Just a heads up these are really stupid questions but I’m brand new to servers and VMs in general. I initially just planned to use it for storage and as a media server but the features all peak my interest and I have some questions that I tried to Google but couldn’t find an exact answer. To preface I’m building a separate server machine with the following specs:

 

Ryzen 1700X

Gigabyte Aorus B450 M

32GB Corsair LPX 2400 DDR4

2 x 500GB Samsung 860 Evo (Cache)

5 x 8TB WD Red (Storage)

 

Now I have my full everyday rig I planned to use to access the server via web ui etc:

 

i7 4700K

Asus Z87-C

32GB Corsair 2133 DDR3

EVGA GTX 660

256GB Samsung 840 Pro (System)

1TB WD Black (Storage)

 

Yes I know the server is way more powerful than my main rig for the time being but I built it mid 2013 with the main purpose of music production and will be upgrading at some point.

 

Now do I need a GPU in my server to do the following:

Access the UnRAID web console?

Run VMs for Windows 10, OSX, etc?

- I would be looking to use them to run various apps maybe even use Logic in OSX VM if that’s possible. I doubt I’d try to game in them but would like to experiment with it.

 

The reason this is a bit confusing for me is there is no output directly from the server to a monitor and I have a GPU in my main rig to output to my monitor. But then I stopped to think and obviously you need your CPU in the server to run it and it probably works the same way with a GPU, correct? Wherever I look for this specific issue on Google it usually is people who are using and outputting directly from the server machine to a monitor like in the Linus Tech Tips videos.

 

Basically can I get graphical output accessing my server and VMs via a web browser without a GPU in my server rig? If I do need one, how powerful would it need to be? I was thinking a GT 1030 for its low power consumption and better than integrated GPU performance. I’m not planning on trying any heavy gaming or rendering on the server so that’s not a concern although if it could be used to assist in video transcoding that would be a bonus.

 

Again I know this is incredibly noobish but I just need an answer to get this finished at this point. I would take my GTX 660 and put it in the server to do the initial setup by the way. This is from that point forward. Thanks in advance for any help.

The R7 1700x requires a dedicated GPU to even boot as it is not an APU so I don't think you can configure unRAID then pull the GPU if I understand your question correctly but I'll be interested to hear from others as I've never tried that approach with any of my Ryzen rigs As far as power it does not need to be that powerful unless your looking for performance in some activity which sounds like you don't need

A GPU is not required to boot and run unRAID. I have a system with a Ryzen 2700 and Gigabyte Aorus AX370 Gaming 5 running completely headless. As you are aware, unRAID is configured through the WebGUI, which is accessed over a network and does not require a GPU to work. VMs can also be run without a GPU, they are accessed over the network (on another pc) via a VNC connection. For things like web browsing, file manipulation, and basic application usage a VM does not need a GPU. To do things like Gaming, Video editing, or any graphics intensive application a VM would need a dedicated GPU (passed through directly to the VM) and a monitor(s) keyboard mouse etc. (You would access your VM locally as a workstation rather than over the network on another computer)

14 minutes ago, primeval_god said:

A GPU is not required to boot and run unRAID.

Perfectly correct, however some motherboards won't boot without a GPU, or need a BIOS option changed to boot without one. It's always best to have a GPU available to temporarily use to troubleshoot.

Thank you for the help. I ended up grabbing a GT 1030 yesterday to use and pass through for any time I need it.

 

The way VNC worked is what I didn't get at first. Now I see there are the other ways (Splashtop, etc) of connecting remotely for better performance using passed through hardware. Going to install UnRAID now and can't wait to get started with it.