Upgrading the Homelab.

Upgrading the Homelab

Why:

I've always had a homelab of sorts, until recently that consisted of a beefy NAS server and nothing else. The NAS server uses around 150W of power, much-too-much in my opinion.

How:

'Upgrading' to an M900 Lenovo mini-server as here: https://www.servethehome.com/lenovo-thinkcentre-m900-tiny-project-tinyminimicro-guide/

Hardware:

Processor:

i5-6500T processor with 4 cores. I'm coming from a Intel® Xeon® Processor E5-2630L v4 with 10 cores and 20 threads. Needless to say I don't use this server processor to it's fullest capabilities. So going from a TDP of ~55W to 35W should make a huge difference. 

Storage controller:

Coming from an Adaptec RAID controller with 16 ports to an internal M.2 2Tbyte disk and a SATA connected 8Tbyte disk with 5x 4Tbyte external rotating disks (USB connected) with software-RAID is going to be quite a step-down, but should be very manageable. But it should bring down the power-usage.

Disks:

Coming from a large amount of rotating disks (8x 4tbyte) and going to 1x 8Tbyte SSD should save a lot of power. The external rotating disks will be mounted when needed, and will thus not add much to the power-consumption.

Memory:

Going from 48Gbytes of server-based memory to 64Gbytes of laptop memory (both DDR-4) should make quite a dent in the power consumption, hopefully.

Power:

The current power usage of the server is ~200W at idle and around 300W under full load, I hope to reduce that to around 20W during idle or about 50W during full load. I Think that will be a challenge with full retention 

The Six USB ports will be used by 5x 4Tbyte HDs, the internal 2.5" will be populated by a 8Tbyte SSD and the mini PCIe port will be used by a mini PCIe to Ethernet interface (It will also do duty as a firewall/router). As you can see in the pictures, there is not much space for the mini pcie -> Ethernet card.

Some pictures: