[mythtv-users] Backend machine - Acer Altos G540 Std Server?

[Joseph Fry]

> Does anyone have experience with this or similar machine
> http://www.trademe.co.nz/a.asp?id=624082220 ? Intended use is as a backend
> using HDHR tuners.
>
> Size (WxDxH)mm: 445 (H) x 212 (W) x 550 (D) mm
> Weight (Est): 32 kg
> Processor: Intel Quad-Core Xeon E5420
> Processor Speed: 2.5GHz
> RAM: 4GB
> Hard Drive:3x 75GB (8 hard drive slots altogether)
> DVD-RW
> SAS
>
>
> An E5420 is an old Core 2 Quad.  Aside from having gobs of cache, a modern
> i3 would run circles around it, and 4GB of memory is very cheap to come by
> these days (although much less so than 6 months ago).  The only factors that
> might make that worth $450 are the unmentioned features: high end server
> power supply, high end RAID card, hot swap bays.  Plus, I'm basing this off
> US availability, I don't know what pricing is like in New Zealand.

You could build a computer, at least here in the US, for 1/2 that
price that would out perform it.  However if you want hardware RAID,
and hotswap cages, and all of the other "server" class features.  Then
that't probably a decent price.

Personally, I would slap a cheap Celeron processor ($50), on a cheap
Motherboard ($50), and a few GB of RAM  ($50) into a second hand case.
 Then fill it with whatever SATA drives you can get cheap and let
Mythtv balance the load across your recording drives.  I find most low
end server hardware overrated.  Often as not, it's hardly any better
than consumer grade stuff; so you just pay more for a better warranty
and a case with hotswap power and drive cages (I can afford to keep
spares on hand and a few minutes of downtime to do a swap).