Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Colocation and Data Centers : Is building a server hard?

[DevilDude]

Is building a server hard?

A friend of mine who has experience building normal computers has offered to build our 4U size servers for us. He said that there really isn't much difference between them and building a normal computer.
I am a bit hesitant. Do you think this is mostly true?

[HostedPlanet]

I would say it is mostly true yes, there are a couple key differences though to consider such as memory types and hard drives which will take that kind of use.

[MKHosting]

Main difference is to use components designed for servers rather than desktops. But it all fits together the same.





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[Orien]

If you can put together a desktop PC flawlessly, you should be able to put together a server as well.





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[PCS-Chris]

It's no different from a desktop, but check that your friend is using server parts and not sticking a desktop PC in a rackmount case. Even if they are top end components, desktop hardware isn't designed for 24/7 use over long periods.





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[ZL6net]

also, if uptime is important to you, source "quality" parts.
i.e. a $10 300watt power supply may be OK for a home desktop, however you should consider a quailty redundant PSU for $100-$200 or a few extra $10 units for spares and someone to swap them out.
special care should also be considered for cooling fans. cheap fans will fail eventually and heat is a killer.
the big thing in the home enthusiast/performance market is "marketing". where flashy product names demand a higher price than necessary. the $50 super-cyclone-typhoon-arctic-chill-blaster5000 could be a $5 part number in many commercial catalogs.
make a list of parts and post it here. other members will let you know if something is "wrong" before you build it.

[blessen]

Quote:



Originally Posted by DevilDude


A friend of mine who has experience building normal computers has offered to build our 4U size servers for us. He said that there really isn't much difference between them and building a normal computer.
I am a bit hesitant. Do you think this is mostly true?


Its all the same. Just that you need to ensure that your friend uses server class hardware for assembling a servers.
My personal advice will be to buy a branded Server class machine from a provider, as you have someone accountable in this case.
Consider this, your friend may be at a different location when you have server problems. What are you going to do? You have no one to contact for support, as its assembled product. But if you purchase a branded product and if you have problem then you just need to Call them at their Toll Free number OR Write to them in email OR Visit their service center and you get your server serviced and fixed fast in this case. So my personal advice is to go for a branded Server class machine.





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[DigitalLinx]

Quote:



Originally Posted by PCS-Chris


It's no different from a desktop, but check that your friend is using server parts and not sticking a desktop PC in a rackmount case. Even if they are top end components, desktop hardware isn't designed for 24/7 use over long periods.


Says who! I've been running my crappy AMD athlon 2400+ nforce2 chipset box for more than 5 years nonstop restarting only when the power fails and it still runs Well OK 2 hard drives failed during that time.
But yeah buiding a rack server would cost you at least $1K if you want decent performance, if people are going to depend on it you'd better use top components to minimize the risk of failure and insurance if a must, pay for 5 years warranty if possible it will pay out, drives do fail and you'll want to change them as fast as possible.

[KDAWebServices]

No, it's not difficult, the difficult part comes in doing it properly, so it's going to be reliable and last i.e. No premature failures, no random crashes and lockups - you'd be surprised just how many of these are down to hardware. Incidentally, why 4U? If it's not because of the number of drives you need or addin cards, then it sounds like it's only 4U as it makes cooling better for desktop components.





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[Dougy]

I have a lot more trouble building desktops than servers.





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[berry05]

Quote:



Originally Posted by PCS-Chris


It's no different from a desktop, but check that your friend is using server parts and not sticking a desktop PC in a rackmount case. Even if they are top end components, desktop hardware isn't designed for 24/7 use over long periods.


what kind of equipment needs to be different to keep up with the 24/7 use? like the motherboard, etc?

[dreamcodedesign]

It's pretty easy to build one. A little harder than building a computer though. Whatever you do, don't get cheap parts. They aren't quality and won't ususally last as long. I sure the guys at Best Buy or something could help you out with what you need. I haven't built one in a long time, maybe someone else remembers.
All the best,