VM Server build suggestions

ramdor

ramdor

ramdor

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Joined
22 May 2003
Posts
571
Hi folks,

I wonder if any of you VM server bods out there can offer some suggestions for a build.

We are looking for :

CPU or CPU's
Mobo (with on-board video, 2 x gig Ethernet)
Ram (ecc)

The machine will run 4 vms, one of them with 12gig at least allocation (SBS + Sql server), the other 3 probably 4 gigs each. We do want to future proof the build due to us potentially consolidating a number of stand alone boxes, so the total VM count may increase to 6-8. The 3 VM's will have 2 cores assigned each, the primary SBS/Sql will have at least 4.

It will be housed in an X-Case RM 424, 24 bay hotswap, with a 9280-24i4e MegaRaid SAS, which we already have.

We have a budget of about £4k, but ideally would prefer not to have to spend all of it if we can get away with it. That being said, we want to invest wisely to extend the lifetime of the machine.

Cheers,

Richie.
 
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You're looking at an actual server to do that properly and cheaply. Yes you could build a PC to do it, but it would be a massive waste and cost more.

While OC do sell serves, I think you should 'have a look round' - we cant link to competitors but, for example we use VMware at work and we use DELL kit.
 
OracIe said:
You're looking at an actual server to do that properly and cheaply. Yes you could build a PC to do it, but it would be a massive waste and cost more.

While OC do sell serves, I think you should 'have a look round' - we cant link to competitors but, for example we use VMware at work and we use DELL kit.
Click to expand...

I secound this!
dont build, buy with a warrenty, DELL, HP, Fujitsu
 
Agree with what's already been said. Buy quality hardware backed up with a same day warranty.

Also for SBS (I presume this is SBS 2011), I would recommend a minimum of 16GB to be comfortable.

You also mention SQL... I would personally run this on a separate VM (i.e. member server) to SBS for performance and also for integration reasons - SBS runs best without extra software: SBS already has its own instance of SQL Server 2008R2 Express that is used for Sharepoint, WSUS etc. - I would leave it well alone.

You can't buy SBS 2011 now, but if you have the SBS 2011 Premium add-on, that essentially gives you Server 2008 R2 on which you could run an instance of SQL.
 
Thanks for the replies, but we don't want to go with an off the shelf solution. We have looked into dells+whatnot but as it is a home+small business server, and we already have a 4u xcase+raid card, we figured we might as well just put something together ourselves.

We are thinking about the following :

- Supermicro X9DRH-ITF
- Supermicro active cooler
- Intel Xeon E5-2690v2 3.00GHz 10-Core
- 64gig of registered ECC 1600 ram, in 4 x 16gb modules, probably supermicro badged

Approx cost of the above is 1100 for ram+mobo, and 1500 ish for cpu.

Expansion possibility with more ram and another cpu.

What I am concerned about atm is the power usage and resultant heat from the cpu(s).
 
ramdor said:
...but we don't want to go with an off the shelf solution.
Click to expand...

You really shouldn't be looking at hardware cost, rather the financial impact of server downtime - if the business is heavily reliant on the server(s) then whitebox'ing/budling isn't the way to go; if downtime isn't an issue (replacing/RMA'ing parts etc) then 'go for it'.
 
You need to have a really good reason why a PowerEdge / Proliant won't suit your needs. Your reason isn't good enough.

Just buy something, and sell the case.
 
Caged said:
You need to have a really good reason why a PowerEdge / Proliant won't suit your needs. Your reason isn't good enough.

Just buy something, and sell the case.
Click to expand...

the good reason is the cash comes out of my pocket, not some multinational bank account ;)

...but yes, in an ideal world I know where you are coming from. It is not a mission critical server, so downtime (within reason) is not a problem.
 
Building your own can actually be more expensive than buying a Dell or HP, especially if you know where to shop to get good deals (on the Dell/HP). A build your own solution essentially has no warranty (RMA individual components can easily take more than a week), has not been tested as a stable group of components, is probably not very power-efficient or quiet, won't have nice things like sliding drive bays (hot plug or not), remote console (HP ILO, Dell DRAC), etc.

You are looking at a £1500 CPU yet you don't want to consider name brand servers -- makes it a bit difficult to give advice when we don't have reasonable requirements.
 
Words like "build your own" and "server" should never be in the same sentence for anything other than home builds, and even then there's enough pre-built cheap offerings to negate the need to build one.

If you're spending a few grand, the only sensible thing is to buy from one of the usual - Dell offer some absolutely solid / feature rich servers that would suit your needs.
 
HP currently have a promotion where the 2nd CPU is free (via cashback). You can get a DL380p Gen8 (an AMAZING piece of kit) for £1500 + VAT with a single E5-2620v2, 8GB of RAM (the server has 24 memory slots), SmartArray P420i with 1GB flash-backed write cache, and 3-year NBD warranty -- in other words, for 3 years HP will resolve ANY hardware issue within 24 hours. The 2nd CPU is effectively free, so you get dual E5-2620v2 for £1500 + VAT, which has more CPU power than a single E5-2690v2 (check cpubenchmark.net). Just buying the P420i and Quad Gigabit Ethernet alone would set you back several hundreds of pounds.

Please note, this is a loud machine, intended for a datacentre.
 
If you're worried about power consumption, noise etc. I'd suggest questioning if you actually need a physical box. If you've got a decent internet connection then Azure or AWS could give you the VMs and SQL Server that you need with the added advantage of being able to instantly add capacity if you need it and, just as important, scale back capacity when you don't.
 
Go for the DL380 G8 (I have a used G6 at home and it is a really nice server) and then use the XCase to build a storage server.

Supermicro X9SCM-iiF
Intel E3-1230 v2
Some ram
FC or Infiniband card if you are concerned about bandwidth.

Virtualise the storage server and you could also put some low requirement VMs on that box as well.

More options for the future. More scope for learning new tech and skills. Still under 4k.

RB
 
rotor said:
HP currently have a promotion where the 2nd CPU is free (via cashback). You can get a DL380p Gen8 (an AMAZING piece of kit) for £1500 + VAT with a single E5-2620v2, 8GB of RAM (the server has 24 memory slots), SmartArray P420i with 1GB flash-backed write cache, and 3-year NBD warranty -- in other words, for 3 years HP will resolve ANY hardware issue within 24 hours. The 2nd CPU is effectively free, so you get dual E5-2620v2 for £1500 + VAT, which has more CPU power than a single E5-2690v2 (check cpubenchmark.net). Just buying the P420i and Quad Gigabit Ethernet alone would set you back several hundreds of pounds.

Please note, this is a loud machine, intended for a datacentre.
Click to expand...

That is a nice deal. Unfortunately it has not made its way over to where I am :(.

RB
 
I can only echo what everyone else has said, go with a Dell or HP box. I wouldn't build my own server for home, yet alone work! It's end of year for Dell this week, so if you are spending five figures on a server you can get a good discount at the moment.

The CPU is the least important part. Focus on RAM, battery backed + cached RAID card, enterprise disks (SAS or SSD), redundant PSU's and network connectivity.
 
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