Another new server question

siringo

Thanks everyone for the thoughts and advice.

This server is going into an environment where what is chosen will, eventually, attract criticism, not formerly, but by way of passing comments.

I would be better to suggest a server with bells and whistles rather than one that did the job and cost less. But with that said, putting in place an overspec'd server would also be criticised.

If I were to select Dell as the vendor, that would be acceptable, Lenovo possibly less so.

I'll use the info from this post and go and take another look at what I can get my hands on.

I think I'll look for something with all SSDs that gives me 4TB of useable space, that's all I need, with some type of disk redundancy.

64GB RAM and a single CPU.

It will run Server 2022 with the Hyper-V role and house around 6 VMs.

I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks again.

scottalanmiller

@siringo said in Another new server question:

I would be better to suggest a server with bells and whistles rather than one that did the job and cost less. But with that said, putting in place an overspec'd server would also be criticised.

I wouldn't say it is overspecc'd, but impropoerly specc'd. Not quite the same thing.

scottalanmiller

@siringo said in Another new server question:

I think I'll look for something with all SSDs that gives me 4TB of useable space, that's all I need, with some type of disk redundancy.
64GB RAM and a single CPU.
It will run Server 2022 with the Hyper-V role and house around 6 VMs.
I'm open to suggestions.

That all makes sense. With good SSDs, RAID 5 works fine.

1337

@siringo said in Another new server question:

Thanks everyone for the thoughts and advice.

This server is going into an environment where what is chosen will, eventually, attract criticism, not formerly, but by way of passing comments.

I would be better to suggest a server with bells and whistles rather than one that did the job and cost less. But with that said, putting in place an overspec'd server would also be criticised.

If I were to select Dell as the vendor, that would be acceptable, Lenovo possibly less so.

I'll use the info from this post and go and take another look at what I can get my hands on.

I think I'll look for something with all SSDs that gives me 4TB of useable space, that's all I need, with some type of disk redundancy.

64GB RAM and a single CPU.

It will run Server 2022 with the Hyper-V role and house around 6 VMs.

I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks again.

CPU

Only needing 64GB of RAM suggest getting an E-2200/2300 series Intel CPU.

That's what used to be the called the E3-1200 series. Entry-level servers with Xeon CPUs that are similar to their desktop i7 equivalent. Up to 8 cores, max 128GB RAM (E-2300).

You pay for 16 cores with Windows so get what you feel is appropriate for the VMs running. But 6 cores is probably good enough.

RAM

4 x 16GB is probably your best bet
2 x 32GB will also work fine with 100% performance but might be more expensive

SSD

4TB options:

2 x 4TB RAID 1 (lower failure rate with only two drives)
3 x 2TB RAID 5

If you can get a good deal go for that - whatever combination.

Dell adds 200-300% on their SSD prices though. IMHO only enterprise customers get a fair price from Dell.

SSD price 3.84TB SATA enterprise drive

Manufacturer $600-$700 (Samsung PM893)
Lenovo $1,180 (maybe it's a special offer - I don't know)
Dell $2,172

Server

Dell

R250 is their entry level range (R240 old model)
R350 has the same CPU range (R340 old model)
R6515 (AMD Epyc) if you need more CPU or fast NVMe SSDs

Be aware of backplane configurations. Hotswap ability and backplanes is standard on high-end servers but not on entry level servers.

Lenovo SR250 seems to be their entry-level but it has more advanced option compared to Dell's R250.

siringo

@Pete-S Thanks so much for the help, I really do appreciate it.

You've given me some really good start points & info to go for a look and see what I can get.

Thanks again.

scottalanmiller

@Pete-S said in Another new server question:

@siringo said in Another new server question:

Thanks everyone for the thoughts and advice.

This server is going into an environment where what is chosen will, eventually, attract criticism, not formerly, but by way of passing comments.

I would be better to suggest a server with bells and whistles rather than one that did the job and cost less. But with that said, putting in place an overspec'd server would also be criticised.

If I were to select Dell as the vendor, that would be acceptable, Lenovo possibly less so.

I'll use the info from this post and go and take another look at what I can get my hands on.

I think I'll look for something with all SSDs that gives me 4TB of useable space, that's all I need, with some type of disk redundancy.

64GB RAM and a single CPU.

It will run Server 2022 with the Hyper-V role and house around 6 VMs.

I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks again.

CPU

Only needing 64GB of RAM suggest getting an E-2200/2300 series Intel CPU.

That's what used to be the called the E3-1200 series. Entry-level servers with Xeon CPUs that are similar to their desktop i7 equivalent. Up to 8 cores, max 128GB RAM (E-2300).

You pay for 16 cores with Windows so get what you feel is appropriate for the VMs running. But 6 cores is probably good enough.

RAM

4 x 16GB is probably your best bet

2 x 32GB will also work fine with 100% performance but might be more expensive

SSD

4TB options:

2 x 4TB RAID 1 (lower failure rate with only two drives)

3 x 2TB RAID 5

If you can get a good deal go for that - whatever combination.

Dell adds 200-300% on their SSD prices though. IMHO only enterprise customers get a fair price from Dell.

SSD price 3.84TB SATA enterprise drive

Manufacturer $600-$700 (Samsung PM893)

Lenovo $1,180 (maybe it's a special offer - I don't know)

Dell $2,172

Server

Dell

R250 is their entry level range (R240 old model)

R350 has the same CPU range (R340 old model)

R6515 (AMD Epyc) if you need more CPU or fast NVMe SSDs

Be aware of backplane configurations. Hotswap ability and backplanes is standard on high-end servers but not on entry level servers.

Lenovo SR250 seems to be their entry-level but it has more advanced option compared to Dell's R250.

I looked quickly but this all seems solid. I'd concur.

Dashrender

@scottalanmiller said in Another new server question:

@Pete-S said in Another new server question:

@siringo said in Another new server question:

Thanks everyone for the thoughts and advice.

This server is going into an environment where what is chosen will, eventually, attract criticism, not formerly, but by way of passing comments.

I would be better to suggest a server with bells and whistles rather than one that did the job and cost less. But with that said, putting in place an overspec'd server would also be criticised.

If I were to select Dell as the vendor, that would be acceptable, Lenovo possibly less so.

I'll use the info from this post and go and take another look at what I can get my hands on.

I think I'll look for something with all SSDs that gives me 4TB of useable space, that's all I need, with some type of disk redundancy.

64GB RAM and a single CPU.

It will run Server 2022 with the Hyper-V role and house around 6 VMs.

I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks again.

CPU

Only needing 64GB of RAM suggest getting an E-2200/2300 series Intel CPU.

That's what used to be the called the E3-1200 series. Entry-level servers with Xeon CPUs that are similar to their desktop i7 equivalent. Up to 8 cores, max 128GB RAM (E-2300).

You pay for 16 cores with Windows so get what you feel is appropriate for the VMs running. But 6 cores is probably good enough.

RAM

4 x 16GB is probably your best bet

2 x 32GB will also work fine with 100% performance but might be more expensive

SSD

4TB options:

2 x 4TB RAID 1 (lower failure rate with only two drives)

3 x 2TB RAID 5

If you can get a good deal go for that - whatever combination.

Dell adds 200-300% on their SSD prices though. IMHO only enterprise customers get a fair price from Dell.

SSD price 3.84TB SATA enterprise drive

Manufacturer $600-$700 (Samsung PM893)

Lenovo $1,180 (maybe it's a special offer - I don't know)

Dell $2,172

Server

Dell

R250 is their entry level range (R240 old model)

R350 has the same CPU range (R340 old model)

R6515 (AMD Epyc) if you need more CPU or fast NVMe SSDs

Be aware of backplane configurations. Hotswap ability and backplanes is standard on high-end servers but not on entry level servers.

Lenovo SR250 seems to be their entry-level but it has more advanced option compared to Dell's R250.

I looked quickly but this all seems solid. I'd concur.

The number of RAM modules will depend more on the channels used by the CPUs - assuming you don't want to gimp yourself.

scottalanmiller

@Dashrender said in Another new server question:

@scottalanmiller said in Another new server question:

@Pete-S said in Another new server question:

@siringo said in Another new server question:

Thanks everyone for the thoughts and advice.

This server is going into an environment where what is chosen will, eventually, attract criticism, not formerly, but by way of passing comments.

I would be better to suggest a server with bells and whistles rather than one that did the job and cost less. But with that said, putting in place an overspec'd server would also be criticised.

If I were to select Dell as the vendor, that would be acceptable, Lenovo possibly less so.

I'll use the info from this post and go and take another look at what I can get my hands on.

I think I'll look for something with all SSDs that gives me 4TB of useable space, that's all I need, with some type of disk redundancy.

64GB RAM and a single CPU.

It will run Server 2022 with the Hyper-V role and house around 6 VMs.

I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks again.

CPU

Only needing 64GB of RAM suggest getting an E-2200/2300 series Intel CPU.

That's what used to be the called the E3-1200 series. Entry-level servers with Xeon CPUs that are similar to their desktop i7 equivalent. Up to 8 cores, max 128GB RAM (E-2300).

You pay for 16 cores with Windows so get what you feel is appropriate for the VMs running. But 6 cores is probably good enough.

RAM

4 x 16GB is probably your best bet

2 x 32GB will also work fine with 100% performance but might be more expensive

SSD

4TB options:

2 x 4TB RAID 1 (lower failure rate with only two drives)

3 x 2TB RAID 5

If you can get a good deal go for that - whatever combination.

Dell adds 200-300% on their SSD prices though. IMHO only enterprise customers get a fair price from Dell.

SSD price 3.84TB SATA enterprise drive

Manufacturer $600-$700 (Samsung PM893)

Lenovo $1,180 (maybe it's a special offer - I don't know)

Dell $2,172

Server

Dell

R250 is their entry level range (R240 old model)

R350 has the same CPU range (R340 old model)

R6515 (AMD Epyc) if you need more CPU or fast NVMe SSDs

Be aware of backplane configurations. Hotswap ability and backplanes is standard on high-end servers but not on entry level servers.

Lenovo SR250 seems to be their entry-level but it has more advanced option compared to Dell's R250.

I looked quickly but this all seems solid. I'd concur.

The number of RAM modules will depend more on the channels used by the CPUs - assuming you don't want to gimp yourself.

For sure.

JaredBusch

@scottalanmiller said in Another new server question:

If that was free and didn't lose us storage, I'd agree. But it costs money and lowers usable storage.

Dell & HP boxes have a daughter card. It will, in no way affect the RAID controller storage amount. Not free, but i very much love having the mirrored SSD/NVMe on the daughter card for the Hypervisor.

Then the regular storage on the RAID controller.

JaredBusch

@Pete-S said in Another new server question:

R250 is their entry level range (R240 old model)
R350 has the same CPU range (R340 old model)
R6515 (AMD Epyc) if you need more CPU or fast NVMe SSDs

I would only use the R350, assuming he does not need to step up to beyond a basic server.

The R250 has basically no good features.

The R350 has an actual PERC in it, getting you things like blind swap functionality for a failed drive.

I would get the 8 core processor.

A pair of 32GB RAM sticks to meet your requirements.

Choose the PERC.

Just picked 2x 4TB drives, find your own as @Pete-S noted.

As I said previously, I like the BOSS card for the Hypervisor.

iDRAC Enterprise, unless Dell has changed it to allow remote screen on Basic.

Redundant powersupply.

Dell price is $11k, but $7k of that is those two drives.

1337

@JaredBusch said in Another new server question:

I would get the 8 core processor.

It's may be surprising to see but Pentium CPUs have been around a long time as server CPUs.

They're low power, dual core, but still high frequency and most importantly has ECC support (which normal desktop CPUs like i3, i5, i7 don't).

Not a good choice for a virtualization server but a good choice for a single purpose physical server that has no use for lots of cores - like a file server, a backup server or similar.

1337

@Dashrender said in Another new server question:

@scottalanmiller said in Another new server question:

@Pete-S said in Another new server question:

@siringo said in Another new server question:

Thanks everyone for the thoughts and advice.

This server is going into an environment where what is chosen will, eventually, attract criticism, not formerly, but by way of passing comments.

I would be better to suggest a server with bells and whistles rather than one that did the job and cost less. But with that said, putting in place an overspec'd server would also be criticised.

If I were to select Dell as the vendor, that would be acceptable, Lenovo possibly less so.

I'll use the info from this post and go and take another look at what I can get my hands on.

I think I'll look for something with all SSDs that gives me 4TB of useable space, that's all I need, with some type of disk redundancy.

64GB RAM and a single CPU.

It will run Server 2022 with the Hyper-V role and house around 6 VMs.

I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks again.

CPU

Only needing 64GB of RAM suggest getting an E-2200/2300 series Intel CPU.

That's what used to be the called the E3-1200 series. Entry-level servers with Xeon CPUs that are similar to their desktop i7 equivalent. Up to 8 cores, max 128GB RAM (E-2300).

You pay for 16 cores with Windows so get what you feel is appropriate for the VMs running. But 6 cores is probably good enough.

RAM

4 x 16GB is probably your best bet

2 x 32GB will also work fine with 100% performance but might be more expensive

SSD

4TB options:

2 x 4TB RAID 1 (lower failure rate with only two drives)

3 x 2TB RAID 5

If you can get a good deal go for that - whatever combination.

Dell adds 200-300% on their SSD prices though. IMHO only enterprise customers get a fair price from Dell.

SSD price 3.84TB SATA enterprise drive

Manufacturer $600-$700 (Samsung PM893)

Lenovo $1,180 (maybe it's a special offer - I don't know)

Dell $2,172

Server

Dell

R250 is their entry level range (R240 old model)

R350 has the same CPU range (R340 old model)

R6515 (AMD Epyc) if you need more CPU or fast NVMe SSDs

Be aware of backplane configurations. Hotswap ability and backplanes is standard on high-end servers but not on entry level servers.

Lenovo SR250 seems to be their entry-level but it has more advanced option compared to Dell's R250.

I looked quickly but this all seems solid. I'd concur.

The number of RAM modules will depend more on the channels used by the CPUs - assuming you don't want to gimp yourself.

Xeon E-series has only two memory channels, so it just needs two RAM modules (UDIMMs) for maximum performance. And can't handle more than four UDIMMs in total.

Higher end server CPUs have more memory channels and use a different type of RAM module (RDIMM) which can handle more modules per channels.

siringo

Hey, thanks very much for the help, I really do appreciate it, I learn a little bit every time you guys help me, so thanks again.

I've spec'd up a server which comes in at $AU7500.00 approx which is within budget.

The server comes with the 2 x 240GB SSDs so I'm assuming they'll already be setup as RAID 1.

The 3 x 1.98 GB drives I'll setup as RAID 5. These were the largest SSDs on offer.

It comes with 2 x sticks of RAM so I've got that correct.

It comes from a vendor I trust and am sure I will not have issues with for whatever reason.

It comes as close to what you guys have suggested for a price that I think is reasonable.

What do you guys think?

1337

@siringo Looks good all in all but the 5210 1.92TB SSDs are a peculiar breed.

Normal read intensive SSDs have a write endurance of around 1 DWPD - which means you can write 1.92TB new data on a 1.92TB drive every day of it's warranty life. And can write about 28K IOPS - so 28 thousand 4K blocks of data written to disk per second.

The Micron 5210 SSDs are specifically made to replace 10K HDDs at a very attractive price point. So while they are superior to 10K drives, compared to other read intensive SSDs they have low write performance (2K versus about 28K IOPs) and low write endurance (0.2 to 0.8 versus 1.0 DWPD).

If those drives are a good pick or not depends on the workloads you are running on the hypervisor. If you're running an SQL server or something you might want to pick another 1.92TB SSD.

Did Lenovo have other 1.92TB SSD options at a similar price point?

Dashrender

@siringo
alt text

Bay1 and 2 show SSD, Bays 3-5 show HDD, are you sure those are Solid State Drives?? I mean I see the QLC (I assume quad level cells), but it's worth confirming!

1337

@Dashrender said in Another new server question:

@siringo
Bay1 and 2 show SSD, Bays 3-5 show HDD, are you sure those are Solid State Drives?? I mean I see the QLC (I assume quad level cells), but it's worth confirming!

It's SSD because it says SSD on the same line

It's actually these: https://lenovopress.lenovo.com/lp1223-thinksystem-5210-entry-6gb-sata-qlc-ssds

Micron 5210 SSD drives with Lenovo stickers and maybe firmware adjustment for Lenovo.

Dashrender

@Pete-S said in Another new server question:

@Dashrender said in Another new server question:

@siringo
Bay1 and 2 show SSD, Bays 3-5 show HDD, are you sure those are Solid State Drives?? I mean I see the QLC (I assume quad level cells), but it's worth confirming!

It's SSD because it says SSD on the same line

It's actually these: https://lenovopress.lenovo.com/lp1223-thinksystem-5210-entry-6gb-sata-qlc-ssds

Micron 5210 SSD drives with Lenovo stickers and maybe firmware adjustment for Lenovo.

uh - I missed that - thanks...

siringo

@Dashrender @Pete-S thanks for the input people.

The VMs are only DCs, file servers etc, no SQL etc. The servers would be more referenced than written to I would think.

I think those disks will be OK.

Those disks were the largest SSDs I could select.

Again, thanks everyone for the help, it really is appreciated.

Yonah S.

Just making sure everyone knows that you DON'T have to use only the online configurators when looking to build a Dell . Lenovo, HP , Supermicro etc server.
There are always options that are hidden or not shown online.
If you want to know how to get something built like that without the constraint of the online configurators - hit me up on private message.

JaredBusch

@Yonah-S said in Another new server question:

If you want to know how to get something built like that without the constraint of the online configurators - hit me up on private message.

When I buy, this is what I do.

But for quick comparison or rough ideas, the online tools are easy