[CentOS] how can I stress a server?
John R Pierce
pierce at hogranch.com
Fri Nov 21 18:17:18 UTC 2008
Rudi Ahlers wrote:
> I got the components cheaper from another supplier /
> importer / retailer than from Dell directly. And really, how can
> KingMax RAM or Seagate HDD's from one supplier be better than from
> another supplier? I only use the recommended types, i.e ECC (non
> registered), and Seagate RAID edition SATAII HDD's.
>
I dunno about Dell, but most vendors, their own 'branded' hard drives
have customized firmware thats been tested and validated to work in all
their various raid systems.
its a lot of little things. a Sun 72GB SCSI drive will always be an
exact size, no matter what "72GB" drive is in it, while a whitebox
generic drive from the same OEM(seagate/hitachi/etc) might be 50MB
bigger or 10MB smaller or whatever. this really matters when you
replace a raid drive. raid controllers in particular interact with
hard drive firmware in some rather complex and subtle ways, and the
drives really need to be tested and qualified for a specific
application. as an example, a seagate ST3100xxxx drive might have 100
or more variations, indicated by different part numbers (the 9L9005-xxx
number in the case of Seagate) to meet specific OEM requirements. mix
and match the generic 'whitebox' versions of the drives in systems, and
you're the one doing the qualification testing in production.
Memory has a lot of little specs that aren't readily apparent, and
"DDR2-533 Registered ECC" can have differing CAS timings, different
voltages, and even if all that is identical on paper, may or may not
work reliably in a given system due to timing subtleties.. The HP or
Sun or whatever ram has been fully qualified to work in their systems
and most importantly is supported by their field service people. The
stuff you get cheaper at mom-n-pops compuRus, who knows, you're the one
doing the 'qualification testing' on your production systems.
since you've mentioned dell, I'd have to say, in my personal experience,
Dell's are the cheapest and least reliable of the brand name
servers... their field service in the US at least is decent, but they
have a far higher 'infant mortality' rate than about anything else I've
used (mostly HP, Sun, IBM).
your supermicro vendor, he doesn't want anyone elses parts in the system
he sells and warranties because he doesn't want to be be responsible for
fixing ensuing problems. he's selling stuff he knows works, he knows
meets the specifications, and that he's warrantying and supporting.
If you bought a new Volkswagen, then installed an aftermarket camshaft,
and the engine eats a valve, you're not going to expect Volkswagen to
repair the piston damage, are you?
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