[geeks] Dual Xeons - the Saga continues

[Mark Benson]

I need Cores and RAM primarily as I'm using it to test Docker and/or VM
configs in prior to pushing it out on a production environment, and also
serve as a dev platform for working offsite. That's why I went with low end
4 core CPUs and a slack handful of RAM.

I think a R510 or R710 could be had for the right Schillings to do the job,
in hindsight, but that's gonna have to wait for the money to come around.
I'd like to get this tank up and running but the DOS BIOS / UEFI / FRUSDR
update procedure lead seems promising for now.


On 8 Feb 2018 13:44, "Lionel Peterson" <lionel4287 at gmail.com> wrote:

I am putting together a Windows training lab and found the Dell T30 single
Xeon servers to be quite inexpensive and quite feature-full.

At a $329 price (mfg. refurb from Dell outlet) I get a tower system
w/E3-1225
v5 4c/4t Xeon, 8 Gig ECC DDR4 RAM (exp. to 64 Gig), 1 TB SATA HD, and a DVD-
R/W drive in a quiet (silent) tower chassis that can hold 4x 3.5" HDs and a
slim optical drive  OR 4x 3.5" HDs and 2x 2.5" HDs AND supports Intel AMT
11.0, which gives me BIOS-level remote IP KVM control of the server, much
like
an ilom or drac board. Now the performance is limited, but that's a
combination of features - with a full one year warranty from Dell, since
purchased at their outlet - that is hard to replicate at the price of $329
(incl. free shipping) with no included OS.

Of course it runs Linux, and, oddly for a server, it has basic audio in/out,
but it will not fully support addition of any high-performance video GPUs
(290
Watt PS, no 6 pin power connection, PCI-E 3.0 slots limited to 4x channels).

For my purpose, the low-cost, low power usage, low-noise and bios-level
remote
IP KVM made this a bargain, and the warranty sealed the deal over random
used
hardware of an older vintage.

(What would a remote IP KVM product cost, one that allows full bios-level
access? As an outboard device it could easily cost over $200/server based on
my recollections when I last looked into this.)

Of course the RAM upgrades are a bit 'spendy' compared with older kit, but
even that's not too bad, at around $10/Gig for 8 and 16 Gig DDR4 ECC UDIMMs.

Just thought I'd share,

Lionel

> On Feb 8, 2018, at 2:53 AM, Michael-John Turner <mj at mjturner.net> wrote:
>
> :) Dell Rx10 systems are probably the most bang-for-buck at the moment
(the
Tx10 are a bit pricier due to their tower form factor). For rackmount
systems
they're very quiet (even the 1U systems are near silent under regular load).
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