~~Help~~: ~~~Newbie~~~First~~~Server~~~

[Leelakrishnan Boopalan]

CPU0 has 8 DDR3 slots connected to the core, while CPU1 is only connected to 4. You are dealing with 12 RAM slots in total, and you'll need to populate it in a specific way to go 128. So you could put in 12 sticks of 8GB ($50 each if you are lucky), which will get you 96GB in total, which is what the manufacturer intended when they came up with the machine. You could go 192GB (which is the absolute max supported), but that's 12 sticks of 16GB (which are $250 each if you are lucky). If you want 128 you'll need it to be 8 sticks of 8GB DIMMs, then on the other socket you'll need to put in 2 pairs of 16GB DIMMs. At some point the cost of getting it to the number you want will outweigh the net worth of the machine itself. DDR3 is also a bit of a dead end to invest heavily onto, as the only machines using it will be anything older than Haswell EPs (E5-x6xx or x6xx-v2).

Point taken.

Also notice that in order to reach CPU1 the I/O will have to go through CPU0 and then through its QPI link, giving any I/O operations extra latency if originating from CPU1.

I am not much worried about the performance, as the whole setup is ONLY for learning.

 

[SeanFi]

Just to add another option, if you don't mind going for something a little older, you could try looking for an HP ML350 G6 or a DL/ML370 G6. I've used both, and if you get them with Westmere Xeons (E56xx, L56xx, or X56xx) you get a pretty good platform that would work well for learning and testing. They are combination tower/rackmount units and are meant to be operated in an office environment. I have a ML350 G6 that we use as a specialized file/database server in one office, and it is quiet enough that it runs under someone's desk without disturbing them. They take DDR3 memory like the E5 V1 Xeons, and you can use cheap low capacity 2.5" drives. The HP 146GB SAS drives go for about $10 each.

 

[K D]

I am not much worried about the performance, as the whole setup is ONLY for learning

That's what I first thought. Over the years moved from desktop hdds to 10000 rpm hdds to ssd to ssd arrays to nvme arrays. Once you start you will be trying to squeeze more performance out of it. It's fun but my bank account hates me.