I have a Tyan KGT20MX Case laying around - It has a Sata backplane and support for 4 bays and is hotswappable. For a test rig, would that be a good start case?  I got it from the geeks (www.geeks.com) while considering building a small webserver for my Alpha Five software testing and development. unRaid is so much more fun, I kind of caught "the bug" and so I think I will do unRaid first. I also have a couple of WD 1.5 TB EARS Green drives...All I need is a good mobo (ATX/mATX/E-ATX - this case isn't too picky.) I am thinking 4 to 6 SATA-II onboard connectors. The case already has a 650 watt PSU. I think I want to run YAMJ eventually and perhaps a few more plugins.

 

You can take a peek at the case dimensions here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811151009

 

I have built several PCs, but never worked with a server that has a backplane...it should be interesting to play with. 

 

Any suggestions for a suitable CPU and Motherboard? I am kind of thinking along the lines of a triple core AMD (X3) and a Biostar or Gigabyte MB that can unlock the 4th core. I will likely be transcoding...there are many paths one might take - I don't want to seriously overbuy, but I do want flexibility. I eventually would like to archive my 700 DVDs/HD-DVDs/BluRays, photos, music, you name it on unRaid and stream it all over the house. We have a full array of devices to stream to...PS3s, XBOX 360, Wii, Patriot Box Office, PSPs, and a mixed architecture of Windoze and Macs.

 

I am thinking of using this build as a testbed and to figure out how to use unRaid with a modest investment - As a bonus, I get to learn something that is interesting. Any tips or suggestions you guys have for me are appreciated. I know the case is a serious limitation, but I will get to "re-purpose" it later, when I transplant my testbed into a different case (like a Norco 4220 or a 12 bay/16 bay 3U / 4U case) and build that webserver. 

 

Oh, yeah, I got the case CHEEP...unfortunately, it cost as much to ship as it did to buy! That sucker is HEAVY!

 

 

you could try the ASUS board I have listed below. There was an issue with the supermicro card and the board clashing but downgrading the firmware on the supermicro card and everything is working fine so far.

 

I will start doing level 2 testing on it when I get a chance.

 

I run YAMJ for my popcorn hours on it at the moment and I believe it has core unlocking stuff on it though I only run a sempron for low power.

 

Josh

Looks like a great case to start with.  You'll probably outgrow the 4 drive capacity in a few months, but that's no reason not to use it now.

 

My current favorite motherboard that is readily available is the ASUS M4A785-M.  Pretty cheap, and it has everything you need.  However, it maxes out at 16 drives.

 

A motherboard that will transplant nicely into a Norco 4220 or similar is the SUPERMICRO MBD-C2SEE-O.  A bit hard to find at the moment, but it will support 20+ drives and is generally available for under $100.  The board's only downside is the lack of IPMI, which most other Supermicro boards have.

 

Don't use Gigabyte boards unless you are absolutely sure you won't have HPA problems with them.  As you are shopping for a new board, I would recommend just avoiding Gigabyte altogether and saving yourself some time.

 

As for a CPU I would go for either the Sempron 140/Celeron 430 or the cheapest dual core Athlon/E3300 that you can find.  There's only a few add-ons that will really benefit from a faster CPU, the Sempron 140/Celeron 430 is enough to handle most of them.

 

2 - 4 GB of RAM will be plenty.  If you have any spare RAM laying around, use that.  Be careful of the Supermicro board's finickiness about RAM - you have to choose something off the approved list.

 

In general I would recommend against any core unlocking in server applications.  You want your server to run low power, and unlocking cores defeats this.  If you need a faster CPU, just buy the next level up.

Is it just me or does that case not have a standard IO shield knockout?

 

So if I'm not being dense here then Tyan lists these Motherboards as compatible.

 

You are right, you might need to take a dremel to it to make it work with a standard motherboard.

Yes - I already planned to do surgery on the case - the recommended boards are very expen$ive. Raj nailed it - I just want to get started and figure out how to implement and care for the array. This server case will eventually become the database server it was intended to be, and I will move the project into a proper case and add some real storage to the array.

 

I am actually thinking about removing the rear plate (or see if I can remove it with a dremel) and modding it so that I can cut down plates that come with motherboards and remount them...the rear plate is important to maintain proper airflow.

 

The backplane is the only thing that might give me trouble - never set one of those up before. It appears that you simply attach several SATA cables to the board and several power plugs (I saw 2 for sure, but I wasn't looking closely). I did like the way Tyan mounted the backplane on a 1/8" aluminum plate...nice and stiff.

 

There is a special on the Asus M4A785-M

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.580551

- with an X2 Regor processor for $115 and no shipping. All I need to pair with it is $50 worth of Memory...Don't think I can do much better than that.

 

Thanks all for the suggestions, they're all helpful. Keep them coming.

Looks like a good deal.  That CPU isn't as low power as the Sempron 140, but probably still worth it.  Maybe you could undervolt it or something.