AMD 8-Core EPYC Home Server Build

AMD’s new EPYC 3201 is a good processor for a near-silent server …without sacrificing performance. I saw good price on an open box Supermicro M11SDV-8C-LN4F. It includes an embedded AMD EPYC 3201 8-core processor (Update: 2023-03-21: the 3201 is no longer available, I’ve updated the post and links to point at the newer 3251). I’ve … Read more

FreeNAS Mini XL, 8 bay Mini-ITX NAS

Catching up on email, I saw a Newsletter from iX Systems announcing the FreeNAS Mini XL (the irony).  On the new FreeNAS Mini page it looks just like the FreeNAS mini but taller to accommodate 8-bays. Available on Amazon starting at $1,500 with no drives. Here’s the Quick Start Guide and Data Sheet. The pictures show what appears to be equipped … Read more

VMware vs bhyve Performance Comparison

Playing with bhyve Here’s a look at Gea’s popular All-in-one design which allows VMware to run on top of ZFS on a single box using a virtual 10Gbe storage network.  The design requires an HBA and a CPU that supports VT-d so that the storage can be passed directly to a guest VM running a ZFS … Read more

Supermicro X10SDV-F Build; Datacenter in a Box

I don’t have room for a couple of rackmount servers anymore so I was thinking of ways to reduce the footprint and noise from my servers.  I’ve been very happy with Supermicro hardware so here’s my Supermicro Mini-ITX Datacenter in a box build. Motherboard: Supermicro X10SDV-F CPU/Motherboard: Xeon D-1540 X10SDV.  8 cores (16 including HT … Read more

HP Microserver Gen8 Specs Released

Just saw on STH that the HP Microserver Gen8 specs have been released… Intel Pentium G2020T (2 core, 2.5Ghz, 3MB, 35W) OR Intel Celeron G1610T 2GB ECC memory (up to 16GB, 2 slots) One PCIe expansion slot. Dual gigabit ethernet ports (332i adapter) Dynamic Smart Array B120i/ZM 150w power supply HP iLO4 remote management port … Read more