INTEL XEON Quad processor- RAM compatibility

[gautham_r7657]

Hello,

Can anyone tell which series of intel xeon quad processor provides best scalability and performance to host windows 2003, also what can be the max RAM size which can be configured with it for optimizing compatibility and its effeciency??

 

[neiroatopelcc]

I would suggest you check intel's ark homepage for this kind of info.
The homepage lists specs for all processor models including memory limitations etc.

As for memory scalability, I would suggest you go to newegg and just find a motherboard that seems suitable.

http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=302&name=Server-Motherboards

Most xeon 5xxx motherboards support two processors and up to 12 dimms worth of ecc memory (anything over 4gb per dimm is very expensive).

So realisticly, you're best off with something like one of the following coupled with one or two xeon 5520 processors and 6 or 12 2GB ecc modules

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100007629%20600007999%204018&IsNodeId=1&name=$200%20-%20$300

Last time I bought server stuff I used a ASUS Z8NA-D6 board (only 6 dimms). Settled for this because it didn't need an ssi power supply.

As for efficiency - that's not something selfbuilt servers are focused on normally. You might be better off with a brand name server if you want to know about efficiency beforehand.

 

[saaiello]

Depends what you will be using the server for and will you be using 32 bit or 64 bit? Depending on the version of Windows Server 2003 you will be using it ranges from as little as 2 GB of memory all the way up to 64GB of memory.

 

[GhislainG]

Windows 2003 Enterprise 32-bit or 64-bit? 5500 Series processors are the best, but the Hexacore 5600 Series isn't much more expensive. The maximum memory size per processor is 144 GB, but most dual processor motherboards have a RAM limit of 192 GB or less.