Figuring out a NAS setup around a Quartz64A

[yukijoou]

Hello,

For the past few weeks, I've been trying to theorise a setup for a NAS around a Quartz64 A SBC, and would like to get some feedback!

I'd like to run a 2×4TB hard drive configuration (with data replication), mostly for a Nextcloud home server.
I'm thinking of getting the PCIe to SATA III card, and powering the drives directly from the board with the power cable for dual SATA drives. To have enough power for all this, I'd use the 12v5a power supply.

I was somewhat inspired by this blog post and would like to know if anyone has done anything similar…? I went for another setup for powering the drives, suggested on the Quartz64 matrix channel, because I don't have a PC power supply laying around, so that set up would be a lot more expensive for me.

I'm not yet sure if I'd go with the 4 or 8 GB model for the Quartz64, so I'd appreciate feedback on that too, if you have a Nextcloud server!

Thanks to anyone for their help or input! I haven't bought anything yet, so I'm open to any suggestion on how to improve this setup


PS: I am from the EU; does anyone know how import stuff works? I've never ordered anything from overseas, is there a way I can figure out an estimate of how much import duties I'll have to pay?

[CounterPillow]

I'm not yet sure if I'd go with the 4 or 8 GB model for the Quartz64, so I'd appreciate feedback on that too, if you have a Nextcloud server!

I don't have a Nextcloud server but I would go for the 8 GB version for a NAS build in any case; even if your application doesn't use the RAM, the operating system's page cache will use it. In short, the page cache uses the available free RAM to cache frequently accessed disk data. The moment the RAM is needed for something else, the page cache gets evicted, freeing up the memory.

The shopping list I'd recommend for you is the following:
- 12V5A power supply
- 32GB eMMC (for OS/bootloader install)
- USB to eMMC reader (for flashing the eMMC)
- SATA card
- NAS case (yes it works with Quartz64 Model A, includes drive power cables and SATA cables)
- Medium Heatsink
- Woodpecker (just in case )

I am from the EU; does anyone know how import stuff works?

For both shipping methods (post and courier) you'll be paying at least VAT. Courier shipping is faster and may be required for shipments above a certain value, so let's assume courier shipping. With courier shipping, the courier also adds a certain fee on top of VAT to handle customs processing for you; how much that is depends on the country and courier. Additionally, there's VAT on top of the extra fee the courier charges (sigh).

The way this all works in practice is that after the shipment arrives, the courier will send you either an e-mail or a letter with a bill in it. This bill will cover all the import costs, including whatever fee the courier adds on top for processing customs duties for you. Be sure to pay this on time, because e.g. with DHL you get a small reduction in costs if you pay within the first 48 hours of them sending you an e-mail about the import duties (if you don't pay them within 48 hours they'll send a paper bill through snailmail instead, and the e-mail link will no longer allow you to pay.)

For VAT rates, we can consult the official EU literature on the matter. These rates differ from member state to member state, and vary specific to the type of product. You can find them here: vat_rates_en.pdf If you're unsure what category your products fall in, just assume standard rate; very few things get the benefit of reduced rates, and to find out what things those are we'd have to dig into the country's tax code which nobody wants to do.

If we're for example in Germany, we can see a standard VAT rate of 19. This means 19% of the product's declared value will be charged as tax. Let's say our order is $150, so the VAT we'll pay is $150*0.19=$28.50.

As I already said though, it doesn't stop there. Since the courier is handling the payment of VAT for you, they'll generously add a service fee on top. For me in Switzerland, this was 22 CHF (EUR 22.45, USD 24.47) last I ordered something (it was shipped by DHL), but this can also vary from country to country and courier to courier. Let's assume we're paying USD 24.47 in courier handling fee. This then has VAT for the courier handling fee on top (since this is technically a service, so the government wants to tax you for the added value as well), so 0.19*24.47=$4.65.

In total, that means we pay 28.50+24.47+4.65=$57.62 in import fees, which means our $150 purchase was in reality $207.62. Ouch, but now we can anticipate it.