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Chris Cerminara User is Offline

United States
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2/2/2008

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4/07/2008 03:15 PM
After spending some time on this forum and streamlining a lot of different things with my network, I've decided that I need to upgrade my SBS, which is currently a recycled, dual-core AMD Socket 939 desktop. Since building desktop computers is a hobby of mine, I thought I'd buy the parts and assemble the server as well. I have no experience with server-class components though. I will initially install SBS 2003, but I intend to use SBS 2008 (or just Server 2008 since I will be getting a free copy at the MS launch event next week) eventually. My company only employs 2 people right now, myself and 1 remote user. I'm almost certain that the remote user will be connecting to a PC in the main office via remote desktop to do his work. The number of users could easily grow within the next few years, however. I currently use the server for files, Exchange, Sharepoint, and Routing and Remote Access. So I would like to run some things by everyone to get some quality feedback. Processor: I don't see any reason not to go with the Xeon from Intel. And with prices where they are, I'll probably go quad-core. Motherboard: I was thinking about a dual-socket 771. I figure that this will give me an upgrade path if I find I need the extra computing power. Who makes the best motherboards? After doing some searching, I see Tyan and Supermicro popping up a lot, but I'm not familiar with them from the desktop scene. Is on-board, dual Gigabit LAN sufficient? Would I notice any performance boost by using a separate LAN card? I seem to doubt it. Should on-board RAID be a consideration, or am I better off using a dedicated controller card? I want to run the OS on a RAID 1 drive (size?) and have a 4 drive RAID 5 for storage. What's a realistic amount of memory a MB should support? I use 8GB on my production machine under Vista x64, but I use some pretty memory intensive applications like AutoCAD, Photoshop, etc. Memory It seems like these server motherboards require registered memory. I would assume that since this is the case, I HAVE to use registered memory? With 6 or 8 slots, it is better to fill them all up with lower capacity RAM, or use less slots and higher capacity RAM? Or does it matter at all? At what capacity will I see no performance gain? Hard Drives: I already have a lot of desktop hard drives. In my current server, I have 4 x 500GB SATA drives in a RAID 5 (on-board MB controller), and 1 x 320 GB SATA drive for the OS. Is it a good idea to just reuse these, or am I better off with enterprise-class drives? What is a good size drive/partition for the OS? I assume it's a good idea to isolate the server and applications from everything else. Misc.: If a separate hard drive controller card is the way to go for the RAID, who makes a good, reliable card? I guess case/enclosure is a preference thing. As long as there's enough room and good airflow/cooling, I should be fine, right? On-board video seems like a no-brainer. I will probably opt for a 500 Watt (give or take 100W depending on pricing) power supply. I don't see a need for redundancy right now, but perhaps it's something to think about when I'm choosing an enclosure? I also don't think adding a 2nd Quad-core CPU down the road will require too much power, will it? I can always upgrade when the time comes. Well, these are some of me questions and thoughts. I don't have an unlimited budget by any means, but I would like to make sure I get a quality system that will withstand many years of use. I'm also not opposed to a pre-built system, but in my experience, I can never get exactly what I want (with regard to desktops anyway), and by building, I know exactly what's inside. I don't know what kind of support some of the manufacturer's offer, so maybe I'll be missing out on that. I'm looking forward to some feedback. Thanks, Chris

Alan Bailey User is Offline

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12/8/2007

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4/07/2008 03:51 PM
Firstly if you only have two users I can't see why you would need to upgrade. If you are planning use SBS 2008 I would wait until you're ready as hardware tends to get faster and cheaper over time. I would avoid assembling the machine yourself unless there's a really good reason. A self assembled machine will not have the warranty and support a machine from HP or Dell will have. Even with the most basic Dell server warranty you get a 3 year next business day onsite warranty. If you assemble it yourself you've got a variety of suppliers to deal with, and will probably have a dead machine while you're going through RMA procedures. Buying a prebuilt machine also avoids any potential for incompatibility between the various components. Answers to some of your questions… Motherboard Tyan a Supermicro have both historically made excellent boards. Supermicro (and possibly Tyan) also sell barebones servers which can make life easier. Dual Gigabit LAN would be fine, just check the documentation to see which bus each port is connected to. If they are connected to different busses use the faster one for the internal LAN. I would always use a dedicated RAID adapter. Memory SBS 2003 only supports 4GB of RAM; I haven’t checked what SBS 2008 will be limited to. For reference the last server I bought supports up to 48GB of RAM across 12 DIMM slots. You will almost certainly need to use ECC RAM in a server board. How you fill the slots will depend on the type of memory and the design of the board. For example FB-DIMMs are available in either single or dual rank versions. In general use the biggest DIMMs that are cost effective as it avoids having to throw them away if you later upgrade the memory capacity. Hard Drives I would only use drives designed for 24x7 use. My preference would be 10K or 15K SAS or U320 SCSI but this would probably be massive overkill in your case. The speed of the arrays will probably have more impact on the overall speed of the machine than the choice of processor.

william warren User is Offline

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4/07/2008 09:33 PM
if you buy two socket populate both sockets. by the time you need to use that second socket you won't be able to find the second cpu anymore. For you a single socket is fine. xeon or operton is good. Anything 2.0 ghz dual core or 1.5 ghz for quad is going to be fine. If your dual core box is 2.0 ghz or faster you'll be fine for 2k8. You'll need a minimum of 4 gigs for 2k8 i am going to be recommending 6 gigs as the minimum for 2k8.

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Alan Bailey User is Offline

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12/8/2007

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4/07/2008 09:51 PM
Personally I've never had a problem finding matching processors. Even if they are no longer available through retail channels you can normally find them on ebay or via disposal channels. The good thing about processors is that they either work, or they don't, so using them secondhand doesn't cause any problems. If the server needs specific heatsinks, ducts or VRMs then this can be more of a problem.

william warren User is Offline

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4/07/2008 09:57 PM
most server require vrm's and cooling fixtures that are only available form the manufacturer. I'm not big on buying something as critical as the cpu and it's associated voltage regulation devices and cooling devices second hand. However if you want to go that route feel free..

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Alan Bailey User is Offline

United Kingdom
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12/8/2007

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4/08/2008 03:24 AM
There's obviously a risk in using second hand processor parts in a server, but in general I think it's fairly low. In the best part of twenty years I've been dealing with PCs I've never had a processor cause secondary damage. I've had dead processors that were simply ignored, but never disaster. Processors tend to be fairly safe as they tend to work, or not. The only processors I wouldn't touch second hand are some of the AMD chips without heat spreaders as the cores are very fragile and can be difficult to RMA. VRMs are the one thing I'm wary of; luckily plug-in VRMs seem to have gone out of favour. Assuming the server is correctly specified when it’s purchased you hopefully wouldn’t be looking at upgrading the processor(s) for a couple of years. At that point you are correct in stating that it may be impossible to locate a matching processor through retail channels. But also at that point it may be the difference between giving a server a new lease of life or replacing it. I’ve found that the benefits have outweighed the risks.

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