Best place to buy used servers

[piemadd]

I want to start a small data center in my basement able to create virtual environments on command to run simulations, run calculations, test code, etc. Does anybody know a good place to find used servers on the cheaper side? I've heard it is easy to go to a local university and buy used stuff, but all of the universities around me need consent from the governor to sell anything, so does anybody have any good recommendations?

 

Also, would google be willing to do so, as they have a data center a few miles away from me.

[knightslugger]

4 minutes ago, ImplosiveNUTech said:

I want to start a small data center in my basement able to create virtual environments on command to run simulations, run calculations, test code, etc. Does anybody know a good place to find used servers on the cheaper side? I've heard it is easy to go to a local university and buy used stuff, but all of the universities around me need consent from the governor to sell anything, so does anybody have any good recommendations?

 

Also, would google be willing to do so, as they have a data center a few miles away from me.

I'll bet there's a standing order from the governors office that gives oversight to the facility director, and then further to the department head and possibly even further down the ladder. Something tells me whoever you are talking to doesn't know.

[zombienerd]

I suppose what you mean by cheaper, and what generation you're looking for.

 

You can pick up rackmount Dell Poweredge servers on ebay for less than $100 shipped on the regular.  I have a Poweredge 1950 that I got for $50 shipped with dual xeon e5420's and 32gb RAM, no HDDs.

[Fasauceome]

Is the consent from the governor an issue, like they just aren't getting it? You can also visit graphical design companies that probably have old storage servers or even workstations.

[piemadd]

1 minute ago, knightslugger said:

I'll bet there's a standing order from the governors office that gives oversight to the facility director, and then further to the department head and possibly even further down the ladder. Something tells me whoever you are talking to doesn't know.

Quote

Non-Inventoried Supplies and Materials

All supplies, materials and equipment, regardless of value purchased through the Institute is the property of the state, federal government, or private grantor agency. As such, it cannot be sold, surplused, or transferred from Georgia Tech without the prior written approval of the appropriate federal sponsoring agency and/or the Institute Surplus Property Officer. Property that is considered valueless may be disposed of by cannibalization, recycling, or waste disposal provided a Certificate of Authorization for Destruction is obtained by the Institute’s Surplus Property Officer prior to disposal.

Building maintenance, repair and operation items are not required to have a Certificate of Authorization for Destruction. They may be disposed of by cannibalization, recycling or waste disposal if, in the judgment of the installing mechanic and/or his superior, that the economic value is such that transporting and storage of the property is not practical.

Inventoried Equipment and Materials

Equipment, inventoried, with a value of $3,000 or more purchased through the Institute is the property of the state, federal government, or private grantor agency. As such, it cannot be sold, surplused, or transferred from Georgia Tech without the prior written approval of the appropriate federal sponsoring agency and/or the Institute Surplus Property Officer.

Pretty much every university in GA is apart of the system, so they are all under the same rules

[Minbari]

It depends on the class of hardware you are looking for- homelabhero.com out of Maryland usually has some good deals on servers, and their Dell HDD pricing is very cheap too. I have had luck searching on eBay for servers and then contacting ones physically located near me and reaching out to get some deals. Saving on shipping cost is often one of the best ways to keep under budget on older equipment. 

 

I wouldn't suggest purchasing anything DDR2 based though. Stick with Dell 11G+ and Proliant G6+ (and similar). Even finding deals on local classifieds is possible if you aren't in a rush. 

 

If you were after some newer equipment sometimes refurbished stores like servermonkey the theserverstore can be competitive too since supply of HP G8+ and Dell 13G+ is much lower.  Best way to find a good deal is narrow down the hardware generation and features you are after and shop around a bunch of stores to find what a good deal would look like for it. Then you can decide whether to buy online or try and find locally.

[knightslugger]

14 minutes ago, ImplosiveNUTech said:

Pretty much every university in GA is apart of the system, so they are all under the same rules

And that "Prior Written Approval" is usually a delegation order. If there was a singular person in charge of approving or denying sale of surplus inventory for an entire state agency the scale of education... they wouldn't have time to do anything else.

[Zmax]

Hi

 

Found this company near your location

 

http://www.workstation.net/

 

This is not a secure web site

 

Hope this help