I have been talking about for the past few months upgrading from my MSS/TR4M setup to a DIY WHS that had a little more power and more storage capacity. Well, I have finally taken the plunge and probably no better timing as I have been experiencing problems with my current setup (haven't yet determined if it is the MSS or the TR4M). I decided to go with a 15 HDD setup with an additional slot available for an O/S HDD, so 16 HDDs in total. My main goals with the DIY WHS:

- Store and stream all my media, in particular HD content (nothing changed here from MSS except all my storage drives will be housed in one case)
- Backup client pcs (right now I calculate 2 HTPCs and 3 desktop PCs)
- Add TV Tuner capabilities. I will be installing the Hauppauge 2250 tv tuner to be used alongside the HDHomerun. Until MS gets its act together and integrates WMC into WHS I will be using SageTV to handle this.
- Possibly handle minor encoding of video files ( I will give this more thought once I get the system up and running)
- Possibly set up an offsite backup via VPN with the MSS on the other side
- Remote access, etc...

The components going into building SHAWSHANK are as follows:

Case - Chenbro SR109 - $230.77 / $250.67 w/ Tax
Motherboard - GIGABYTE GA-MA785G-UD3H - $89.99
CPU - AMD Athlon II X2 245 - $67.99
PSU - CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W - $99.99 after rebate
Memory - CORSAIR XMS2 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 - $42.99 after rebate
O/S HDD - Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB - $69.99
NIC Card - Intel Gigabit Ct Desktop Adapter - $39.75
HDD Cages - Chenbro 5 in 3 Hotswap HDD Cage - $371.94 ($123.98 each x 3)
SATA Controller Cards:
* SUPERMICRO AOC-SAT2-MV8 8-port - $99.99
* SUPERMICRO AOC-SASLP-MV8 8-port - $96.66
Cables:
* 3WARE Cable, 1 Unit Of 1 Meter Multi-lane Internal (SFF-8087) Serial Ata Breakout Cable - $19.40
* 3WARE Cable, 1 Unit Of .5 Meter Multi-lane Internal (SFF-8087) Serial Ata Breakout Cable - $18.60
Case Fan Replacements - GELID Solutions FN-PX12-15 120mm Case Fan with Intelligent PWM control - $44.45 ($8.89 each x 5)

Total Cost - $1,312.42

Additional Components Added (Already owned so no additional cost):

- Xbox 360 HD DVD Rom Drive
- Internal 3.5" Floppy Drive
- 8 1TB drives and 2 1.5TB drives
- 2-Port eSATA PCI-Express (x1) Host Adapter

The case (which might I add is huge, I could store a midget in the box it shipped in) and the components just arrived today, so once I get home tonight and get everything unpacked I will start posting pictures.

So I lugged the case home last night and got a chance to take some pictures. This is a serious case that requires a lot of room. Fortunately it fits well under my desk. It is a pedestal case but can also be rack mounted by removing the legs.

Side view with case opened. There are 5 120mm Redundant Hotswap Fans included. At the upper right side of the case is a slot for a 3.5'' internal HDD (to use for O/S drive) and right below is a slot for a 3.5'' Floppy (would have preferred this be for a rom drive)


Rear View


Front view with Front Bezel opened


On the inside of the side panel that removes is a Quick Guide


Front view with Front Bezel Closed. Bezel can be locked shut which is nice since the case will be within hands distance of my son


Side profile

I finally got the HDD Cages and installed (at least one cage, still need a few more wires before I can complete the other two cages)



Each bay is hot swap ready, just pop in the HDD, screw in, and throw back into the Cage


Back side of the HDD cage (fanless). 5 sata ports and 2 molex connectors


Case with first HDD cage connected. Still a little messy, but moreso because I had just pulled out the spare PSU connectors from the case. The right angle Sata cables would not work for the HDD cage as two of the Sata connectors are directly above the molex connectors.


First cage installed


For each cage you need to add special screws that go along the grooves in the case to secure. Funny enough, these screws are already included with the case in what appears to be a "screw famr". No, it is not next to the bunny ranch.

With SHAWSHANK now up and running, here are some final pics!!!

reserved...

Damian is, as we all aware, a very "reserved" person.



(I or another moderator will remove this post in the future so let's not head off on an off-topic tangent here...! But I just could NOT resist! Sorry!)

Yes he is and neither could I.

I'm looking forward to pics and seeing this come together. Damian, I think we deserve a picture of you standing in the box.

First pics posted (too tired last night to start putting things together). Don't worry, will get a creative box picture

That case is a BEAST! I am a little jealous. I just got a free machine from a co-worker who did not want to invest in upgrading her old machine. It is a Sony Vaio PCV-RZ44G. I am looking at building another home build WHS just for fun. My main reasoning is that it has a tv tuner currently installed. It is running a P4 at 3.2. I also still have the OEM license that I purchased some time ago for my first home build.

It cost me $40.00 bucks for the recovery cd's and and I already had the 2gb of memory for it. Not a bad deal. The box is not quite as beastly as yours, but it is nonetheless quite large.

I look forward to seeing photos as you progress.

I was hoping to get SHAWSHANK up and running this weekend but no luck, my wife worked Sunday so I had to watch my son all day. I did manage to get the PSU in and stare at the inside of the case from every conceivable angle trying to learn all its secrets!!! I should be able to find some time today after work to get the mobo/memory/CPU in and possibly get the O/S running. I did not order a ROM drive so I am going to attempt to install WHS and all drivers via USB flash drive per these instructions Alex was nice enough to send over.

I also just ordered 3 hot swap HDD cages and the Supermicro Sata Controller Card. I haven't ordered any additional cables yet, I want to get everything in and get a good sense of the layout/spacing first. I wasn't planning on ordering all the HDD cages right away as I was going to slowly build off my MSS, but possible hardware problems with my MSS and/or TR4M has sped up the process.

Now that would be funny!

Whew! Snuck this one in before another "reserved"!
Seriously, I look forward to the write-up.

Sean

Hey Sean - hope all is well.

I had some time on Tuesday after work so I was all ready to get down and dirty. Got the PSU in as well as the Mobo. I was getting ready to get the CPU in, just needed to grab the Artic Silver I had from my HTPC builds. I must have torn apart my house looking for but no luck . So that pretty much stopped me in my tracks. I was out all day yesterday but hopefully today on my way home I will stop at a store to pick up. I also just received the 8 Port Sata Controller card, but am still waiting on the HDD cages. I should have enough though to get the system up and running and give it a chance to run without any storage pools to ensure no issues. I want SHAWSHANK up and running by this weekend, especially with my wife due in 2 weeks!!!

Yeah, If you don't get it done now, you may not get another chance for months!