Are These Servers a Good Deal?

[hernandito]

Will they run unRAID and all the nice Dockers properly:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/4U-Supermicro-846TQ-R900B-24-Bay-Storage-Server-X8DTE-2x-Xeon-X5570-3x-SASLP-MV8-/131584185540?hash=item1ea30754c4

 

 

[StevenD]

It would be a great unraid box. Just know, it will be VERY loud and somewhat power hungry.

 

Edit: i just realized that those are the old controller cards. They will work with >2TB drives, but they may need updated firmware.

[johnny121b]

My server is an even older Tams unit, and it has handled both 2 and 4Tb drives just fine.  FWIW

 

And to underscore StevenD's comment regarding sound, DO NOT underestimate how loud a real server can be.  You may be thinking 'desktop' 'I can really hear a fan' levels.  Not even close.  Imagine a hair dryer on high.  Loud enough that you can't easily have a conversation beside it.  There are workarounds, though.  See here: http://www.avsforum.com/forum/26-home-theater-computers/1412640-you-looking-less-expensive-norco-4220-4224-alternative.html

 

All that being said, this should be an awesome unRAID server.  My only concern would be the lack of IPMI card, but that board should have 2 network ports, one of which, could probably be dedicated to the task.  There's NOTHING like having a dedicated link to your machine that works even while the machine is off/at CMOS/booting/etc.

 

As for power hungry- dunno.  I think mine can draw upwards of 250w, but it is fully loaded.

[StevenD]

My 15-drive, 3U SuperMicro is currently pulling 415 watts.  At 9 center per kWh, that's almost $300 per year.

[nick5429]

Yep, these will work great.  I bought a similar one earlier this week after extensive research.

 

The PSU that comes with yours is insanely loud.  They're not power-efficiency rated.  You'll be better off with a Gold or Platinum rated PSU.  And you really only need 1 quieter PSU (instead of 2 insanely loud ones) for home use, since I doubt many of us care about redundant PSUs.

 

The one you linked (with the TQ backplane) may require up to 3 controller cards (or some other way to get 24 individual SATA ports), but will have the highest overall performance (each drive gets a fully dedicated SATA link).  Those controller cards are pretty power hungry too.  IMO, the better option for bulk storage has the SAS2 backplane (server model SC846E16, or a listing that specifies a SAS2 backplane) with a port expander.  The SAS2 option only requires 1 controller card.  If it doesn't come with one, best option for controller is an m1015 (or similar) flashed to IT mode (<$100).

 

With the SAS2 expander, you'll get aggregate 2400MB/sec throughput to your drives (so 100MB/sec simultaneous reads on all 24 drives for parity checks, or faster per drive on fewer drives).  I think most people's parity checks are limited around that speed anyway, and that limit won't apply to e.g. standard single file reads - bandwidth is dynamically shared.  Another advantage -- one single cable going from the controller to the backplane.  The TQ model has 24 individual cables.

 

IMO, this with a quieter gold-rated PSU or this + this MUCH quieter platinum-rated PSU are better than the linked option.  They'll require sourcing a few additional components (CPU + RAM) yourself though

 

Xeon L5630 (2 for $40) or L5640 (2 for <$100) are good options for CPU with slightly lower power consumption.  6x4GB = 24GB ECC DDR3 registered RAM for $50 on ebay.

 

The options I linked also have integrated IPMI on the motherboards

[jeff.lebowski]

Check out TAMS on eBay.

 

http://www.ebay.com/usr/tamsolutions

 

Two of my servers were purchased from them. They required some modifications (the AIC chassis not so much as the Supermicro) for indoor use, but the mods were not cost prohibitive.

[archi1]

Thanks guys. The sound issue makes thi a no-go for me. I live in an apartment and only place for it would be bedroom. Wife already complains about noise.