Windows Home Server (Build / Spec recommendations welcome)

spikey57

spikey57

spikey57

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Hi, I am yet another long time lurker, avid follower of threads and not entirely sure whether this would be the correct place to put this thread.

But alas it is a server related question, even though its going to be for domestic use.

I've been reading up about this somewhat unknown product from Microsoft. But would really like some advice on it, as I have never really dabbled with servers before, except for briefly with my university project for all of a whopping 1 week when I chucked together a server, and several computers for a wireless network.

In the not so distant future, probably early next year, (Jan/Feb) I will be building a pc, and server for home use. I have a few bits of old kit lying around, and read that WHS [excuse the short hand, as Typing Windows Home Server ten billion times will get a little tedious =)] doesn't require an overly demanding high spec to run P3 1GHz and half a gig of RAM but obviously the more the better.

I currently have:

- P4 1.6ghz processor single core
- Motherboard, it's fairly old, and not 100% sure what make/model it is.
- Pretty sure (its been a while since I looked at it) it supports DDR RAM only.

- 250GB WD Hard disk IDE (Probably be used for the OS).


The processor will be kept more than likely, and hard disk will be kept, but the rest of the stuff can be changed. I know that DDR RAM is hard to come by these days, with DDR3 slowly being made available etc and DDR being quite pricey.

Probable Budget for this setup would be around £400 max for all the basic stuff, I have a monitor already that can be used for the initial setting up of it.

The things that will be needed will be:

- New motherboard
- RAM
- Additional hard disks
- Case & PSU
- To be as energy efficient as possible.
- Maybe a new processor, a cheap dual core??

What it will be used for:[b/]

Will be used as a media storage, so the usual:

- Music
- Video (HD & SD)
- Documents
- Photos
- A download box

The only reason I chose WHS is simply because it seems to be the 'Server for idiots' Package. RAID without the RAID, and the setup appears to be quite easy (famous last words :o ) as well as backing up data etc.

My only real issue is probably the security issues that come with such a package be it that only a Windows Live login is required from my understanding anyways.

Anyhow, if you've read this far, any help would be much appreciated!!



spikey57
 
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tbh mate, I've WHS running perfectly on a P3 800 with 256MB ram and 4x 250GB hard disks! just stick some drives in the old PC and away you go! once you've installed it dissconnect the DVD drive and put another disk on!
 
Sounds like a plan. Thanks for the advice. I'll probably be getting another case though, as the one I have at the moment is held together with ducktape :D

I know that the details of my system spec are a tad vague. I'll probably look at it in closer detail tonight or over the weekend at somepoint.

Any recommendations on a case, ideally something small, discrete and quiet but with enough room to fit say 4 hard disks?

Max budget for case would probably be about £80
 
VeNT said:
tbh mate, I've WHS running perfectly on a P3 800 with 256MB ram and 4x 250GB hard disks! just stick some drives in the old PC and away you go! once you've installed it dissconnect the DVD drive and put another disk on!
Click to expand...

really? i tried install WHS on an old machine with 256mb ram, it will NOT let me install unless the machine has 512mb or more
 
I also thought that with it being a Microsoft, I use the rule of thumb:

What ever Microsoft say, take the figure and double it.

I mean look at Vista, they say 1GB, but for it to run nicely and to make it useable, you need 2GB.

I'm guessing that to be on the safe side, I'd stick 1GB in.

Upon further inspection of my hardware the pc is:

- An Intel P4 1.6GHz Socket 478
- A motherboard that only supports SD RAM

I really don't have the patience to hunt around for SDRAM, so i'm thinking of building a whole new rig for this, at least a DDR2 system so that it'll be upgradable in the future, with SATA capability.

I'm guessing that I could probably get a system built for arount the £250 mark??
 
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Any old motherboard from the last 4 years will likely have SATA and DDR, that was the only thing i looked out for when putting mine together.

AMD Sempron mobile 3000
Cheapo mATX mboard
Bought 512 ram off the MM for £5
2 x 500G samsung HDs

Total cost of the system minus the HDDs was £80, and i could have done that cheaper if i'd really searched for a bargain.

You only want to spend more if you're streaming HD media, otherwise any old stuff off the MM/fleabay is fine.
 
I went B Grade, picked up an X2 and an SLI motherboard for cheap. I did upgrade to 2gb ram and a 6000 X2 as I started folding. Now I use whatever AMD's equivalent of Speedstep is and it uses ~80W (That includes my switch, router and Wireless Access Point). The RAM was from the MM too. I do stream media around the house to my PS3 and do want to stream HD media. Mine is complemented with 3x500Gb drives with space for a lot more. (Thats why I went with an LI board, I can fit 2x fast controller cards in). Even my Vid card was a PCI one I had lying around.
Hows this:

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4200+ 2.20GHz (Socket AM2) - OEM £39.99
(£46.99) £39.99
(£46.99)
**B Grade** Foxconn 6150M2MA-KRS2H Micro ATX (Socket AM2) PCI-Express DDR2 £14.99
(£17.61) £14.99
(£17.61)
**B Grade** Antec NSK 4480 Mini Tower Case (Silver) - 380W Eart (CA-095-AN) £29.99
(£35.24) £29.99
(£35.24)
Arctic Cooling Alpine 64 CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2) £4.99
(£5.86) £4.99
(£5.86)
Sub Total : £89.96
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.95
VAT is being charged at 17.5% VAT : £17.48
Total : £117.39


Now just add some drives. And a vid card you probably have lying about, then just admin it from remote desktop. I use the same PSU thats in the case, and its great.
 
What is the min spec for streaming / playing HD?

I still have an old dual 600 box laying around which I'd like to use with home server but not got round to it yet. If needs be I'll just build a newer HTPC.

Cheers :)
 
morfmedia said:
What is the min spec for streaming / playing HD?

I still have an old dual 600 box laying around which I'd like to use with home server but not got round to it yet. If needs be I'll just build a newer HTPC.

Cheers :)
Click to expand...

It depends on what else the server will be doing at the same time, multiple HD streams will push the machine spec up a lot, whilst simultaneous HD streaming and web surfing is a lot more manageable.

I'd say you'd want a low-mid range dual core CPU with 2GB ram, maybe a decent gigabit network card if the mboard doesn't have one. Would be interestinbg to see if PhillyDee has run HD media with the above spec, i'm guessing it should handle it ok.
 
chimaera said:
It depends on what else the server will be doing at the same time, multiple HD streams will push the machine spec up a lot, whilst simultaneous HD streaming and web surfing is a lot more manageable.

I'd say you'd want a low-mid range dual core CPU with 2GB ram, maybe a decent gigabit network card if the mboard doesn't have one. Would be interestinbg to see if PhillyDee has run HD media with the above spec, i'm guessing it should handle it ok.
Click to expand...

I honestly have not.
 
PhillyDee said:
I went B Grade, picked up an X2 and an SLI motherboard for cheap. I did upgrade to 2gb ram and a 6000 X2 as I started folding. Now I use whatever AMD's equivalent of Speedstep is and it uses ~80W (That includes my switch, router and Wireless Access Point). The RAM was from the MM too. I do stream media around the house to my PS3 and do want to stream HD media. Mine is complemented with 3x500Gb drives with space for a lot more. (Thats why I went with an LI board, I can fit 2x fast controller cards in). Even my Vid card was a PCI one I had lying around.
Hows this:

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4200+ 2.20GHz (Socket AM2) - OEM £39.99
(£46.99) £39.99
(£46.99)
**B Grade** Foxconn 6150M2MA-KRS2H Micro ATX (Socket AM2) PCI-Express DDR2 £14.99
(£17.61) £14.99
(£17.61)
**B Grade** Antec NSK 4480 Mini Tower Case (Silver) - 380W Eart (CA-095-AN) £29.99
(£35.24) £29.99
(£35.24)
Arctic Cooling Alpine 64 CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2) £4.99
(£5.86) £4.99
(£5.86)
Sub Total : £89.96
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.95
VAT is being charged at 17.5% VAT : £17.48
Total : £117.39


Now just add some drives. And a vid card you probably have lying about, then just admin it from remote desktop. I use the same PSU thats in the case, and its great.
Click to expand...


Looks very promising, thanks for the spec. I will be slinging some HD content around, but not much. Onboard graphics would suffice for this wouldn't it? Or is all decoding/ encoding done at the serverside?

How many hard disks can this tower hold?? Plus I'd obviously need to cost in the RAM as well.

Where abouts are the 'B grade' items on the site, as I can't seem to find that section...
 
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wesley said:
really? i tried install WHS on an old machine with 256mb ram, it will NOT let me install unless the machine has 512mb or more
Click to expand...
having checked it seems to have closer to 1GB of SD ram, (was already installed, I just looked up the details online so it's prev owner must have upgraded!)
tbh it's only used for file storage backups etc so not an issue on the HD front.
 
I could, but only have Blu-Ray HD content, and no drive on the PC yet. So not really, unless you know a legit download for it.

Oops, forgot to add ram! And B grade is bottom left column under product sale. They are all mixed in.
 
PhillyDee said:
I could, but only have Blu-Ray HD content, and no drive on the PC yet. So not really, unless you know a legit download for it.

Oops, forgot to add ram! And B grade is bottom left column under product sale. They are all mixed in.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that, will be needing a video card and will get adequate hard disks. Do you know how many hard disks that case can fit in it??
 
According to ocuk
Front Accessible: 3 x 5.25", 2 x 3.5"
- Internal: 3 x 3.5" with silicone grommets to isolate drive vibrations
I cant check, as the cases I have bought are sold on / not here.
I think its just 3 5.25" (Which if you buy an IcyDock means you can cram 5 drives into it but adds extra cost) and 3 3.25 (3 of which are front accessible too).

So I would say 6 in total. 8 with an icydock.

Im downloading some High def stuff from microsoft.
 
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Thats cool, thanks for that, will have to look into it when the time comes to purchase said parts.

So without the icydock, it would fit up to 6?? 3x 3.5" at the front and then 3 in the internal cage?? I will be able to do without a DVD drive as I have an external that I can plug in that will allow me to install the OS.
 
sorry to go a little off topic, but can WHS be run headless i.e. after installation can keyboard,mouse and monitor be removed? - freenas will do this but any windows i have used before (98/xp/vista) freaks when it powers up withoug a kb or mouse

//thanks VeNT
 
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