2020 turns out to be a hardware refresh year for ROMWNET.  

I’ve upgraded the network to a 10Gbps backplane using a Netgear XS716T linking to the already existing Netgear M4100-26G through a 4Gbps LACP connection.

I’ve added a Asustor AS7010T to the mix for storage and backup archival purposes.  I went ahead and upgraded the box to include an additional 8GB of RAM and a 10Gb network adapter.  In total, I have 32TBs of storage split between magnetic state and solid state.

Infrastructure Nodes

These passively cooled and self-contained Hyper-V machines host virtual machines critical to network operations.  These virtual machines keep the network up and the Internet accessible in case the main cluster goes offline for whatever reason.  Critical services include a Firewall, Intrusion Detection System, Mail Smarthost System, Authentication Systems, and a Z-wave Home Automation Controller.

Specifications:

Chassis:	Minibox M350
System Board:	Supermicro A1SRi-2758F
Memory:	4 X 8GB Unbuffered ECC SO-DIMM DDR3 1600MHz
Network:	4 RJ45 Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports 1 RJ45 Dedicated IPMI LAN port
Hard Drive:	Samsung 860 EVO 500GB 2.5 Inch SATA III Internal SSD

 

Cluster Nodes

These actively cooled Hyper-V machines are configured in a automatic failover configuration for all the remaining virtual machines on the network.

Originally I attempted to re-use the spare M350 chassis I had lying around with the X11SDV, but I discovered that the heatsink alone could not dissipate enough heat to keep the system from shutting off while idling for 5 minutes.  So, I tried the SCE300 with the Noctua NF-A4x20 PWM fans which would allow the system to stay up while idling but would shutdown under load.

I ended up using the Supermicro FAN-0100L4 fans which move enough air to keep the system cool while even under load.

Specifications:

Chassis:	Supermicro SCE300
System Board:	Supermicro X11SDV-8C-TLN2F
Memory:	4 X 64GB DDR4-2133 4Rx4 LP ECC LRDIMM
Network:	2 RJ45 10GBase-T ports 1 RJ45 Dedicated IPMI LAN port
Hard Drive:	M Key M.2 NVME SSD to PCI-e 3.0 x4 Host Controller Expansion Card Samsung 970 PRO SSD 1TB – M.2 NVME

 

Conclusion

Overall, I have been very happy with the systems performance and stability over the last few months.  My only complaint about the new configuration, over the old configuration, is the fan noise even when most of the system is idle.

 

Someday…

—– Rom