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Uses for 9 weak-ish computers?

LightCode Gaming
By LightCode Gaming
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So my college was throwing away old computers and I managed to snag some of them (LEGALLY! I asked and they said yes) and I have 9 computers that MIGHT work, haven't tested them, but have the full components needed to run. 

One friend has suggested (and offered to help) make a cluster, but I want to see what other options I had for it first. I also don't know what I could use a cluster for.

So what are some things you can do with 9 computers with 1-2GB DDR-2 RAM (666mhz each), 80GB storage (Upgradable to 160GB each because of how many HDD's I got) and an intel core 2 duo processor?

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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For the lulz?  Put at least 8 GBs of RAM, a better PSU, and a decent GPU in there and see how far you can push one.

I'm not talking about putting everything on ultra at 1080p and leaving it there no matter how bad the performance, and then go, "durp, it sucks."

But see if you can game at least somewhat decently on it.  

 

As for the others?  I'd say upgrade some parts, get it at least decent for an everyday computer.  Either sell them afterwards, or donate them to one of those charities that give computers to families in need.

Currently focusing on my video game collection.

It doesn't matter what you play games on, just play good games you enjoy.

 

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Render farm.

Outfit one with SSD + gpu + more RAM and give it to Minecraft obsessed family/poor friend

Slum Lord Gaming Box

Throw in a bunch of drives for onsite and offsite storage servers

My eyes see the past…

My camera lens sees the present…

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19 minutes ago, Zodiark1593 said:

Render farm.

Outfit one with SSD + gpu + more RAM and give it to Minecraft obsessed family/poor friend

Slum Lord Gaming Box

Throw in a bunch of drives for onsite and offsite storage servers

 

What exactly is a render farm/gaming box?

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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Exactly the same thing happened in my school; they were getting rid of their old computers from a couple of IT labs.

 

I proposed to create a BOINC Farm in the name of the school, and lead it as a side project until I leave the school, when other people will take over.

 

Sparing you of the administrative details, I currently have  23 computer at my disposal (Dell Optiplex 390, i3 2120, 2GB RAM), and they are all hooked up to a network switch, running 24/7 at Rosetta@Home. 

 

So to answer your question, distributed computing through BOINC or the World Community Grid? I learned qoite a lot through this project, and be ware of the electricity cost, but if that isn't an issue, you might have fun doing it. I also managed to scavange the PCs for some 500GB WD Green HDDs, and replaced them with some 60 GB HDDs. I now use the WD Greens for my home storage server.

(\__/)
(='.'=) This is Bunny. Copy Bunny into your signature to
(")_(") help him on his way to world domination.

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4 hours ago, LightCode Gaming said:

So my college was throwing away old computers and I managed to snag some of them (LEGALLY! I asked and they said yes) and I have 9 computers that MIGHT work, haven't tested them, but have the full components needed to run. 

One friend has suggested (and offered to help) make a cluster, but I want to see what other options I had for it first. I also don't know what I could use a cluster for.

So what are some things you can do with 9 computers with 1-2GB DDR-2 RAM (666mhz each), 80GB storage (Upgradable to 160GB each because of how many HDD's I got) and an intel core 2 duo processor?

see if you are able to boot to BIOS

 

the BIOS will show pretty much the CPU, RAM and HDD used

 

 

Budget? Uses? Currency? Location? Operating System? Peripherals? Monitor? Use PCPartPicker wherever possible. 

Quote whom you're replying to, and set option to follow your topics. Or Else we can't see your reply.

 

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20 minutes ago, Lukiewookie said:

 

 

What exactly is a BOINC farm?

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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15 minutes ago, dragoon20005 said:

see if you are able to boot to BIOS

 

the BIOS will show pretty much the CPU, RAM and HDD used

 

 

 

Already have all of that info. Only issue is the bios is a modded version that is the college's specific brand (they didn't tell me that...) so we now have to flash all 18 of them to do anything with them... 

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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Build an old-school LAN Setup with stuff like GTA 1.

 

 

I really have no useful idea.....sorry.

PC: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 @4.2HGhz 1.25V || Noctua NH-U12S SE2 || 16GB (2×8GB) Aegis 3000Mhz CL16 @3200Mhz || 
|| Sapphire Pulse RX 6700 10G || MSI B450i Gaming PLUS MAX Wifi  || Kingston NV1 2TB m.2 ||  Corsair SF600 || Intertech IM 1 |||
Peripherals: Sennheiser PC  360 G4ME || AOC CQ27G2U || Viewsonic PX701HD || Keychron V1 || Logitech G303 Shroud Edition||| Laptop: XPS 13 2in1 7390 || Steam Deck 256 GB (64GB Version) ||| Cameras: Fujifilm XH-1 || Fujifilm X100T

 

 

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17 minutes ago, mapegl said:

Build an old-school LAN Setup with stuff like GTA 1.

 

 

I really have no useful idea.....sorry.

 

Still better than just having them sit around collecting dust.

From the looks of it, my friend and I will be wiping them and selling them.

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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4 hours ago, SuperCookie78 said:

You can have them fold with F@H

What do you mean by fold?

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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3 hours ago, LightCode Gaming said:

What do you mean by fold?

 

17 hours ago, LightCode Gaming said:

What exactly is a BOINC farm?

https://boinc.berkeley.edu/

https://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/discover.action#signup

 

Have a look there.

(\__/)
(='.'=) This is Bunny. Copy Bunny into your signature to
(")_(") help him on his way to world domination.

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On 4/19/2016 at 1:39 PM, LightCode Gaming said:

What do you mean by fold?

https://folding.stanford.edu/

LOOK AT MY NEW FLAG DESIGNS FOR PA AND VOTE ON YOUR FAVORITE

LOOK AT MY FIRST BATCH OF DESIGNS HERE

 

 

 

 

 

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