Plans to build a Game Hosting Server w/ possible media storage.

[Kyazka]

I'm building my first server ever and are unsure how to go about it. Upgradability is kept mind with this build; either the CPU and/or motherboard being replaced overtime. All I need this this to do is run game servers 24/7 for my group of friends. I'm already aware of Hosting companies it there for fairly cheap pricing, but I also wanted to see if media storage was possible too (mostly doing this for the experience).

 

I've already found a few system parts for this, and a super budget is what I have in mind (perferably less than $300 excluding storage past one drive).

 

Parts:

- Xeon x3430 or x3470 quad core server CPU ($10 eBay)

- Super Micro mATX X8SIL server motherboard ($25 eBay)

- 32gb RAM DDR3 ECC (~$70 eBay)

- Thermaltake Core X2 mATX case (~$70-$130)

 

RAID is also being considered, with a RAID card for PCIe 2.0 allowing up to 4 drives (Core X2 has 3x5.25" drive bays that could take a conversion using the whole space for a 4-5 3.5" drive hotswap cage)

 

I just want parts, setup, and running recommendations. Everything found above can easily be thrown out for something else. Mini-ITX works too; they make a Core X1 with basically the architecture.

[Kyazka]

And don't worry about the OS, I've already decided on Linux to run it (Ubuntu or something similar. I'll take recommendations for that too.)

[Electronics Wizardy]

Why not just get a full used server?

 

like a r710 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-PowerEdge-R710-3-5-Virtualization-Server-2x-2-53GHz-E5540-24GB-iDRAC/173060744390?hash=item284b3964c6:g:RX8AAOSw8UZaO8ud:rk:2:pf:0

 

For os, id run a hypervisor like promox, and put stuff in thier own vm.

[trag1c]

I bought a 2U rackmount server off of ebay. Came with 48GB of ECC DDR3 and dual LGA 1366 Xeons (can't remember which ones off the top of my head but its 12c 24t). It came with an adaptec raid card which runs 8 out of the 12 hotswap bays on the front of the case.  I think I paid like $600 USD but pretty cheap considering a good rackmount case can cost twice that. You can get them cheaper than that though and they will just come with less "options".

 

I tossed in 6 5TB Seagate NAS drives and she is good to go. I use it for software development and as computational node with some game servers running the back ground.

[Kyazka]

5 hours ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

Why not just get a full used server?

 

like a r710 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-PowerEdge-R710-3-5-Virtualization-Server-2x-2-53GHz-E5540-24GB-iDRAC/173060744390?hash=item284b3964c6:g:RX8AAOSw8UZaO8ud:rk:2:pf:0

 

For os, id run a hypervisor like promox, and put stuff in thier own vm.

I never knew you could find them for so cheap...

I might be changing my mind about the whole build project and just get this to start with. Slightly ashamed though that I can't use the Core X series cases. They do look and perform quite well...

[Salacious B Crum]

16 hours ago, Kyazka said:

I never knew you could find them for so cheap...

I might be changing my mind about the whole build project and just get this to start with. Slightly ashamed though that I can't use the Core X series cases. They do look and perform quite well...

I just got a Dell R710 with 4 450GB sas drives dual xeon quad cores redundant psu's ipmi port a perc6 raid card and a 4 port nic for $339 shipped and you can go cheaper got mine here:

 

https://www.ebay.com/usr/savemyserver

[kimjonasson]

Im just going to jump in here and ask some questions if it's cool.

I am looking for kind of the same machine that you guys are talking about.

I want to be able to host something around 5-10 gaming servers.

1 website.

and also cuz im going to have it in my home i would like to be able to store my gaming library and other files on it (like a NAS).

 

I basicly want to host a small gaming communtiy on it, and also use it for storage.

My uploadspeed is currently at 100mbps but i can crank it up more if thats needed.

 

Im like totaly new in serverhosting specifications but if someone here would be able to help me out with something decent to use i would love it!

[AbsoluteFool]

I'm not gonna quote anyone here, as this is just "basic" information.

 

Game servers you probably want high Ghz CPU's for, Alot of RAM and high up and download connection. 

As for the person above me. You can use apache2 or NGINX with php and MySQL to get a website up and running. However you still need to buy a domain name and point the domain to your IP with an A record in the DNS settings. You also need a static public IP for this. 

You can also run multiple domains from the same web server.

[Keyop298]

You can get Domain names for free if you want to save a few $. places like Cloudflare and No-IP are decent places to look. with No-IP you can get 3 free domain names but you do need to visit the site an sign in once a month to keep using the name. 

[kimjonasson]

Thanks guys, domains and that kind of stuff is not that new to me.

The thing that i needs some information about is if its possible to host game servers and a website on the same machine and if it is, what kind of machine or hardware am i looking for.

CPU wit high ghz and much ram is good information!
Anything more specific is appreciated 

[Creekwater X]

If you like minecraft I found installing MineOS  which can be installed over Linux was a fun little adventure

 

 

[myselfolli]

11 hours ago, kimjonasson said:

Thanks guys, domains and that kind of stuff is not that new to me.

The thing that i needs some information about is if its possible to host game servers and a website on the same machine and if it is, what kind of machine or hardware am i looking for.

CPU wit high ghz and much ram is good information!
Anything more specific is appreciated 

You can run multiple services on a single server, sure, but I'd recommend installing a hypervisor and putting everything into its own VM.

 

Also, depending on the amount of people that'll be playing on your (game) server(s), you'll have to look into your up- and download speeds again. Plus I'd recommend getting a static IP for convenience's sake, otherwise you'll have to use a service like DynDNS, which will increase latency slightly.

 

The hardware really mostly depends on the type of game servers you want to run. Also do keep in mind that your server will most likely be very loud and power hungry.