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Re: [LUG] Q for the server builders

 

Gordon Henderson wrote:
> 
> So I'm putting together a small "High Availability" setup for a client
> for a project they're running. It's a LAMPy type of server, so nothing
> special there and it'll be 2 servers running MySQL replication and Linux
> HA between then - again, nothing special there.
> 
> But one thing I'm pondering over - 2 disks in each server or just one?
> 
> Now this client is on a bit of a budget here and although disks aren't
> that expensive, we could spend the £130 or so elsewhere (1TB in each box
> and WDC drives are in the £60 range now)
> 
> The server is going to the co-lo which is 4-5 hours away and normally
> I'd not think twice about using 2 drives per server running in RAID-1
> (mirror) mode, but 2 servers gives us 2 drives...
> 
> Hmmm...
> 
> Any comments or thoughts welcome!

Put a pair of drives in each.  You know it makes sense.

It's far easier and less time-consuming to recover a system that has a
failed drive when you have a RAID1 mirror than it is should you have to
re-install from scratch.  It also avoids a single disk dying causing
you to immediately have a single point of failure.

If you put the second disk in each server, you'll make that back in the
time you don't spend recovering stuff the first time a disk fails.

(Given the availability of remote hands, I'd personally even be tempted
to provide a spare drive so the remote hands could replace it to save me
a ten-hour round trip.)

James

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