Server specification query

[DocYoda]

Hi. I work in a diagnostic laboratory and we are getting a digitial imaging equipment with a requirement of a server. I have an existing 7950X on an Asus X670-E extreme, 64GB of RAM connected to an 8bay NAS with 32GB ECC RAM and m.2 cache drives on a 10GbE network. The supplier of this imaging equipment advised to get a xeon based system (sold by the supplier) because the 7950X does not meet minimum requirement. Here is a photo of what they sent me:

 

 

Can my existing "server" comply with this? Thank you. 

[Dutch_Master]

To meet their spec's you may need to add a dual Gbit network card and replace the RAM with ECC RDIMMs.

1 hour ago, DocYoda said:

The supplier of this imaging equipment advised to get a xeon based system (sold by the supplier)

Yeah, that makes sense (my bold highlight)

 

If they insist, consider getting a 1st gen EPYC server, either used or build from parts on Aliexpress, like I did last week

From this vendor I got the mainboard, CPU and 128GB ECC RDIMM RAM set: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005010935691.html

2U cooler with fan: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004556694860.html

My case came from ebay, find something suitable for your lab. The chassis had a PSU included. Storage as desired, large capacity SSD's are getting cheaper rapidly.

 

HTH!

[LIGISTX]

2 hours ago, DocYoda said:

Hi. I work in a diagnostic laboratory and we are getting a digitial imaging equipment with a requirement of a server. I have an existing 7950X on an Asus X670-E extreme, 64GB of RAM connected to an 8bay NAS with 32GB ECC RAM and m.2 cache drives on a 10GbE network. The supplier of this imaging equipment advised to get a xeon based system (sold by the supplier) because the 7950X does not meet minimum requirement. Here is a photo of what they sent me:

 

 

Can my existing "server" comply with this? Thank you. 

The CPU is fast enough, but in the professional workplace… raw speed is not really what matters. Uptime, support, and validation is typically more important. 
 

While what you have almost certainly will be fine, server equipment is designed to be higher endurance, less prone to failure, and more importantly, will usually come with vendor support (not cheap, but most corporations opt for it because it’s cheaper then downtime…) who will address issues quickly and get things working again.

 

TLDR; it likely will be fine. But does that mean it’s the right tool for the job? Potentially not. Potentially yes. Mostly depends on your use case and willingness to accept risk, both in the form of downtime and potential denial of hardware support as you are running out of a recommended spec. 

[Tanks]

17 hours ago, LIGISTX said:

The CPU is fast enough, but in the professional workplace… raw speed is not really what matters. Uptime, support, and validation is typically more important. 
 

While what you have almost certainly will be fine, server equipment is designed to be higher endurance, less prone to failure, and more importantly, will usually come with vendor support (not cheap, but most corporations opt for it because it’s cheaper then downtime…) who will address issues quickly and get things working again.

 

TLDR; it likely will be fine. But does that mean it’s the right tool for the job? Potentially not. Potentially yes. Mostly depends on your use case and willingness to accept risk, both in the form of downtime and potential denial of hardware support as you are running out of a recommended spec. 

You're absolutely right; in this industry, it's all about supportability. With so many customers, companies don't concern themselves with whether something SHOULD run; they care about reliability and not having to troubleshoot with you. Quick elimination of hardware as the cause is crucial.

Xeons do have features that may contribute to stability:

• Error-Correcting Code Memory (ECC): Detects and corrects internal data corruption.
• Increased Cache Size: Enhances processing efficiency.

Note: These features probably don't contribute gigantically to stability, but it's possible they do.

You can attempt to run the software, but support might not be there if issues arise.

Virtualization could be a workaround. Often, a blessed appliance/virtualization stack is available, typically VMware, but this might have downsides in your situation.

TL;DR Summary: Support and reliability are paramount in this industry. Xeon processors' features like ECC memory and larger cache may provide some stability, but running non-approved hardware may lead to a lack of support. Virtualization, such as VMware, might offer a solution but can have its drawbacks.

It's frustrating I have certainly battled my share of vendors over annoying spec's but there is a limit to how much they are willing to bend