DL380 G6 for first server

[FremontPC]

Hi all -

I'm about to grab a HP DL380, dual e5530's, 12GB, P410i and 2ps for $110. No drives. Does this seem like a worthwhile purchase for someone looking to delve into servers, VM's, tweak it, bust it, fix it, learn it? From what I can gather it seems to be less power-hungry and quieter than the PE 2950's. Appears to have all the 2.5 trays, iLO standard. What kind of hardware would be good to add to it (aside from more RAM)?

 

[FremontPC]

Thanks, Computer Bloke! I'd forgotten about the battery entirely, so many specs swirling through my mind! If the battery is in bad shape/missing, what you think about going with a FBWC module instead?

 

[Moltuae]

The ProLiants are great servers. Not sure if I've had a DL380 G6, but I have some of the G6 DL360s (the 1U variant) and a few G7 DL380s in regular daily use. Budget allowing, I'd recommend a G7 over a G6, especially if you plan to install a later server OS like Server 2012 R2.

As mentioned, the BBWC battery will almost certainly need replacing. If you do decide to replace it, double-check the model number and make sure you get the right one. There are several that look the same but aren't compatible. You can run it with the cache disabled, but performance will be down a little. If the server is just for testing/learning purposes, you could boost performance a little by installing some SATA SSDs instead.

Bear in mind also that, for full functionality, iLO requires a licence.

 

[TurricanII]

+1 - Proliants are great. Some clients who refuse to update are running on ten year old Proliants.
The 'trays' are most likely blankers for the empty drive slots which are needed for air flow. You do not commonly see empty trays because HP drives ship in a tray already. A 2.5" drive tray will have a dark red catch at one end of the release lever.

That said, in the UK at least, you can buy the same HP drives using the spare part number (instead of retail) for less warranty but a huge saving.

DL are the rack mount equivalent of the ML floor-standing series. So long as you have a rack or don't mind standing the server on its edge you will be fine.

Check which power supplies your model ships with. It might pay to upgrade to high efficiency PSU's. Again, use spare part numbers to keep costs down.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Great server to carve your teeth on.
Picking up dirves, RAM, battery cache module for the RAID...pretty inexpensive.

 

[FremontPC]

Thanks for the feedback and the tips everyone! I'll check with the guy to see if he has a barebones G7, but it sounds like this one will offer enough flexibility for the foreseeable future without breaking the bank.