Windows Home Server: My Hardware Setup

[StarsFan4Life]

The current setup I have is as follows:

* CoolerMaster Elite 330 Case
* Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H 780G motherboard
* AMD X2 AM2 BE 2400 2.3GHZ
* 4GB Crucial pc2-6400 (2x 2gb)
* 1 Samsung 80gb SATA (Operating System)
* 1x 1TB Seagate SATA 3.0GB/s

I received my 120 day trial of WHS yesterday and plan to install it on this setup. Will I be able to find all the correct drivers needed to run it on this system? Any suggestions during install/setup of the OS? I have another Samsung 80gb to match the one I currently have. Would it be effective to run the OS on a RAID setup, while all my media is on the 1TB drive alone, not on a RAID setup?

I was also wondering if it is possible to run this Windows Server Connector on machines "outside" my own network and run weekly backups (like my mother and fathers computer's 300 miles away). If so, how do I go about doing so?

 

[RebateMonger]

The generic answer about drivers is that if you need drivers for a device, they should be certfied for Windows Server 2003. But, typically, the only drivers you really need are for the hard drive controller (RAID or non-RAID). And unless you are running RAID, you can usually set the motherboard BIOS to run SATA drives in "IDE Compatibility Mode", making hard drive controller drivers unnecessary.

Yes, you can run the System disk(s) in redundant RAID mode if you wish. Microsoft doesn't support it, but some run it that way. But you can't directly control where the files are saved. The Drive Extender software controls that and tries to keep the file distribution "balanced".

In theory, you can run backups across a VPN. Unless you have super-faat connections at both ends, it's recommended to do the INITIAL backup with the remote computer moved to the local network. Or, if the remote PC doesn't have too many "unique" files, you can make a backup of another local PC with the same OS installed first, and THEN make a VPN backup of the remote PC. The first PC backed up is always the longest backup, since everything must back transferred. In subsequent backups of the same OS, only a few of the Windows files need to be transferred.

 

[StarsFan4Life]

Originally posted by: RebateMonger
The generic answer about drivers is that if you need drivers for a device, they should be certfied for Windows Server 2003. But, typically, the only drivers you really need are for the hard drive controller (RAID or non-RAID). And unless you are running RAID, you can usually set the motherboard BIOS to run SATA drives in "IDE Compatibility Mode", making hard drive controller drivers unnecessary.

Yes, you can run the System disk(s) in redundant RAID mode if you wish. Microsoft doesn't support it, but some run it that way. But you can't directly control where the files are saved. The Drive Extender software controls that and tries to keep the file distribution "balanced".

In theory, you can run backups across a VPN. Unless you have super-faat connections at both ends, it's recommended to do the INITIAL backup with the remote computer moved to the local network. Or, if the remote PC doesn't have too many "unique" files, you can make a backup of another local PC with the same OS installed first, and THEN make a VPN backup of the remote PC. The first PC backed up is always the longest backup, since everything must back transferred. In subsequent backups of the same OS, only a few of the Windows files need to be transferred.

I cannot seem to find WHS or Windows Server 2003 LAN/Video/Audio drivers for this motherboard. Can anyone help me out here?

 

[RebateMonger]

Originally posted by: StarsFan4Life
I cannot seem to find WHS or Windows Server 2003 LAN/Video/Audio drivers for this motherboard. Can anyone help me out here?

The LAN chip is a Realtek 8111/8169:
Realtek's site with Drivers for Server 2003.

The Audio drivers are right on the Gigabyte web site:
Gigabyte Audio drivers for various OSes including Server 2003.

You are on your own for the video drivers, although the basic VGA drivers included with Server 2003 should be fine. Nobody ever actually uses the video in a Windows Home Server anyway, since all the management is via the Remote Client or via RDP.