BUILD Supermicro X10SLH-F Build Sanity Check

[budmannxx]

***Updates in post #7 below***

The time has come for me to build a new box from scratch. I'm finally taking the ECC plunge. The server is for home use, typically 1-3 simultaneous users. The NAS is primarily for backups and serving media to my HTPC and other network clients. I plan to build a system that's a bit overpowered for my current needs in the hopes of future-proofing. I'm willing to spend money for quality--not looking to necessarily minimize cost. Here's what I'm considering in terms of parts, along with some of my thought process. I'd really appreciate any comments, advice, and/or suggestions.

Processor: Intel Xeon E3-1230v3
I don't transcode currently, but want that option available to me. I don't currently run any plugins/jails, but definitely want to explore that in the future too.

Motherboard: Supermicro X10SLH-F
The only other board I'm considering is the X10SLM-F. I think I like the SLH a little better for the 6x SATA3 ports (I know the HDDs I'm going with won't even max out SATA2 ports, but...future-proofing. The SLM has 2xSATA2 and 4xSATA3). I'm having a tough time figuring out the differences between the on-board Intel NICs, but I'm pretty sure I'll only be using one of them anyway, so that might not matter too much to me. The other differences I see between the 2 boards are:

1. RAM voltage: the SLM supports 1.35V in addition to 1.5V while the SLH only supports 1.5V, but I'm not going for low power (necessarily), and I know I can use sticks of either voltage in the SLH board.
2. Chipset: Intel C226 on the SLH and C224 on the SLM. I don't really mind paying a bit extra for the C226...future-proofing

HDDs:6x3TB WD Reds (WD30EFRX)
I'll run these in a RAIDZ2. 5400 RPM is plenty, and I'll be sure to review the WDIDLE situation to properly set the park timers.

RAM: TBD, but I'll definitely be getting something off the Supermicro compatibility/tested list. I'm thinking of starting off with 16GB total (2x8GB, so I can easily move to 32GB if 16GB isn't enough). I've skimmed the Kingston travesty thread, so I think I'll stay away from that brand.

PSU: TBD. I haven't done the math yet. I'm definitely going with something that's 80Plus Gold certified. Seems like I'll never see the benefit of Platinum over Gold.

Chassis: I'm leaning towards the Fractal Design Define R4. I'm not looking for tiny, but I don't have space for a rack. This case with only 6 HDDs and no add-on cards should leave me in a decent situation in terms of airflow/cooling.

I think that covers it. Please take a look and let me know if I'm overlooking anything.

 

[krikboh]

Looks familiar ;)

 

[beemaster]

Minor things but still,

What about UPS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uninterruptible_power_supply)?
Do you plan to buy any?

Also what USB stick are you going to use for booting?

 

[PenalunWil]

Hi there budmannxx, I'm using a matched pair of these for my RAM as recommended by Server Case Ltd who sold me my X10 SL7-F

http://www.servercase.co.uk/shop/co...ddr31600mhz-ecc-unbuffered-memdr380lhl01eu16/

Wil

 

[budmannxx]

Looks familiar ;)

Wow, just saw your sig--assuming you're happy with the setup? How do you like that Lian-Li case? Did you stick with those LED fans or did you replace them?

Minor things but still,

What about UPS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uninterruptible_power_supply)?
Do you plan to buy any?

Also what USB stick are you going to use for booting?

I'm going to look into a UPS. I have a concern about noise, but protection if I lose power might trump that. For USB, I have some relatively new 4GB SanDisk Cruzer Fit drives. So small they're barely noticeable.

Hi there budmannxx, I'm using a matched pair of these for my RAM as recommended by Server Case Ltd who sold me my X10 SL7-F

http://www.servercase.co.uk/shop/co...ddr31600mhz-ecc-unbuffered-memdr380lhl01eu16/

Wil

Thanks, those are compatible with my proposed board too. A benefit of using the Hynix sticks is that I may then be able to then use Kingston in the secondary memory slots (if I'm understanding correctly from that thread), if/when I upgrade to 32GB.

Thanks for all the responses.

 

[krikboh]

I've been happy with the case. Relatively easy to build in, good temps, acceptable noise and that is with the stock fans. My only complaint is the use of six Philips screws for the side cover.

Performance of the setup has been great. I haven't really played with all the jails I'm interested in so I haven't even scratched the capabilities.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[budmannxx]

RAM: TBD, but I'll definitely be getting something off the Supermicro compatibility/tested list. I'm thinking of starting off with 16GB total (2x8GB, so I can easily move to 32GB if 16GB isn't enough). I've skimmed the Kingston travesty thread, so I think I'll stay away from that brand.

I found a decent deal on the Samsung sticks, so I went with 32GB total (4x8GB).

PSU: TBD. I haven't done the math yet. I'm definitely going with something that's 80Plus Gold certified. Seems like I'll never see the benefit of Platinum over Gold.

I wound up getting the Rosewill SilentNight-500. I'll be outside of peak efficiency for now, but I'm not too concerned with that--I have some leeway for future expansion (more HDDs, maybe). 7-year warranty was nice, and I liked that it's fanless. The case fans I was planning to use anyway should be enough to keep this PSU cool.

Chassis: I'm leaning towards the Fractal Design Define R4. I'm not looking for tiny, but I don't have space for a rack. This case with only 6 HDDs and no add-on cards should leave me in a decent situation in terms of airflow/cooling.

I got this case, and it's been wonderful so far. Great cable routing, plenty of space, and it's quiet. I have yet to hear a peep from the hard drives, and the motherboard speaker is even barely audible. It comes with two Silent Series R2 140mm fans, and I added another two; one more on the front panel (one fan is already mounted there) and one on the bottom to help cool the PSU and force air towards the exhaust fan that came mounted on the back of the case.

I also went with a CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD UPS. Plenty of output power for this build, and I'll probably hang some other devices off of it too.

The build, MemTest86+, and HDD read/write tests are done. I'm hoping to actually get FreeNAS installed and configured tonight so I can begin the data migration from my current box. It's looking like rsync will work well for that, unless anyone has other suggestions.

 

[tschi]

hi,
Is WOL is functional with freenas and your motherboard (Intel i210A) ?
Thx

 

[budmannxx]

I'm pretty sure this board supports WOL, but my server is on 24x7, so I've never tried to use this feature. The MB documentation on Supermicro's site (linked above) should tell you for sure.