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Given all my work on the previous build, I thought it may be time to create a new thread for the next build.
Version 2 of the storage server -
Link to old thread for continuity sake - http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=776778
Target Goals:
- 48 drive Hotswap capability
- Space dense. These rackmount enclosures have really come down in price, making them very attractive.
- Capability to add more enclosures if needed - via External PCI-e.
- Minimize power consumption - although a server/setup of this size is never really going to be "power efficient" per se, but all we can do is minimize it.
- One switch operation. The main server's power up/power down sequence should turn everything off/on
- SAS Connectivity - I know some of you might beat me up for abandoning e-SATA, but there's reasons. Primarily, the eSATA connection is fairly "flimsy". The connectors pop off every now and then, and the alarm bells start sounding, and the server starts screaming blue murder.
Products already selected:
- Supermicro SC836 series, 3U enclosures with 16 hotswap bays and SAS backplanes. I have 4 on order. (Why the 3U, and not the 846 series 4U with 24 hotswap? Cost. I can get these for a quarter of the price of that. All 4 of these are about the same price as a single 846 series enclosure. 64 hotswap bays vs 24...no comparison
)
- Motherboard - Is going to be a dual 771, 8 core motherboard, I'm still finalizing specific models
- CPUs - 50w socket 771 Xeon quad cores
- RAM - 8/16GB ddr-667 FBDIMMs (I know I know..they EAT power)
- Rest TBD.
More to come.
Version 2 of the storage server -

Link to old thread for continuity sake - http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=776778

Target Goals:
- 48 drive Hotswap capability
- Space dense. These rackmount enclosures have really come down in price, making them very attractive.
- Capability to add more enclosures if needed - via External PCI-e.
- Minimize power consumption - although a server/setup of this size is never really going to be "power efficient" per se, but all we can do is minimize it.
- One switch operation. The main server's power up/power down sequence should turn everything off/on
- SAS Connectivity - I know some of you might beat me up for abandoning e-SATA, but there's reasons. Primarily, the eSATA connection is fairly "flimsy". The connectors pop off every now and then, and the alarm bells start sounding, and the server starts screaming blue murder.
Products already selected:
- Supermicro SC836 series, 3U enclosures with 16 hotswap bays and SAS backplanes. I have 4 on order. (Why the 3U, and not the 846 series 4U with 24 hotswap? Cost. I can get these for a quarter of the price of that. All 4 of these are about the same price as a single 846 series enclosure. 64 hotswap bays vs 24...no comparison

- Motherboard - Is going to be a dual 771, 8 core motherboard, I'm still finalizing specific models
- CPUs - 50w socket 771 Xeon quad cores
- RAM - 8/16GB ddr-667 FBDIMMs (I know I know..they EAT power)
- Rest TBD.
More to come.