APOLLO (2CPU LGA1366 Server | InWin PP689) - by alpenwasser [COMPLETE: 2014-MAY-10]
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Table of Contents
Wait, What, and Why? So, yeah, another build. Another server, to be precise. Why? Well, as nice of a system ZEUS is, it does have two major shortcomings for its use as a server. When I originally conceived ZEUS, I did not plan on using ZFS (since it was not yet production-ready on Linux at that point). The plan was to use ZEUS' HDDs as single disks, backing up the important stuff. In case of a disk failure, the loss of non-backed up data would have been acceptable, since it's mostly media files. As long as there's an index of what was on the disk, that data could easily be reaquired. But right before ZEUS was done, I found out that ZFS was production-ready on Linux, having kept a bit of an eye on it since fall 2012 when I dabbled in FreeBSD and ZFS for the first time. Using FreeBSD on the server was not an option though since I was nowhere near proficient enough with it to use it for something that important, so it had to be Linux (that's why I didn't originally plan on ZFS). So, I deployed ZFS on ZEUS, and it's been working very nicely so far. However, that brought with it two major drawbacks: Firstly, I was now missing 5 TB of space, since I had been tempted by ZFS to use those for redundancy, even for our media files. Secondly, and more importantly, ZEUS is not an ECC-memory-capable system. The reason this might be a problem is that when ZFS verifies the data on the disks, a corrupted bit in your RAM could cause a discrepancy between the data in memory and the data on disk, in which case ZFS would "correct" the data on your disk, therefore corrupting it. This is not exactly optimal IMO. How severe the consequences of this would be in practice is an ongoing debate in various ZFS threads I've read. Optimists estimate that it would merely corrupt the file(s) with the concerned corrupt bit(s), pessimists are afraid it might corrupt your entire pool. The main focus of this machine will be:
Hardware The component choices as they stand now:
Modding Instead of some uber-expensive W/C setup, the main part of actually building this rig will be in modifying the PP689 for fitting as many HDDs as halfway reasonable as neatly as possible. I have not yet decided if there will be painting and/or sleeving and/or a window. A window is unlikely, the rest depends mostly on how much time I'll have in the next few weeks (this is not a long-term project, aim is to have it done way before HELIOS). Also, since costs for this build should not spiral out of control, I will be trying to reuse as many scrap and spare parts I have laying around as possible. Teaser More pics will follow as parts arrive and the build progresses, for now a shot of the case: (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...01--pp689.jpeg That's all for now, thanks for stopping by, and so long. :) |
anonymity protecting long legged ostriches. i expect nothing but the best.
i also love the combination of cheap, xeon and ecc ram. |
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The L5630's were 60 USD a piece plus 20 USD shipping, less than a tenth of my X5680's for HELIOS. The M/B was 200 USD plus 50 USD shipping plus 50 USD VAT ( :( ), still pretty cheap considering it once cost nearly 600 USD. Come to think of it, the Noctua CPU coolers were actually more expensive than the CPUs themselves... :lol: I looked around quite a bit until I found the right balance. There's no need for high performance equipment, so originally I thought I'd go with a very low-end LGA1155 single socket Xeon, but the M/B's for that platform which have some halfway decent features are actually still pretty expensive, and the CPUs themselves are nowhere near as cheap as their 1366 counterparts (you can get some L5639 hexacores for ~80 USD a pop on eBay, which would actually be pretty neat if you get them onto an SR-2 and get a decent overclock, so if I ever burn out my X5680's... :o ). The one downside of LGA1366 server M/B's is that most of their integrated SAS controllers do not support HDDs larger than 2 TB, but that can be worked around by either having more HDDs of smaller sizes or buying a fairly cheap, slightly newer host bus adapter card as an add-on. I must however say I quite like the fact that there is much better vendor support for Linux if you buy server equipment. :cool: EDIT: Besides the more pragmatic reasons: Dual socket systems are just cool IMO. :D |
Well this should be interesting, if previous build logs are anything to go by. ;-)
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Epic name :lol: and subscribed of course!
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A build log with your name on it,
I had no chose but sub to it |
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nonetheless. So thanks! Quote:
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im in!!
Also im quite interested on your opioion about ZFS, i been looking at converting my windows file server to a FreeNAS implementation and using 6x3TB disk in parity, just wondering if id see performance increase |
First Hardware Tests & The Noctua NH-U9DX 1366
First Steps
Hardware Tested M/B, CPUs and memory have all arrived. The CPUs and M/B seem to be working OK. One of the memory modules seems to be having a bit of trouble being recognized, the other five work fine. I'll see if it's really defective or if it's just the IT gods screwing with me a bit. The Noctua NH9DX 1366 The Noctua NH-U9DX 1366 is a cooler from Noctua's series specifically made for Xeon sockets. For those who don't know, LGA1366 sockets have an integrated backplate, just like LGA2011, which makes them much more convenient than their desktop counterparts. It's quite a nice and sturdy backplate, too, in fact it's among the most solid backplates I've come across yet. This does, however, require a slightly different mounting system. You just have four screws which you bolt directly into the plate. Aside from that, the cooler is identical to its desktop counterpart as far as I know. Why the 92 mm version? For one thing, it was in stock, unlike the 120 mm version of this cooler. Also, the CPUs only produce 40 W TDP each, so there really is no need for high-end cooling. And as a bonus, I got supplied some awesome San Ace fans with my case, which also happen to be 92 mm. The Noctua fans which come with the cooler are just 3 pin fans (the newer models of this cooler for LGA2011 come with a PWM fan I think), but the San Ace fans I got with my case are actually PWM controlled! Since the M/B has a full set of PWM headers (8, to be exact, how awesome is that!? :D ) I will try the San Ace fans and see how they play on lower rpm's (they run at 4,800 rpm on full speed :o ). This does not need to be a super-silent machine since it will be in its own room, and since I really like the San Ace fans with regards to build quality (and I'm a total sucker for build quality) I'd love to use them for this. The Noctuas would admitteldy be better suited, but I'll see how things go with the SA's first. The Box Unlike its shiny desktop counterparts, the NH-U9DX comes in a nice and subtle (but sturdy) cardbord box with a simple sticker on it. I must admit I like this box more than the shiny ones. :) (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...octua-box.jpeg Contents How it looks packaged... (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...-contents.jpeg ... and out in the open. (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...-contents.jpeg Noctua Pr0n A few glory shots of the cooler itself... (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...ctua-pr0n.jpeg (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...ctua-pr0n.jpeg The San Ace 9G0912P1G09 There is no info about this fan on the web, I'm presuming it's something San Ace makes specifically for InWin in an OEM deal. I've hooked it up to a fan controller and got a max reading of 4,800 rpm, and the Supermicro board turns them down to ~2,200 rpm on idle. They seem to be very good fans, you can only really hear the sound of the air moving, no bearing or motor noises so far. Also, they are heavy (~200 g per piece), which is always nice for a build quality fetishist such as myself. :D Note: Hooking such a fan up to a desktop board as its power source would not be advisable, they are rated for 1.1 A and might burn out the circuits on a desktop board. Server boards usually have better fan power circuitry since they are desinged with high-performance fans in mind. Just as a side note. (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...an-ace-92.jpeg Compared to the Noctua fan which comes with the coolers. I might still go with the Noctuas, but it's not the plan at the moment. (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...noctua-92.jpeg The Noctua NH-U9DX 1366 San Ace Edition I had to improvise a bit with mounting the San Ace's to the tower. The clips which you'd use with the Noctua fans rely on the fan having open corners, which the San Ace's do not. Ah well, nothing a bit of cotton cord can't fix. :D (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...-mounting.jpeg And the current config in its full glory: (click image for full res) http://www.alpenwasser.net/images/w6...e-edition.jpeg Side note: The coolers were actually more expensive than the CPUs. :lol: That's it for now, thanks for stopping by. |
Oooo nice shiny bits
wish all cpu were cheaper than the coolers :) |
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