Power efficient components for a home file server

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IvanI
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri May 27, 2016 1:17 am

Power efficient components for a home file server

Post by IvanI » Fri May 27, 2016 1:22 am

Hello everyone!

My current media storage/file server needs a refresh to something really, REALLY low power and energy efficient.
This is a really old machine, the only thing I really invested in it was the HDDs throughout the years...

It runs an MSDAA copy of Windows Server 2008 R2 but I'll upgrade to Win Server 2012 after the upgrade

Current specs:
- bold - stuff I want to replace
- italic - stuff I'd like to keep (to keep the costs down)

Gigabyte GA-MA78G-DS3H, rev 1.0
Athlon 64 X2 5400+ Black Edition
AC Freezer 64 Pro
2x2GB Kingmax DDR2

Fortron 350W FSP-60THNP PSU
HDDs:
- Samsung HD161HJ, 160GB
- Samsung HD501LJ, 500GB
- Seagate ST1500DL003-9VT16L, 1.5TB
- WD Elements Desktop 4TB (external via USB 3.0 PCI card)

Pioneer DVR-212 DVD/RW --> going out completely. No need for it anymore.
D-Link DGE-530T network card --> going out.
Antec case (similar to SLK3800B).

Any ideas what would be a good fit? A MBO+CPU+RAM+cooler combination. As cheap as possible.

How do Celerons/Pentiums fare these days?

Regards,

I.

CA_Steve
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Posts: 7650
Joined: Thu Oct 06, 2005 4:36 am
Location: St. Louis, MO

Re: Power efficient components for a home file server

Post by CA_Steve » Fri May 27, 2016 7:57 am

Welcome to SPCR.

There are a couple of directions you can take. The first is to upgrade the current box. The second would be to consider going the mini-PC route with a NUC-sized or similar barebones PC (case, cpu, mobo, PSU) and outfit as needed, using the USB ports to add external drives (many are USB powered). This will be the lowest power path. Might also be the cheapest path. MSI Cubi comes to mind. I have one as a HTPC. There are a lot of other possibilities down this route.

If you go with upgrading the current box, my first suggestion would be to replace the PSU. At best, it's running 60-65% efficiency. A $60 80+ Gold PSU, like the Seasonic G360 will be 85-90% efficient at your loads.

As for the CPU, it doesn't take a lot of horsepower to run a file/media server. A Pentium G4400 and and H110 mobo will run ~$110+.
- Will this be a headless unit or will it also be hooked up to a monitor/TV (mobo compatibility)?
- Will it be used for any other tasks?
- does your case support Micro ATX motherboard screw mounts? uATX boards are a few $'s cheaper than ATX.

Consider your storage needs and see if condensing down to fewer drives to save power works for you.

vishcompany
Posts: 96
Joined: Mon Jan 20, 2014 1:46 pm

Re: Power efficient components for a home file server

Post by vishcompany » Sat May 28, 2016 3:28 am

Just a little input for you to consider:

I also guess your case can mount µATX boards, so you could as well go for baytrail, like Asrock Q-1900-M. I am running the mITX version of this board as a general web/mail/office PC and it would be more than ok as a fileserver. The LAN-port is as fast Gb LAN will go. It takes 13-14W from the wall with 1 SSD connected. (See here). The more recent ASRock N3050M is even cheaper and consumes less power.
+ No separate CPU needed, no extra cooler needed, dirt cheap, just pop in 4G RAM and you are ready to go.
- only 4 SATA ports, can't upgrade the CPU

I also just finished a NAS for my home (want to post a little report here later on, had a busy time) based on H110/G4400. Very similar to the build I did for a family member recently (see here). Problem with H110 boards is, they only provide 4 SATA ports. I went with MSI H110I Pro, which has an M2-slot. So I can move the OS to an M2 SSD in case I need the 4th SATA port later on.
The NAS box is running headless Debian on this hardware: MSI H110I Pro, G4400, Kingston ValueRAM, Node 304, SilverStone SST-ST30SF, SanDisk Ultra II 120GB, WD Green 2TB (WD20EZRX), Seagate Barracuda Green 5900.3 2TB. It takes 16W from the wall with HDDs sleeping, 25W with both HDDs spinning.

I thought of swapping the boards (use the baytrail board for the NAS), but the energy consumption is pretty equal, so I did not bother yet. I might want to get a bit more computing power with the general purpose PC later on (foto editing), then I still might do the swap.

If you want to take this road, you can save a little money by opting for G3900.

+1 for Steve's suggestion to replace the PSU and reduce the number of HDDs.

IvanI
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri May 27, 2016 1:17 am

Re: Power efficient components for a home file server

Post by IvanI » Sat May 28, 2016 6:20 am

Thank you both for these great ideas! Many options to go over.
I'll see my options here in EU and do a detailed budget later. :)

vishcompany
Posts: 96
Joined: Mon Jan 20, 2014 1:46 pm

Re: Power efficient components for a home file server

Post by vishcompany » Mon May 30, 2016 2:01 pm

My report is now up, if it's of any interest:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=69240

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