Just thought this would be a nice idea for a thread, people can post their own experiences and mods that have been implemented for no reason other than to get a job done, no matter how dirtily!
Case in point. Today I've started building up a test bed SAN environment, but obviously running server hardware (2x dual-core opterons) on a flat build on a desk is a) ugly, and b) loud! However this being a testbed (and therefore relatively unfunded) build, there was no way I'd be able to raise an order for a decent rackmount case (or indeed decent E-ATX case in any form factor).
So I've rummaged around the cupboards looking what we have, and stumble across a beige wonder. Now it's almost large enough inside to accomodate the motherboard, almost being the key here. The drive bays (all of them, 3.5" and 5.25" had to come out. Cordless drill comes out (in the office), and the rivets are removed, out come the cages. Motherboard is in... result!
The problem now is that there is nowhere for the drives (and the thing will have 14 of them!). A few more choice holes in the front of the case (behind the gaudy plastic front panel obviously), and the two OS drives (IDE no less) are in place, but they are close together and have no cooling, so a nice piece of 90º angled steel is the perfect candidate to hold an 80mm fan in front of the drives!
That's as far as I got today (other things to do as well), but as the pictures show, there are plans afoot to mount a further 8 drives on the top panel (and there will be some skillfully modded cooling for those drives also, but I'll add that to this thread when it's implemented.
So, have you guys ever "modded" something in a quick and dirty way, just to implement something that the case was definitely never designed to accommodate?
Case in point. Today I've started building up a test bed SAN environment, but obviously running server hardware (2x dual-core opterons) on a flat build on a desk is a) ugly, and b) loud! However this being a testbed (and therefore relatively unfunded) build, there was no way I'd be able to raise an order for a decent rackmount case (or indeed decent E-ATX case in any form factor).
So I've rummaged around the cupboards looking what we have, and stumble across a beige wonder. Now it's almost large enough inside to accomodate the motherboard, almost being the key here. The drive bays (all of them, 3.5" and 5.25" had to come out. Cordless drill comes out (in the office), and the rivets are removed, out come the cages. Motherboard is in... result!
The problem now is that there is nowhere for the drives (and the thing will have 14 of them!). A few more choice holes in the front of the case (behind the gaudy plastic front panel obviously), and the two OS drives (IDE no less) are in place, but they are close together and have no cooling, so a nice piece of 90º angled steel is the perfect candidate to hold an 80mm fan in front of the drives!
That's as far as I got today (other things to do as well), but as the pictures show, there are plans afoot to mount a further 8 drives on the top panel (and there will be some skillfully modded cooling for those drives also, but I'll add that to this thread when it's implemented.
So, have you guys ever "modded" something in a quick and dirty way, just to implement something that the case was definitely never designed to accommodate?
