Question 1

can i install windows server 2012 R2 or linux ubuntu server on this?

Accepted Answer

This unit does not come with any storage drives. You will have to source those yourself. I've installed 2012 R2 with no issue, and Dell readily provides drivers for that OS. Check Dell's Support and Downloads section for drivers should you require them.

As an aside, I found the Pentium was very underwhelming, and depending on your planned workload would be better off with a Xeon.

Question 2

If server does not have a optical drive can you just use USB to boot from there?

Accepted Answer

You can use a USB drive to boot the installer for an OS.

As long as you have an iso or image file, I've personally used rufus to create the bootable media.

Otherwise there are instructions on the internet on how to create a bootable img file if you're getting the image off the microsoft website.

Question 3

Can I install Server 2008 32 bit on this server?

Accepted Answer

I had no issue installing Windows 8.1 desktop to run a PVR on.  I think that is equivalent code to server 2012.   Maybe someone else has tried Vista or Win2008 and can comment.

Question 4

Hello,

I understand this unit does not come with a Hard Drive, I ordered a 2 Tarabyte SATA drive and SATA optical drive, I looked at the specs and the specs said SATA drives are supported.  Is this correct?  Do I need to purchase caddies?  Please let me know.  Thanks.

Accepted Answer

Yes.  SATA drives are supported.  It has 4 SATA slots.  It also comes with removable caddies, so no need to purchase additional caddies.  It has 4 internal caddies with one that is located at the top for your optical drive.

Question 5

Do you have to use ECC ram in this?

Accepted Answer

Yes, ECC RAM is required. I'm running FreeNAS on it and it has been rock-solid for months.

Question 6

Does "no controller", "no RAID" mean that this has no SATA ports on the motherboard? Or merely that it doesn't include any add on cards? I found a T20 datasheet that says their should be four SATA ports but I can't tell if they're built in or if they require an add on card that this box lacks. Basically, can I connect hard drives to this box or would it need a PCIe SATA controller purchased separately to actually use it for anything?

Accepted Answer

No Controlller / No Raid means no controller card included.
There are SATA ports on the motherboard. You can plug in your sata hard drive directly to the motherboard.

Question 7

Shouldn't any Operating System work on this machine? How can there possibly be any limitations on what you store on the hard drive?

Accepted Answer

I've found that Linux and Windows both work well on this machine. However VMWare ESXi will not install. The only limitation to what you can store on the drive is space. It is just a hard drive after all.

Question 8

this chassis contains no hard drive?

Accepted Answer

There are no hard drives included.

Question 9

Will I need anything other than memory and a hard drive in order to make this is a database server (Windows Server 2012 and SQL Server 2012)?

Accepted Answer

This server comes with 4GB of memory so at a bare minimum you will need just 1 hard drive. If you are going to make use of a RAID configuration for data redundancy you will need at least two hard drives.

Question 10

how large is the hard drive ?

Accepted Answer

It doesn't come with the hard drive, I did purchase 2 One terabyte hard drives. You also need to purchase an optical drive for it.

Questions & Answers