[RndTbl] New Old Dell Server

[Scott Toderash]

Yes that's correct. "server" is the best description here.

Like all old tech, it's neat but. Timing is everything.

The rails are in good condition, so there's that.





On 2023-04-19 12:59, Adam Thompson wrote:
> FYI, that's not a server - it's an iSCSI SAN.  Which, yes, I suppose has 
> an embedded server of sorts, but all it can run is the embedded Dell 
> PowerVault OS.
> These were pretty decent iSCSI SANs when they were new, but that was, as 
> stated, quite a long time ago!
> 
> It will have redundant PSUs, and redundant controllers , 4x 1G ethernet 
> ports that can all be active at once.
> The 8x600 drives will be 15krpm 3.5" SAS drives (the only type of 600GB 
> drives ever approved for that unit AFAIK).
> They can be configured as RAID 0, 1, 10, 5 and 6, so total capacity 
> anywhere from 2.4TB up to 4.8TB of usable space.
> IIRC these models do support multipath iSCSI, so you can theoretically 
> burst almost 4Gbps out of them... not that the disks can sustain that, 
> but hey, for that one millisecond, it'll be awesome!
> If you have a VMware home lab, you might still be able to use the VAAPI 
> (?) PowerVault-specific accleration plugins with this to do things like 
> offload thick zeroing and similar background tasks to the array.
> 
> Beware:
> This sucker can pull back up to 600W when loaded with 12 drives.  It's 
> only got 8 drives, but of the most power-hungry type, so I'd guess it'll 
> pull (steady-state) somewhere around 350W (non-stop) and closer to 450W 
> (at 100% busy).  It claims to only generate 150W of heat, so it's a 
> remarkably large, loud, and inefficient space heater, if you're using it 
> that way 😄.
> The serial console is a unique PS/2-type DIN-style connector.  I'm sure 
> the pinouts are online /somewhere/.  If it's still NIB it should come 
> with a cable, and you might never need it anyway.
> You may need a VM to run a JRE old enough to run the management 
> console... it's been problematic to run that for quite some time now.
> 
> I can't find the spec sheet on Dell's site, but here's one that looks 
> like a legit copy: https://www.xbyte.com/dell-md3200i-spec-sheet 
> <https://www.xbyte.com/dell-md3200i-spec-sheet>
> 
> I would've given my left arm for one of these 10 years ago!
> -Adam
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> *From:* Roundtable <roundtable-bounces at muug.ca> on behalf of Scott 
> Toderash <scott at 100percenthelpdesk.com>
> *Sent:* April 19, 2023 12:35 PM
> *To:* MUUG RndTbl <roundtable at muug.ca>
> *Subject:* [RndTbl] New Old Dell Server
> Hi folks,
> 
> I recently came into possession of a brand new old machine and I'm
> wondering if anyone here might have an interest in it. The machine came
> to me as part of a bigger deal.
> 
> I could deploy it but I don't necessarily need to so I would just as
> soon sell it instead.
> 
> Dell PowerVault MD3200i
> 8 x 600GB drives installed
> 2U server with rails
> 
> It was brand new in the box, bought by somebody I know in 2013, and he
> never got around to deploying it.
> 
> I realize it's barely worth it due to the age, unless of course you are
> really into this specific hardware.
> 
> If you or someone you know might be interested, email me.
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