I’ve never built a PC before and I don’t know that I know all of the considerations.
I’d like something as a server for automated backup from other devices, like phones. I may also do video reencoding on it. I’d like it to be fairly small, but it doesn’t need to be that small. This is what I’ve picked out: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/L3pxGP.
The case, motherboard and power supply I plan to use is the AsRock Deskmini, but it wasn’t an option on Part Picker: https://www.newegg.com/asrock-deskmini-x300w/p/N82E16856158068. This was attractive because it says it has a built-in RAID setup. This is for backups, so I’d like RAID, but I don’t know anything RAID, so a built-in option sounded convenient. The Deskmeet would have been fine too, but it’s out of stock.
Is the cooler OK for that processor? I don’t care about a video card, and the 5700G has integrated graphics, but I don’t know if I need something else to get the graphics working. Is there anything else I should consider?
Thanks for any help.
I think you would be best served by a case that can hold at least 3 similarly sized drives for a useful RAID set up. This allows one drive failure and you retain 2/3rds of your total storage capacity.
- What’s your use case(s) for the PC?
- What are you going to be backing up?
- How important is it to you?
- Is there a specific reason you want to use RAID?
- Any other specific considerations about your build?
- What’s your budget?
Noctua is good but I’d choose a bigger heat sinc for the CPU. Will dissipate heat better/faster, allow fan(s) to run slower and therefore be a bit quieter.
NewEgg is not a great site to buy PC parts from, particularly HDDs (they ship them without proper packaging), based on feedback I’ve seen in other communities. I’ve always just stayed away from them.
All in 1 PC cases/motherboard/PSUs are generally not great in my experience. Unless cost is the primary concern, you’ll usually do better picking individual quality parts.
The RAID that motherboard only supports is only 0 or 1. They both have their uses but since you state you know nothing about RAID, I doubt they are the right choice for you. On top of that, you’ll usually always be better if with a dedicated RAID card, rather than one built into a cheap motherboard.
Assuming you don’t have infinite money to throw at it, the answers to the questions at the start will give a better idea of what parts you should or shouldn’t compromise on quality wise.
I have been running a 2700X for a few years pn my media server. No GPU or integrated graphics. A processor is compeletely fine to transcode 1080p without a GPU as long as it is only 1 stream.
A bit on the software side:
A backup server is certainly not trivial to setup. If you don’t want this thing to be a side hobby to sink 100s of hours into, just buy a synology NAS. It will be much smaller, more reliable, and easier to set everything up.
Do you know about containerization and docker? Tailscale + wireguard or reverse proxy + crowdsec + firewall setup? ZFS vs RAID?
With the stability of ZFS and its software raid and software raid support of BTRFS, there is not many reasons to use hardware RAID for a home server anymore. It has benefits in production, but you aren’t planning on having 32 drives or anything.
Might be good to just install TrueNAS and make sure your security is set up correctly then use NextCloud and a VPN to backup from your phone. Simplest and most secure solution.
You have 3.5" drives in your build, but the case only supports 2.5" ones, so that’s not going to fly.
The cooler should be fine for the cpu, and with the right drives, I’d say that setup would be fine.
Smaller cases will always have worse thermals, but it doesn’t sound like you’ll be driving it particularly hard. If you do end up reencoding, it could maybe-potentially put a crimp in your performance.
per the newegg specs of the barebones it only supports 2.5" drives but you have 3.5" drives on your pcpartpicker list.
I’d also stay away from hardware raid and consider software raid, especially if you’re going to use this like a NAS for backups. look into ZFS, Unraid, or TrueNas.
Cooler seems fine dimensional (65 tdp should be fine too assuming there’s airflow), and I think the integrated graphics should be fine but I’m not familiar with the x300 chipset so idk
