niels Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Hey everybody, in the line of the episodes, I was already planning to build a "Virtualization server". But I'm not that good with the hardware B). So could you guys help me out making a great setup ? I was considering one of the following motherboards : Asus P8P67 MSI P67A-GD65 Asrock P67 Extreme4 Biostar TP67XE With this processor : Intel Core i7 2600K Together with 8 - 16 gb of Ram, but I'm not sure what kind of brand to use, but which one do you guys have the most positive experience with ? I was thinking to use a relative small Hard Drive like this one for example, low budget + SATA-600 interface : Western Digital Caviar Black WD6402AAEX, 640GB. And setup a second server with a bigger hard drive (I already have a machine running), and install the Gluster Storage Platform on this one. I founded this processor cooler Scythe Mugen 2 Rev. B and for the power supply I had this one in mind Antec TruePower TP-650 or something similar. On top of that I'm going to install VMWare vSphere or better know as ESXi 4.1 Hypervisor. Please let me know what you guys think, because I'm a noob if it comes to hardware. Thanks a lot, Regards Niels Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianzimm Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 It just depends on how much you want to spend, let me know and I can give you some hardware ideas... You may want to read about this http://www.neowin.net/news/intel-identifies-major-flaw-in-sandy-bridge-chipset-begins-recall before you pick a motherboard for that CPU you want. Here is my next Esxi 4.1 machine that will be going in to a Datacenter. 1 x Intel SR1600URHSRNA 1U Barebone Server $899 1 x Intel ASR1500PASBP Passive Hot-Swap Backplane $79.99 2 x Intel Xeon E5620 Westmere 2.4GHz LGA 1366 80W Quad-Core Server Processor BX80614E5620 $389.99 4 x Kingston 12GB (3 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) ECC Unbuffered Server Memory Model KVR1333D3E9SK3/12G $199.99 1 x 1TB HD 2 x 500GB HD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infiltrator Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 (edited) Definitely go with the Asus P8P67, they make a very good and stable board. However, the only issue I see with the board, is compatibility with the ESXi package. You might want to go with a proper board for this scenario. Edit: Here is a list of compatible hardware =-1&datePosted=-1&partnerId[]=-1&formFactorId[]=-1&filterByEVC=0&filterByFT=0&min_sockets=&min_cores=&min_memory=&rorre=0"]Compatible hardware This is what i'm getting for my server room, totally compatible with ESXI Edited January 31, 2011 by Infiltrator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niels Posted February 1, 2011 Author Share Posted February 1, 2011 Thanks for the fast reply, both the system you guys mentioned are great :D, @infiltrator : I already thought about the compatibility of the hardware with ESXi but I didn't checked it. I had a quick look a the ASUS Server you mentioned, but it is a little expensive. I already look for a used Dell server. Or another used server but it a lot of money mostly between 1000$ and 2000$ for something a little bit decent to run at home. I think this ASUS System is probably in the same price range, isn't it ? @brianzimm: Very nice setup, like I mentioned, already looked for a server but I'm searching for something a little bit cheaper :D. I'm only a student a the moment, and my parents are always furious when they find out I'm again buying some new stuff. Two weeks back, I improved my home network, installing some Cat 6 cables, a Cisco WRVS4400N router and a Cisco SG 100-16 switch. So my network is ready for the server, but my back account isn't :D Any other advise ? But now Infiltartor mentioned the ASUS TS700-E6/RS8 I also looking into that one, it's an amazing piece :D but it also comes with a price Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamo Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 I dont know what products Darren used in last episode, but he build 3 servers under 1200$ so one might be only 400$, which is pretty cheap. I dont know it those machines are powerfull enough for your needs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mux Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 (edited) I swear I saw a similar thread somewhere on the same subject. If you want to build an ESXi machine for personal use, check out: http://www.vm-help.com/esx40i/esx40_whitebox_HCL.php I dont know what products Darren used in last episode, but he build 3 servers under 1200$ so one might be only 400$, which is pretty cheap. I dont know it those machines are powerfull enough for your needs. Don't forget that Darren is also using Proxmox. He also got a sweet deal on the CPUs and good prices on pretty much everything else from the sound of things. Edited February 1, 2011 by mux Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niels Posted February 1, 2011 Author Share Posted February 1, 2011 @mux Thanks for the link appreciate it :D. Do you have a "Virtualization server" already ? If so can you share you setup ? @Jarmo Like mux mentioned, Darren is using ProxMox, but I want to use VMWare ESXi you get also install this for free :D without the need to hack the software. You got to register and get a FREE license, you can use that license to install your server with ESXi and some features won't be available. But who cares it's form home use, the reason why I want to use VMWare is that it's the defacto standard when it comes to virtualizing. The performance is great, only downside is that the vSphere client is a little bit complicated but if some of you want I can share 3 vSphere training DVD's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niels Posted February 2, 2011 Author Share Posted February 2, 2011 This is what i'm getting for my server room, totally compatible with ESXI I have been looking into your suggestion, where can I configure this PC ? Because if I read the spec on the Asus website you pay over 1000$ only for the case and motherboard :o And I want to have an idea how much a decent setup of this system would cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infiltrator Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 I dont know what products Darren used in last episode, but he build 3 servers under 1200$ so one might be only 400$, which is pretty cheap. I dont know it those machines are powerfull enough for your needs. Correct if I am wrong, but I am pretty sure Darren had an Asus motherboard, plus he did not use VMware but ProxMox, as the virtualization platform. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infiltrator Posted February 2, 2011 Share Posted February 2, 2011 I have been looking into your suggestion, where can I configure this PC ? Because if I read the spec on the Asus website you pay over 1000$ only for the case and motherboard :o And I want to have an idea how much a decent setup of this system would cost. This server case that I am getting is quite expensive, as it is now, it only comes with the board, power supply and case. The rest, CPU, Memory and Hard drive is going to cost a little over $2000, to get it up and running. I will find out for you what type of motherboard, this server has and will post it up for you. Besides, you can always go with ProxMox since it's compatible with most motherboards to date. And it won't cost you a lot either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thamdhz Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 I am also in the same situation with trying to build an esxi server for my own personal lab/home use. I work with vmware and want a esxi box at home. I know HW compatibility is a real pain.. thats why I use VM-Help for info ..great resource.. and it seems like most mobos either have a problem with nics or Disk controllers...The free esxi OS isn't exactly lacking in any additional features. When you get a license for Vcenter server then you can really use the neat features with more than one esxi host such as clustering, vmotion, HA , etc..(wish it were free). If I didn't have to install esxi at home for the knowledge, I would totally use proxmox.. infact I plan on having another hdd with proxmox on it for when I want to play with it..until I have money for more than one 64bit virtualization DT .. I'm stuck with the esxi box.. let me us know what HW you go with ..good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3TeK Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 You could always buy our server. AMD Quad Quad-Core Opteron 8354 2.2Ghz w/48gb ram and 4TB of hard drive space in a 1U :-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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