Hardware requirements / System recommendations?

[229Mick]

I have a client that is looking to move an old physical Windows XP system that hosts an old FoxPro database critical to their business, to a VM on a proxmox server. I tried the setup on an old dell I have lying around, and it worked quite well.
Problem now is they want to buy a new system to run proxmox on, that has mirrored SSDs. Is there anything special I need to look for? I recall years back trying to install VMWare on something and ran into trouble with the raid drivers or something like that, so I don't want to recommend a system until I'm sure that proxmox will run on it properly. I offered to build something for them, but they want something from Dell or HP that meets the requirements, they can readily get replacement parts for and has a warranty.
Again, all they really need is the mirrored drives, so they don't want to spend the money required for a server, but just something solid and reliable.

If anyone has any suggestions or specific systems that meet the requirements I'd appreciate the recommendation. Thanks!

 

[bobmc]

Proxmox doesn't have any major hardware requirements - the cpu and bios should support Intel VT or AMD-V but that's pretty standard these days. Memory requirements will depend on how many VM's will be running as will the number of CPU cores you need. I haven't ever installed Windows XP on Proxmox, but it sounds like you've tested that in your lab and it worked OK.

You can boot Proxmox from a ZFS mirror and there's no need for a RAID controller - just use the standard SATA ports on the motherboard. The only recommendation here is that you use Enterprise-grade SSD's like the Samsung PM893 or Intel D3 S4520 in preference to consumer-grade drives.

Personally, for a business customer, I'd lean towards a small Supermicro server such as this
https://www.broadberry.co.uk/xeon-e5v3-rackmount-servers/cyberserve-xe5-104s-v3

 

[bbgeek17]

offered to build something for them, but they want something from Dell or HP that meets the requirements, they can readily get replacement parts for and has a warranty.

If you go with Dell, just pick whatever server fits and make sure it has BOSS. Its a great purpose built raid controller, fully supported by Dell, easy to swap and provides excellent redundancy. ZFS is nice, but for a managed customer who is not technical - they are better off with vendor support.

---

Blockbridge: Ultra low latency all-NVME shared storage for Proxmox - https://www.blockbridge.com/proxmox

 

[229Mick]

Thanks, yea, I'm not using proxmox because I'm a Linux guy who has a clue about how to setup a 'zfs mirror', but because it works and I'd rather not use VMWare or windows, so I appreciate your input!
Is the BOSS controller an alternative to their other raid controllers, or an addon? I tried doing a config in their portal but it says it still needs a harddrive, so I'm not sure if I forgot to remove something or if it still requires a drive. It only offers (one or two) 240G ssds, but with their small system that we want to virtualize, that's plenty of storage. Previously I've either tested on whatever with a standard drive or SSD, or built on something with raid one and standard drives.
Thanks again and if you have any more info I appreciate it!

 

[bbgeek17]

BOSS is an addon and really meant for OS booting, not applications:
https://www.dell.com/support/manuals/en-us/boss-s-1/boss_s1_ug_publication

As far as Dell configuration - they usually make you get at least one disk and there is no way around it.

---

Blockbridge: Ultra low latency all-NVME shared storage for Proxmox - https://www.blockbridge.com/proxmox

 

[229Mick]

OK, so proxmox would go on the SSDs connected to the BOSS, and then the VMS would go on a regular mirror? That makes senses. I've never built a 'mission critical' server with it, so I've always booted form a (good) USB stick with the VMs on a raid 1.

 

[bbgeek17]

OK, so proxmox would go on the SSDs connected to the BOSS,

thats how I would do it

and then the VMS would go on a regular mirror?

sure, least amount of layers, most vendor support coverage for casual admin.

That makes senses. I've never built a 'mission critical'

That's how we would build a critical server.

---

Blockbridge: Ultra low latency all-NVME shared storage for Proxmox - https://www.blockbridge.com/proxmox

 

[229Mick]

Perfect, thanks again!