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Projects -> Argus Array

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Projects -> Argus Array -> 1 Hardware
Projects -> Argus Array -> 1 Hardware -> 1 DriveArray
Projects -> Argus Array -> 1 Hardware -> 2 Electrics
Projects -> Argus Array -> 1 Hardware -> 3 Motherboards
Projects -> Argus Array -> 1 Hardware -> 4 Drive Interface
Projects -> Argus Array -> 2 Software
Projects -> Argus Array -> 2 Software -> 1 Layout
Projects -> Argus Array -> 2 Software -> 2 Maintenance Scripts
Projects -> Argus Array -> 2 Software -> 3 Paranoid File Copy
Projects -> Argus Array -> 2 Software -> 4 Movie Extraction
Projects -> Argus Array -> 2 Software -> 5 MovieMenu
Projects -> Argus Array -> 3 Stations
Projects -> Argus Array -> 3 Stations -> 1 LivingRoom
Projects -> Argus Array -> 3 Stations -> 2 TheBike


This project was created to answer the problem of how to best utilize a squadron of small unreliable hard drives that I seemed to have in my possession. I wanted to make a cheap and effective mass storage system based on them.

The "cheap" requirement removed many simple solutions. This eliminated external RAID enclosures or other nice manufactured hardware drive holders. It also eliminated basic RAID options, since the drives were of various odd sizes. I would hate to put 4 80gb drives into a RAID5, loose a drive and then have to either remove the array or find another 80gb drive to place the bad one. The solution I came up with was:
  • Building some cheap massive racking method for drives
  • Using custom software to manage the data on them instead of traditional RAID methods
    Naming
    The project was named the Argus Array based on the space telescope of the same name in Star Trek: The Next Generation. In at least one episode the Enterprise is sent to investigate why the unmanned array had stopped transmitting. I anticipated similar problems with my array (that it would random crash or drop off the net and I would have to go down to the basement server room and investigate. Lately it has been surprisingly stable, unlike as predicted by the name. However, I still hope that it will attract the attention of aliens that will give me super intelligence so that I can visit their home world.




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