Finally took the WHS plunge

[joutlaw]

After much debate and countless theoretical builds I decided to get the HP ex485 MediaSmart WHS.

I have MSDN so I had access to WHS to "test". My only problem with that was what happens when I change jobs or if my current job quits forking over the dough for MSDN... With this much data it was too much uncertaintly.

I liked the case alot. I searched and couldn't find anything like it in that form factor.

I looked at going the atom route, but just decided against it.

Newegg had a special right now for the ex485 and hitachi 1tb combo deal for 499.99. I will have a total of 1.75TB for now with enough room later for more than likely 2x1.5TBs.

Unfornately I done some reading and found I may have been able to use 50$ coupon from xpbargains, but that's just how it goes.

Newegg expected it to be here tomorrow... I suppose they are shipping from TN and I'm in MS.

 

[RebateMonger]

Yeah, it's really hard to beat the HP WHS boxes. I'm not a big HP desktop fan, but that's what I have my clients buy when they need a WHS server. I've got several of them at clients now, and they pretty much take care of themselves. And where else can you find a server that flashes red, green, and blue lights for the Holidays?

 

[jalaram]

I had a home built whs system and kept debating between the acer and the hp boxes. I eventually went the acer because it was cheaper and the atom proc uses very little power.

I was sorely tempted by the hp box because they include a way to be compatible with Apple's Time Machine.

 

[stash]

HP just released the bits for Mac backup support for the 470 and 475, which is really cool for those of us with the old ones It works great too.

 

[joutlaw]

I saw the Acer one too, but it was only available at a decent price from a canadian website and would have ended up being near the same cost after shipping etc. I know the celly isn't that much more powerful than the Atom, but felt like I needed the extra juice for newsgroup and video encoding.

Newegg/UPS says it out for delivery so hopefully I'll get to play with it today.

I really wanted to build one myself b/c I've built several PCs, but spec'd out at newegg with a license it came to around $430 without a case. I don't know what form factor the mobo is, but I am assumed micro-atx or mini-itx and it was hard to find a case with that much HDD support in itx.

 

[joutlaw]

double post

 

[RebateMonger]

Originally posted by: joutlaw
I don't know what form factor the mobo is, but I am assumed micro-atx or mini-itx and it was impossible to find a case with that much HDD support in itx.

Fixed.

 

[Griffinhart]

Originally posted by: stash
HP just released the bits for Mac backup support for the 470 and 475, which is really cool for those of us with the old ones It works great too.

You know, HP has been suprisingly good to 470 and 475 owners when it comes to feature updates. They didn't just leave us in the dust when they went to the 48x models.

Joutlaw:
Gratz on your new WHS Box. I think you'll really like it. The form factor is very nice.

Btw, there is a nice little "easter egg" for the HP WHS box. At least for the 47x version. I assume they left it in for the newer ones. On the MediaSmart Server tab control panel, hold CTL-ALT-Shift and click the picture of the server near the LED brightness control slider. It will allow you to change the color scheme and behavior of the LEDs.

Also... If you haven't found it already, http://www.wegotserved.co.uk/ is a great resource for WHS.

 

[mauiblue]

I wish I found that $499 combo deal earlier as I would have bought it right away. I just decided over the weekend after doing some research that the HP MSS would be the right route to go to cover my digital storage and backup needs.

 

[fyleow]

..

 

[RebateMonger]

Originally posted by: fyleow

Originally posted by: RebateMonger

Originally posted by: joutlaw
I don't know what form factor the mobo is, but I am assumed micro-atx or mini-itx and it was impossible to find a case with that much HDD support in itx.

Fixed.

No, it's not cheap but they are out there.

I'm aware of the Chenbro. I exaggerated slightly, but, no, they aren't cheap.

Another case that comes close is the
Apevia QPACK. Those are pretty cheap, but aren't technically designed to hold four hard drives.

 

[Griffinhart]

Originally posted by: RebateMonger

Originally posted by: fyleow

Originally posted by: RebateMonger

Originally posted by: joutlaw
I don't know what form factor the mobo is, but I am assumed micro-atx or mini-itx and it was impossible to find a case with that much HDD support in itx.

Fixed.

No, it's not cheap but they are out there.

I'm aware of the Chenbro. I exaggerated slightly, but, no, they aren't cheap.

Another case that comes close is the
Apevia QPACK. Those are pretty cheap, but aren't technically designed to hold four hard drives.

Cheap, sure... But HD access isn't as elegant as the HP box. It's also a lot larger than the HP box.

 

[joutlaw]

Well I've had ex485 since Friday afternoon and have nothing but high praises.

It worked out of the box no issues. I plugged it into my network then installed the connector CD. I got upgraded to 2.5 and went on with the install. I got the initial setup going, did HP and WHS updates, then hot swapped the 1TB drive without a hitch... really slick IMO. I added it to storage pool and was off.

I immediately backed up my office PC, HTPC, and my wife's laptop. It took a while to do, but very simple. I've since blown away my PC and HTPC's backup to migrate some of my data to the WHS and get it off those boxes. I want centralized storage and didn't need to keep 700GB of backups for some of the data I'm not worried about.

I signed up for Amazon's S3 account and will be putting pictures and probably some important electronic documents there.

I love the fact I can remote desktop WHS and it feels exactly like Windows 2003 Server that I am accustomed to at work. I have some plans with IIS and hosting some basic web pages there.

I'm sure a lot of people have said this, but I don't know what I have done without WHS. Microsoft really nailed it on this product and I suspect we will see more families using this in the future as more houses have multiple PCs. If I were Microsoft's marketing team I would have a slew of commercials about WHS and how Mac really doesn't have a solution for this.

 

[Griffinhart]

It's definitely on of those products that MS makes that is well worth it IMHO. It's also typical that they really don't know how to market it.

Next year the next version of the Server Software is due. It will be based on Server 2008 rather than 2003. If this version includes media center, TV tuner support and can host Media Center Extenders It will be the "perfect" product.

 

[RebateMonger]

Microsoft, unfortunately, has done little (none?) advertising of WHS. Yeah, I think WHS is the best thing that MS has done in ten years. It addresses a ton of weaknesses in the Windows solutions for homes and small businesses:

Backups
Remote Access
File Sharing
Web Sharing

 

[zerogear]

I love my Acer box 430$ shipped w/ an extra 1TB drive.

 

[RebateMonger]

Originally posted by: Griffinhart
If this version includes media center, TV tuner support and can host Media Center Extenders It will be the "perfect" product.

The topic of a "perfect WHS" was discussed in an earlier thread. While I don't disagree those features could make a "perfect product", I still worry about the resulting server.

We are no longer talking about a 35-watt lunch-box size product. Now you need space for TV tuners, more memory, video and sound ouput (?), and a heftier CPU and power supply. While my first TV tuner functioned fine on a Pentium 60 computer, today's HDTV tuners require heavy-duty CPUs to avoid glitches.

A "full-featured" WHS will result in an entirely different box, which costs more and burns more power. I worry that might not be an improvement. All-in-one WHS software would likely mean the death of these tiny, cute, boxes.

 

[joutlaw]

I could see how the media center and tuner integration would be nice, but I already have a HTPC. I don't use a tuner b/c I have cable with a DVR and use it for TV. I mainly use the HTPC for backups of Bluray and other formats.

What sold me on the ex485 was the low power usage since it will be always on. I turn my HTPC off except for the weekends most of the time.

The only problem now is my HTPC and Xbox360 connect wirelessly. I don't know how well high bit rate bluray rips will transfer. I more than likely will go gigabit ethernet, but that requires me getting up in my crawlspace and running cable.

The acer solution looked nice, but I'm just not completely sold on the Atom yet. It seems the HP solution is a little more polished and it's already in it's 2nd generation.

 

[TheKub]

Originally posted by: RebateMonger
Microsoft, unfortunately, has done little (none?) advertising of WHS. Yeah, I think WHS is the best thing that MS has done in ten years. It addresses a ton of weaknesses in the Windows solutions for homes and small businesses:

They just need to eliminate the stupid no RDP limitation on the home editions of their OS's. Silly that you are required to buy Business\Professional to use one of the headlining features of this HOME server.

 

[Griffinhart]

Originally posted by: RebateMonger

Originally posted by: Griffinhart
If this version includes media center, TV tuner support and can host Media Center Extenders It will be the "perfect" product.

The topic of a "perfect WHS" was discussed in an earlier thread. While I don't disagree those features could make a "perfect product", I still worry about the resulting server.

We are no longer talking about a 35-watt lunch-box size product. Now you need space for TV tuners, more memory, video and sound ouput (?), and a heftier CPU and power supply. While my first TV tuner functioned fine on a Pentium 60 computer, today's HDTV tuners require heavy-duty CPUs to avoid glitches.

A "full-featured" WHS will result in an entirely different box, which costs more and burns more power. I worry that might not be an improvement. All-in-one WHS software would likely mean the death of these tiny, cute, boxes.

2 GB is more than enough RAM for a media center. For SD, the EX47x series has more than enough CPU to handle Multiple Tuners. For HD, the EX48x series' 2 Ghz Dual Core is more than enough as well. It's even likely the stock processor in the original box can handle at least one HD tuner well enough.

What I want is something that is still headless, but can be used with the Media Center Extender. Not something to attach to the TV. So, no need for a bigger power supply or video board.

As I mentioned, USB tuners are pretty good. I've been using one for a while now and it's small and doesn't require any external power. It's about 1.5" wide and 2" long and sits at the end of a short USB cable. I have a second that's about 3" long but only about 1" wide. They are small enough that they aren't even an issue.

Then, of course, there's the ability for the do-it-yourselfers that can create a box with everything needed as well.

 

[Griffinhart]

Originally posted by: joutlaw
I could see how the media center and tuner integration would be nice, but I already have a HTPC. I don't use a tuner b/c I have cable with a DVR and use it for TV. I mainly use the HTPC for backups of Bluray and other formats.

I have a seperate Media Center PC. It's on 24/7 as well. So, being able to combind both systems into one would be a big benefit for me. This Media Center is not in my living room, nor attached to any TV. I use Extenders to do that.

What sold me on the ex485 was the low power usage since it will be always on. I turn my HTPC off except for the weekends most of the time.

Definately a bonus.

The only problem now is my HTPC and Xbox360 connect wirelessly. I don't know how well high bit rate bluray rips will transfer. I more than likely will go gigabit ethernet, but that requires me getting up in my crawlspace and running cable.

What type of wireless network are you currently running? I have a dedicated .11A network for media streaming. It allows me to stream content to my two extenders. It has, for several years now, easily handled two SD streams.

For HD, the same network has easily handled HD TV programming recorded from Clear QAM. And the .11A network has had no problem streaming HD content from my netflix account. Granted, I haven't tried more than one TV at a time for HD content. I'll have to play around with that later.

I have tried .11G in past, but that had problems even with a single SD stream.

The acer solution looked nice, but I'm just not completely sold on the Atom yet. It seems the HP solution is a little more polished and it's already in it's 2nd generation.

I agree. I'm not sold on the Atom for a server yet either. At least not one that is used for more than the basic functions. It's more of an "entry level" server to me.

 

[California Roll]

Whether someone goes homemade or prebuilt is a personal choice. After building a couple homemade boxes I've decided if it's a 2 drive max WHS or more than 4, I'm going homemade. If it's 3-4 drives I need I'm going prebuilt, mainly due to the availability of SFF cases for 4 bays.

I agree wholeheartedly that WHS is one of the best things that MS has released. It's too bad they're not giving it the publicity push it deserves.

 

[IHAVEAQUESTION]

You guys seem to give WHS a very high praise. But if WHS works so well out of box, why do users still need HP add-on software? Something I am just wondering.

 

[ViRGE]

Originally posted by: IHAVEAQUESTION
You guys seem to give WHS a very high praise. But if WHS works so well out of box, why do users still need HP add-on software? Something I am just wondering.

It does what it's supposed to do very well. That doesn't mean that we wouldn't like it to do more though.

 

[RebateMonger]

Originally posted by: IHAVEAQUESTION
You guys seem to give WHS a very high praise. But if WHS works so well out of box, why do users still need HP add-on software? Something I am just wondering.

HP has added a bunch of stuff to add value to buying their pre-built server, versus building your own or buying another brand. Since HP was the first to make pre-builts, they have the most experience.

As far as the HP add-ins, I doubt that many "need" them. The primary features of WHS: backups, file sharing, remote access, and web serving, are all built into the "as-is" product.