New processor/motherboard to run VMware ESXi 8?

[aal]

I've been running VMware ESXi on my Intel Core i7-4770T Haswell and Gigabyte Z87X-UD5H Z87 motherboard on my home server for many years but this hardware combo means I'm stuck on ESXi 6.7 which is end-of-life.

I'm looking to upgrade to something that supports ESXi 8 and ECC RAM and I've been keeping an eye on the Xeon E2200/E2300 but there seems to be no availability of these CPUs in the UK (presumably due to the global parts shortage?). Does anyone have any recommendations for an alternative processor/motherboard or does anyone know if the Xeons are due to become more widely available in the near future?

 

[oneplane]

Do you actually need newer hardware for the virtual machines you are running? Because it might be easier (and much cheaper) to just switch to a different hypervisor.

 

[aal]

I'd like some more headroom to run more VMs but the 32GB RAM on the current mobo is already maxed out. I'd like ECC for TrueNAS too.

 

[marv]

Whats the reason youre stuck on 6.7? I have Ivy bridge (1 gen older than Haswell) and ESXi7 upgrade only mentions that it will be unsupported in future, so it still works on 7.0

Are you looking to buy something new or used?

 

[aal]

I'm looking to buy new. It's been a while since I tried the 7.0 upgrade but I think I ran into an unsupported CPU error and wasn't sure whether bypassing it would bring problems further down the line. I was hoping to rebuild the server with new hardware and do a fresh install of the latest version of ESXi at the same time.

 

[marv]

I did a quick check and see e.g. Supermicro X12STL and Xeon E-2336 available (though I am not from UK).

I am starting to look myself for upgrade from my IB server, and wish Supermicro produced some Ryzen boards. I know Asrock Rack has bunch of AM4 like X470D4U2-2T but they are cost a lot. They also have new boards for AM5 CPUs with DDR5, like B650D4U-2T/BCM but price is also high and availability even worse.

I would also expect Intel to drop new entry server line or at least server chipset that would work with 12th and 13th gen core CPUs sometime this year.

 

[oldpenguin]

@aal - from a financial perspective, Xeon E5 2xxx v4 still seems supported in 8.0U1. Compared to a Haswell i7 (4c/8t) and keeping on Supermicro line (with/without its perks and headaches, as it'd be with any other brand), getting a pre-owned/refurbished X10-era motherboard equipped with a couple of E5 v4 Xeon's with an L termination (power bill friendly, lower TDP and freq but high num of cores) wouldn't be able to even spot that Haswell in its rearview mirror and let you have your fun with ESXi 8.

I'm guessing for the same pile of quid plus some care, you might even manage to score about 3 X10 gen units compared to a single X12 unit - but it's a subjective recommendation that may or may not be worth considering, based on your requirements. Even X11 series is worth considering. Amount of needed tinkering is exclusively up to your documentation - but I'll confirm I've ran it on X10 with less hassle than expected.