even better device would have been the new OpenRD-Base, or client modules,   www.einfochips.com/marvell/

they have two sata ports and the client has two ethernet ports also. I have mailed einfochips to try to buy one of these but they are proving very coy, and the plug is a lot cheaper!

Cheers

Patrick

[moshiach]

Absolutely I could run it out of flash.  There are a couple of issues though that make me still rely on good old hard drive technology (even if I am using a new fangled usb hard drive).  Flash chips wear out a lot faster than hard drives.  For most people using the internals is going to be fine.  The lifecycle vs the price of the unit makes that an attractive option.  For myself I'd rather put it in place and forget about it for a good long time.  I have a hard enough time remembering to back up my moneydance data every month.  I'm ashamed to say that none of my home computers is backed up.  The only real back up I have is a couple of copies of my media library lying around on unused drives.

Which brings to mind another use.....system backups.   Throw enough USB storage or NAS at it and you have a nice little backup server.

I'm looking into the OpenRD-base as well.  Just waiting on the delivery.  More expensive, less green but still attractive.

[Tiibiidii]

regarding hard disks....

i thought of utilizing the sheevaplug as a webserver/backup/squid cache/etc.

i have a spare wd passport 250GB:
(like this)



but i'm concerned of how much power is carried by the USB...


i don't know: all these 2,5' usb hard disks have the same energy requirements?

a thumb drive is the only option (aside from using a bigger & more power-consuming 3,5' hard disk)?


thank you for any answer

[moshiach]

Don't try to power a hard drive off the plug.  Find one of the older models with it's own power supply.  As far as I can tell the plug can't provide the power you need to run the passport model you have.  I could be wrong but I seem to rememebr reading that in one of the documents.

[karurosu]

while it may provide enough power to the drive, it may not be enough to keep it healthy (happened to me with a couple of HDD), why don't you get a self powered hub? you will lose a bit of portability but it should work ok

[moshiach]

Well, I've reached a show stopper.  I've overcome my kernel compilation issues, managed to boot the system with the usb drive as the root, got mysql nginx phpmyadmin,etc working.  The plug works great.  The one thing I can't fix right now is squeezecenter.  I've spent all day trying various libxml libraries and cpan commands trying to get it to start, but it always fails becuse it thinks the version of xml::parser is wrong even though it even sys that what it needs is what I have.  I'm tracking down some leads since I know people have gotten it to work on other ARM systems, but for now I'm back on my power hungry box.

It's a damn fine unit though.  If I can fix slimserver I'll have a hit.

[pushbx]

You can absolutely power a 2.5" external harddrive from the plug.  In fact, if you look on the plug itself, on the electrical information sticker, you'll notice that it actually list the rated output of the usb at 750(?)ma @ 5v.  That should be enough for the external harddrive.

As anecdotal evidence.  I run my western digital passport 320G on the plug and it has been working fine so far.  Also, I used the kill-a-watt and the power draw difference between with and without the external hdd is about 3 watts.

[scruss]

...  I've spent all day trying various libxml libraries and cpan commands trying to get it to start, but it always fails because it thinks the version of xml::parser is wrong even though it even sys that what it needs is what I have. 

Ubuntu/Debian doesn't like you mixing CPAN with their modules. I don't really have enough information from the thread to tell, but do the errors look anything like the ones I mention here: how to fix the annoying Ubuntu/Debian XML::SAX install problems?

I'm really interested in getting USB HD booting to be reliable - I have similar goals for my plug as yours.

[moshiach]

I had to move away from ubuntu/debian to gentoo to get it working.  No mix of pure packages or cpan would start squeezecenter, which was the only real hitch.  After that the nocpan package of squeezecenter and a mix of using Bin/build-perl-modules.pl and some cpan brought me to a working system.  I'll be writing it up shortly as I finish a second system.  Problem I had with u/d was not the same problem mentioned in that link.

[Tiibiidii]

You can absolutely power a 2.5" external harddrive from the plug.  In fact, if you look on the plug itself, on the electrical information sticker, you'll notice that it actually list the rated output of the usb at 750(?)ma @ 5v.  That should be enough for the external harddrive.

As anecdotal evidence.  I run my western digital passport 320G on the plug and it has been working fine so far.  Also, I used the kill-a-watt and the power draw difference between with and without the external hdd is about 3 watts.

thank you for the info... i don't have yet the sheevaplug, but now it should be on its way here