Small business server

[Juraj]

So that is the way to go, sounds reasonable. 4tb Samsung 850 ssd`s are not that pricy as I thought, I`ll just wait till ds1517+ comes out and reviewed. It supports 2.5"ssd as storage, so that sounds interesting!

Just mind the following:

Synology requires additional pricy 10gbe extension card. Not only does it cost 500+ euros, it has optical connection (SFP+ ) not copper RJ45. While SFP+ cards for end-clients(workstations/nodes) are very cheap, cabling and switches are not. It will not be compatible with your current network.

[hrvojezg00]

Damn, it sounded too easy. So which i7 have you made server? I have an i7 970 pc just standing aside, could be a decent NAS replacement? So the goal is to have all low power hungry hardware (graphic, cooler etc,power) in it with ssd storage (RAID5?).

[hrvojezg00]

Juraj, so you have RJ45 cards and cabling, not SFP+?

[Juraj]

Juraj, so you have RJ45 cards and cabling, not SFP+?

Yes, so I could keep everything compatible and hassle free. Copper cabling is no-brainer. I use Intel X520-T2 cards (OEM, buy them in bulk from China), CAT6A STP( shielded ) cabling, and Netgear XS708E v2 switch.

SFP+ cards are incredibly cheap to get (even for as low as 10 euro each hah !), but the switches are problematic as SFP+ optic is mostly meant as switch-to-switch connection only, so you will find corporate switches like 40x1gbit RJ45 + 4x10gbit SFP+ which is far less useful than having 8-16 10gbit RJ45.

Then, some people go for optic because it's easy to connect two computers directly these way.

Few notes: It's not often stated, but you can even use CAT5A cabling for 10gbit, although CAT6 and CAT6A (CAT7 is just side-grade to improve audio quality, not an actual new version, ignore it) will hold up better over longer lengths.

There is third option for affordable 10gbit network, Infiniband. I strongly suggest to ignore it.

[hrvojezg00]

Thanks, all ordered and waiting! RJ45 cards cost 5xmore in Europe then in China, unbeliavable.
Thanks for all the info!

[Philip kelly]

Makes you wonder what else you could buy in china at a low price if thats the case.
From what site do you buy from if you don't mind me asking?

Thanks

[hrvojezg00]

From ebay. I usually buy stuff there that don`t cost too much or when theres big difference in price here/ebay so it doesn`t hurt much if it brokes. And none did so far.

[Juraj]

From ebay. I usually buy stuff there that don`t cost too much or when theres big difference in price here/ebay so it doesn`t hurt much if it brokes. And none did so far.

Yup, same here, eBay. I also use regular postage (not UPS/DHL) as most of the time, it will come just slightly longer, but with no need to declare customs ( seller will write 22 euros, this trick does not work with DHL/UPS ).