$2000 New Build for running Virtual machines / HTPC /File Server

[Abhi81]

Approximate Purchase Date: Within this month

Budget Range: 2000 USD After Rebates

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Run 2-3 Virtual machines simultaneously (each with at least 2 CPU threads , 8 GB RAM) , HTPC , Media / File Server

Are you buying a monitor: No

Parts to Upgrade: New Build

Do you need to buy OS: Yes (Can run Linux Distributions as well)

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com / Amazon.com (could not find any good online store in Singapore)

Location: Singapore

Parts Preferences: Intel CPU

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920 x1080 or higher

Additional Comments:
- Need to run multiple Virtual Machines (Min 4 Core/8 Threads , 32 GB RAM , 3TB HDD) so need the Intel VT technology support
- Need more space / Good IO speeds - probably need some Raid suggestions as well.
- Not much of Gaming.
I was looking at I7 3820 LGA 2011 Processor, ASUS P9X79 Board with 32 GB RAM but am open for suggestions to select a different socket.

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Currently i run multiple VMs in different Laptops. I wanted to build a home server where i can have everything on one place to run. I would like to make this pc as my Media , File Server (Clients - MAC , Ubuntu , Win 7 Laptops)

Include a list of any parts you have already selected with descriptively labeled links for parts.

Intel Core i7-3820 Sandy Bridge-E 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 2011 130W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80619i73820
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115229

ASUS P9X79 PRO LGA 2011 Intel X79 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with USB BIOS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131800

Much appreciate your help guys.

 

[excella1221]

Here's a suggestion.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($499.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: Asus P9X79 PRO ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($304.00 @ B&H)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Gaming Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Green 3TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($139.00 @ B&H)
Storage: OCZ Vertex 4 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($207.55 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($189.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Rosewill BlackHawk ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer MK III 600W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($79.33 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($136.45 @ B&H)
Total: $1866.28
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-12-02 00:01 EST-0500)

You won't really need to Crossfire since your gaming is minimal, though it may be a needed option if you're running multiple monitor setups.

 

[Abhi81]

Thanks Excella1221. Intel I7 3930K does not support Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d). Does this affect while running my Virtual Machines ?

Also , could you please suggest me some Raid options to have some multiple SATA 6Gbps drives . As i need to store and access files faster for VMs and Files server.

 

[excella1221]

Oh. I'm not very familiar with that field of Intel features, so I'm not sure.
The i7-3820 you originally picked has it, so you can just swap to that. It shouldn't be much of a big performance loss.

Use the SSD if you need faster read/writes, you won't need to do any RAID configurations on that drive since the bigger it gets, the better the performance.

 

[Abhi81]

Hi excella122,

Sorry, i had to rush for some emergency. I checked i don't think i would need the Vt-d. I will go by your recommendation with i7 3930k.

Thanks for your inputs. Highly appreciate it.