New Build for ~$800

[Benzino]

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc

Generic PC use, no gaming (period), light photo editing, streaming video, using vSphere console
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2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?

~$800, flexible on shipping and tax
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3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.

Fargo, ND. I have a Best Buy nearby, no Micro Center
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4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.

Case, Motherboard, CPU, RAM, Power Supply, Optical Drive, Video Card
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5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.

Reusing a 60GB SSD for boot and 1TB drive for data/programs
Reusing a monitor, keyboard, and mouse
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6) Will you be overclocking?

No
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7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?

22" @ 1680x1050
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8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

This week
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9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.

SATA 6 and USB 3
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10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?

I will need Windows 8.1, Pro preferably

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I already picked out the Corsair 200R as it matches the case I have for my VMware box.

 

[tiraides]

$303 - Intel Core i7-4770
$75 - MSI B85M-G43
$111 - 2x Crucial Ballistix Tactical LP 8GB DDR3 1600 (included 15% discount promo code EMCWWXW232, ends 11/7)
$15 - Lite-On iHAS124-04 (included $3 discount promo code EMCWWXW24, ends 11/7)
$45 - Corsair CX500 500W PSU
$60 - Corsair 200R ATX mid-tower case
$140 - Microsoft Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit OEM DVD
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$749 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates)

I (may have) went a bit overkill on the processor. If your virtualization needs aren't as heavy as I anticipated them to be, you could get by with the cheaper i5-4570 or the i5-4670. (I didn't go with the overclockable "K" series processors as they're missing some virtualization features.)

I intentionally went overkill on the RAM because it's on sale. You'd normally spend at least $150, though likely more these days, on a good 16GB dual-channel kit.

Out of curiosity, how full is the SSD?

 

[Benzino]

I have a separate ESXi whitebox. I only need to run the vSphere console on this machine to connect to the ESXi box. I wasn't clear, my apologies.

The 60GB SSD has nothing on it currently. I tested Windows 8.1 on my ESXi box and it only uses 13GB after full updates. With 55GB-ish available after formatting I figure that leaves enough room for updates. I plan on moving all user data and extra software I install to another drive. But, if 60GB is too small for a boot drive I can get another SSD.