Just finished up my first server, an NK 4.0 build. I’ll be using the server mostly just for general NAS purposes as well as backing up a bunch of devices. Software/OS is not completely decided on, but after some convincing from JDM, I think I’m going to try and fit an unRAID license into my budget.
Specs and Pricing:
| Type | Part | Price (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel i5-3570s | $35 |
| CPU Cooler | Thermaltake Gravity i2 | $9 |
| Motherboard | Acer ECS Q77H2-AM | $20* |
| RAM | 16GB (4x4GB) UDIMM 1600 DDR3 | $30* |
| Case | Cooler Master CMP-350 (included 500w PSU) | $80 |
| Hard Drives | 8x 2TB Seagate Constellation ST32000444SS SAS | $110* |
| Case Fans | 2x Arctic F12 + Noctua Fan Splitter | $15* |
| SSD | Kingston 120GB SSD | $17 |
| RAID Card | LSI 9207-8i | $40 |
| SAS Cables | 2x CableCreation SFF 8087 to 4x SFF 8482 Cables | $22 |
*These items were negotiated/offers were made. Those are not the usual prices.
So this build mostly revolved around the hard drives, which I’m sure you noticed were an amazing deal, which I got from a seller on r/homelabsales. The reason I was able to get 16TB worth of drives for only $110 was that the these Seagate drives actually seem to have been made for an OEM system, either a Hitachi or NetApp AMS. This meant that they were formatted differently, and the seller thought that they were 4kn. This meant that I had to get a newer SAS2308 card, the reason why I got the 9207-8i instead of one of the usual ones.
However, it turned out that the drives actually just had a sector size of 520, so it was a very simple command to format them to 512. Unfortunately, one of the drives had a mechanical error of some sort, something the seller said might happen since he wasn’t able to test them (he thought they were 4kn and didn’t have a compatible card). Luckily, I’ve started a return and a replacement drive is on the way.
Despite this small setback, overall I really enjoyed this build. I definitely learned a lot, and the community was very helpful in solving the (thankfully few) problems I had.
Photos:
Parts ready to be assembled
Inside of the case (Waiting to finish cable management when I get my last drive)
Finished build (side note: this case is great, and an awesome value with the included PSU)
All of the parts I used I’d definitely recommend and I’ve had no trouble with thems o far. If anyone is curious about sellers I used and what offers they accept, or if you have any other questions, just ask.