How to build a simple home server?

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james111

Limp Gawd
Joined
Oct 11, 2005
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I'm looking to build an idiot proof home server like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16859105420

I'm going to be upgrading, so the parts that I'm using now will be free, these parts include:

-C2D E4300
-Asus P5Q-Pro
-4gb ddr 2 pc2 6400
-1tb hard drive
-ATI 4850
-Corsair hx520 PSU
-extra case

How hard would it be to make a home server just like the hp one? What am I missing?
 
Dump the 4850 for something low power and fanless and you'll be better off. Probably don't need 4GB of RAM either.

Use the savings to add a second 1TB HDD for duplication.
 
james111 said:
How hard would it be to make a home server just like the hp one? What am I missing?
Click to expand...

Not that hard really. All you need to is a copy of WHS as AcidBurn burn said. However your server will be more optimal if you went with a low power video card like the HD4350 or HD3450 like aldamon said.

Then from there, just add hard drives. Simple as that. However if you want hot-swap capability like the HP MSS has, you just need to add one of these 5in3 bays:
$74 - Norco SS-550 5 Bay Hot-Swapable SATA Backplane

@ nitrobass24
YGPM :)
 
Danny Bui said:
Then from there, just add hard drives. Simple as that. However if you want hot-swap capability like the HP MSS has, you just need to add one of these 5in3 bays:
$74 - Norco SS-550 5 Bay Hot-Swapable SATA Backplane
Click to expand...

If you end up ordering that 5in3: Save 8% w/ cashback by ordering from their eBay store. It's what I did...unfortunately 1 of my LED lights was stuck on so I'm waiting for a replacement.
 
As an eBay Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
aldamon said:
Dump the 4850 for something low power and fanless and you'll be better off. Probably don't need 4GB of RAM either.

Use the savings to add a second 1TB HDD for duplication.
Click to expand...

This. Th'fuck do you need a 4850 for a home server? :confused:
 
As long as we're rating WHS builds, how does mine look.

Gigabyte G41M-E2SL
Pentium Dual Core E5200
Corsair 2gb Memory
Cooler Master 330 Elite Case
IDE DVD Drive
WD 250gb Cavair Blue - OS drive
WD Green 1.5tb - add more as needed
350w Cooler Master power supply I have lying around.

Total cost - $410
 
Man why are you giving him such a hard time over the card. It's probably the only spare video card he has. And how much will it really cost him to keep it powered 24/7? $3 a month? Big deal...
 
estrada42 said:
As long as we're rating WHS builds, how does mine look.

Gigabyte G41M-E2SL
Pentium Dual Core E5200
Corsair 2gb Memory
Cooler Master 330 Elite Case
IDE DVD Drive
WD 250gb Cavair Blue - OS drive
WD Green 1.5tb - add more as needed
350w Cooler Master power supply I have lying around.

Total cost - $410
Click to expand...

Not that good. For the same price as taht G41 mobo + E5200/E5300 combo, you can get this faster AMD X2 240 + mobo combo:
$120 - AMD Athlon II X2 240 CPU + Gigabyte GA-MA785GM-US2H AMD 785G HDMI mATX motherboard Combo

Also, Coolermaster's low wattage PSUs are of mediocre quality. Not something I'd use for 24/7 usage like a server would, even a lower power one. I'd recommend the Corsair 400CX as a replacement:
$50 - Corsair 400CX 400W PSU

In addition, are you buying that 250GB drive new? If so, ditch it. You can get the faster and larger WD3200AAKS drive for just $5 more:
$50 - Western Digital WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

And finally, the Elite 335 case is actually cheaper than the Elite 330 case once you factor in shipping:
$40 - Cooler Master Elite 335 RC-335-KKN1-GP ATX Case

If you already bought those parts, disregard everything I said except for the PSU: I'd still dtich the Coolermaster PSU no matter what.
 
TheSpoon said:
Man why are you giving him such a hard time over the card. It's probably the only spare video card he has. And how much will it really cost him to keep it powered 24/7? $3 a month? Big deal...
Click to expand...

The 4850 is a gaming card. He doesn't need gaming capability in a server. It's also very hot, uses a lot of power compared to a proper card, and is loud. $36 a year might seem trivial, but it's $36 more a year than needs to be spent. Also, the card still has enough value to sell and buy a proper card with a fraction of the money left over. I use a fanless 7300LE in my WHS and it was $10. It uses less than 10W of power and is silent.
 
I actually yanked the video card out of my WHS once it was set up. It was fanless and all it was doing was adding heat.
 
You should load up your WHS with GTX275s and run F@H like me :)

or just run without to save electricity.

There is really no need for a video card in a WHS
 
If the HD4850 is there so you can game on your server, that's not recommended to mix your workstation and server into one machine, it just complicates the process. It should be fine for the first-time setup just so you have a video signal to set up shit on, but once you're done, you can either use Windows Remote Connect or VNC to manage your server from there. No need for an additional set of monitors, keyboards, and mouses.
 
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