slayme1974 1 Posted September 2, 2016 Hi, I've found a cheap XEON E5-2699-V4 ES (22cores 44 threads) on ebay. I am looking a running a virtualised environment in virtual box running 2 domain controlers that also serve dhcp as well as nas, a web server, 2 windows 10 pro workstations and an Opensuse box. I also wanted to be able to play games on the xeon as well (not in virtual box). I have a few questions though before I buy it. 1. Is there any point in buying ecc ram (for the vbox network) I know there no point from a gaming perspective. 2. My copies of windows 2012 server is only licensed for 2 cpus. If I allow 4 threads in the server boxes does that count as 1 cpu or 4 for licensing purposes? 3. Will games run ok on a machine like this and if so how much will ecc ram affect the performance of the system? 4. Will a high end grapics card still run just as fast? I'm no expert so any help would be appreciated. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rybags 1,015 Posted September 2, 2016 I wouldn't worry about ECC Ram unless you're running some enterprise type critical setup. In which case I wouldn't be running games and using the machine for general apps/surfing. I would think gaming should be fine. 22 Cores, I didn't realise we'd gotten that high. I checked Win7 and the x86 versions "only" support 32 logical processors (you'd have 44 with HT enabled) but x64 supports up to 256. That CPU only runs at 2.2 GHz but the turbo options are nice, 2.8 if all cores busy and 3.0 to 3.6 if half or less cores are busy. Quad channel Ram is supported so it would be beneficial to set the system up as such. I should think the asymetric modes are available so you don't necessarily have to populate the Ram slots with like sized modules in multiples of 4. For example my older Xeon is in triple-channel mode though ATM I only have 4 of 6 slots populated with 4x4 Gig modules. The CPU limit for OSes I think would be physical processors. Since HTT was reintroduced with the Core i-series it's been commonplace for 8 logical processors on 1 physical CPU on anything midrange or above. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeruselem 634 Posted September 2, 2016 CPU licensing is for physical CPUs, one CPU can be multicore. Not to worry. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
slayme1974 1 Posted September 2, 2016 22 Cores, I didn't realise we'd gotten that high. Only in the enterprise market. As a matter of fact I know of at least one 24 core Xeon!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeruselem 634 Posted September 4, 2016 Not many motherboards will accept the CPU is another issue. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Master_Scythe 521 Posted September 5, 2016 If you have the equipment its usually worth a shot. the LinusTechTips community has well and truly proven not listing XEON chips, doesn't mean they wont work. Also, "Needing ECC ram" also is wrong, 90% of the time. If you have a matching socket and some non ECC ram, I'd be trying it :) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeruselem 634 Posted September 5, 2016 If you have the equipment its usually worth a shot. the LinusTechTips community has well and truly proven not listing XEON chips, doesn't mean they wont work. Also, "Needing ECC ram" also is wrong, 90% of the time. If you have a matching socket and some non ECC ram, I'd be trying it :) I did watch a video with him putting one of those on small ITX build with GTX1080. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
