Building a Power Efficient Home Server!

Wolfgang's Channel・2 minutes read

Building a power-efficient home server/NAS is essential for cost savings and optimal performance, with newer CPUs like 6th gen Intel offering improved efficiency. Consider factors like motherboard choice, power supply units, and hard drive configurations to maximize power efficiency and reduce utility bills.

Insights

  • Newer CPUs like 6th gen Intel are more power-efficient at idle than older models, despite similar TDP ratings, making them a cost-effective choice for home servers.
  • Tiered caching, combining fast SSDs with slower drives in a NAS, optimizes file operations, reduces power consumption, and enhances access times, offering a significant efficiency boost for home server setups.

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Recent questions

  • How can I save money on home server electricity costs?

    By optimizing power consumption with newer, power-efficient CPUs, MiniITX motherboards, and PicoPSUs, you can reduce utility bills significantly.

  • Are Intel CPUs more power-efficient than AMD Ryzen CPUs?

    Yes, Intel CPUs are generally more power-efficient than equivalent AMD Ryzen CPUs, especially at idle, making them a better choice for energy-conscious users.

  • What is the significance of Package C-States in power savings?

    Package C-States, like C8, play a crucial role in lowering idle power consumption, influenced by hardware and firmware quality, leading to substantial energy savings.

  • How can I enhance power efficiency in a small form factor server?

    Utilize MiniITX motherboards, PicoPSUs, and PCIe bifurcation for connecting multiple devices to one slot, optimizing power efficiency in compact server setups.

  • What storage solution is recommended for power efficiency in a NAS?

    Tiered caching, combining fast SSDs with slower drives, reduces power draw by writing to the SSD array first, enhancing access times and minimizing energy consumption.

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Summary

00:00

Efficient Home Server: Saving Money, Optimal Performance

  • Building a super power-efficient home server/NAS is crucial for saving money and ensuring optimal performance per watt.
  • A home server consuming 23 watts costs around 5.37 euros per month to run 24/7, making it a cost-effective option compared to higher wattage servers.
  • Optimize power consumption of your server to save on utility bills, especially in countries with expensive electricity or facing energy crises.
  • Newer CPUs, like 6th gen Intel or newer, are more power-efficient at idle compared to older models, despite similar TDP ratings.
  • Intel CPUs tend to be more power-efficient than equivalent AMD Ryzen CPUs, with some Ryzen models facing issues on Linux.
  • TDP specifications do not accurately reflect real-world power consumption, especially at idle, which is crucial for home servers.
  • MiniITX motherboards are a good choice for power efficiency, with models from ASrock and Fujitsu being particularly optimized.
  • Consider PCIe bifurcation for connecting multiple devices to one slot, but it may be costly and suitable mainly for small form factor servers.
  • Fujitsu motherboards, especially 8th and 9th gen models, offer impressive power efficiency, but availability may be limited.
  • Package C-States play a significant role in power savings, with deeper states like C8 resulting in lower idle power consumption, influenced by hardware and firmware quality.

12:21

Efficient Power Solutions for Small Systems

  • PicoPSUs are recommended for low-power systems, paired with laptop power bricks for efficiency and fanless operation, ideal for small form factor systems.
  • PicoPSUs are suitable for systems with idle power consumption below 50W and peak consumption not exceeding 200W, with limited power connectors necessitating the use of splitters for additional devices.
  • The 2021 Corsair 550W PSU is suggested for systems with more hard drives or a dedicated GPU, offering power efficiency comparable to PicoPSUs with more connectors.
  • Western Digital offers 5400 and 7200RPM CMR drives in their Red line, with 7200RPM drives faster but louder, hotter, and consuming more power, suitable for RAID or ZFS arrays.
  • Spinning down hard drives after inactivity reduces power consumption and noise, with modern drives designed to handle frequent start/stop cycles without significant wear.
  • Tiered caching combines fast SSDs with slower drives in a NAS, optimizing file operations by writing to the SSD array first and moving data to slower drives as needed, enhancing access times and minimizing power draw.
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