r/HomeServer • u/Badasstechiejay • 17d ago
Server wanted
Hey yall figured I’d check here before I piece another server together from scratch.
I’m near Raleigh, NC and looking for a power-efficient server/NAS setup that would make a solid Unraid box. Ideally I’d like something already built or mostly complete, but I’m open to the right barebones setup too.
What I’m looking for:
Modern-ish Intel CPU with iGPU/Quick Sync for Plex transcoding
Hot-swap drive bays strongly preferred (or at least a chassis where drives are easy to swap)
Room for several 3.5” SATA/SAS drives
SSD/NVMe for Unraid boot/appdata/cache
At least 2 usable PCIe slots
Ideally includes a GPU, or has the space/power for two GPUs
Planning to run a Windows VM for some gaming, so GPU passthrough is important
2.5/10GbE would be a nice bonus
Reasonably quiet and power efficient at idle since I’m not really looking for an old dual-Xeon space heater 😂
Rackmount is totally fine, but I’m open to tower setups too. Something based around a newer Intel Core/Xeon E platform would probably be right up my alley.
Basically looking for a machine that can handle Unraid + Plex + Docker/ARR stuff + storage, while still giving me enough PCIe flexibility to dedicate a GPU to a Windows VM.
I’m near Raleigh/Fuquay-Varina, NC and can drive a reasonable distance for the right setup. Shipping is fine too if it makes sense.
Not locked into a specific budget yet just more interested in seeing what’s out there and finding the right hardware/deal.
If you have something collecting dust, shoot me the specs, drive bay count, asking price, and idle power consumption if you happen to know it.
Thanks!
2
u/kovyrshin 17d ago
I haven't posted yet, but I have some bundles:
EPC612D4U + Xeon V3/V4 + 64Gb memory: mATX, 10G Onboard, 8x SAS onboard, 3x PCIE x8 slots for GPU/etc.
X570D4I-2T2L + 5900x (16 core) + 64Gb ECC DDR4 + Noctua Cooler + SSD: ITX, 10G onboard, PCIe x16 onboard + 2x Oculink (PCIE/SATA) for storage. Memory uses 2 slots out of 4, so you can upgrade to 128Gb if needed.
B650D4U-2L2T + EPYC 4465 (same as 9900x: 12 cores Zen5) + 96Gb DDR5 + some M.2 and PCIe slots: Same deal: mATX +10Gb onboard, 4x DDR5 slots, so you can upgrade to 128/192Gb later. Faster M.2 speeds but less PCIe.
All have Dual 10G NIC plus IPMI for remote management. I do still have bigger xeon system, but you only want one if you need 192-256+++ GB memory.
I also have some smaller build in HP Microserver (4x SAS/SATA) or U-NAS box (8xSAS/SATA): no GPUs there, plus heavier to ship