My boss is considering getting the 2900 configured with dual 5405 quads and 16 gigs of RAM. As part of the configuration, he has selected Integrated SAS/SATA RAID 1, PERC 6/i Integrated/SAS6/iR and 2 SATA drives of 250 GB capacity each. We're ordering the machine without any operating system, the intention being to get it up and running initially on 32-bit Windows XP and gradually make the transition to a 64-bit OS (preferably have both XP and the 64-bit OS on a dual boot). Would I face any major issues getting XP to work? Thanks in advance.
Windows XP 32-bit on a Dell Poweredge 2900 III
- Thread starter KayGee
- Start date
The IT guys are not in favor of making the transition to Vista and from what I've read on these forums, XP64 seems to be more troublesome than Vista-64, so for now, I think my best option is to get XP32 up and running until they decide on a 64-bit OS and then either dual boot or reinstall. Kinda weird situation...
The intent is to make this machine as versatile as possible. The main purpose is number-crunching (turbine simulation codes), but the boss also wants to be able to use it for data acquisition (Labview) if needed and even word-processing and browsing. Like I said, weird situation. Would you anticipate any problems with Server 03/08? Here's the link to the configurator :
Link
The only problem is we don't have Vista at all and it doesn't look like the IT guys are going to switch anytime soon.
This is quite possibly the worst "IT decision" I've ever seen made on these boards.
By not running a server OS on this system, you are squandering virtually all of this system's potential. The changes are more than just "you can make a domain".
Not only that, but Dell does not have XP Pro (32- or 64-bit) drivers for this system.
Servers are not just more powerful workstations. They are designed with a specific purpose in mind. If all you need is a powerful workstation, you could save considerable money buying one of Dell's Precision workstations.
Oh, I believe you. The thing is we're mechanical engineers and support is provided by the IT department. So we want something that we can get up and running as soon as possible to run the simulation codes we have and if necessary, be used for the other purposes mentioned previously.
Buy it with Server 2003 64-bit or Server 2008 64-bit. You'll get much better performance out of it. And the marginal increase in cost isn't really all that much anyway.
Just to clarify, XP wasn't going to be used permanently. We just needed something so the machine could be used until the IT guys decided on a 64-bit OS. Anyway, thanks for the replies guys. I really appreciate the help.
Crusty
Lifer
- Sep 30, 2001
- 12,684
- 2
- 81
That machine with Windows XP 32-bit is such a waste of money. You are nowhere near taking advantage of the potential of it. If you want a powerful workstation, buy a workstation with workstation hardware and put Vista 64-bit or Linux on it. If you want a server, buy server hardware and put Windows Server 64-bit or Linux on it.
SandEagle
Lifer
- Aug 4, 2007
- 16,809
- 13
- 0
maybe your boss would be interested in this: 
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...id=38&threadid=2245537
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...id=38&threadid=2245537
You don't have to have a 64-bit OS to use the full RAM. You can use the full 16 GB on that system if you have Server 2003 Enterprise. That really is beside the point though...
As others have said though if you need a powerful workstation buy a workstation. Don't try to force a 2900 into a workstation role, it's really not suited for it. It's going to be noisy, and hardware expansion will be extremely limited.
You should be looking at Precision workstations. You can get them with dual quads and 16 GB, that config really isn't anything special these days.
I have a Precision 690 and a 2950 on my desk right now. The 2950 is dual 5440's and 32 GB, with 6x450 GB 15K SAS. It is a howling monster and I can't wait to get it out of my cube. The 690 on the other hand is a great workstation. Quiet, powerful, I can run two displays and even upgrade the video card if I want. I run Windows XP 64-bit, so I can use as much RAM as I want.
So in short: A 2900 makes a TERRIBLE workstation. Bad, bad idea.
Viper GTS
As others have said though if you need a powerful workstation buy a workstation. Don't try to force a 2900 into a workstation role, it's really not suited for it. It's going to be noisy, and hardware expansion will be extremely limited.
You should be looking at Precision workstations. You can get them with dual quads and 16 GB, that config really isn't anything special these days.
I have a Precision 690 and a 2950 on my desk right now. The 2950 is dual 5440's and 32 GB, with 6x450 GB 15K SAS. It is a howling monster and I can't wait to get it out of my cube. The 690 on the other hand is a great workstation. Quiet, powerful, I can run two displays and even upgrade the video card if I want. I run Windows XP 64-bit, so I can use as much RAM as I want.
So in short: A 2900 makes a TERRIBLE workstation. Bad, bad idea.
Viper GTS
ESXi can only virtualize 4 cores into a VM. That would totally defeat the purpose of a dual quad system (for his stated purposes, of course... My dual quad runs ESXi like a champ).
Viper GTS
Viper GTS, thank you for replying. I'm going to suggest going for a Precision 7400 workstation. The idea for the Poweredge 2900 was brought up by a colleague who uses a cluster for number-crunching ONLY and I wanted to make sure it would be suitable for our purpose, and judging from the replies, it's definitely not suitable.
Off topic, if I wanted a 7400 for use at home, would it be worth putting it together with parts from Newegg? If the difference is less than 500 bucks, I'll just get a Dell. Any suggestions?
Philippart
Golden Member
- Jul 9, 2006
- 1,290
- 0
- 0
server 2008 x64 is clearly the way to go, you can run anything you would run on a consumer OS and you have server functionality.
RebateMonger
Elite Member
- Dec 24, 2005
- 11,586
- 0
- 0
Actually, without knowing the exact details on the analysis software or the Labview software, or the data acqusition cards, I'd likely choose a high-end workstation with XP 32, and dual quad-core processors. That'd give assurance that you'll have slots and drivers that will work with data acqusition cards/drivers, as well as working with data analysis software that may not behave well enough to run under Vista/Server 2008.
I don't see any requirements that say "server" in the OS selection. If it's verfied that there are 64-bit Vista drivers for the hardware and that the software will run under Vista, then I'd probably go with Vista Business/Ultimate x64. That avoids limitations on choosing an antiVirus solution, a backup solution, and any other software that checks and says, "Gee, I don't run under a Server OS".
I don't see any requirements that say "server" in the OS selection. If it's verfied that there are 64-bit Vista drivers for the hardware and that the software will run under Vista, then I'd probably go with Vista Business/Ultimate x64. That avoids limitations on choosing an antiVirus solution, a backup solution, and any other software that checks and says, "Gee, I don't run under a Server OS".
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