Should I buy a new or a used server

[NasKar]

When running Plex Live at a remote location with 200 mbps download speed I get pausing of the video intermittently. My server is connected to a 75/75 internet. After checking the Plex Media Server.log file I see that in verbose mode the speed dips to 0.9 frequently. This leads me to think that my problem is my processor Intel i3-4130T can't keep up with the transcoding. So I'm considering making a more powerful server.

Would like to stream Plex live to 1 or 2 remote location, watch 4 concurrent plex streams, run 2 VM and 12 jails with other apps.
What processor would be recommended and how much memory would I need for it?
Should I consider a new supermicro MBD-X11SSM-F-O or get a used server on Ebay or possibly server monkey? I've never purchased a used server so I'm not sure what to look for with the raid controller but I want to use 6-8 3.5" drives minimum. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[Chris Moore]

No RAID controller. SAS HBA.
Used hardware can be as powerful as new and significantly less expensive.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk

 

[Chris Moore]

I will share a specific recommendation later tonight.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk

 

[NasKar]

I will share a specific recommendation later tonight.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk

Look forward to seeing your recommendations. I found another thread you wrote with multiple recommendations.

For the drive controller, I would suggest a SAS controller, just to get all the drives on a single controller. It works better that way. One SAS controller like this can run up to 256 drives by use of expander controllers. We can talk more about that when you need more drives but this will get you to eight drives to start.

Drive Controller: SAS PCI-E 3.0 HBA LSI 9207-8i P20 IT Mode for ZFS FreeNAS unRAID - - US $69.55
https://www.ebay.com/itm/162862201664

Would that SAS controller work with a supermicro X11 MB? In case I wanted to get 16 bay case that I could upgrade with a second pool in the future? What is the expansion device you mentioned?

 

[Chris Moore]

If you go with a chassis like this for your build, it has 16 hard drive bays on a hot-swap backplane, and the backplane has a built-in SAS expander chip that allows all the drives in the backplane to be controlled by that SAS controller that you found in one of my previous posts.
Have a look:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Supermicro...s-2x-920W-16-Bay-BPN-SAS2-836EL1/283181920696

That chassis is already wired with two SAS cables to go from the SAS HBA to the backplane and two SATA cables to go to a pair of rear mounted 2.5 inch drive bays for the boot drives. I really dig this chassis and I would want it myself if I didn't already have all the servers I need.

In that chassis, you could install a system board like this:

System Board: SuperMicro X9SRL-F AXT Motherboard w/ I/O, 32GB RAM Intel Xeon E5-2603 1.80GHz
US $179.99 plus shipping $28.32 - - https://www.ebay.com/itm/401606441159

The CPU that comes in the board above is pretty low speed, so you might find that you need a better one.
You have a lot of options for CPUs to go in this board, but I recently bought one of these for myself:

PassMark score of 13073... If you are wondering... This is the model I use for the NAS I run Plex in.

CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2650 V2 2.6GHz 8 Core 20MB 8GT/s SR1A8 LGA2011 ( Ivy Bridge ) Processor - - US $89.97
https://www.ebay.com/itm/142937685210

If you want more powerful, you can get a 10 core model like this:

Intel Xeon E5-2680 v2 Ten Core 2.8GHz 25MB CPU PROCESSOR LGA2011 SR1A6 - - Price: US $189.99
PassMark score of 15796... If you are wondering...
https://www.ebay.com/itm/192637399687

With 16 drive bays up front, you could do an 8 drive RAIDz2 pool and expand it with a second vdev later when you need more capacity.

I would suggest one of these SSDs for the boot drive.
These are used drives, but as a boot drive in FreeNAS, it should last as long as the server, if not longer, because they don't get a lot of wear:

Boot drive: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 2.5" 60GB SATA III MLC SSD SV300S37A/60G - - US $14.17
https://www.ebay.com/itm/223135682676

SSDs are reliable enough that you don't really need two in a mirror, but you could do that if you wanted, just for safety.

 

[Chris Moore]

What is the expansion device you mentioned?

A SAS controller, like the one I suggested, has two connectors that can go to drives and in each of those two connectors are four 'ports' or 'lanes'. I have seen it discussed in different terms, but these multi-lane connectors can be attached to a 'breakout' cable and directly attached to drives or they can be cabled to a SAS expander which functions in a way that can be thought of as similar to a network switch and the SAS expander can allow the eight lanes of the SAS host card to connect to many more than eight drives. I have a server at work that currently has 122 drives connected to it.
The possibilities are wide and varied. If you have something you want to do, just ask and someone here will give you some guidance.

 

[NasKar]

System Board: SuperMicro X9SRL-F AXT Motherboard w/ I/O, 32GB RAM Intel Xeon E5-2603 1.80GHz
US $179.99 plus shipping $28.32 - - https://www.ebay.com/itm/401606441159

The CPU that comes in the board above is pretty low speed, so you might find that you need a better one.
You have a lot of options for CPUs to go in this board, but I recently bought one of these for myself:

PassMark score of 13073... If you are wondering... This is the model I use for the NAS I run Plex in.

I looked at that link and it looks like it just included the MB and heatsink no CPU or Memory? Any link for ECC memory?

My current CPU has a passmark score in the 4136 so I presume Plex would live stream without a problem with CPU with more than 3 x the processing power.

Would I need a rack with glides to mount the case in?

That chassis is already wired with two SAS cables to go from the SAS HBA to the backplane and two SATA cables to go to a pair of rear mounted 2.5 inch drive bays for the boot drives

So I would get a SAS controller previously mentioned and plug the cables that came with the case into it (one or two cables) and all 16 bays would work?

 

[Chris Moore]

I looked at that link and it looks like it just included the MB and heatsink no CPU or Memory? Any link for ECC memory?

My current CPU has a passmark score in the 4136 so I presume Plex would live stream without a problem with CPU with more than 3 x the processing power.

Sorry, the one I actually linked to sold, so eBay redirected you to a similar item without saying it clearly that they were doing it...

This is the memory I would suggest:

SAMSUNG 16GB PC3L-12800R DDR3-1600 ECC Registered 1.35V RDIMM - - US $40
https://www.ebay.com/itm/16GB-Samsu...DR3L-1600-2RX4-Server-Memory-RAM/183457371966

 

[Chris Moore]

Would I need a rack with glides to mount the case in?

I stand mine on its edge like a tower, but I have things on either side to ensure it doesn't tip over.

You could get a rack if you wanted. Optional

 

[Chris Moore]

So I would get a SAS controller previously mentioned and plug the cables that came with the case into it (one or two cables) and all 16 bays would work?

Yes. Looking at the photos, it appears to have two cables installed, so I would use them both. According to the description, the backplane should include a SAS2 expander chip, so all the drive bays will be running from the expander chip and that will communicate back to the HBA over the eight lanes in the two cables between the backplane and the SAS controller.

 

[NasKar]

Chris I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on this purchase but the X9SRL-F MB is not available anymore and it directs me to a SuperMicro X10SLQ. Would that require different RAM? What CPU would you recommend as it has a different socket.

 

[Ender117]

Chris I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on this purchase but the X9SRL-F MB is not available any more and it directs me to a SuperMicro X10SLQ. Would that require different RAM? What CPU would you recommend as it has a different socket.

Yes it will take DDR4 IIRC and that would almost double the price

 

[Chris Moore]

Chris I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on this purchase but the X9SRL-F MB is not available any more and it directs me to a SuperMicro X10SLQ. Would that require different RAM? What CPU would you recommend as it has a different socket.

I suggest holding out a few days if you can. The SuperMicro X9SRL-F sells out from time to time, but there has been a steady stream of them over the last year. If you can wait until they are back in stock, it will save you significantly on the cost of purchase because going to the newer board will require changing to different CPU and RAM that are both more expensive.
I will keep an eye on it and update this thread, but they are in high demand, so when they are available you must be ready to jump on the deal.

 

[NasKar]

Are there any other x9 boards that would be good? Do you recommend I purchase the 16 bay server case while waiting?

 

[NasKar]

And looking at that case I only see one aqua colored cable? Is that the SAS cable? Do I need a second one?

 

[Chris Moore]

Do you recommend I purchase the 16 bay server case while waiting?

Sure, If you are willing to hold out for the X9SRL-F system board, you could buy everything else you need. It will surely be available within a week, possibly before the end of the weekend.

Are there any other x9 boards that would be good?

There is another board that is comparable but it doesn't have as many PCIe slots, so I don't personally like it.
Here is a link, if you are in a rush: https://www.ebay.com/itm/263958019194
Personally, I would wait. Also, this would need a different CPU cooler because it has a square ILM instead of the narrow ILM of the X9SRL-F.
This is for the square ILM:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dynatron-R...ooler-for-Socket-2011-Square-ILM/170696988393
This is for the narrow ILM:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dynatron-R...et-Narrow-2011-Intel-Xeon-Series/321375083251

 

[Chris Moore]

And looking at that case I only see one aqua colored cable? Is that the SAS cable? Do I need a second one?

Yes, that aqua colored cable is it, and I run 24 drives on a single cable like that, but you could put a second one if you wanted. I am sure the backplane has connectivity for it. I don't think it will make the system go faster though because the drives themselves will be the slowest part of the link.
It would be a different story if you were using SSDs.

 

[NasKar]

This is for the narrow ILM:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dynatron-R...et-Narrow-2011-Intel-Xeon-Series/321375083251

Just to comfirm the above heatsink/fan is what I need for this CPU with the X9SRL-F system board?

CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2650 V2 2.6GHz 8 Core 20MB 8GT/s SR1A8 LGA2011 ( Ivy Bridge ) Processor - - US $89.97
https://www.ebay.com/itm/142937685210

Should I get 8 or 16 GB sticks? What is the difference between Registered/unregistered and RDIMM vs UDIMM
Memory: SAMSUNG 16GB PC3L-12800R DDR3-1600 ECC Registered 1.35V RDIMM - - US $44.95
https://www.ebay.com/itm/302606459277

Does thermal paste go bad? I have some from a previous build that is 3-5 yrs old
IC Diamond thermal compound

My current UPS is an APC Backup UPS Pro 1000 will this work with my system?

I ordered the sas controller
https://www.ebay.com/itm/162862201664

Is there anything else I'm missing after the motherboard becomes available? Like standoff to mount the MB to the case?

 

[Chris Moore]

Just to comfirm the above heatsink/fan is what I need for this CPU with the X9SRL-F system board?

Yes, the one with the narrow mount.

Should I get 8 or 16 GB sticks? What is the difference between Registered/unregistered and RDIMM vs UDIMM
Memory: SAMSUNG 16GB PC3L-12800R DDR3-1600 ECC Registered 1.35V RDIMM - - US $44.95

I did go with 16 GB memory sticks for my syste, so I had more room to upgrade later. Registered memory (RDIMM) is less expensive than Unbuffered (UDIMM) and it is able to go to much higher density (more of it) and you need to have a system board and processor that is compatible for it to work. This is what I would get if I were buying:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/M393B2G70Q...600MHz-ECC-Registered-Server-Ram/142964083562

Does thermal paste go bad? I have some from a previous build that is 3-5 yrs old
IC Diamond thermal compound

It can dry out over time, but if it isn't dried out, it is probably still fine to use. You will need to check it. It needs to be a consistency where it can be spread out easily.

My current UPS is an APC Backup UPS Pro 1000 will this work with my system?

Should be fine. I have a similar model, also from APC.

Is there anything else I'm missing after the motherboard becomes available? Like standoff to mount the MB to the case?

It might be a good idea to have a few extra bits to mount everything, like zip-ties, standoffs and the screws to go with them and possibly even the screws to mount the dives in the drive rails, just in case, because the seller might not include all the original mounting hardware.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/50-Screws-...hard-drive-6-32-x-1-4-Small-head/381324776607

 

[NasKar]

I did go with 16 GB memory sticks for my syste, so I had more room to upgrade later. Registered memory (RDIMM) is less expensive than Unbuffered (UDIMM) and it is able to go to much higher density (more of it) and you need to have a system board and processor that is compatible for it to work. This is what I would get if I were buying:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/M393B2G70Q...600MHz-ECC-Registered-Server-Ram/142964083562

vs
SAMSUNG 16GB PC3L-12800R DDR3-1600 ECC Registered 1.35V RDIMM M393B2G70DB0-YK0
https://www.ebay.com/itm/SAMSUNG-16...110582298?epid=2254481177&hash=item465731a61a

If not any different will go with the cheaper one. Your system info shows you used 8GB sticks. Does it matter that these items are not on SuperMicros list of supported memory?