will esx run on this?

[tdubb123]

Will esx 3 run on this?

[doofoo]

Do the specs on this server look okay to you? Sorry for all the questions, just don't want to get a server that won't work.

Memory

2 GB DDR2 ECC SDRAM 677MHz (2 DIMMs)

-

---

Hard Disk Drive

160 GB SATA II Hard Drive (7200RPM)-----

Video

128MB PCIe x16 ATI FireGL V3400, Dual DVI or Dual VGA or DVI + VGA-----

Sound Card

Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic, w/Dolby Digital 5.1-----

Scratch & Dent

Scratch & Dent-----

Base

Precision Workstation 390 Mini-Tower: Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 1.86GHz/1066MHz/2MB L2/Dual-core/VT-----

Media Bay

16X DVD ROM Drive

16X DVD +/- RW w/dbl layer write capability-----

[jjkrueger]

specs look fine. audio and video are naturally not going to be important. disk is fine, processor is adequate for a home lab setup. memory will work just fine, but will definitely limit the number of VMs you can run. The only thing I upgraded in my boxes was the memory - i kicked it up to 4GB each. But 2GB will work just fine.

-jk

[doofoo]

Yeah I was going to load up the box with 4gb, Hoping it has 4 slots so I can upgrade. Do you happen to know?

[jjkrueger]

yep - 4 dimm slots

[doofoo]

Is this the nic you were refering to:

http://www.amazon.com/Intel-PWLA8391GT-1000-Network-Adapter/dp/B00030DEQE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=elect...

Getting ready to order it, and 4gb ram extra.

[jjkrueger]

That's the one.

[doofoo]

So I have the 390 on order, should be here tomorrow or friday. I am ordering some more components though and want to get them before the weekend. The internal RAID controller on this 390, will ESX recognize two 1tb drives in a raid1 as 1 drive, or two?

Curious if the RAID works or not.

[mcowger]

Depends on how you setup the controller....if you set it up to expose 1 volume or just as JBOD.

--Matt

[doofoo]

Also interested in swapping for the Q6600 processor. Will the heatsink with the 390 work with the Q6600 if I just order the OEM processor from newegg?

Should be a decent box if so, 8gb ram + Q6600. I have searched high and low on the net, but can't find any detailed info about swapping the CPU in the 390.

[doofoo]

I would set it up to expose 1 raid1 (two 1tb drives) as a 1tb volume.

However, I know in some other cheaper on-board raid cards even when I have done that in the past, Linux still recognized the individual drives. So I was looking for someone who had used the 390 w/ raid 1/5 enabled that could tell me for sure.

[Thomas_W]

doofoo,

You should be fine with the stock Dell heatsink. In fact, I bought a Precision 390 about a year ago with the least expensive processor available from Dell and then swapped it for a QX6700. Also, at least in my system, the CPU socket is mounted at a 45 degree angle relative to the general orientation of the motherboard and I am not so sure that the placement of the post holes is anything like standard. Trying to fit an off-the-shelf heatsink in there might be a bit of a challange. The stock one is quite large and seems to do the job. Just make sure to use high-quality thermal paste and you should be fine. My system has shown no ailments from the upgrade and it runs 24/7 with a good amount of load most of the time.