February 10, 201214 yr Hey guys. I'm getting ready to jump in and build a server and before I buy all new components I wanted to check if my old system is just too old (I think I built it in 2002): Mobo: MSI 865PE Neo2-FIS2R http://www.msi.com/product/mb/865PE-Neo2-S--LS--FIS2R.html#/?div=Detail CPU: Intel Pentium 4 2.4 GHz RAM: 2GB DDR (1x1GB, 2x512MB) Most noticeably missing are any PCI-E slots as this only had one AGP 8x, and the rest are PCI. So any serious disk expansion looks doubtful. Seems pretty bad, but I figured I should check before I make any moves.
February 10, 201214 yr other then the poor drive support options, If you have it already built and some spare drives to put on it (any combo of 2x sata and 4x ATA), it is worth trying. It has a gigabit ethernet and can support 4GB of ram... and a P4 is plenty of power for unraid. but it still wont be a a jet due to drive support. it wont hurt to make a free version flash drive and test it. that brings you to the next big question... can it boot from USB? after that, your PSU most likely wont support a large number of drives due to its age and size... You can then start upgrading parts if you like unRAID.
February 10, 201214 yr I agree with what Johnm said. That's the beauty of unRAID - you can start with whatever you have laying around, and chances are it will work. Then, once you are hooked, you can upgrade slowly over time until you've built your dream machine!
February 11, 201214 yr Author Thanks for the reply. I'm not too worried about the PSU. I upgraded it to 700w a couple years ago, so that should be fine, no? You think this is overkill? I got an offer I couldn't refuse: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129087
February 11, 201214 yr Make sure your power supply is a single 12v rail. I wouldn't use the darkfleet case for unraid. Large but wont hold many drives compared to others that can take 5in3 cages. Sent from my SGH-I727R using Tapatalk
February 11, 201214 yr The board isn't so bad. • Five 32-bit v2.3 Master PCI bus slots (support 3.3v/5v PCI bus interface). This means with the right controllers Promise TX4 or AOC-SAT2-MV8, correct SIL3114 you will get 266MB/s on the PCI bus instead of the normal 133. You won't have the greatest speed, but it's good enough to start with and it will be pretty decent for a basic amount of drives. if you can get the darkfleet case real cheap, go for it. I would not spend $160 on it. I would get an antec 1200 first.
February 11, 201214 yr Author I liked the DF as it gave me ample slots to work with without implementing a cage. And then there's still the option of putting one in the top when I'm ready. I guess I kinda just balked at the idea of making a choice that would commit me to buying 4 cages at some point. But its obviously better to have the option. Didn't mean to turn this into a case thread, but if you were to rank the Antecs in order of usability (1200, 1100, 900 Two, DF-85), how would you? I figure the tool-less design of the 1100 kills it, even though I saw it for cheaper than the 900.
February 11, 201214 yr In my experience, toolless, is never really 100% tool less. What I find myself changing most is 1. hard drives. 2. controllers. Hard drives always upgrade or fail Controllers are changed as we may upgrade. If you like towers, I like the 1200 with the ability to have 20 drives. If you want to save money on not purchasing re-movables, the norco rack units are nice. you really have to consider your data storage needs will always grow.
February 11, 201214 yr If your planning for the future and don't mind spending the money now. The Narco cases are the way to go as they are much cheaper than buying a tower case and 4 cages. Sent from my SGH-I727R using Tapatalk
February 12, 201214 yr marcusone typo'd, he meant Norco. Norco cases are indeed a much better value if you don't mind a rackmount case (it can be placed on its side to sort of emulate a tower case). As for the Antecs, I think the 1200 and 902 are both on par as being excellent options for server cases, as they can support up to 20 and 15 drives, respectively. The other cases you mention look fancy, but don't offer nearly the usability.
February 13, 201214 yr Author K, so leaning towards the 1200 as the DF-85 was missing some pieces which sullied the deal for me. I'm considering something like this for a mobo due to the PCIe x16 and x4 slots for eventual SAS card expansion. Biostar TP67B+ Ver. 6.2 http://www.biostar.com.tw/app/en/mb/introduction.php?S_ID=526# At $110, this was pretty much the cheapest board I could find with this feature. That and the fact that I'm having trouble finding a good selection of 775 boards readily available in Toronto. Overkill? My dilemma is this: While, on a practical level, I'd like to aim towards a budget build, I've always been a proponent/practitioner of buying for the future. *UPDATE* Apparently Realtek 8111E is no good?... there goes that idea. And the Asus P8H67-M PRO as well
February 17, 201214 yr unless I missed something, the Biostar TP67B+ Ver. 6.2 has no onboard video? I would pass on that board if you need to buy a video card also.
February 23, 201214 yr Author Finally got all my components: Case: Antec 1200 PSU: Corsair TX750M Mobo: ECS A885GM-A2 CPU: AMD Athlon II X2 260 RAM: Kingston HyperX Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) 1600 Unfortunately I'm experiencing some shutdown as I run Memtest. Has only happened once after a pass cycle, but I'll try again tonight to see whats going on.
February 23, 201214 yr Could be a loose connection, try reseating the RAM and CPU (and CPU heatsink).
February 27, 201214 yr Author Turns out it was the PSU. That's what I get for veering off-track. Replaced it with the TX650. Guy at the store tested and said voltages were all over the place and that he's never seen a unit as bad as that one, especially being Corsair.
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