possible home server

[watercooled]

Smallnetbuilder is great for NAS reviews/advice/tips etc. Head over there for some more help choosing if you're going for a NAS.

[lodore]

nas's do seem quite expensive for the specs they have.
btw i just found out the hp servers do support 1tb and 2tb drives the maximum storage of 4 x 750gb drives quoted on hp website is just because thats the biggest branded drives hp sell.

[s_kinton]

I personally decided against a NAS. Unless you spend mage bucks they are generally underpowered and cannot provide high enough transfer rates. A home server provides much more flexibility, rather than waiting for firmware updates and being restricted to certain HDD sizes.

For the build you spec'd earlier, you wouldn't need more than a 250w PSU - just make sure its a well known brand i.e. Enermax, Antec, Tagan, Silverstone, FSP, Corsair etc, etc.

[DanceswithUnix]

I think I would be worried by a 250W PSU, not because of capacity but because a larger PSU will run quieter and I like to sleep in the same house as my server

[watercooled]

The server should be using <50w so even a 250w PSU should be running the fan at minimum speed. Spending more one a higher wattage PSU is a bit pointless and it might even use more power as PSUs tend to be less efficient at below 10% utilisation.

[scaryjim]

The server should be using <50w ...

Not with an Athlon X2 on a 760G mobo it won't. It might *possibly* idle just below 50W, but under any kind of load it would pull more than that, and is likely to peak over 100W.

[watercooled]

Actually my Athlon 5050e PC idles at about 34, loaded with IBT (draws well over TDP - few real world programs would come close to what it uses) uses about 88, full load with 7z uses 75 but a NAS would very rarely come even close to fully loading an Athlon. But even if it used 100w constantly, spending more on a PSU is pointless really and the HDD(s) is likely to make more noise than the PSU fan anyway.

[DanceswithUnix]

Yeah my 400W PSU fan is operating at worse than its optimum efficiency but I don't care, my server is a bit warm inside and lower spec PSUs don't like that and start cranking the fans up. I just want it quiet. PSUs may be efficient at 50%, but they are quietest at under 25%.

And yes I am quite aware that swapping the server to an Antec design with independent thermal zones would help, but what I have works.

I have one 120mm fan blowing into the case at the front, and a 140mm in the PSU venting out the back and the system is nice & quiet.

[DanceswithUnix]

Actually my Athlon 5050e PC idles at about 34, loaded with IBT (draws well over TDP - few real world programs would come close to what it uses) uses about 88, full load with 7z uses 75 but a NAS would very rarely come even close to fully loading an Athlon. But even if it used 100w constantly, spending more on a PSU is pointless really and the HDD(s) is likely to make more noise than the PSU fan anyway.

CPU fan (Arctic Cooling Freezer 64 pro) is the noisiest item I think.

Can't hear the hard disks (2xSamsung) unless doing something like a big database operation and even that is very quiet.

[watercooled]

CPU fan (Arctic Cooling Freezer 64 pro) is the noisiest item I think.

Can't hear the hard disks (2xSamsung) unless doing something like a big database operation and even that is very quiet.

Don't be pedantic, you know what I meant.

[s_kinton]

I think I would be worried by a 250W PSU, not because of capacity but because a larger PSU will run quieter and I like to sleep in the same house as my server

The power draw from a server, even using a full desktop dual core CPU will be minimal. Most of the time it will be idle using cool 'n quiet features and the like. I got a 1U FSP 220w 80plus PSU for my HTPC and its whisper quiet, even when playing HD movies. Using a larger PSU which in no way reflects the system its running will most likely to inefficient, not to mention more expensive.

[scaryjim]

Actually my Athlon 5050e PC idles at about 34...

Yeah, but that's a 45w processor. The ones the OP is looking at are 65W procesors. 45w Athlon IIs add another ~ £10, which is a hefty % increase. When my sempron 140 was unlocked it pulled 60W at idle and ~ 110W at load (although my PSU is older so not as efficient).

But if you're going to pick to that level then the OP may as well get the Athlon II X2 235e and a Pico PSU 150W, which would be much more efficient (but obviously significantly more expensive...)

[watercooled]

The TDP means very little really - the C2D E7200 has a 65w TDP but uses less at full load than a 45w 5050e. Back to the original point I was trying to make - a 250w PSU would be plenty for a home server like this. The OP might be better off spending maybe a little more (but probably less) on a dedicated NAS which would use less power (10-20w) so cost less to run and it's not like you'd have to lose performance - an AMD Athlon desktop platform is way overkill for most home file server/NAS systems and the limiting factor would be the HDDs or the network connection, a modern desktop platform wouldn't be far from idle even when saturating GbE.

[DanceswithUnix]

*sigh*

I have been through a lot of PSUs on my home server. I guess I am just more sensitive to noise than most, but then my home server runs two email domains and so must run 24/7, I don't have the luxury of wake on lan or similar. It lives just down the hall upstairs and if it makes a noise then I can hear it from my bedroom.

Now, take a look at the graphs here:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2624/5

Note that at the 50W region that these systems pull *all* the PSUs are wound down to their minimum fan noise, so choose one that is generally quiet and looks like all is OK.

First problem, in the summer the room gets warm and when you de-rate for heat you move up those graphs to the right to compensate. Now your OK PSU may be struggling and blowing like a nutter. In fact I find nearly all PSUs are whisper quiet when you first turn them on, just don't dare let them warm up

Second problem: all the low wattage PSUs I have owned have looked like this:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2371/2

In fact I had an Antec 380W psu in the server just like that 430W one. It actually came in a Fusion media case but made a dreadful racket. Was quite glad when it failed. At least that one has a chrome wire finger guard over the undersized fan to avoid turbulent air hiss, many have stamped steel of the case there.

What I want is something with a bigger internal fan and better overall airflow, and all the 400W+ psus I have bought have looked more like:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2371/5

and whilst I don't care about 400W capacity I do care about the large internal heatsinks, decent airflow and excellent fan control that a well made PSU comes with.

I noticed a quote in that Anandtech article which sums up my PSU experience:
"If it were possible to find a 250W power supply with similar performance at a lower price, that would be even better, but it's just not possible these days.".

[watercooled]

Oh I don't have anything against picking a higher wattage PSU if it means getting a quiet 120mm fan instead of the generally noisy smaller fans, I'm just saying there's no need to get a more expensive PSU for the sole reason of higher wattage because it would most likely draw a lot more power than a lower wattage one - the article you linked backed that up. It is important to note though that the low-wattage range contains lots of completely crap PSUs and you should NEVER use one of them, no matter how much of a bargain you think it is. Agreed there aren't many low-wattage PSUs from decent MFRs as most seem to concentrate on pointlessly high wattage models. A PicoPSU coupled with a decent 12v supply would be another option but the system I mentioned before is running on a 350w Antec PSU so at idle it's at less than 10% utilisation. The noise you hear across the house could be from vibration transmitting to the floor so get some soft Accoustifeet or stick a mouse mat under the case to absorb vibration.

[DanceswithUnix]

Oh I don't have anything against picking a higher wattage PSU if it means getting a quiet 120mm fan instead of the generally noisy smaller fans, I'm just saying there's no need to get a more expensive PSU for the sole reason of higher wattage because it would most likely draw a lot more power than a lower wattage one - the article you linked backed that up. It is important to note though that the low-wattage range contains lots of completely crap PSUs and you should NEVER use one of them, no matter how much of a bargain you think it is. Agreed there aren't many low-wattage PSUs from decent MFRs as most seem to concentrate on pointlessly high wattage models. A PicoPSU coupled with a decent 12v supply would be another option but the system I mentioned before is running on a 350w Antec PSU so at idle it's at less than 10% utilisation. The noise you hear across the house could be from vibration transmitting to the floor so get some soft Accoustifeet or stick a mouse mat under the case to absorb vibration.

Hmm, that might be an idea for the wife's Shuttle which ofc has a PSU with 40mm fan in it and probably transmitting that whine into the desk. She doesn't like it going into hibernate and tends not to switch it off

The server is now near as damn it silent and sitting on carpet so I think my work there is done.