Building a cheap game/file server

[SheafferKing]

I am wanting to build a server this summer for my friends and I to play games. I want to be able to have multiple servers on the server (if that makes sense). I was looking at getting used server parts as they seem pretty cheap. I was thinking of setting up a raid 10 array, though it might not be worth it for just games. The server would be having max 20 people. I want to spend no more than $250 on the server. I have an old 4:3 monitor that I will be using for it, so it will need to have a VGA port. Could anyone lead me in the direction of what parts to look for? Thanks.

 

Edit: I do have some old machines / cables / fans / low PSUs that I could use.

[themctipers]

look for older server hardware from ~2009/2010

enough IPC for everything, and pretty cheap.

 

just for games, don't raid 10. ZFS! 

any GPU will work. maybe a used old one? 

[TheComputerdude]

8 minutes ago, SheafferKing said:

I am wanting to build a server this summer for my friends and I to play games. I want to be able to have multiple servers on the server (if that makes sense). I was looking at getting used server parts as they seem pretty cheap. I was thinking of setting up a raid 10 array, though it might not be worth it for just games. The server would be having max 20 people. I want to spend no more than $250 on the server. I have an old 4:3 monitor that I will be using for it, so it will need to have a VGA port. Could anyone lead me in the direction of what parts to look for? Thanks.

 

Edit: I do have some old machines / cables / fans / low PSUs that I could use.

If the old machine has a decent cpu then slap a gpu and hardrives in voila 

[SheafferKing]

5 minutes ago, themctipers said:

look for older server hardware from ~2009/2010

enough IPC for everything, and pretty cheap.

 

just for games, don't raid 10. ZFS! 

any GPU will work. maybe a used old one? 

Would it be worth it to use an SSD? Or should I use the money for better CPUs? I was thinking of dual CPUs and getting a server rack case. Do i need a decent GPU or just one to run the monitor? 

[SheafferKing]

5 minutes ago, TheComputerdude said:

If the old machine has a decent cpu then slap a gpu and hardrives in voila 

It does not have anything decent really. All from early 2000s.

[TheComputerdude]

Just now, SheafferKing said:

It does not have anything decent really. All from early 2000s.

oooh good luck building something decent for your budget old server gear is cheap but you are pushing the evelope

[themctipers]

2 minutes ago, SheafferKing said:

Would it be worth it to use an SSD? Or should I use the money for better CPUs? I was thinking of dual CPUs and getting a server rack case. Do i need a decent GPU or just one to run the monitor? 

not worth it. pretty sure most linux distress still support 800x600, so you're good

[binzhu1070]

what do you mean by max 20 people, will 20 people write files to it at the same time? I'm suspecting with 250 budget that will be a pretty tough stretch, I just scraped a bunch of old server parts from ebay and build a freenas server, dual e5640 32gb ram, tyan mobo, lsi 9211-8i and the rest, costed about 400 total.

 

Whatever you decide on, please do post your final config to share with us.

[SheafferKing]

38 minutes ago, binzhu1070 said:

what do you mean by max 20 people, will 20 people write files to it at the same time? I'm suspecting with 250 budget that will be a pretty tough stretch, I just scraped a bunch of old server parts from ebay and build a freenas server, dual e5640 32gb ram, tyan mobo, lsi 9211-8i and the rest, costed about 400 total.

 

Whatever you decide on, please do post your final config to share with us.

I mean max 20 people playing at one time, but probably under 12 most of the time.

[SheafferKing]

51 minutes ago, themctipers said:

not worth it. pretty sure most linux distress still support 800x600, so you're good

Could I use Windows? I'm not very good with linux

[themctipers]

Just now, SheafferKing said:

Could I use Windows? I'm not very good with linux

YEah but no zfs

[domandric034]

FreeNAS would be good with this build : 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - A8-7600 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($56.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: MSI - A68HI AC Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard  ($76.99 @ Amazon) 
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($52.99 @ Newegg) 
Case: BitFenix - Phenom Midnight Black Mini ITX Tower Case  ($80.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($49.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $317.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-06-07 17:30 EDT-0400

 

Just slap in drives, install and configure freenas and you are ready to rock. Or you can install Windows Server 2016 and create couple VM's that host game servers.

 

Windows Server Version : 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - A8-7600 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($56.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: MSI - A68HI AC Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard  ($76.99 @ Amazon) 
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($52.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: ADATA - Premier Pro SP600 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($59.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: BitFenix - Phenom Midnight Black Mini ITX Tower Case  ($80.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($49.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $377.94
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-06-07 17:32 EDT-0400

 

I know I went overbudget but this is standard for file/game server.

[Jarsky]

Base server $138 http://www.ebay.com/itm/DELL-POWEREDGE-R710-2-X-E5504-2-4GHZ-32GB-NO-HARD-DRIVES-2-X-PSU-PERC-6i-/232363688486

2 of these CPUs for $64  http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Xeon-X5670-2-93GHz-Six-Core-BX80614X5670-Processor-/122536374510

2 of these HDD's in RAID0 http://www.ebay.com/itm/DELL-146GB-147GB-15K-6G-2-5-SFF-SAS-Hard-Drive-for-PowerEdge-R710-610-R620-R910-/302338140252

 

Or this one seems to be good value: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Poweredge-R710-2-X-SIX-CORE-2-93GHZ-X5670-24GB-MEMORY-2-X-500GB-1TB-SERVER-/132219521564