Hello,

For about 2 months ago, we bought some server parts from a store in USA and had them delivered to the datacenter directly for assembling. At first they had problems assembling the server since they had to remove a server fan to fit the harddrives in and the power cord (the one that goes to the motherboard) was too short. Then they said that only 2 cards fit in there and we need 3 cards. We have now talked to the store and they agreed to let us replace the motherboard. We would need your help choosing the correct motherboard (and any other part that should be replaced).

The current parts are:
1 x ENLIGHT 2200SX2R 2U CHASSIS W/250W POWER SUPPLY
1 x EPOX EP-D3VA VIA 694X CHIPSET ULTRA ATA100 ATX FORM FACTOR 1xAGP(4X)/5xPCI/1xISA/4xDIMM W/RAID
1 x INTEL PENTIUM III 1000EB MHZ (BX80526C1000256)
1 x PC133FSB COPPERMINE FLIP CHIP RETAILED W/COOLING FAN
2 x KINGSTON KVR133X64C3/512 PC133 512MB CL3 SDRAM DIMM
1 x IBM 36GB ULTRA160 SCSI DDYST36950U/07N3200 10000RPM 4MB BUFFER 68PIN
1 x IBM 40GB ULTRA-ATA/100 IC35L040AVER07/PN#07N6654 7200RPM 8.5MS 2MB BUFFER
1 x ADAPTEC 19160 ULTRA160 PCI SCSI KIT (White box w/twist ultra160 cable w/5 end /1 terminator & installation disk)
1 x HIGHTECH 16MB AGP NVIDIA VANTA CHIPSET SDR
1 x SAMSUNG 52X EIDE INTERNAL CDROM
1 x SONY 1.44MB FLOPPY DRIVE

We highly appriciate any assistance.

why don't you buy a motherboard that has NIC (usually one or two of them), video card, and even SCSI controller built in? That way you don't need to worry about having to many cards to put inside your 2U case ... Asus, Tyan, Supermicro, Gigabyte make these motherboards and they are awesome. Price (with SCSI) range around $400-$700 I would say ...

Besides, why would a fancy video card do on a webserver? Video card is the least I would worry about .... I am not trying to play a 3D games with it anyhow :)

cheers,
:beer:

So the guys in the noc can have a quick game of counter-strike when they pass your server?

How about if I got a 3U case instead of the 2U case? Then there will be a lot more room and everything should fit, right?

why? I can probably fit all of them in 1U case! Of course by going higher and higher, you can fit a lot more ... 4U case is practically the same as a desktop, why not just go to 4U and you would neve get problem ... But the thing is, the bigger the rackmount size, the more money you would pay (monthly) for the rack space. Unless if this does not bother you :D

I will suggest to use 1U ... I love 1U and I can do the above specs in 1U :)

cheers,
:beer:

Could you fit my parts in a 1U or could you fit the motherboard that comes with SCSI card, NIC, etc in a 1U case?

I think the point being made here is that you should build a 1U -- not using your parts. Most everything will be built into the motherboard on a 1U (video, NIC (sometimes dual), IDE and/or SCSI, etc).

Your best bet is to order a 1U system, perhaps bare-bones so you can add your own drives, CPU, and RAM.

And I'm extremely curious -- why an NVidia card in a server?

While I'm at it with curiosities, why one 36 gig SCSI and one 40 gig IDE drive? Why not two of one or the other?

I would change everything if I could. But it has been 2 months since I bought the parts. I'm not sure if they will accept them or not.

The graphic card, I just took one of the cheap ones ($30 or so). I took a 36GB SCSI and one 40GB IDE because of backup. I thought I would use the IDE to backup everything on the SCSI. I know this is not the best way, but it's better than nothing.

Mr. Amazon ... when I said I can fit what you need in 1U, I was reffering to the fact that you can get the all in one motherboard for this ... If you insist on using the parts you have, then it seems to me you will need to find a 2U case capable of having 3 cards installed in it (I will help you look around for this). Sorry about the confusion ....

cheers,
:beer:

Ok, I've been looking around and I think this motherboard would work good with my CPU and memory. If I understand correctly, it has built in SCSI controller, NIC and video card..

TYAN S2510U3NG SERVERSET III LE CHIPSET ATX FORM FACTOR 2xPCI(64BIT)/4xDIMM W/ULTRA160 SCSI & INTEL 82559 LAN
The Thunder LE was specifically designed for Internet infrastructure applications requiring the processing power of dual Intel Pentium III processors. With its high-performance chipset, 64-bit PCI bus, and integrated network, storage and video controllers, the Thunder LE is ideal for mission-critical computing applications. Without question, the Thunder LE's most intriguing feature is its form factor. Incorporating a socketed processor design, angled memory sockets, and integrated networking, storage and video capabilities, the Thunder LE is the perfect choice for 1U rackmount installations in data centers and enterprise computer rooms.

I will see if I can return my motherboard, SCSI card, NIC and video card and take one of these instead.

Any thoughts?