Building a home server.

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Bowhuntr11

[H]F Junkie
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Sep 18, 2006
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So PS-RaGe finally pushed me over the edge on getting a server...I have been on the limbo on getting one for awhile now. But, I really don't know anything about servers so I need help on parts. I have built plenty of computers and such, so I know a little.

I have 3 computers at the house. I want it to backup everything and I want to be able to download stuff to the server. Also I would like to be able to connect to it from work and play with files and such on it.

So I am thinking about Windows Home Server, but I heard if you want to copy something to your computer you have to copy a whole folder. I can't just copy a file from it. Is this correct? Or maybe I misinterpreted what was told to me. I think this would be stupid, but this is what I heard.

I am thinking at least 1TB of space. Maybe 4x250's or maybe 2-3x500's to start off with. At least 1gb of ram. Would prefer a Intel (maybe this?) but I don't mind AMD at all... I would also like a removable (hot/ez swap) hard drive rack with a good looking case.

The budget? Less than $800. Around $500-600 is best.

Please build me something.


(P.S. If you don't want to help then please just leave, I sometimes like giving people advice on parts to get. So hopefully someone else likes doing the same :D)
 
I think you can consider Buffalo Terrastation which is a NAS since your only need is to do file-sharing.
 
I've heard bad reviews of them...And I rather have a DIY Project to work on, I am currently bored and need something. Plus I have heard the off-the-shelf terrastations are kind of limited in what you can do....and that is never good for a person like me. I want to be able to do what I want.
 
Here's my advice / suggestion: (1) Pick some general core hardware which will get you lots of flexibility. Then do a skeleton build around that, trying it out, and seeing how you like some of the choices in practice. (2) Especially try out different OSs in unactivated trial mode. Even consider Vista (x64 is downloadable IIRC, and Vista to Vista can give very nice performance.). (3) Then firm up the decisions and finalize the project.

The CPU you chose should be fine. Add a modern Intel board with on-board graphics (or source a dirt-cheap/ancient PCI graphics card perhaps) and on-board Intel RAID 5 and gigabit. Get some compatible RAM. 1 GiB is plenty. Get less if you like. Then you have the key parts of step (1). Flesh it out with some drive selection and use an extra drive for the OS if possible. Get a decent efficient PSU, e.g. an Enermax Noisetaker 420W.

Then play around with the on-board RAID or Linux RAID, (Solaris anyone?) etc. (perhaps consider an add-on board for RAID) and the OS to firm up the decisions and budgeting. I'd think about the case / etc. as finishing touches to be spent on only when the internals are good.

Another thing to consider is backup of the server's original data. At minimum an external drive. At maximum another server altogether (which could have a much different design). This could be a big constraint on the budget, but a big plus in the long run. All the expenditure on a server is wasted if you lose all the data due an unfortunate incident when you don't have a separate backup.
 
Bowhuntr11 said:
So I am thinking about Windows Home Server, but I heard if you want to copy something to your computer you have to copy a whole folder. I can't just copy a file from it. Is this correct? Or maybe I misinterpreted what was told to me. I think this would be stupid, but this is what I heard
Click to expand...

He probably meant duplication, which is folder-level RAID-1 (os keeps at least 2 copies of everything on separate hard drives).

Here's a good prebuilt machine, you can probably build it yourself for $100 cheaper:

http://www.amazon.com/EX475-MediaSm...2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1194413752&sr=8-1
 
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Madwand, thanks for the suggestions...I will be looking at it alot more tomorrow when I am at work.

Xeth, I need to buy it from newegg...as they have earned almost every penny of my business for past experiences. Plus like I said, I would rather it be a DIY project.
 
maybe have a look at the link in my sig for my server.

as for OS, i was running win2k3 server and ran flawless, no hickups at all...but have now moved on to unRaid for protection of all my media..will update my thread soon for that...

for your needs, you dont need anything fancy, get a mobo with 8 sataII ports (some new ich9 have 8 internal sataII ports and are below $100), cheap compatible ram, cheap c2d or maybe a higher clocked p4 and maybe this case...which will also come in handy if you ever decide to put in hotswap bays since it has 9 5.25bays.
 
How does this look?

Server Parts


And I need to find a case...Needs to be cheap.

<>< - That case you recommended doesn't have good reviews and people say that the motherboard setup on it is wrong.
 
My file server uses an Enermax Chakura (sp?) -- I got it on sale for $70, but I think the normal sale price is double that. It's nice because although it only has five 5.25" bays, it has a rail system that allows you to change the pinout on the rails so you can accomodate certain multi-bay backplanes and whatnot. It also has six internal 3.5" bays which are mounted perpendicular with the case and you can pretty much fit any motherboard in existance in without worrying about protruding hard drives. FWIW.
 
you dont have to get the modular version of the seasonic, look at the s12 (instead of m12), they are cheaper and i beleive now are coming with a rebate. PCCP and OCZ (i believe sesonic makes ocz as well) are other good brands of PSUs.
the case is just a cheap one i found w/ 9 5.25bays. For a server i think all 9.25 bays is best b/c it will all you to put in either 3in2 drive cages or 5in3 hotswap cages for future if you ever run out of space inside.

but yeh basically your set, you have a 1TB server for $600.
 
well, 330w is fine if you only gonna have your 4-8 drives (no soundcard/videocard/ocing etc). but if down the line you ever want to add more drives, you don't want to have to change out your psu....and not having enough power esp for your HDDs is a sure way to lose data.

i'd suggest looking into atleast a 500w PSU.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151034
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341010
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703005

some of the above have mail in rebates, making it a little cheaper.
 
Taking notes here too as I'm also interested in WHS. Would the server benefit any with dual core CPU vs single core? And would it see any benefit in using 2gb vs 1gb of ram? Are there any anti viruses that are compatible with WHS yet?
 
I'm currently in a WHS build project, currently installing a "test" version as I type.
Parts are rather similar to your original idea...

Intel E2160
2gig Kingston DDR2 667Mhz (recycled)
Intel DG965WH (recycled)
2 x 500 gig WD drives (recycled and plan to expand later)
1 x 100gig 2.5" disc (OS installation)
Seasonic M12 500 (recycled)
Antec SOLO case.
 
dual core isnt required, a higher mhz single core would be fine and cheaper, i just got the c2d for my build b/c it was cheap and runs cooler than any other chips.

as for ram, if in windows, more ram the better for a server environment (ran in ddr2 w/ matched pairs).

i'm in the process of switching from server 2003 to unRaid, and unraid only recognizes 1gb of RAM, so i ordered 2 512mb sticks to run in dual chan mode.
 
Rule of thumb on HDD's is to assume 2.5 Amps of 12 Volt power per HDD during startup.
 
<>< said:
well, 330w is fine if you only gonna have your 4-8 drives (no soundcard/videocard/ocing etc). but if down the line you ever want to add more drives, you don't want to have to change out your psu....and not having enough power esp for your HDDs is a sure way to lose data.

i'd suggest looking into atleast a 500w PSU.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151034
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341010
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703005

some of the above have mail in rebates, making it a little cheaper.
Click to expand...

Then I think I will just take the 330w, as I don't plan on going over 1.5-2.0 TB's anytime soon.

Now I just need to find a cheaper case that will take those Back Planes.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811128024

Think that case will do?

And what about this backplane?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817119403

P.S. Do ya'll think on Black Friday there would be some good enough prices to justify waiting?
 
any case with 5.25 bays will do, so thats up to you on how much you want to spend.

there are many backplanes to choose from, that one looks fine as well, it's just a 3 drive version of the one i use. if your only using 2-3 drives, i don't think you really need to get hotswap bays...i have 9 drives in my setup now and for me its worth it b/c it saves a lot of wiring inside since only 2 sata power connectors are required to power 5 drvies in my bays.
 
ok so...is it really recommended to have to OS on a separate hard drive? As I was thinking about getting the recertified 74GB Raptor for the OS. It is either that or get the backplane.

While I know I don't need the backplane right now...I eventually want to add more hard drives as I pick them up and thought it would make it alot easier and I think it looks awesome. But the 74gb raptor might have to take priority over it. Think so?




Or...I can take the 250gb out of my current gaming computer put it in the server for OS, and put the raptor in my gaming computer. So that way I stay with a quick gaming computer and have more room on my server....
 
uhh, a raptor? for a server drive? negative....
if you really want it on a different drive, just snag a cheap 30gb+ hdd for the OS.
on my 2k3server setup, i just partitioned 30gb on one of my 500gb hdds for the OS, and rest for data, worked fine for me.

oh and trust me, raptors are a lil overrated, i have one in my other system (see sig), and would not buy one again, no real world performance gain and games load a second or 2 faster...which i dont think is worth the extra cost.
 
<>< said:
uhh, a raptor? for a server drive? negative....
if you really want it on a different drive, just snag a cheap 30gb+ hdd for the OS.
on my 2k3server setup, i just partitioned 30gb on one of my 500gb hdds for the OS, and rest for data, worked fine for me.
Click to expand...


Or...I can take the 250gb out of my current gaming computer put it in the server for OS, and put the raptor in my gaming computer. So that way I stay with a quick gaming computer and have more room on my server....

^^^ I ninja edited that in my other post while you were responding. Think thats the best bet?
 
uhm, i'd save that money on the raptor cuz your games aren't gonna load that much faster or make you system any zippier (in real world ofcourse), you can read up on that on your own and you'll come across many opinions...i fell prey to all the ppl praising it, when in the real world it doesn't really matter.

but neway, instead use that money towards another 500gb hdd or the hotswap bay, that's what i would do, but thats up to you.
 
I agree, don't worry about the raptor. Also keep in mind, although the backplane may "look awesome", you're on a budget. I know you said it may come in handy, but I'd be putting the money into things you *know* you'll need. I can see having a removable drive bay so you can backup drives and such and just remove the drive... but do you really need a whole backplane?
 
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