Dual processor server

[Blargh]

Thanx for the links MrThompson ill check em out in a sec.

mechBgon i had originally planned do to a dual p3 rig for this server, but upon actually pricing out the processors, the newer server p3 tualatins (1.4s) are actually MORE money then a 2.0a prestonia xeon, the mobos for each of these setups are about the same price at around $500 each... so i decided to go with the xeons... their cheaper then those p3s and faster to boot.

And MoMeanMugs and Chrisisbored i kno this is more then i need at the moment, but as i said earlier i plan to keep this server running for a long... long... long time without having to upgrade anything other then add aditional memory as needed. Besides for what i wanted to do the only boards that have what i need feature wise is those dual proc boards, namely that dual lan and 64bit pci. I alrdy am running 2 cable modems in this house, one for my main computer and one for the family comp/multimedia comp (i have it playing mp3s threw my home theater), now with this server ill have both modems go directly into the server threw those integrated nics and then both out to my network threw a gigabit ethernet connection giving every comp on my network the speed of both modems combined (using win2k server). Show me a single proc mobo that can do this? And as far as the webserver application here when it first gets going it will only be for a static webpage and a modest forum and with anyluck that will be expanded on as time goes by, hell the money i save on webspace alone would justify this after a while..... lol besides if i REALLY wanted to go overboard i coulda went with dual 2.4ghz xeons or perhaps waited for the 533fsb xeons and chipsets...


Ok and to go off on a bit of a tangent here.... on cooling these xeons is it best to just use the retail hsf that come with them? Or go with something 3rd party with higher performance... speaking of what size hsf do they use anyway? Is it the same kind of configuration as the s478 northwood p4s?

 

[SSXeon5]

Originally posted by: Blargh
Thanx for the links MrThompson ill check em out in a sec.

mechBgon i had originally planned do to a dual p3 rig for this server, but upon actually pricing out the processors, the newer server p3 tualatins (1.4s) are actually MORE money then a 2.0a prestonia xeon, the mobos for each of these setups are about the same price at around $500 each... so i decided to go with the xeons... their cheaper then those p3s and faster to boot.

And MoMeanMugs and Chrisisbored i kno this is more then i need at the moment, but as i said earlier i plan to keep this server running for a long... long... long time without having to upgrade anything other then add aditional memory as needed. Besides for what i wanted to do the only boards that have what i need feature wise is those dual proc boards, namely that dual lan and 64bit pci. I alrdy am running 2 cable modems in this house, one for my main computer and one for the family comp/multimedia comp (i have it playing mp3s threw my home theater), now with this server ill have both modems go directly into the server threw those integrated nics and then both out to my network threw a gigabit ethernet connection giving every comp on my network the speed of both modems combined (using win2k server). Show me a single proc mobo that can do this? And as far as the webserver application here when it first gets going it will only be for a static webpage and a modest forum and with anyluck that will be expanded on as time goes by, hell the money i save on webspace alone would justify this after a while..... lol besides if i REALLY wanted to go overboard i coulda went with dual 2.4ghz xeons or perhaps waited for the 533fsb xeons and chipsets...


Ok and to go off on a bit of a tangent here.... on cooling these xeons is it best to just use the retail hsf that come with them? Or go with something 3rd party with higher performance... speaking of what size hsf do they use anyway? Is it the same kind of configuration as the s478 northwood p4s?

Good choice .... and the P3 1.4GHz Tualatins are far from slow, the 1.4Ghz P3-S is around the speed of a 2.0a Xeon (acually faster in some cases) .... but the prices and upgrade path/mem upgrade points twords the Xeons and E7500. Good luck again and Intel all the way!

HERE is a good review on duel setups .... the 1.26Ghz is a good competitior to the 2.2GHz Xeon, so think of another 133Mhz more on the Tualatin core and It will prob take the lead in more of the tests. Im plaining on picking up a 1.4GHz p3 for my photoshop needs

SSXeon

 

[NanoMem]

In general servers should not be overclocked so cpu stock hsf cooling should be adequate unless you're concerned about heat effects coming from other components (hard drives, video, raid, nic etc.) on the ambient temperature in the case. Even that can be addressed by properly choosing the case (which you seem to have done with the pc-76) and adding good aeration fans if necessary.

I just thought of two details once you're done gathering your hardware components.

I wouldn't turn hyper-threading on blindly without knowing its direct correlation with the type of applications you plan on hosting. Btw you gonna need 2000 server or advanced server as professional only supports 2 cpu's cuz hyper-threading converts your Xeon's into 4 logical processors as seen by the OS. So you will need to load the right Windows HAL with the corresponding ACPI for 4 processors. I'd do a quick install with hyper-threading on and perform some benchmark measurents with your apps. Reason is that certain apps take a N E G A T I V E impact when hyper-threading is turned on. Although the loss of performance is not much when observed, if you don't need 4 processors then the professional OS license with 2 physical cpu's should do.

Concerning your cable modems, are you aware that your home ISP doesn't deliver the same bandwidth between downstream and upstream? What you see is the downstream bandwidth with bursts in excess of 1Mbps occasionally, your server clients won't be able to get the same thing as upstream is limited by both the head-end device housed by your cable service provider as well as your modem itself. I've tried to setup FTP servers using house cable modems and believe me it's painful and the only way around it is to purchase a business plan for the house. Agregating two cable modems might help a little provided you get two separate wan feeds, one for each. I can tell you that the difference between upstream and downstream is more than just a factor of two, it's more like 10 times! In the end, a business plan might cause less headaches in cost and real equipment.
All this leads me to think that you'd probably be better off with a couple of 100 or 10MBps NIC's and teaming them if you need to. Your WAN is certainly not going to exceed 10 MBps for each modem. Maybe start with one NIC to service the wan and another for the house users, that way you'll physically (best in my view) control security of internal traffic from external viewers. This way, you'll setup a firewall/router between the cable modems and the interface for outside traffic and maybe only a fast switch between the house machines and the interface that serves them. Make sure N O T to activate internal routing between the two interfaces in Win2K. Two interfaces will also take better advantage of the multiplicity in the E7500 southbridge busses.
Peace

 

[butch84]

I am very jealous, and im not trying to knock you, but there is no way 2 cable modems will saturate this setup. I understand you want to use the server for a long time, and that makes sense. As long as you are building one, you might as well build one you wont need to upgrade for a long time (as long as youve got the $). Just please dont try to tell me you need this b/c you have 2 cable modems- my celeron 433@540 would be able to handle 2 modems and a local network. Sharing an internet connection to a LAN really isnt all that intensive. Right now, my pentium 200mmx is my gateway to cable, and its more than enough (with linux).

Just my $.02, not trying to crap on your thread or anything- just reminds me of the wanna be 1337 technitians at work (Best Buy)


Butch

 

[MrThompson]

My observations on Hyper-Threading, all anecdotal. My Xeon box sees very limited use as a server in my home network. It?s mostly my personal workstation. All benchmarks aside, the system feels more responsive with Hyper-Threading enabled. Not quite the difference between a single verses a dual CPU system, but close and the same kind of feel. Is suspect when multi-tasking, there is more going on than the benchmarks indicate.