building a basic homeserver Options

[cohmoddersolo]

Hi guys,

Im currently trying to build a basic homeserver pc to be able to connect printers and access/share files on any computer connected to my network. ATM, I have a Pentium 3 (866Mhz?) and a Pentium 4 3Ghz CPUs with motherboards to go with each sitting around. Hopefully I can use one of them if they're up to the task before consider buying a complete system like HP microservers. Ive also got some RAM, HDD, case etc to go with my build, tho I may get a new small wattage, efficient PSU as I dont trust the generic ones Ive got. For SATA ports, I figure I could use SATA PCI expansion cards as the Pentium 3 board doesnt have SATA ports, tho the Pentium 4 board has 2 ports. Thats about it for now (its midnight at the time of writing. I didn't want to delay doing this again).

Basically, will the parts Ive got now be up to the task of basic homeserver duties?

[aliali]

So I take it you want to connect all the printers direct to the server via USB or printer port and share them? Then put all files to be shared on the server as well and share them?
In reality you would be best to use more modern hardware rather than that gear, although the P3 would probably be enough. Just add a PCI SATA card to it so you can attach large SATA HDDs.
The P4 will just be too power hungry and noisy IMO, unless you can underclock it a fair bit.
While more expensive I would go a new build using a Gigabyte E45M1-M PRO with the onboard AMD E-450 18W TDP CPU. I use the slightly older E350 version for my home server running Windows Home Server V2 (needs a 64 bit CPU and 4Gb of ram to install and run).

[Dasa]

the p3 will probably use a lot less power than the p4 and both should be fast enough to do what you want although something new may well be noticeably faster
by the time you buy a psu and pci sata card which may limit hdd speeds you are probably well on the way to the cost of something like the microserver which will use a lot less power
if you want to build it yourself this may be a better option
G530 $45
ASRock B75M $69 3x sata6 5x sata3 but usb3 are all rear panel
ASRock H61M-HVS-B3 $52 4x sata3 no usb3

as for psu take a look at this although it wont fit a atx case very well Seasonic 250W TFX PSU 80+Bronze $54
http://www.umart.com.au/newindex28.phtml?i...5&sid=86006

This post has been edited by Dasa: Jul 9 2012, 08:53 AM

[cohmoddersolo]

Thanks for the replies guys. I prefer to use the stuff Ive got first as they're just lying around doing nothing and taking up space.
So yes, basically what I want is files and printers to be connected and centralized. Its very inconvenient for us to move files around the house using USB sticks and taking laptops to the printer to print stuff.
The Pentium 3 is actually part of a whole PC I got from an auction for very cheap. Im not sure what make it is cause there arent any logos or writings around the case. Here's a pic of it and the PSU:

The PC


PSU


Im currently looking at an XSonic PCI SATA card on Ebay with these specs:

CODE

Specifications

Serial ATA (SATA) Host Controller Chip with 32-bit interfacing

Compliant with Serial ATA 1.0 Specification

Supports four independent SATA ports with data transfer rate up to 1.5Gb/s

Built in 256 byte FIFO per port for fast read/write operations

Supports RAID functions 0,1 or 0 + 1

Supports co-exist RAID set and Non-Raid HDD

Allows HDDs with different sizes to be configured in a RAID set

I reckon this card and a HDD Ive got pretty much completes the build. Tho what OS will I be getting? I presume it has to be a 32-bit OS as the CPU is a 32-bit one.

This post has been edited by cohmoddersolo: Jul 9 2012, 09:18 PM

[ChaKane]

It depends on exactly what you want from the server. If it's only as you indicate in your post, for sharing a printer and serving files across the network, maybe you should look towards something like a cloud edition HDD which will do exactly what you want. If you are looking at running a server for games though, obviously this is not the way to go. But if it's only files and printer then this way would be substantally cheaper.


Something like : Iomega


Just an idea

[fajw]

I use and recommend ClearOS 5.2 SP1.

[scruffy1]

really, what you describe is already fully functional in a qnap server

a ts109 (i am still using one i bought 2nd hand years ago, and loving it) went for $50 on ocau last month - does everything you want, has a very functional o.s. included, and burns 17w at peak (<5w on standby)

check out the ts109 specs - if you can source one at $50 it is a bargain for your specific needs

[cohmoddersolo]

Yes, thats pretty much what Im looking for! Maybe not enough USB ports, but I can always plug in a USB hub.
Sorry guys, I havent been able to build the Pentium 3 system. Playing too much games and just forget what I have to do.
Ill surely check out that ts109. Still open to suggestions. Cheers.

edit: Forgot to mention that, I do still prefer to use my stuff tho. Not because Im a tight-arse, but these bits are lying around home doing nothing and filling up space. And also, theres room for upgrades and expandabilty. Maybe in the future I will overhaul the rig with new motherboard, CPU, etc. So, thanks again everyone. Ill see how the Pentium 3 system fairs after I get it built. If it doesnt satisfy, Ill get back to you all.

This post has been edited by cohmoddersolo: Jul 13 2012, 11:03 PM

[cohmoddersolo]

I got to building the PC last night. Decided to use a tower rather than the desktop case cause Ill be using it for my desktop build. 2 drives are IDE drives, I didnt get the PCI SATA card from Ebay. Ill pay my local PC store a visit to look for one. Ive yet to install the OS. How easy is operating that ClearOS 5.2? Will it fit into a 4GB drive? There are 2 drives, 4GB and 80GB. Id like to use the 4GB as OS drive and 80GB for server storage. Then Ill need to get a USB octopus extension so I can connect printers, etc onto the server. Pic:

[cohmoddersolo]

Currently trying to setup the server and I have totally no clue on what Im doing. Ive got hardware sorted, but how do I install software? Is ClearOS 5.2 a standalone OS? Like can I install it like I install Windows? I was looking at FreeNAS but without a clue on what Im doing its pretty much useless...

[fajw]

To install ClearOS: download the image, burn it to a CD, put it in the machine, boot from the optical drive and follow the instructions. If you have problems, check out the documentation. If you still have problems ask me for help.

[cohmoddersolo]

Thanks faj. Ive done exactly that last night but my CD drive doesnt seem to want to read it. I first thought that to run these server OS's, I need a Windows OS first like Windows 7 then install the server OS cause looking at screenshots the interface looks like Windows with additional stuff on it. Gotta troubleshoot this CD drive...

[meowkitty]

Thanks faj. Ive done exactly that last night but my CD drive doesnt seem to want to read it. I first thought that to run these server OS's, I need a Windows OS first like Windows 7 then install the server OS cause looking at screenshots the interface looks like Windows with additional stuff on it. Gotta troubleshoot this CD drive...

be sure make an ISO disk not burn the file to the disk.
he he, and hope it's not your last disk if you didn't make it an iso.

[fajw]

Thanks faj. Ive done exactly that last night but my CD drive doesnt seem to want to read it. I first thought that to run these server OS's, I need a Windows OS first like Windows 7 then install the server OS cause looking at screenshots the interface looks like Windows with additional stuff on it. Gotta troubleshoot this CD drive...

You install it like Windows. The screenshots are probably of the web page(s) within a browser within Windows which is how you configure it.

[cohmoddersolo]

be sure make an ISO disk not burn the file to the disk.
he he, and hope it's not your last disk if you didn't make it an iso.

Well I burned the ISO image onto a CD with Astroburn (Daemon Tools's burner). Not the files in the ISO image.

[cohmoddersolo]

Still no luck fixing it guys. I tried a Windows XP installer CD but somehow the PC is not reading it. Is there anything wrong with the system?

Penitum III 866Mhz
GA-60X
Single stick 512MB SDRAM
GA-AG32S
80GB Seagate IDE 7200.7
CD/DVDROM

How many RAM does a rig this old support? I suspect I have too much RAM with 512MB in there... so confused right now...

This post has been edited by cohmoddersolo: Jul 29 2012, 04:31 PM

[aliali]

Would have thought if the mobo did not support that much ram it would not boot at all past the BIOS, or would just read the max amount of ram it can support. At least that has been my experience with old boards.
However http://www.gigabyte.com.au/products/produc...spx?pid=1511#sp says up to 512Mb of ram so that may be either a single 512Mb stick or it may only properly support 256Mb sticks.


As for the boot CD not familiar with Astroburn but looking at the website you would click on "burn image to disk" and browse to where you save the disk image you downloaded.
that should make it bootable. if the optical is not seeing the disk at all then you have a problem with the drive, IDE port, IDE cable or the slave/master settings.
From the pic I assume the CD drive is going to be on it's own cable with no other drive of any sort, in which case make sure the jumpers are set to either CS (cable select) or Master.

[cohmoddersolo]

Yes it now works! The combination of aliali's jumper settings and a change of drive made it work. I changed the drive from a CD/DVDROM to a CD only reader and set the jumpers to Master. Installing my old Windows XP copy now. Thanks very much for helping guys. Now I guess I need to find the drivers for such old hardware. Hmm...

[aliali]

Yes it now works! The combination of aliali's jumper settings and a change of drive made it work. I changed the drive from a CD/DVDROM to a CD only reader and set the jumpers to Master. Installing my old Windows XP copy now. Thanks very much for helping guys. Now I guess I need to find the drivers for such old hardware. Hmm...

Should be able to get the Intel Inf and Intel Intel IAA for the Intel 815P AGP chipset straight from Intel, otherwise http://www.gigabyte.com.au/products/produc...spx?pid=1511#sp has them (old ones but).
The rage drivers can be grabbed from http://www.gigabyte.com.au/products/produc...spx?pid=1104#dl if XP does not include usable ones.
AMD also have drivers for XP for that card.
http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/Pages/legacy-xp.aspx