I want to build a proper server with room for 40+ HDDs to move my media server to and have RAID 1. I know a lot about PCs and software, but when it comes to server hardware I have no clue what I’m doing. How would I go about building a server that has access to 40+ RAID 1’d HDDs?
Skip ZFS unless you’re planning to get all 40 drives up front, which is pretty bonkers for a home server setup. Acquiring 40 drives incrementally and you’ll be hit with the hidden cost of ZFS.
That’s definitely something to be aware of, but the vdev expansion feature was mergered and will be released probably this year.
Additionally, it looks like the authors main gripe is the current way to expand is to add more vdevs. If you plan this out ahead of time then adding more vdevs incrementally isn’t an issue, you just need to buy enough drives for a vdev. In homelab use this might an issue, but if OP is planning on a 40 drive setup then needing to buy drives in groups of 2-3 instead of individually shouldn’t be a huge deal.