[mythtv-users] Questions about new hardware purchase

[Brian Wood]

On Mar 29, 2008, at 12:08 PM, Billy Macdonald wrote:
>
> I see a bunch of others already warned you of the downfalls, and
> therefore you've canceled your order.  One more thing I wanted to
> point out for anyone else that may be interested.  Anything sold as a
> "server" is likely going to be LOUD.  Fans roaring and making a ton of
> noise.  That's been the case on every server I've seen.  Loud fans
> aren't ideal for the MythTV croud.  Just a thought.

Good point. A summary of machines classed as "servers" is:

No audio of any type

Limited "business class" or even less video. Normally you need to  
drive a local monitor only to get the system installed, further  
configuration and management is usually done over the network from a  
management machine.

Noise and appearance are generally not a big factor.

Power consumption was not a big factor  with most older machines,  
though this is changing.

Features included in a lot of "servers" that are probably not worth  
paying a lot extra for with MythTV machines are:

PIX network booting
SCSI or SAS drive controllers
Hardware RAID controllers
The ability to use a serial terminal as the main console.
A serial "management" port
Redundant power supplies
Tape backup devices
100 or 133Mhz. 64-bit PCI slots
HotSwap capability

A lot of server class machines make good closet or garage located  
backends, but they are not generally good frontends or combined  
machines.

To put it in a nutshell: A "desktop" is designed to interact with a  
local user. A "server" is designed to interact with users  over a  
network. Most servers are designed for fast I/O and reliability,  
rather than glitzy local video and sound (ie: games).

Of course the marketing types will try and blur these lines if it  
benefits them.

beww