Server OS

P4Clock

P4Clock

P4Clock

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Joined
6 Feb 2010
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Location
Barnsley
I have picked up a cheap u1 blade server of a pal via his work.
i am wanting to know the most simple OS to set up the server just for home use
 
what are you doing with it?
whats your knowledge like?

you could put a simple windows 8 or 10 install on it or try something like Ubuntu

Cheapist is a Linux Distro, windows is fairly simple to set up though.

you probably don't need a a full Server os unless you doing some more fancy things TBH.

if you find the model on the manufacturing website it will list which OS's they have tested with so there may be a good start, some server might have per-requisists to install before the OS. so its good to know which model it might be.

or completely different strategy would be to install a hyper visor solution then install which ever OS you want on top of that then there is less restrictions on the OS you want to use.
 
Ubuntu is just as easy to install as windows these days, for a home server no real reason not to use it.
 
Woden said:
Ubuntu is just as easy to install as windows these days, for a home server no real reason not to use it.
Click to expand...

i was thinking more along the lines of doing simple maintenance and setting up of software. if your not familiar with linux distros it can be quite daunting.
again its down to knowledge and what P4Clock wants to do. my assumption is P4Clock is primarily a windows user.
 
1u blade server? .... I'm hoping you just mean a 1u server as if it's a blade then you have other issues ...

What OS to use will depend entirely what you want to use it for and what your level of knowledge is. The things you can do on Windows and Linux are just about the same so if you are comfortable with one then use that. I would comment though if you are going to store important data on it then use something that you are comfortable troubleshooting if it goes wrong so that you can get your data back again.
 
i have only ever used windows so that would be best, the server is for backups and file storage.
I was going to get a nas and drop a few 1tb's in it, but when i was offered the server i thought i would be a good way to learn a new OS/system type as well as having all the benefits of the nas

Server = HP ProLiant DL140 G3
it came with a Small rack/case and switch.
the loft was fitted out a few years ago and i have dont nothing with it so going to dump all this up there.

i do have a unused win7 retail licence i would have just used that if i new i could. i was under the impression it have to be a dedicated sever os?
 
P4Clock said:
but home use its about 100 time more powerful than a nas box
Click to expand...

What processor has it got in there?

Granted you won't pick anything new up for that price, but if it's got a low/medium-end chip, it'll only be on par with processing power of a new system, albeit much more power hungry.

You can use your W7 OS if needed, doesn't have to be a server o/s to install on a server.
 
I would go for ESXi on a pen drive, then install whatever you want inside that, with the VMs stored on the HDDs. At least then you're not tied down to a single OS.

That's if you want to spend some time playing and setting up of course.
 
Semple said:
What processor has it got in there?

Granted you won't pick anything new up for that price, but if it's got a low/medium-end chip, it'll only be on par with processing power of a new system, albeit much more power hungry.

You can use your W7 OS if needed, doesn't have to be a server o/s to install on a server.
Click to expand...

it as dual quad core Xeon X5365, i am not saying it will be 100 time faster than a modern server but i was looking at a £90 Thecus NAS N2310.
if i find it to be power hungry i can take a cpu out
 
Craig321 said:
I would go for ESXi on a pen drive, then install whatever you want inside that, with the VMs stored on the HDDs. At least then you're not tied down to a single OS.

That's if you want to spend some time playing and setting up of course.
Click to expand...

just had a look at a 2hr set of tutorial and that looks fantastic. i will have to have a look into this
 
P4Clock said:
it as dual quad core Xeon X5365, i am not saying it will be 100 time faster than a modern server but i was looking at a £90 Thecus NAS N2310.
if i find it to be power hungry i can take a cpu out
Click to expand...
It's not the CPU that's power hungry. It's everything.

That Xeon is around 2x as powerful as the G1610T in the MicroServer Gen8, so given you have 2 of them, around 4x as powerful overall. But probably around 10x the power consumption, which isn't cheap in the UK. At 11p per kWh (what I pay for my electricity), 200W is £0.53 per DAY, or £193 per year. 200W adds up quick when it's running 24x7.

The £20 is worth paying just for the experience of playing with and setting up a proper server. But definitely not worth running 24x7.
 
rotor said:
It's not the CPU that's power hungry. It's everything.

That Xeon is around 2x as powerful as the G1610T in the MicroServer Gen8, so given you have 2 of them, around 4x as powerful overall. But probably around 10x the power consumption, which isn't cheap in the UK. At 11p per kWh (what I pay for my electricity), 200W is £0.53 per DAY, or £193 per year. 200W adds up quick when it's running 24x7.

The £20 is worth paying just for the experience of playing with and setting up a proper server. But definitely not worth running 24x7.
Click to expand...

I do take your point there buddy.

Edit:
I could have a sleep and wake timer? i work out of the house from 4pm and dont turn a system in the home on till after 8am so the server could be offline from 4:30pm till 7am. £197 per year would then be around £80
 
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