Updates to this article below in the Third Party Accessories section.
JUN 30 2015 Update - New "deep dive inside" 38 minute video now available.
The Supermicro SuperServer 5028D-TN4T motherboard and CPU installed come pre-installed in a compact chassis with a 250 watt power supply, all pre-wired and ready to boot, complete with a 3 year warranty.
Most places you buy this system, it arrives bare-bones, which means there's no hard drives, no operating system, and no license for an operating system. It's also bring your own memory.
That means you have some shopping to do, and it's pretty straight forward, seen in the detailed recommendations below, with a list that is likely to grow over time. Feel free to drop a comment below with suggestions and feedback.
While I enjoy being a cautious-but-early adopter, I'm also looking forward to an expected large community of folks who invest in this same exact server set up. This will greatly help us all help each other. Along with the open comments below all TinkerTry articles, there's a new forum dedicated to this little SuperServer that could.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Server (~$1200)
Supermicro SuperServer 5028D-TN4T
fave.co/1dpRUvQ
Not available on Amazon or Newegg, I got my system (CPU/mobo/power/mini-tower pre-assembled), at Wiredzone SKU 10024470 MFG Part Number: SYS-5028D-TN4T, for the reasons outlined here.
Some resellers will offer you some configuration options before its shipped, including memory and drives, explained here. But their price uplift tends to be rather steep. If you're comfortable installing your own memory and drives, you can save hundreds of dollars by buying those items separately. Videos I'll be producing soon show how very easy it is.
Memory (~$350 each)
32 GB Samsung DDR SDRAM (minimum qty. 2, max qty. 4, ensure all are identical part#)
fave.co/1HbDDA9
If you buy any smaller size DDR4 DIMMs, you'll have to toss them aside once you get to the point where you want to upgrade to the full 128GB memory that this little beast allows. So I'd strongly recommend starting with a pair of 32GB DIMMs. If you're at all serious about virtualization, and wish to juggle many VMs concurrently, especially memory heavy workloads that include MSDN's many beefy offerings like SQL Server or SharePoint Server, then invest in memory you can keep running for years to come. I know 32GB started to feel rather tight on my 4+ year old vZilla build, keeping me from going past about 8 VMs concurrently without starting to run into memory-starvation-related performance issues.
If you're buying your system from Wiredzone anyway, for the reasons I outlined here, you can get 32GB Memory DIMMs there too, the Manufacturer Part # M393A4K40BB0-CPB that Supermicro lists, at a better than average price.
Same DIMMs for about $20 more (per DIMM) on Amazon
amzn.to/1eeuZUf
Last week, these weren't even available on Amazon yet.
Same DIMMs for about $80 more (per DIMM) on Newegg
newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA5EM2V18505
Storage (up to 7 drives total!)
6 TB Western Digital Red WD60EFRX (~$250)
amzn.to/1KpnIPo
Just one of many big drives you may want to consider is what I use for my daily Veeam, Nakivo, and other daily PC backups appliances I'm testing. Eventually, it may get re-purposed for deployment in a NAS.
Insert whatever drives you wish, ideally whatever you already own, so you can save up for the upcoming 4x speed Samsung SM951 M.2 NVMe SSD that will fit right into the motherboard that comes equipped with a
- 1 M.2 drive socket (M.2 PCI-E 3.0 x4, M Key 2242/2280)
Meanwhile, you can also fit up to:
- 4 3.5" drives (4 removable drive caddys included)
- 2 2.5" drives (Hot Pluggable, but requires screwdriver/bracket that's inside the case)
- 1 SATA DOM (yellow SATA port on motherboard)
- 1 PCIe (PCI-E 3.0 x16 (Low Profile) slot) for more storage, or other expansion needs
with all 6 SATA3 drives running at a full 6Gbps. In the BIOS, make sure all those SATA ports recognize your drives, and be sure they're also set to AHCI.
Note: if you use that 2nd side-mount 2.5" drive bay, you'll need to get a SATA3 cable to route to the yellow SATA DOM port on the motherboard.
That's up to 8 concurrent-use storage devices (4 3.5", 2 2.5", 1 M.2 SSD, 1 PCIe SSD) in a significantly-less-than-one-cubic-foot server. Not too shabby, eh? That Mini ITX form factor, paired with a versatile case, sure can fit a lot!
Operating System (~$200)
VMware vSphere 6.0 three 365-day ESXi 6.0 Hypervisor licenses
EVALExperience bundle that comes with many other VMUG benefits
fave.co/1Huv4k0
OS choice is up to you of course, since Supermicro doesn't bundle an OEM license, a good thing for DIYers, less waste. With this much RAM, pretty typical you'll be using a hypervisor to make good use of it all, whether that's Hyper-V, VMware ESXi, or one of the many other good options available to you. Note that I went with fully licensed EVALExperience, with limited official support, but good VMTN community support.
ESXi 6.0 is on the Supermicro compatibility list here, but those 2 new Intel X552/X557-AT 10GBASE-T ports aren't supported quite yet.
Networking (~$93)
D-Link DGS-1024A 24 port Gigabit Switch
If simple unmanaged efficient and quiet gigabit network switching is your thing, you'll find it hard to go wrong with these 8 to 24 port affordable models.
This Superserver has 2 1GbE ports and 2 10GbE ports, and one 1GbE port dedicated to IPMI management.
Those 2 10GbE ports can be used as 1GbE ports, assuming VMware & Intel complete their driver).
So you'll need to use up to 5 ports of this network switch right away.
It's not good if you're planning to go with bonding multiple ports, but personally, I'd rather save for a 10GbE switch, should I someday have more than one of these 10GbE equipped servers.
See also the TinkerTry exclusive Superguide: Efficient hardware for your home network.
Third-Party Accessories (compatibility tested)
I've tested Sandisk Ultra Fit flash drive extensively, and the USB Motherboard Header Adapter works on this motherboard with that flash drive just fine. There is (barely) enough clearance from adjacent connectors, and plenty of room above for bigger USB flash drives.
Those thumbscrews (on order) should allow me to skip the need for a screwdriver, while still solidly securing the cover to the chassis.
I'll need update this article with my experience with the APEVIA Case Speaker, since it hasn't arrived yet. I'm actually not sure of the BIOS of this system supports POST beep codes, which could have been somewhat helpful when I intentionally put the 2 DIMMs in the white sockets (2 DIMMs should go into blue sockets), noticing that the web-based IPMI status doesn't work, in that particular scenario. I'm just curious really. If it doesn't work, I can use this tiny speaker for my gZilla build.
Third-Party Accessories (incompatible)
The "quakeproof" SMAKN mSATA to M.2 adapter.
Remember my plan to buy some time to save for NVMe, just in case it becomes sort of affordable? Well, it was in that mind set that I figured why not re-use an mSATA drive I already own, and tuck it nicely right onto the motherboard, using a little adapter.
Well, during the unboxing video, you'll see me embarrass myself when realize I couldn't possibly get this adapter to work, with the PCI slot just too close. Would need about 3 mm more clearance, or an adapter that's 3 mm narrower. I won't be holding my breath for that. Oh well, the only "sad trombone" moment really since buying this server just a few days ago, hardly a big deal.
See also
- Samsung Begins Mass Production of Industry’s First M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD for PCs And Workstations
APR 15 2015, by Scot Strong at The SSD Review
-
SuperServer 5028D-TN4T Product Page
JUN 01 2015, by Supermicro -
Supermicro SuperServer 5028D-TN4T User's Manual
JUN 01 2015, by Supermicro - Supermicro SuperServer 5028D-TN4T Schematic
See also at TinkerTry
-
Supermicro SuperServer 5028D-TN4T first impressions
JUN 26 2015 -
TinkerTry's Xeon D-1540 fueled ESXi 6.0 home lab build begins LIVE!
JUN 25 2015 -
Get those tiny USB flash drives labeled quickly, effectively, and affordably
JUN 10 2015 -
Nice little USB flash drive choice for that ESXi in your home lab
JAN 31 2015 - Superguide: Home virtualization server enthusiasts' colorful variety of ESXi whiteboxes
JAN 05 2015
My apologies for the mixed content warnings you may get for just this one article above. Related to the Amazon widget above, and I'm working with their support to help resolve this side-effect of being an all-https site that is already SPDY enabled today, with plans for an even "better, faster, stronger" HTTP/2 by 2016!