Hey all!
I did a quick search, but I didn't see anything conclusive. I'm hoping I can get some feedback from the experts here.
I build a home virtualization server using a Xeon E3-1246-v3, Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H-BK motherboard, and 32GB non-ecc DDR3 1600 memory. It works well, but now I'm thinking I may be better served by getting a real server motherboard that supports ECC memory, vPRO, and all the virtualization stuff that my hardware can support. I have an LSI9211-8i flashed to IT and an intel i350-t4 that I plan to add to the build.
Main requirements are: ECC memory, 32GB worth (preferably 4 240 slots since 16GB+ ram is expensive), Multiple PCI-express 3.0 connections ( I need at least 2x 8, but anything higher will work). The more onboard nics the better (intel only please), and preferable would be a USB A female slot to use a flash drive as a boot drive.
Currently I'm running ESXi, but I could be persuaded to use whatever Level 1 hypervisor is best. I use a mix of windows, linux, and BSD.
Any suggestions for reasonably-priced parts for this? I'm on a slim budget, but I'm still trying to do the best I can.
Thanks!
EDIT: I'll be running pfSense, Plex, NAS, and AD (either samba4 or win2012r2, I haven't fully decided yet) off of this for servers. I'll also be running a few desktops for the family.
I did a quick search, but I didn't see anything conclusive. I'm hoping I can get some feedback from the experts here.
I build a home virtualization server using a Xeon E3-1246-v3, Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H-BK motherboard, and 32GB non-ecc DDR3 1600 memory. It works well, but now I'm thinking I may be better served by getting a real server motherboard that supports ECC memory, vPRO, and all the virtualization stuff that my hardware can support. I have an LSI9211-8i flashed to IT and an intel i350-t4 that I plan to add to the build.
Main requirements are: ECC memory, 32GB worth (preferably 4 240 slots since 16GB+ ram is expensive), Multiple PCI-express 3.0 connections ( I need at least 2x 8, but anything higher will work). The more onboard nics the better (intel only please), and preferable would be a USB A female slot to use a flash drive as a boot drive.
Currently I'm running ESXi, but I could be persuaded to use whatever Level 1 hypervisor is best. I use a mix of windows, linux, and BSD.
Any suggestions for reasonably-priced parts for this? I'm on a slim budget, but I'm still trying to do the best I can.
Thanks!
EDIT: I'll be running pfSense, Plex, NAS, and AD (either samba4 or win2012r2, I haven't fully decided yet) off of this for servers. I'll also be running a few desktops for the family.
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