The biggest issue with RAID 5 (and RAID 6 ) is the drive URE (unrecoverable read error) rate. If you hit a URE during an array rebuild after replacing a drive, your array is toast.
Also, during rebuild of a RAID 5, your NAS will be painfully slow in operation.
I run RAID 10 (12 bay Synology Rackstation) on my main array. It gives SSD equivalent read and write speeds with HDDs. Eventually, I’ll upgrade to SSDs, once decent 4TB SSDs with 3 DWPD endurance are more widely available…
No, the CPU is to old (not Ivy Bridge or newer) for your linked example.
Brand, hardware components are the most obvious things I guess. ROCK is developed and supported for the Intel NUC hardware only. It may run on other hardware too, or not (ROCK on other hardware is called MOCK: Threads about MOCK). If you don’t use ROCK but another supported OS for Roon Server, you can choose also other hardware, but should still meet the requirements for optimal results. You can also choose to use hardware that’s cheap and below the requirements, but it’s on your own risk. Some of the issues you might run into by doing so are listed in the “Roon Server on NAS” article I linked above.
Thanx, but a similar one with with Ivy Bridge or newer.
https://www.amazon.fr/Palm-Sized-Windows-Computer-WIFI300M-Fanless/dp/B07T1J6VZ6 : quite cheap
or more power :
https://www.amazon.fr/upgradeable-Processeur-i5-5257U-Ordinateur-Ethernet/dp/B0895DNN4B
unless you let me know that rooncore doesn’ work well with windows.
The later one allows to work with when not using it as roon core.
Those are only examples, no choices.
Regarding the backup, I forgot to let you know that I’d like incremental backup of the data (the you proceed is OK) but also of the system. And if I could have this automated…
Cheers
Hello pianiste,
I am running an older QNAP NAS with a very similar setup as you describe.
I use a QNAP TS-470Pro with an Intel i5 3470T CPU and 16GB ram. Media on three WD Red 6Tb spinning drives in RAID5, which is not a limitation, but rather the sensible choice for a NAS). Roon, Plex and minim is plced on a 120Gb SSD in bay4.
This is also my general storage for photos, movies and personal documents.
This QNAP backs up to another two bay QNAP woth a RAID1 setup of similar WD Red 6Tb drives.
From the Roon perspective this works just fine, quick navigation, excellent sound quality and more or less maintenance free. But, it needs to be placed away from the listening room, as all four bay NAS’ have fans that will bother you.
I also use Roon ROCK servers in silent builds placed in the listeningroom and they also have their pros and cons.
I also use three Auralic Aries devices on my network, two wired and one G1 wireless and Lightning DS works fine fed with the data from Minim on the QNAP (same media, of course).
Not everyone is as anti Raid 5 as you seem to be. I have no issues with RAID 5 (or 6). Each RAID has their own pros and cons.
Each on his own.
The big problem with RAID 5 (and 6 to some extent) is that they have no problems at all until they have a problem! Is the restauration proces the one that brings the big issues with these kind of RAIDs, not the normal functionality. Now, one may never need to replace a disc, but a lot of others needed and the RAID died in middle of that process (it’s a matter of a very well documented fact).
I had a RAID6 array die on me on my very first NAS, a Synology DS414. I had a drive failure and replaced it. The rebuild was agonisingly slow - NAS was little more than a doorstop during the rebuild.
A few months later a second drive failed. After replacing the failed drive the whole array failed during the rebuild process. That was enough for me.
I’m on RAID10 now with 12 drives (RS3617xs) plus a couple of hot spares in the RX1217. All of the important stuff syncs to a Backblaze B2 bucket via Cloudsync. Roon stuff lives on SSDs on the RX with a music library and database backup to the RS. Music library backs up to B2 and DB also backs up to Dropbox daily.
I’ve had 2 drive failures in 4 years on the RX - both rebuilt seamlessly in the background without any noticeable effects on performance.
Roon Server should run well on Windows but Windows (10 pro as offered in your link) is a desktop OS. You may have to tweak it (idle/power saving states) to reliably provide server app services over the network while not logged-in/actively using the machine.
I completely gave up on this as a home user. Having the important data backed-up and just set-up a new system from scratch if needed before reinstating the data on it from backups seems to be the sweet spot for me. The amount of additional data to store for OS backups, the work/time to setup and maintain a suitable backup routine as well as performing a restore from backups on a new system disk in the same machine or restoring (cloning) an installation on a new system (if this worked at all) proved to be not worth the efforts to me. IMO if you want to go that road, try a disaster recovery (system restore on a blank disk) before you lay back and feel save. Good luck with that – I don’t have any recommendations for that use case obviously.
A NUC can be “repurposed” , even if you us ROCK now, a Windows 10 install on to the M2 SSD gives you a “load anything” alternative. Then you can use any media player you choose.
If I went NUC I would probably do that straight off , I am one user who has no Anti Windows feelings 
hi @pianiste97, it seems this thread, as usual, has devolved into an argument so i just wanted to offer some very simple advice.
My Synology NAS experience is a bit different. I have a Synology DS1812+ that has been running 24 hours/day for 9 years without a single hard failure, not counting extended power failures. It includes a 5 drive RAID6 array using Hitachi 4TB enterprise class drives.
In the first year one of the drives started reporting soft errors. I reported this to Hitachi and they sent a replacement drive. It did take a while to rebuild the array, I think about a day - this was 8 years ago, and during the rebuild performance was noticeably degraded, but it was still much better than a doorstop. If you are using RAID6, I think it is important to use enterprise drives.
There are also 2 non-raid drives, one is another 4TB drive available for temp storage that is not backed up, and the other is a more recent addition, a 2TB SSD that is used for my Roon music.
For backup I use a combination of local USB drive backup for all the RAID6 data, and cloud backup for selected data including the Roon music SSD. The USB drives are rotated to off-site storage.
I have run as many as 10 concurrent Roon streams including FLAC 96/24 5.1 multi-channel streams with no problems. The Roon core is running on a NUC8i7BEH that is running Windows.
Unfortunately, I will have to upgrade the Synology DS1812+ NAS since it has reached the end of support from Synology. Using RAID10 is one of the changes I may make as part of the upgrade.
You might be right (if I write “you’re right”, it could imply to all those who have tried to help me are wrong which I don’t think so).
I can’ afford some of the NAS mentonned which shows how silly I am as it was my first idea.
I don’t know how to install a double boot otherwise I would certainly go for a nuc or a mini pc. Some will shoot me 
as No Anti Windows feelings. That’s why I why thinking about a mini PC (have to check but seems less expensive than a NUC with similar figures) : I could you it for Roon but also for… looking for CDs to buy 
or word 
So I would go first for a NUC or a MINI-PC, a NAS could be after. So this might be a new 
but your help is very precious for an 
and I have to thank you ALL 
If I go for a solution (a NUC-PC lol) can my drive remain in the Aries G2.1 which would be easier if I want to try lightning- DS
And once again you’re great, being disabled is kind of being out socialy and you help warms my heart.
Yes, it could. But i doubt that will be the most practical and stable solution. If you plan to run a NUC with Windows i highly recommend you install both Roon and Minim Server 2 on this device. Also put your media library (on the SSD) as the second drive on the NUC.
You could also let Lightning Server on the Aries index a share on the Win NUC as opposed to using Minim, but this will be slower and more complex when it comes to maintaining your library.
The options are endless! 
It may be that a NAS is a bit overkill depending upon your library size and whether you aim to stream only or have local files
The important thing is an SSD for the OS and Roon library , HDD after that are fine for content
Mine is around 4Tb , I use an PC wit an internal 4TB HDD and the 2 x USB External 4Tb drives as BU. I use SyncBack Pro to keep the 2 USB drives in sync with the main library. I do the same with my video drives.
Its my primary PC that I use for everything .
My Aries has a 4 To SSD.
I thought having a NUC+windows or a mini PC+Rock if possible, keeping the data on the Aries. The aries would manage it’s library on the aries, roon would manage it’s library on the roon server.
Yes, i realize that is what seems the most efficient setup. Just have in mind that when the ROCK NUC administers music to the Aries it will have to fetch the very same music first (from the Aries’ media drive), before sending it back to the Aries over RAAT as an audio stream.
This, i claim, is not the best way to utilize either Roon or your Aries.