BUILD Thoughts on this C222 MicroATX build?

[johanl]

I am building a server for home use and would love some feedback on these hardware choices (haven't ordered yet but will do so soon).

It will function as a NAS, VPN server and a Plex server (for an iPad/AppleTV combo mostly, so I think transcoding might be needed in some instances) as well as running SickBeard and some similar tools. I intend to run the 4 hard drives as an encrypted RAID-Z2 array.

CPU: Intel i3 4130t. Supports AES-NI and ECC, is power efficient and relatively inexpensive. From my research it seems like it packs enough of a punch to do transcoding of HD video and that the AES-NI support will make the overhead from encryption acceptable.

Motherboard: Intel S1200V3RPS. Seems like a decent enough server board with support for all the things I need (ECC and AES-NI). Also has enough SATA ports for now. If I need more CPU power in the future it handles the Xeon 1200v3 series so if I need more power in the future I should be able to get one of those for a bit cheaper than now.

I am also looking at the Supermicro X10SLL-F which is available for about the same price. From what I can see, it offers pretty much the same as the Intel port but adds a dedicated port for IPMI and will support regular DDR3 memory (as opposed to low-voltage DDR3L only).

Which one would you recommend out of these two?

Hard drives: WD Green 3TB x 4. I have been reading the thread on WD Greens and with the wdidle fix they seem like good drives for a NAS.

Memory: It is surprisingly difficult to find the unregistered, ECC, low-voltage memory that the Intel board requires around here (Sweden) and few are in stock now after the holidays. I will try to find an 8GB kit that matches the requirements and is in stock.

Case: Lian-Li PC-A04A. Looks like a good Micro-ATX case with 7 3.5" slots and the possibility of adding an adapter in the 2x5.25" slots if needed in the future. I am able to get a good deal on one of these.

PSU: Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold 450W. This is available at a great price currently and seems like a good PSU with class-leading efficiency at smaller loads.

What do you think? This setup is almost all my budget allows for but I am open for suggestions.

 

[cyberjock]

Don't spend time on the low voltage memory. It doesn't matter that much, and you are literally talking about fractions of a watt per stick saved. Not to mention many boards don't support the lower voltage and still do 1.5v, which means nothing saved.

 

[johanl]

The Intel website (http://ark.intel.com/products/71385/) indicates that low-voltage memory is required for that board. I would rather just use regular DDR3 if possible since it is easier to find. Will that work or will the Intel board not provide any more than 1.35V even with regular memory?

 

[cyberjock]

Not sure. I don't use Intel boards, I don't recommend them(they often have weird quirks), and I don't try to understand them now that Intel has announced they are leaving the motherboard market.

 

[johanl]

I see! Will go for the Supermicro board then :)

 

[Tomas Liumparas]

Which one you stayed with? Intel or Supermicro? I am building a NAS with your previously mentioned board :)

 

[johanl]

I got the Supermicro board in the end. Just IPMI alone makes it worth it in my opinion. Very nice not having to plug in a monitor or messing with USB drives. I've had finals this and last week so I just installed Ubuntu temporarily until I have the time to get more familiar with FreeBSD so I cannot vouch for driver compatibility or similar just yet, but it has been 100% stable so far, running 24/7. Very happy with it.