Spec me a home server please

adam_m

adam_m

adam_m

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Joined
2 Dec 2009
Posts
159
Hi all,

About to build a Mini PC to run Windows 7, but it's primary use is a media center server that'll also be a download box, iTunes machine and possibly a few other bits. It'd also be nice if it was gutsy enough (or easily upgraded) to be a capable HTPC machine down the line if I so choose. I'd also like it to be silent, and use as little power as possible.

I'm guessing I start with a Mini ITX board but other than that I'm a little stuck!

..already have a large HDD so dont need that. Also have a couple of sticks of 1Gb DDR3 laptop RAM so if the mobo took that it'd be nice too :)

Cheers!
A
 
i had the same trouble check out the facture cases there £199 though but suppot 3.5" disks & 1 SSD with ITX motherboard
i ended up with a MATX case that i got for £10 & done it up :)

i havent bought the parts yet but i doubt i will be going with Atom (wish i could)
 
A few questions. How much storage space are you looking for? This will decide how many drive bays you need. If you plan to turn it into a HTPC in the future would you want a blu ray/dvd drive. Does it have to be mini-ITX form factor? If space isn't an issue then I would go for something larger as the cost will be cheaper.
Here are a few ideas for cases:

Lian-Li PC-Q08 - this case will probably be available soon. It has space for 6 3.5" drives plus one 5.25" drive bay. It supports mini-itx boards and also has room for a full size atx power supply. I think it comes with a default 140mm fan at the front (resulting in good but quiet cooling) plus room for a 120mm fan on top.

On the other hand you could buy a Fractal Design Array case. OCUK don't stock them but that may change in the future. This case doesn't have a cd drive bay which is fine if your running a server but not good if you plan to add a bluray/dvd drive in the future. It comes with a built in 300W SFX power supply, takes 6 3.5" drives and has a large 140mm cooling fan in the front. However I remember reading a review which stated that despite the large fan it is quite noisy.

As for the motherboard and anything else it depends on the answer to the questions at the start. If you plan to have a few drives plus a cd drive your gonna need a mini-itx board that has enough SATA ports. You'll find that most low end ones only have 2 or 3 which will limit your future upgrade ability. If you have enough cash you could splash out and buy a Zotac H55-ITX which has 6 SATA ports but is quiet pricey at £110. This coupled with an i3 would be overkill if your just wanting to run a server but is a possibility if you want an HTPC. On the other hand you could buy a less powerful itx board and install a SATA card to give you more ports. The downside is that most ITX boards come with weak graphics so if you wanted to add a graphics card for use as an HTPC your stuck as there is normally only one PCI-Express port.
 
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