{"id":2263,"date":"2012-08-02T13:27:06","date_gmt":"2012-08-02T19:27:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/?p=2263"},"modified":"2013-03-06T17:49:56","modified_gmt":"2013-03-06T23:49:56","slug":"vsphere-5-lab-hosts-a-year-later","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/vsphere-5-lab-hosts-a-year-later\/","title":{"rendered":"vSphere 5 Lab Hosts – A Year Later"},"content":{"rendered":"

So I have had my lab hosts<\/a><\/strong> for about a year. I have to say that they have done pretty well. Because of the cost I configured these hosts with 16GB of RAM each. At the time I built them, 8GB sticks of RAM were about $250 a piece, which was a little bit out of my price range. I recently found some 8GB Kingston memory that wasn’t going to break the bank, and give me the ability to do more than I have been able to.<\/p>\n

The initial configuration included the following components, and cost around $1,650 ($825\/host) not counting shipping\/etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
2011 Configuration (2 Hosts w\/16GB RAM Each)
\n<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Item<\/td>\nModel<\/td>\nCost<\/td>\nQuantity<\/td>\nTotal<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Motherboard<\/td>\nTyan S5510GM3NR<\/a><\/td>\n$189.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$379.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
CPU<\/td>\nIntel E3-1230<\/a><\/td>\n$234.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$469.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Memory<\/td>\n4GB Unbuffered ECC RAM<\/a><\/td>\n$47.99<\/td>\n8<\/td>\n$383.92<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NIC<\/td>\nEXPI9301CTBLK Single Port NIC<\/a><\/td>\n$24.99<\/td>\n4<\/td>\n$99.96<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Case<\/td>\nRosewill R379-M Case<\/a><\/td>\n$49.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$99.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SSD<\/td>\n64GB Microcenter G2 SSD<\/a><\/td>\n$99.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$199.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Adapter<\/td>\nHD Mounting Bracket<\/a><\/td>\n$3.49<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$6.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Power adapter<\/td>\n8\u2033 4 to 8 pin adapter<\/a><\/td>\n$4.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$9.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n$1,650.76<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

A year later some prices have changed, some additional processors are support on my boards, larger memory is a little cheaper, and SSD prices have declined.<\/p>\n

A similar configuration (16GB of RAM per host) would be:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
2012 Similar Configuration (2 hosts w\/16GB RAM Each)
\n<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Item<\/td>\nModel<\/td>\nCost<\/td>\nQuantity<\/td>\nTotal<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Motherboard<\/td>\nTyan S5510GM3NR<\/a><\/td>\n$199.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$399.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
CPU<\/td>\nIntel E3-1230 v2<\/a><\/td>\n$235.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$471.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Memory<\/td>\n8GB Unbuffered ECC RAM<\/a><\/td>\n$79.99<\/td>\n4<\/td>\n$319.96<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NIC<\/td>\nEXPI9301CTBLK Single Port NIC<\/a><\/td>\n$29.99<\/td>\n4<\/td>\n$119.96<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Case<\/td>\nRosewill R379-M Case<\/a><\/td>\n$49.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$99.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SSD<\/td>\n64GB Microcenter G2 SSD<\/a><\/td>\n$49.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$99.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Adapter<\/td>\nHD Mounting Bracket<\/a><\/td>\n$3.49<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$6.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Power adapter<\/td>\n8\u2033 4 to 8 pin adapter<\/a><\/td>\n$4.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$9.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n$1,528.80<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Both are very similar configurations.\u00a0 The only differences are choosing an Intel E3-1230 v2 (Ivy Bridge) and larger sticks of RAM.<\/p>\n

The cost ends up being $121.96 less for the 2012 configuration. But… The 2012 configuration has 2 EMPTY memory slots.<\/p>\n

If I were to max out the RAM configuration, it would look like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
2012 Similar Configuration (2 hosts w\/32GB RAM Each)
\n<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Item<\/td>\nModel<\/td>\nCost<\/td>\nQuantity<\/td>\nTotal<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Motherboard<\/td>\nTyan S5510GM3NR<\/a><\/td>\n$199.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$399.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
CPU<\/td>\nIntel E3-1230 v2<\/a><\/td>\n$235.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$471.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Memory<\/td>\n8GB Unbuffered ECC RAM<\/a><\/td>\n$79.99<\/td>\n8<\/td>\n$639.92<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NIC<\/td>\nEXPI9301CTBLK Single Port NIC<\/a><\/td>\n$29.99<\/td>\n4<\/td>\n$119.96<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Case<\/td>\nRosewill R379-M Case<\/a><\/td>\n$49.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$99.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SSD<\/td>\n64GB Microcenter G2 SSD<\/a><\/td>\n$49.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$99.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Adapter<\/td>\nHD Mounting Bracket<\/a><\/td>\n$3.49<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$6.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Power adapter<\/td>\n8\u2033 4 to 8 pin adapter<\/a><\/td>\n$4.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$9.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n$1,848.76<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Now the difference between the 2011 (16GB) and 2012 (32GB) configurations is $198 more.<\/p>\n

Just for grins, I wanted to see what the exact same configuration (2011) would cost today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
2011 Configuration (2 Hosts w\/16GB RAM Each) in 2012 $$$
\n<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Item<\/td>\nModel<\/td>\nCost<\/td>\nQuantity<\/td>\nTotal<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Motherboard<\/td>\nTyan S5510GM3NR<\/a><\/td>\n$199.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$399.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
CPU<\/td>\nIntel E3-1230<\/a><\/td>\n$239.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$479.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Memory<\/td>\n4GB Unbuffered ECC RAM<\/a><\/td>\n$33.99<\/td>\n8<\/td>\n$271.92<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NIC<\/td>\nEXPI9301CTBLK Single Port NIC<\/a><\/td>\n$29.99<\/td>\n4<\/td>\n$119.96<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Case<\/td>\nRosewill R379-M Case<\/a><\/td>\n$49.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$99.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SSD<\/td>\n64GB Microcenter G2 SSD<\/a><\/td>\n$49.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$199.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Adapter<\/td>\nHD Mounting Bracket<\/a><\/td>\n$3.49<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$6.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Power adapter<\/td>\n8\u2033 4 to 8 pin adapter<\/a><\/td>\n$4.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$9.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n$1,468.76<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

So in just over 12 months, to build 2 systems exactly as I did in 2011, it would cost me $182 less, or $91 a host less.<\/p>\n

The biggest changes in prices between 2011 & 2012 are the SSD drives and RAM cost.\u00a0 Drive prices always drop (until there is a flood somewhere) and RAM prices seem to drop to a point, then become expensive again when the demand drops.<\/p>\n

Keep in mind that these hosts cost what they do, because they are server boards and ECC RAM is being used.\u00a0 I really wanted iKVM access, as well as remote turn on, which these boards provide.\u00a0 I also have a complement of 5 useable NICs, which may or may not be necessary, depending on what you want to do with the lab.<\/p>\n

For the budget conscious, another configuration might look like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
2012 Budget Configuration (2 hosts w\/16GB RAM Each)
\n<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Item<\/td>\nModel<\/td>\nCost<\/td>\nQuantity<\/td>\nTotal<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Motherboard<\/td>\nTyan S5510GM3NR<\/a><\/td>\n$199.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$399.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
CPU<\/td>\nIntel Pentium G620<\/a><\/td>\n$63.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$127.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Memory<\/td>\n8GB Unbuffered ECC RAM<\/a><\/td>\n$79.99<\/td>\n4<\/td>\n$319.96<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Case<\/td>\nRosewill R379-M Case<\/a><\/td>\n$49.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$99.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Power adapter<\/td>\n8\u2033 4 to 8 pin adapter<\/a><\/td>\n$4.99<\/td>\n2<\/td>\n$9.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n$957.88<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

The budget configuration could still be expanded to 32GB of RAM, additional NICs could be added (remember 3 useable onboard), and a SSD drive could be added for vSphere 5’s Host Cache feature. The Intel Pentium G620 processors support VT, but not VT-d, and don’t have nearly the same horsepower as the E3-1230’s.\u00a0 But in a year of using the lab, only seldom do I ever get to a point where CPU is a point of contention.<\/p>\n

I might just have to look into expanding the lab.<\/p>\n

Now to get with my Co-Lo provider and see about some more space…<\/p>\n

Update<\/strong>: I forgot to mention, I’m loading ESXi on Sandisk Cruzer Fit 8GB USB<\/a><\/strong> drives from Best Buy at $7.99 each.<\/p>\n

Update 2<\/strong>: Here is what the header pin-out looks like, for those with questions on getting it working (took me a couple tries).<\/p>\n

\"pinout\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

So I have had my lab hosts for about a year. I have to say that they have done pretty well. Because of the cost … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[53,129,105,112],"class_list":["post-2263","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-virtualization","tag-lab","tag-s5510","tag-vmware","tag-vsphere5"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2263","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2263"}],"version-history":[{"count":47,"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2263\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2314,"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2263\/revisions\/2314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2263"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2263"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jasemccarty.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2263"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}