Operating System/ Storage Platform: ESXi / ZFSonLinux
CPU: Xeon E3s (1x V1, 1x V2, 2x V3)
Motherboard: Supermicro X9/X10 seies
Chassis: Supermicro SC846 / SC822T / 3U "special"
Drives: 48x Seagate 2TB SAS, Samsung 840 Pro
RAM: 12x8GB DDR3 ECC UDIMM, 4x4GB DDR3 ECC UDIMM
Usage Profile: Home certification/study lab, media storage
Other information… When I lost my job a couple years back, I made some sacrifices to prevent myself from going into debt. One of those sacrifices was the sale of my 24U HP rack enclosure. I swapped everything over to desktop systems for noise, power, and space considerations. This worked great until my lab grew to four boxes, each loaded to the gills with HDDs. When my first HDD died of overtemp, I knew it was time to make a change. I bought a pair of SC846s and loaded them up, expecting to expand gradually. Then I got a great deal on 50x 2TB SAS drives, and all of a sudden I was set for storage... But I needed hosts since my vSphere environment was WAY too stuffy. So, I added a pair of E3s to my environment. One thing lead to another, and I was sitting on a pile of rackmount equipment with no rack. I found a 12U that "almost" fit under my desk on Amazon, and decided that it was time. Ordered. Delivered (early!). Assembled. Pictures follow.
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There's an issue with the final picture. I have another 2U server to fit in that space. When I had purchased the rack, I intended to put the 1U UPS in another room and stash the HP switch on the side somewhere. Then I found the rack ears for the switch, and... Well, I like the way it looks. Sue me. So, that lead me on a search for a replacement chassis for the two E3s stashed in the SC822Ts.
Supermicro's got a great 1U catalog. Whole lot to love in there. I decided that I wanted redundant PSUs, Platinum rated, and that I wasn't going to settle for anything less. I fell in love with the SC113TQ-R500CB, and ordered two of them off SuperBiiz. I paid for rush shipping and overnight air delivery. My rack was assembled already. I wanted the chassis NOW! Unfortunately, it was late on a Friday night. Well after the business had shut down for the weekend. So, I waited patiently until Monday. By 3PM Monday, my order was still listed as "Processing". I called up SuperBiiz and asked what the holdup was. They stated that they were in talks with SuperMicro to see when they could get another shipment of them in - They were not in stock. I got pretty frustrated, and asked them to cancel my order. They did.
I still needed a pair of 1U chassis. SuperBiiz was almost $100/chassis cheaper than anywhere else, and they were out of stock. I started wondering if I REALLY needed the chassis I wanted. I actually ordered and then cancelled a pair of WIO-style 1U chassis off Amazon. Thank goodness I did a bit more research on them after buying. What a shock that would have been. Somewhere in all this "research" (read: play), I came across Supermicro's Micro Cloud. It's almost like a blade center for E3s. You know, except for the shared networking. Needless to say, I was intrigued. I had intended to eventually add a few more servers to my setup. If I got the Micro Cloud, I wouldn't need to worry about where I was going to put them. In fact, after I paid it off, I could drop a new CPU/RAM combo into it once a month. Before I knew it, I had talked myself into it. I made a post on [H]ard|Forum asking about it, but I already had my heart set. SuperBiiz was the cheapest place again, and honestly, they treated me okay so I figured I'd give them another chance at my business.
Today, I received a phone call from SuperBiiz. Did I really know what I was buying? Am I sure I want to order this? It's a large amount of money, and there's no returns. I told them "Yes", and my order moved to the next step.
So that's where it sits now. I'm awaiting delivery.
But I really made this thread to talk about the StarTech adjustable rack. $190 for 12U, brand new. I was impressed. It's heavier than I expected. They included the screwdriver and two wrenches you need to assemble it. It was packaged very well. Assembly took about an hour, and wasn't difficult at all. The only real issue I came across was that the rack was out-of-square when I finished building it. I didn't notice until I started loading it up with servers. A few quick turns of the wrench fixed that. (User error!) The unit numbers on the vertical rails are a sticker, not a silkscreen. If I pull out both of my fully-loaded SC846s, the rack tips forwards. I honestly can't find anything else to complain about. It's a fantastic little rack for the price.
I'll post again when I get the 3U in.
CPU: Xeon E3s (1x V1, 1x V2, 2x V3)
Motherboard: Supermicro X9/X10 seies
Chassis: Supermicro SC846 / SC822T / 3U "special"
Drives: 48x Seagate 2TB SAS, Samsung 840 Pro
RAM: 12x8GB DDR3 ECC UDIMM, 4x4GB DDR3 ECC UDIMM
Usage Profile: Home certification/study lab, media storage
Other information… When I lost my job a couple years back, I made some sacrifices to prevent myself from going into debt. One of those sacrifices was the sale of my 24U HP rack enclosure. I swapped everything over to desktop systems for noise, power, and space considerations. This worked great until my lab grew to four boxes, each loaded to the gills with HDDs. When my first HDD died of overtemp, I knew it was time to make a change. I bought a pair of SC846s and loaded them up, expecting to expand gradually. Then I got a great deal on 50x 2TB SAS drives, and all of a sudden I was set for storage... But I needed hosts since my vSphere environment was WAY too stuffy. So, I added a pair of E3s to my environment. One thing lead to another, and I was sitting on a pile of rackmount equipment with no rack. I found a 12U that "almost" fit under my desk on Amazon, and decided that it was time. Ordered. Delivered (early!). Assembled. Pictures follow.
===================================================================
===================================================================
There's an issue with the final picture. I have another 2U server to fit in that space. When I had purchased the rack, I intended to put the 1U UPS in another room and stash the HP switch on the side somewhere. Then I found the rack ears for the switch, and... Well, I like the way it looks. Sue me. So, that lead me on a search for a replacement chassis for the two E3s stashed in the SC822Ts.
Supermicro's got a great 1U catalog. Whole lot to love in there. I decided that I wanted redundant PSUs, Platinum rated, and that I wasn't going to settle for anything less. I fell in love with the SC113TQ-R500CB, and ordered two of them off SuperBiiz. I paid for rush shipping and overnight air delivery. My rack was assembled already. I wanted the chassis NOW! Unfortunately, it was late on a Friday night. Well after the business had shut down for the weekend. So, I waited patiently until Monday. By 3PM Monday, my order was still listed as "Processing". I called up SuperBiiz and asked what the holdup was. They stated that they were in talks with SuperMicro to see when they could get another shipment of them in - They were not in stock. I got pretty frustrated, and asked them to cancel my order. They did.
I still needed a pair of 1U chassis. SuperBiiz was almost $100/chassis cheaper than anywhere else, and they were out of stock. I started wondering if I REALLY needed the chassis I wanted. I actually ordered and then cancelled a pair of WIO-style 1U chassis off Amazon. Thank goodness I did a bit more research on them after buying. What a shock that would have been. Somewhere in all this "research" (read: play), I came across Supermicro's Micro Cloud. It's almost like a blade center for E3s. You know, except for the shared networking. Needless to say, I was intrigued. I had intended to eventually add a few more servers to my setup. If I got the Micro Cloud, I wouldn't need to worry about where I was going to put them. In fact, after I paid it off, I could drop a new CPU/RAM combo into it once a month. Before I knew it, I had talked myself into it. I made a post on [H]ard|Forum asking about it, but I already had my heart set. SuperBiiz was the cheapest place again, and honestly, they treated me okay so I figured I'd give them another chance at my business.
Today, I received a phone call from SuperBiiz. Did I really know what I was buying? Am I sure I want to order this? It's a large amount of money, and there's no returns. I told them "Yes", and my order moved to the next step.
So that's where it sits now. I'm awaiting delivery.
But I really made this thread to talk about the StarTech adjustable rack. $190 for 12U, brand new. I was impressed. It's heavier than I expected. They included the screwdriver and two wrenches you need to assemble it. It was packaged very well. Assembly took about an hour, and wasn't difficult at all. The only real issue I came across was that the rack was out-of-square when I finished building it. I didn't notice until I started loading it up with servers. A few quick turns of the wrench fixed that. (User error!) The unit numbers on the vertical rails are a sticker, not a silkscreen. If I pull out both of my fully-loaded SC846s, the rack tips forwards. I honestly can't find anything else to complain about. It's a fantastic little rack for the price.
I'll post again when I get the 3U in.
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