SSD prices are getting better, for the ‘cheap’ part of the request I’d rule them out still.
Erik Goldoff IT Consultant Systems, Networks, & Security ' Security is an ongoing process, not a one time event ! ' From: Ken Schaefer [mailto:k...@adopenstatic.com] Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 11:03 AM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: RE: Recommendations for cheap and cheerful virtual server SSDs… Cheers Ken From: Erik Goldoff [mailto:egold...@gmail.com] Sent: Wednesday, 3 November 2010 8:56 PM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: RE: Recommendations for cheap and cheerful virtual server I might recommend that whatever ‘cheap’ hardware you find it has multiple drive slots. Dedicate a single drive to each VM as one thing I’ve found on older/slower hardware is multiple VMs contending for the same disk IO could become your obvious bottleneck regardless of installed memory and CPU. I’ve gotten better results with a single VM per volume/disk, at the very least to avoid head thrash delays, and sometimes benefit from separate IO ( like with multiple ESATA interfaces ) before it hits the mobo aggregation. That said, I haven’t used a decent SCSI based array because it always added too much $$$ to the ‘cheap’ test hardware. Erik Goldoff IT Consultant Systems, Networks, & Security ' Security is an ongoing process, not a one time event ! ' From: James Rankin [mailto:kz2...@googlemail.com] Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2010 4:40 AM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: Recommendations for cheap and cheerful virtual server I have recently overhauled my home systems and installed a NAS device and some new laptops....however, due to the neglect my AD and SCOM skills are currently receiving, I have decided to get myself a few virtual systems fired up at home to ensure I don't go too rusty. I'm looking for a cheap and cheerful system that can run either ESXi or XenServer (or even Hyper-V), probably to host about 8 or 9 VMs (not all in use at the same time, though). I guess the kicker is the storage, as I won't be using my NAS device for this. I'd prefer something small and inobtrusive, although that's in the ideal world. I read an article where someone recommended getting hold of an old Compaq ML110 G4 and adding some SCSI disks, so I'd also be willing to re-use some second-hand stuff, if needs be. I can back up the VMs to an external drive (if it is supported) so I wouldn't be looking for any hardcore redundancy measures in the hardware. Anyone have any thoughts, or care to share what they are using for similar setups? TIA, JRR ~ Finally, powerful endpoint security that ISN'T a resource hog! ~ ~ <http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Business/VIPRE-Enterprise/> ~ --- To manage subscriptions click here: http://lyris.sunbelt-software.com/read/my_forums/ or send an email to listmana...@lyris.sunbeltsoftware.com with the body: unsubscribe ntsysadmin ~ Finally, powerful endpoint security that ISN'T a resource hog! ~ ~ <http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Business/VIPRE-Enterprise/> ~ --- To manage subscriptions click here: http://lyris.sunbelt-software.com/read/my_forums/ or send an email to listmana...@lyris.sunbeltsoftware.com with the body: unsubscribe ntsysadmin
