Status
Not open for further replies.

Velict

Cadet
Joined
Oct 13, 2014
Messages
5
So I want to see if the following is possible:

Build a server, a nice monster
Install video cards (2-way sli)
Install FreeNAS (duh!)
Create Win10 VM to run simultaneously inside FreeNAS. Continuously active.
Install games to the VM, and run/play these games only using the server's hardware
Install steam, origin, etcetera inside that VM, and be able to access it via a simple shortcut to the game that is installed in that VM.

Basically I don't want any video games or major applications installed onto my personal computers within my household. I want them all installed on the server, and accessible from that server, without hindering the performance of whatever household personal computer (weak or powerful) that I decide to use.

Imagine this: A small piggyback PC in my living room attached to my TV. No video card. Just used for "streaming". I hook up an xbox controller to that PC, and I can access games from my server and play them from there. No need to worry about the lack of power from the media-center-piggyback-weak PC.

Give it to me straight.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Ericloewe

Server Wrangler
Moderator
Joined
Feb 15, 2014
Messages
20,175
I'm not a fan of this kind of idea. It just adds a ton of complexity for inferior results. More latency, degraded image quality, ...
 

Velict

Cadet
Joined
Oct 13, 2014
Messages
5
I have a 10 gbit switch and a box of 10gbit expansion cards from dumpster diving. With unraid, and a wired connection I think it would be dope. What y'all think?
 

SweetAndLow

Sweet'NASty
Joined
Nov 6, 2013
Messages
6,421
Terrible idea and it sounds like someone has been watching Linus.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk
 
Joined
Feb 2, 2016
Messages
574
Unless, by gaming, you mean Kings Quest and Oregon Trail, I can't bless this configuration. Gaming is an edge case where every little bit of performance is required and your graphics throughput is critical. VMs aren't known for their graphical prowess. This is not a proper use case for FreeNAS.

Cheers,
Matt
 

Ericloewe

Server Wrangler
Moderator
Joined
Feb 15, 2014
Messages
20,175
Not to mention that games can be rather fussy. "Windows 10 x64 running on bhyve with passthrough PCIe graphics card" (and PCIe passthrough isn't working yet, last I checked) is not on a game studio's list of configurations to test.
 

Zofoor

Patron
Joined
Aug 16, 2016
Messages
219
I think that only way you could archive that is to use something like ESXi.
From there, you can add a PCIe HBA card for freenas and make another VM with Windows. With ESXi you can passthrough PCIe cards (Nvidia Shield would not help you for that problem).

But I would really avoid that.
 

Ericloewe

Server Wrangler
Moderator
Joined
Feb 15, 2014
Messages
20,175
So nvidia shield uses magic?
No, it uses lossy algorithms and significant server-side grunt to provide an inferior experience with more lag.

It also has nothing to do with virtualization, operating in a fairly conventional environment.
 

Velict

Cadet
Joined
Oct 13, 2014
Messages
5
So this tech... by tech I mean the fact that game-streaming has been a thing for years now, and there is no way to do it at home myself?
 

pirateghost

Unintelligible Geek
Joined
Feb 29, 2012
Messages
4,219
So this tech... by tech I mean the fact that game-streaming has been a thing for years now, and there is no way to do it at home myself?
Sure there is.

Grab a Windows gaming PC.

Install steam.

Run a steam client on another machine. There is even a steam box for $50 that will act as the client for you.
 
Joined
Feb 2, 2016
Messages
574
game-streaming has been a thing for years now, and there is no way to do it at home myself?

Yes. You can stream games from home. Here is a guide on how to build a PC for game streaming. Please make a note of the hardware recommendations and performance considerations. And that, at no point, does it recommend running games inside a virtual machine hosted on a storage server.

But, hey, I like ingenuity as much as the next guy. If you do manage to play and stream games from a storage server, please update us and add lots of photos. I do love me server photos.

Cheers,
Matt
 

Ericloewe

Server Wrangler
Moderator
Joined
Feb 15, 2014
Messages
20,175
I do love me server photos.
I should open a "server pics" thread when I have the time. The old one got lost, collateral damage in a spam cleanup that went unnoticed for a while...
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top