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diff --git a/content/blog/2022-11-27-server-build.md b/content/blog/2022-11-27-server-build.md index acf07e8..17767b2 100644 --- a/content/blog/2022-11-27-server-build.md +++ b/content/blog/2022-11-27-server-build.md @@ -7,142 +7,137 @@ draft = false # The Dilemma -For years, I have been using desktops and a Raspberry Pi as the backbone -of my homelab. I have always wanted to move toward a single dedicated -server that could handle all of my tasks, but was often put off by the -complexity of the choices (and financial roadblocks at some times). +For years, I have been using desktops and a Raspberry Pi as the backbone of my +homelab. I have always wanted to move toward a single dedicated server that +could handle all of my tasks, but was often put off by the complexity of the +choices (and financial roadblocks at some times). -However, after purchasing a small server rack this past year, I have -been researching to see what kind of rack-mounted server I could buy. I -initially bought a Dell R720XD loaded up with everything I could ever -want in a server - but I did not care for it. It was far too loud, and -the age of the CPU/RAM was something I wanted to improve upon. +However, after purchasing a small server rack this past year, I have been +researching to see what kind of rack-mounted server I could buy. I initially +bought a Dell R720XD loaded up with everything I could ever want in a server - +but I did not care for it. It was far too loud, and the age of the CPU/RAM was +something I wanted to improve upon. -After returning the R720XD, I decided that I wanted to build my own -server with modern, consumer-grade PC components. This time, I am very -happy with the results of my server. +After returning the R720XD, I decided that I wanted to build my own server with +modern, consumer-grade PC components. This time, I am very happy with the +results of my server. # Components -I\'ll start by listing all the components I used for this server build: +I'll start by listing all the components I used for this server build: -- **Case**: [Rosewill RSV-R4100U 4U Server Chassis Rackmount +- **Case**: [Rosewill RSV-R4100U 4U Server Chassis Rackmount Case](https://www.rosewill.com/rosewill-rsv-r4100u-black/p/9SIA072GJ92825) -- **Motherboard**: [NZXT B550](https://nzxt.com/product/n7-b550) -- **CPU**: AMD Ryzen 7 5700G with Radeon Graphics -- **GPU**: N/A - I specifically chose one of the few AMD CPUs that - support onboard graphics. -- **RAM**: 64GB RAM (2x32GB) *Max of 128GB RAM on this motherboard* -- **Boot Drive**: Western Digital 500GB M.2 NVME SSD -- **HDD Bay**: - - 10TB WD White *(shucked, moved from previous server)* - - 8TB WD White *(shucked, moved from previous server)* - - 2 x 8TB WD Red Plus *(Black Friday lined up perfectly with this - build, so I grabbed two of these)* -- **PSU**: Corsair RM850 PSU -- **Extras**: - - Corsair TM3Q Thermal Paste - - Noctua 120mm fan *(replacement for front case fan)* - - 2 x Noctua 80mm fans *(replacement for rear case fans)* - - CableMatters 6Gbps SATA Cables +- **Motherboard**: [NZXT B550](https://nzxt.com/product/n7-b550) +- **CPU**: AMD Ryzen 7 5700G with Radeon Graphics +- **GPU**: N/A - I specifically chose one of the few AMD CPUs that support + onboard graphics. +- **RAM**: 64GB RAM (2x32GB) *Max of 128GB RAM on this motherboard* +- **Boot Drive**: Western Digital 500GB M.2 NVME SSD +- **HDD Bay**: + - 10TB WD White *(shucked, moved from previous server)* + - 8TB WD White *(shucked, moved from previous server)* + - 2 x 8TB WD Red Plus *(Black Friday lined up perfectly with this build, + so I grabbed two of these)* +- **PSU**: Corsair RM850 PSU +- **Extras**: + - Corsair TM3Q Thermal Paste + - Noctua 120mm fan *(replacement for front case fan)* + - 2 x Noctua 80mm fans *(replacement for rear case fans)* + - CableMatters 6Gbps SATA Cables # Building the Server -This took quite a while for me to build (in my opinion of time), -totaling around 3 hours from start to finish. The case has some peculiar -construction, so you have to completely remove the ODD & HDD cages to -install the motherboard and other components first. +This took quite a while for me to build (in my opinion of time), totaling around +3 hours from start to finish. The case has some peculiar construction, so you +have to completely remove the ODD & HDD cages to install the motherboard and +other components first. -Now, I\'ve never built a computer of any kind before, so I was quite -nervous. Personally, the only challenging part was getting the CPU -cooler to screw into the motherboard without sliding the thermal paste -around too much underneath. I\'m still not entirely sure if I did a -great job of it, but nothing\'s broken yet. +Now, I've never built a computer of any kind before, so I was quite nervous. +Personally, the only challenging part was getting the CPU cooler to screw into +the motherboard without sliding the thermal paste around too much underneath. +I'm still not entirely sure if I did a great job of it, but nothing's broken +yet. -The main components were all fine and simple. However, installing the -hard drives is slightly tedious as I need to power off the server and -completely unscrew the HDD cage to install or remove any drives. -Additionally, the drives are screwed directly into the metal cage with -small screws, which are quite a bit different from the HDD trays I\'m -used to in other machines. +The main components were all fine and simple. However, installing the hard +drives is slightly tedious as I need to power off the server and completely +unscrew the HDD cage to install or remove any drives. Additionally, the drives +are screwed directly into the metal cage with small screws, which are quite a +bit different from the HDD trays I'm used to in other machines. -Seeing that the cases with hot-swap bays were 3-4x the price, I\'m okay -dealing with the tedium of removing the cage to install new drives. +Seeing that the cases with hot-swap bays were 3-4x the price, I'm okay dealing +with the tedium of removing the cage to install new drives. # Software -I\'m not going to dive into the software as I have done so in other -recent posts. However, I wanted to note that I am using Alpine Linux on -this server and hosting most services inside Docker. No virtual machines -(VMs) and very few bare-metal services. +I'm not going to dive into the software as I have done so in other recent +posts. However, I wanted to note that I am using Alpine Linux on this server and +hosting most services inside Docker. No virtual machines (VMs) and very few +bare-metal services. # The Results -How did my build turn out? Well, after migrating my other servers and -their services over, I found that my server is blazing fast. The -heaviest of my applications, Plex, is handled with ease. Even 4k -streaming seems to be effortless. +How did my build turn out? Well, after migrating my other servers and their +services over, I found that my server is blazing fast. The heaviest of my +applications, Plex, is handled with ease. Even 4k streaming seems to be +effortless. -I am very happy with the results and will likely continue to improve on -this server as the years go by rather than buying another used server -online. +I am very happy with the results and will likely continue to improve on this +server as the years go by rather than buying another used server online. ## Mistakes I Made -This post wouldn\'t be complete unless I wrote about the mistakes I made -while building. The only real mistake I made beyond a \"whoops I dropped -a screw\" related to airflow and fan direction. +This post wouldn't be complete unless I wrote about the mistakes I made while +building. The only real mistake I made beyond a "whoops I dropped a screw" +related to airflow and fan direction. -While installing the two new hard drives that showed up on 2022-11-30 -and getting ready to install the case in my rack, I noticed that the -hard drive temperatures were quite high. +While installing the two new hard drives that showed up on 2022-11-30 and +getting ready to install the case in my rack, I noticed that the hard drive +temperatures were quite high. -I used the `smartctl` command for each of my drives -(`/dev/sda` through `/dev/sdd`): +I used the `smartctl` command for each of my drives (`/dev/sda` through +`/dev/sdd`): ```sh doas smartctl -a /dev/sda | grep Temperature_Celsius ``` -The results were unusual - all four drives were idling at \~44-46 -degrees Celsius. The only drive that was cooler was my 10TB drive, which -was at 38 degrees Celsius. I noted that this 10TB drive was also closest -to the case fan. +The results were unusual - all four drives were idling at ~44-46 degrees +Celsius. The only drive that was cooler was my 10TB drive, which was at 38 +degrees Celsius. I noted that this 10TB drive was also closest to the case fan. ```sh ID# ATTRIBUTE_NAME FLAG VALUE WORST THRESH TYPE UPDATED WHEN_FAILED RAW_VALUE # /dev/sda -194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 147 147 000 Old_age Always - 44 (Min/Max 22/46) +194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 147 147 000 Old_age Always - 44 (Min/Max 22/46) # /dev/sdb -194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 141 141 000 Old_age Always - 46 (Min/Max 21/48) +194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 141 141 000 Old_age Always - 46 (Min/Max 21/48) # /dev/sdc -194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 144 144 000 Old_age Always - 45 (Min/Max 19/61) +194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 144 144 000 Old_age Always - 45 (Min/Max 19/61) # /dev/sdd -194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 171 171 000 Old_age Always - 38 (Min/Max 14/56) +194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 171 171 000 Old_age Always - 38 (Min/Max 14/56) ``` -After looking to see if I could fit more fans into the case, I noticed -that the 120mm fan used for intake from the front of the case was -actually pushing air out of the case by mistake. This fan sits right in -front of the hard drive bay. +After looking to see if I could fit more fans into the case, I noticed that the +120mm fan used for intake from the front of the case was actually pushing air +out of the case by mistake. This fan sits right in front of the hard drive bay. -Once I flipped the fan around to act as an intake fan, the temperatures -dropped immediately! They are now idling at \~31-33 degrees Celsius. A -single fan spinning the wrong way caused my drives to idle 10-15 degrees -higher than they should have. +Once I flipped the fan around to act as an intake fan, the temperatures dropped +immediately! They are now idling at ~31-33 degrees Celsius. A single fan +spinning the wrong way caused my drives to idle 10-15 degrees higher than they +should have. ```sh ID# ATTRIBUTE_NAME FLAG VALUE WORST THRESH TYPE UPDATED WHEN_FAILED RAW_VALUE # /dev/sda -194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 209 209 000 Old_age Always - 31 (Min/Max 14/56) +194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 209 209 000 Old_age Always - 31 (Min/Max 14/56) # /dev/sdb -194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 196 196 000 Old_age Always - 33 (Min/Max 19/61) +194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 196 196 000 Old_age Always - 33 (Min/Max 19/61) # /dev/sdc -194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 203 203 000 Old_age Always - 32 (Min/Max 21/48) +194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 203 203 000 Old_age Always - 32 (Min/Max 21/48) # /dev/sdd -194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 196 196 000 Old_age Always - 33 (Min/Max 22/46) +194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0002 196 196 000 Old_age Always - 33 (Min/Max 22/46) ``` -This was a silly error to make, but I\'m glad I found it today before I -screwed the case into the rack and made things a lot more tedious to -fix. +This was a silly error to make, but I'm glad I found it today before I screwed +the case into the rack and made things a lot more tedious to fix. |