FS: Home Server core - Ci7 4390k, P9X79-E WS, 32GB, $900

[dgingeri]

I have here a great core set for a home server and/or virtualization host

First, the CPU is a Core i7 4930k, 6 cores with HT and quad channel DDR3 memory controllers for up to 64GB of memory. Pretty well known. Supports VT-x and VT-d for virtualization. It was briefly overclocked to 4.3GHz, but servers really don't need a fast CPU, so I clocked it back down to stock when I put it on server duty jsut a few months later. http://ark.intel.com/products/77780/Intel-Core-i7-4930K-Processor-12M-Cache-up-to-3_90-GHz

Next is the mainboard, an Asus P9X79-E WS. This board is the badass of the x79 boards. Thanks to two PLX PEX8747 bridge chips, this board has a total of 7 full length slots, Slots 1, 3, 5, and 7 are all x16. The center slot, 4, is a direct connect slot to the CPU while slots 2 and 6 share 8 lanes with the slots directly below them. If all slots are used, they're x16, x8, x8, x8, x16, x8, x8. It also has a Marvel 9230 SATA controller to gain a total of 10 SATA ports, 6 of which are 6Gb. I know from experience that these work great with Windows Server 2012r2 storage spaces, and I can get 500MB/s with 6 1TB WD blue laptop drives in a simple volume. This board is great for multiple hardware RAID controllers and 10Gbe NICs, however, such devices do get quite hot, and even overheat, without direct cooling. This does include the driver CD, manual, and IO port shield. Fully supports VMWare ESXi 5.5 and 6.0 as well as Windows Server 2008r2, 2012r2, and 2016. I have tested them all. It is currently running Windows Server 2012r2 with a Hyper-V VM running Pfsense for my router. Such boards are selling on Ebay for about $600 right now. https://www.asus.com/us/Motherboards/P9X79E_WS/

Finally, I have 32GB of GSkill low latency (7-8-8-24) DDR3-1600 Trident X memory in a quad channel kit. The low latency offsets the extra latency of having 4 memory channels to create great performance. This kit is a perfect match for the Core i7 4930k. https://www.gskill.com/en/product/f3-1600c7q-32gtx

The whole set is in use as my server right now, and running super stable with no crashes since it started server duty last February. so I'd rather not part it out or take it apart for pics. I can take pics of the running system if you like, but after I get home from work. $900 for the set, shipped.

 

[dgingeri]

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[dgingeri]

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[dgingeri]

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[Bandalo]

You may want to look at the price a bit...You can get the X99 version of that board for $400 new at Amazon..and $350 for a 5820k, plus $250 for 32GB DDR4 3000 kit...

 

[dgingeri]

I appreciate the recommendation, but the big reason why x79 boards are big for home servers right now is because of the DDR3 support. DDR3 is running cheap because it is on its way out, as well as many Xeon E5 v2 chips out on ebay for very cheap giving big core counts for VM hosts. (The Core i7 4930k is good for a VM host too because of a higher clock rate than the Xeons, even though it has fewer cores.) That board is still selling in the $500-600 range on ebay right now.

In addition, there have been issues with X79 boards and damaged sockets, so the number of CPUs has gone up while the number of boards that support them has gone down.

The board is not the negotiable part of this set. The memory and the CPU are, to an extent. Nobody has replied back with a counter offer at this point.

I'd even be willing to entertain selling the board and memory together without the CPU, if necessary, but there is a danger in taking out the CPU.

I'd only be willing to sell if I can get enough to get an upgrade on my main system. A 7700k, Z270 board, and memory to go with it would run about $700, and I'd like a little more to go toward a NVMe SSD.

 

[mkrohn]

don't take out the CPU, the xeons have wrecked the value of that chip. The mobo is ridiculously hard to find for reasonable rates for exactly the reasons you outlined. Bandaio doesn't know what he's talking about and those kinds of posts aren't allowed here. Ebay market with these kinds of things recently went upward. I've been watching and really wishing I'd have jumped on some of those thinkstation S30's with the 1660V2's when they were under $400 about 2 months back. The overclocking features are what drive the boards into ridiculous pricing.