low-power file serving

N

ndruw

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 7, 2006
Messages
246
i was wondering if it was possible to run a multi-HD file server (5-8 drives) on a quality 300 or 350 watt power supply. This would oviously be assuming 2 things

A. I will be running a low-power processor
B. the RAID arrays wont be terribly too large (maybe a 4 drive raid 5, if not the only 2 drive stripes or mirrors)
seeing as there wont be load on all the drives at once, will 300-350 watts hold up well if at most 2 or 4 drives are accessed at once?
 
It can be done so long as you get the right PSU for the job.
 
Well, for reference, I use the following drive on my fileserver:
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16817104974

The main thing on that power supply is the 40A 4v rail, as my server has dual AthlonMP 2200+'s. Aside from the dual processors (which are both 100% 24/7, folding) it has a 3Ware 7506 RAID-5 card, with 4x200GB PATA 7200RPM 8MB cache in a RAID-5 and a system drive, which is a 160GB PATA 7200RPM 4MB cache drive (with some bad sectors in it, hense only housing the OS). Also, it powers a 120mm fan and a 92mm fan for what that's worth. ;)

I think it's mainly where your processor draws its power, and the type of PSU you're using. If you plan to use your PSU long-term, I'd go for a quality 400 watt PSU that matches your rail needs (a strong 5v for an AXP system, a strong 12V for P4/K8). If you plan on using/keeping the PSU for a good long while (I plan on running mine for a LONG while), you're better off spending a little more and not trying to skim past with 'just enough'. I could have probably saved like $20-$25 and got a 35A 5V rail, when the motherboard required a minimum of 30A....but I felt more comfortable with 40A, especially knowing it would be a fileserver.

 
Well, I'm running a fileserver with a 3ghz prescott celeron, 1gb of ram, 5 IDE HDs, 1 DVD-RW, and a whole bunch of fans... on a 300w Enermax power supply. Runs just fine, and my APC utility only shows 178 watts under normal load. As long as you get a quality power supply, 300-350w should be enough.
 
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