Hello all. It's been a while since I've thought about doing anything with my unRaid 4.7 box since it's been such a solid and reliable rig. However, I've decided to jump into the new 6.x ecosystem to leverage the app server and VM features. I'm planning on re-using my case, PSU, UAC-SASLP-MV8, and Norco 5x3 bays.

 

I have a few questions re: hardware (CPU/MoBo/RAM). I will primarily be using this for backups and as my Plex server (max 3-4 simultaneous transcodes). However, I would like to learn more about virtualization and be able to expand my usage to include other dockers and potentially several VMs in the near future.

 

[*]Xeon vs. i7

[*]Motherboard - What features can I not live without given my relatively light usage scenario? What are the distinct benefits of using something like a supermicro board vs. a standard consumer desktop board?

[*]RAM - I'm thinking 16-32gb for expandablility. Main question is whether fault-tolerance/ECC is a "must" or just personal preference.

 

PS > Is it difficult/risky to get PLEX externally accessible? I know that in 4.7 exposing the default unRaid box to the internet was a big no-no.

Both your mobo and CPU must support vtx & vtd to take full advantage of VMs.

I'm reading up on this currently. Is this not supported at all on i5/i7 CPUs, or is there a distinct advantage to running an xeon for this feature? I'm a newb when it comes to most hardware, and completely ignorant of Xeon procs or other server-specific stuff.

 

Thanks.

I'm reading up on this currently. Is this not supported at all on i5/i7 CPUs, or is there a distinct advantage to running an xeon for this feature? I'm a newb when it comes to most hardware, and completely ignorant of Xeon procs or other server-specific stuff.

 

Thanks.

Yes many i5/i7 do support. Intel ARK has all the answers re: CPU.

 

For mobo see what others are using over in the KVM subforum.

 

Also recommend PCPartPicker for help choosing components.

"Xeon vs. i7" => From a pure "horsepower" perspective it doesn't matter; but the Xeon's add ECC support, which is a very nice feature that I consider mandatory in a server.

 

"Motherboard - What features can I not live without given my relatively light usage scenario?"  =>  I wouldn't characterize "...  3-4 simultaneous transcodes ..."  as "relatively light usage".    In general, you need about 2000 passmarks of performance per transcode -- so you're looking at a CPU with a Passmark score of 8000 or better to reliably do this.  A Core i7 or a good E3 series Xeon will easily do this.

 

"What are the distinct benefits of using something like a supermicro board vs. a standard consumer desktop board?" =>  ECC support and IPMI are the two key features you'll get with a nice Supermicro server board (although other Cxxx series chipset boards can provide the same features)

 

"I'm thinking 16-32gb for expandablility. Main question is whether fault-tolerance/ECC is a "must" or just personal preference."  => As I've already noted, I consider ECC a "must" for a server.  You're building a fault-tolerant server -- why would you not want fault-tolerant memory?    It not only completely eliminates most memory errors (which tend to be single-bit random errors) ... but also provides notification when there are uncorrectable errors.

 

 

Thanks for the clarifications. I will definitely be reviewing the links provided. I've been a fan of PCPartPicker for some time, as well as /R/BuildAPC. I've used them to help with my past 3 builds.

 

I agree about fault tolerance, so  I probably will go down the Xeon + ECC path.

So here's what I'm thinking thus far. I can get a ~$60 break from NewEgg using the "Configurator" and bundling the CPU/MoBo. I'm going to keep most of my current box and just replace these guts. The SSD is for Cache/Apps and the 4TB Red is to be the new Parity disc.

 

 

Thoughts? Am I heading in a solid direction?

---

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

 

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1246 V3 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($288.99 @ Amazon)

Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($119.49 @ Amazon)

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($74.99 @ Amazon)

Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($149.00 @ Newegg)

Other: SuperMicro MBD-X10SLH-F-O ($208.00)

Total: $840.47

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-13 19:16 EST-0500

That's regular memory, rather than ECC.  It sounded like you wanted to go ECC in your last post and both your CPU and motherboard support it...

That's odd. I picked it from PCPP after filtering for ECC, and the details screen there also shows "ECC  = Yes". I'll have to lookup the part # to be sure.

The spec you listed doesn't show ECC, but the links to the memory indeed show it's unbuffered ECC RAM, which is exactly what you need.

 

The components you've picked are excellent.  You don't actually need a Xeon with built-in graphics, but personally I'd buy one anyway ... the cost difference is trivial and you never know when you might want to use the graphics.  (they're much better than the basic IPMI graphics chip on the motherboard)

 

Awesome. I'm hoping to pull the trigger on this build in the next day or two. I just completed my upgrade to v6 on my current setup and it seems to have gone without a hitch. Any potential compatibility issues with my AOC-SASLP-MV8?

No, the SASLP should work fine.

 

That's odd. I picked it from PCPP after filtering for ECC, and the details screen there also shows "ECC  = Yes". I'll have to lookup the part # to be sure.

Sorry, my bad.

Parts ordered! Came to just under $700 shipped (I held off on the 4TB WD Red until after the internal swap). Should be here beginning of next week!

 

One last question: I'm under the assumption that swapping out the internals will not affect my unRaid configuration, that I will simply be able to boot right back in normally once I've configured the new BIOS. I thought that I read somewhere a ways back that the specific port mappings for the SATA drives will adjust automatically under v6. Is this correct?

 

Thanks so much for all the help!

That's correct => just connect all your disks and boot to your USB flash drive and all should be well.

 

The disks are tracked by serial numbers, so UnRAID will automatically have everything in the correct slots regardless of which SATA controller or port they're attached to.

 

Have you upgraded from 4.7 yet?  Disk mapping was more complex then.

Yes, did that last night. Ran a Parity check overnight and all was well. Ran "New Permissions" this a.m. and am now fully operational on 6.1.3.

Have you upgraded from 4.7 yet?  Disk mapping was more complex then.

 

You apparently missed this:

 

...  I just completed my upgrade to v6 on my current setup and it seems to have gone without a hitch.

... I see VelcroBP already responded to your question.    I wrote that answer and then got distracted for a half hour or so and just posted it without checking for subsequent posts.