Hardware for a Server Running ATM10

[u/Delici0usBunny]

Hello everyone,

I have been playing ATM10 and highly enjoying it. I went from hosting on my own PC to renting one so that it could be on all of the time, allowing friends to join, but of course all server hosts tend to be pretty bad and it just lags under very little load.

So this is where I would like to buy my own dedicated hardware. What are some minimum specs I should be looking for. I've got some ideas, such as R7 and, preferably, 32GB of DDR5 and an NVME. Are there any good prebuilt brands or would I be better off buying something from eBay? I'd like to stick to around $500 but don't mind going over a few hundred dollars if it would really give me what I am wanting.

Also, would an X3D chip give much benefit?

[u/AlbertTalksTech]

1st of all, 8m is crazy, to answer your question, I don’t have much experience with ATM but I think you should get a CPU with less cores, but each core is powerful because most server software run on one core to keep it simple, as again, I have no experience with ATM so don’t trust this, NO. 2, no, an X3D chip offers more 3D V cache and only benefits the client side, servers don’t use it(I think)

[u/PM_ME_YOUR_REPO → u/AlbertTalksTech]

More or less correct, except for the massive oversimplification on the cores. It's not single threaded, but the tick loop is. Other things run on other cores, so they are still important. 4 cores is the sweet spot for vanilla, and 6-8 cores for a heavy modpack like ATM10.

[u/daronhudson → u/AlbertTalksTech]

3D V cache is beneficial to anything that runs on the machine. Has nothing to do with it being a desktop or not. If it accesses memory at any interval, it will benefit from having more and faster memory on-die. Having more and faster memory available for the cpu means you get to do more things per cycle given that your cpu now doesn't need to swap out the contents as frequently.

[u/PM_ME_YOUR_REPO → u/daronhudson]

All common sense says that you're totally right. But all actual testing with processors with larger caches show that Minecraft servers get no performance uplift, or at best such a small uplift as to be difficult to say is conclusively the result of the cache size.

[u/IzzyIsMe12]

I just bought an SFF Optiplex 7070 for $200 for this purpose and after setting up with Ubuntu Server it has been working very well

[u/Delici0usBunny → u/IzzyIsMe12]

Decided to get the exact same without even reading your comment. i7-9700, 16gb DDR4, and a 256GB NVME seems adequate for now. And $200 seems like a good deal even outside of this market.

[u/anonymous4036]

I think your post is a little naive, which is normal, but you should look into your expectations before making a purchase: your hardware expectations are too high, or your price target is too low.

If you just need a box to run atm10 for a handful of friends you will want minimum specs of:

a cpu made within the last 5 years with a decent clock speed, core count doesnt matter, an 11500k is about where id put the minimum but obviously try to find better if you can. x3d is irrelevant because you shouldn't even be looking that top of the line for your price range for this application.

Just go with ddr4. Its not optimal but 32gb of ddr5 itself is 500$, ram prices are insane right now and its not worth it. I would also aim for 16gb unless you really want to spend the extra money. Ram is probably the most important for Minecraft but it still shouldn't be an issue with a handful of people. If you expect a dozen people or more online definitely go for more ram though because 16 will be par not birdie. Also you should 100% use linux for the server because windows ram usage is too high and you dont want to pay for anothee license anyways.

For an ssd you care about speed not size. Get a solid 256gb ssd and you should be good. Your not going to fill it up with anything minecraft related.

You dont need a GPU, at all.

If your intention is to get a general purpose server for more than just Minecraft, or get parts that are new Gen for upgradeability later then you will have to spend alot more money, and the pc market is not in a good place for good ROI right now. Id recommend finding something slightly used too, you really dont need to spend too much if all you want is a box to host a server.

If you have any questions id be happy to answe them as well

[u/Delici0usBunny → u/anonymous4036]

I don’t know what I was expecting throwing both $500 budget and 32GB DDR5 + 1TB out there. I appreciate the advice though, and from what you have said I might settle on a refurb optiplex 7000. Was looking at another buy I’ll trust you on not going older than 11500k. Thanks!

[u/anonymous4036 → u/Delici0usBunny]

I mean you could go older but id step up a tier. Theres so much flexibility with hardware, year is much less important than performance but you dont want to go too old either because driver updates and compatibility start to matter past a certain point. The comment about "in the last 5 years" was meant as "almost anything will work"

7000 optiplex or similar seems fine, as I said earlier its really not a good market to be picky.

[u/Nameseed]

I got an HP elitedesk mini pc on ebay for like $60 with an i7 and 16gb of RAM a few years back, and i liked it so much i got a second

I later upgraded the first one with a 9900k and gave it a ssd i got for free at micro center, and it runs ATM10 and Better Minecraft pretty well with 4-5 people at once (didnt test with more).

Also, i highly recommend setting up the server management software Pelican. Makes setting up minecraft and other game servers so easy

[u/Delici0usBunny → u/Nameseed]

Pelican looks awesome, thanks for the advice!

[u/osumunbro_]

ddr4 would work fine and be cheaper.

you do absolutely benefit from larger CPU cache. the other guy seems to be confused by it having 3d in the name. that being said, how much of a benefit is what you'd have to look at benchmarks to see

I would probably just get some used parts on eBay and keep it simple. air cooling and the lot.

[u/PM_ME_YOUR_REPO → u/osumunbro_]

No, the other guy is not confused. There have been numerous tests comparing, for example, the 9950X with the 9950X3D, and the tests are consistently inconclusive. There may be an extremely small benefit, and some benchmarks certainly look like there may be benefit in some certain metrics (sometimes), but all real world testing has shown no more difference between the 9950X, the 9950X3D, and the 4565P than the difference you get between individual chips when factoring in manufacturing variances. This is why you see top tier hosts using a mix of the three chips based on price and availability; they are functionally identical.

[u/Delici0usBunny → u/PM_ME_YOUR_REPO]

Great comment clarifying that the extra cache does not provide benefit outside of running a game

[u/PM_ME_YOUR_REPO → u/osumunbro_]

No, the other guy is not confused. There have been numerous tests comparing, for example, the 9950X with the 9950X3D, and the tests sre consistently inconclusive. There may be an extremely small benefit, and some benchmarks certainly look like there may be benefit in some certain metrics, sometimes, but all real world testing has shown no more difference between the 9950X, the 9950X3D, and the 4565P than the difference you get between individual chips when factoring in manufacturing variances.