Looking for a 1U 19" computer... does this even exist? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 07, 2020, 10:06:23 pm
content: Hello,I am not sure if I am not looking for a non-existent product, but I seem to have trouble finding the following:I have a setup of various rack-mount equipment, that is in need of a computer for control and data processing.What I thought of is a 1U height 19" rack mountable computer, with the following spec:- low noise (no server stuff!)- shallow installation depth (350mm maximum rack depth)- at least one USB3 port- ideally a PCIex slot for an IO card- ideally more USB ports, than ETH ports (I won't have any use for more than one GbE port, but I can certainly utilize a couple of USBs).- ideally two monitor outputs (for two separate monitors). HDMI/DVI/DP capable of up to 1080p60 is a requirement, second port may be VGA with lower res., no problem.Regarding system configuration: Able to run Win7 (or Win10), the most intense task for it would probably be feeding HD video stream from a video source to the net or to save it locally.I would like to buy a second hand piece, but I do not really know what to look for, as I am not really finding much like this.The only thing apart from a few proprietary HP/Dell stuff I found were some new MiniITX chassis from Supermicro*, without any guts. And the miniITX boards seems to cost an arm an leg for the HW configuration they offer. Like a 250+ USD for an Intel Atom motherboard? Yuck...Are my requirements completely off? Does stuff like this even exist?Could you please give any suggestion what could probably fit the above criteria? Unfortunately, I have no clue about today's computing, lost track years ago.Thanks Y.//*EDIT: This from supermicro chassis looks just as I want: Supermicro 504-203b, but what board to fit into it? Is the connector back panel even replacable to fit a different board?

author: rdl
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 07, 2020, 11:56:02 pm
content: You might search Newegg for "1U barebone" just to get an idea of what's available. It's going to be mostly server class stuff. Also try ebay.A diy alternative would be to rip the insides from some kind of "NUC" type machine and put it in a 1U case. "NUC" style machines are fairly common, consumer grade computers in 1U form factor are not.

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 12:24:38 am
content: Quoteif you can strech to 4U (and have deep pockets) there 101 pc's aimed at the recording/events market.

author: edpalmer42
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 12:52:01 am
content: Check out the various Ultra Small Form Factor desktop units. Yes, they're proprietary, but for a niche application like this your options will be limited. You'd have to figure out a rack mount arrangement, but they are ridiculously tiny. I use a Dell 9020M as my multimedia PC. It's actually smaller than their USFF model. It's the size of a hardcover book, but has enough horsepower to render youtube 4K videos. It's only 1.4 inches thick.

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 01:24:31 am
content: Low noise is probably going to be an issue. 1U computers use small fans which tend to be noisy. The form factor is primarily used for servers for which noise is not really a consideration. There's no reason you couldn't rack mount one of the various small form factor desktop PCs though.

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 10:01:40 am
content: Quote from: themadhippy on May 08, 2020, 12:24:38 amNo way in hell I would go for 4U. If they can put Quad core i7 into a notebook, I don't see any reason why couldn't they put it into a 1U 19", where it would be way more relaxed in terms of efficient cooling. Rack space is scarce and I don't want to transport air.Quote from: edpalmer42 on May 08, 2020, 12:52:01 amThat is a very good suggestion, as the Dell PC would fit in a 1U shelf nicely and could be securely mounted there with a bracket. It has all the specs I want (except possibility to add an PCIex card) and acceptable price.Will consider that. It also seems I can find and buy a metric shit ton of these new/used Optiplex Micro PCs even in local shops.But still I'd like to look for a more professional solution in a 1U, with possibility to add the expansion card.

author: Lord of nothing
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 11:19:16 am
content: https://www.jj-computer.com/artinfo.php?artnr=A%20%20%202469With a PCI-E expander maybe.

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 01:25:14 pm
content: So it seems there are only two viable options:1) get a proprietary small form computer brick - it seems there is plenty to choose from with very decent horsepower,or 2) get a rack chassis and swap the internals. It seems the only computer chassis available are either with horrible crap HW inside (Intel Atom mostly) or they are servers, which are not suitable for what I want by any means.I will probably get both in the end. The small computer brick would make for a lovely HTPC after all.Thanks for all suggestions.

author: Syntax Error
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 02:04:47 pm
content: Industrial 1U rackmount computers do exist, but they may not match your spec. You might also need another slot for a PSU/UPS.There's some 1U devices here including ones with shallow depth frames:https://www.industrial-computers.com/en/industrial-systems-1u-rackmount-computers.php

author: Lord of nothing
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 02:12:56 pm
content: Why not?http://www.shuttle.eu/de/produkte/slim/https://www.zotac.com/at/product/mini_pcs/all

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 02:46:49 pm
content: Quote from: Syntax Error on May 08, 2020, 02:04:47 pmThese would be great, however I am not looking for a $1000+++ investment.Quote from: Lord of nothing on May 08, 2020, 02:12:56 pmSame as the above. All companies that can't display price directly are out of the question.The Dell Optiplex Micro computers so far fulfill almost all criteria I have, and unlike other suggestions, can be found both new and used for reasonable prices.

author: Lord of nothing
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 03:02:15 pm
content: You dont say where you are from so how should we know every price from every country?If you are from Austria you know --> Geizhals.at here you can look up for the cheapest price from there Online Seller.

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 03:13:01 pm
content: It's not about where I am from or knowing all the prices everywhere. It is about my middle finger to all companies that think they need your personal data first to then very kindly offer price depending how they like yerr face. No thanks.I'm from say somewhere in Europe, that is likely all that matters. Your last link Geizhals.at seems to be very helpful though! Currently sifting through what I can find there, it seems there may be a few promising pieces.

author: Lord of nothing
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 08, 2020, 03:26:56 pm
content: If you pick it up from Austria I can sell you everything you like to have.Just send me a PM with stuff where you want a Price from and I send it to you.

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 09, 2020, 09:13:49 am
content: Mac is also a "no way in hell" as the software I need is Windows only, but Intel NUC? I don't know much about them, rather I have skipped investigating them, as they look like toys and considered them not easily rack mountable. To much height.If you know about a rack mountable options for that, could you give any examples please? All I can find are brackets to mount it so it sticks through the front panel a bit and thats all. Also requires 1.5 HU, which sucks.Required IO cards are not an issue, separate budget for them. The budget for the PC was $400 tops, so it fits.But I have finally found a viable 1 HU chassis I can stick any Mini ITX board I want - finally someone used their brain so the connector cutouts are replacable piece of metal and not built for a specific mobo type. Let's see if the seller will agree on price.

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 09, 2020, 09:40:43 am
content: Awww now I see. Will look what the possibilities and prices are.

author: Lord of nothing
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 09, 2020, 10:39:04 am
content: QuoteWell a 1TB - 2TB SSD got very pricy this Days.

author: Someone
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 09, 2020, 11:32:30 am
content: Quote from: Yansi on May 09, 2020, 09:13:49 amAny recent Mac Mini can run windows or linux etc as they are intel based. What they do offer is a common platform that has reasonably good support and alongside the NUCs are some of the only small form factors that have thunderbolt for external PCIe.

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 09, 2020, 06:18:57 pm
content: About a year ago I bought a little small form factor i7 PC to run my Plex server. I forget the brand but it's one of those direct from China things. It only cost me about $300 and the thing has been rock solid, the last time it was rebooted was over 3 months ago and that was only because of a power failure. It's running Ubuntu and has an internal 2.5" HDD bay.

author: Someone
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 09, 2020, 11:14:53 pm
content: Quote from: blueskull on May 09, 2020, 11:49:48 am"certified"? There are community/open source drives for linux that do work, but the OP was specifically concerned with windows. Apple remote patching an underlying firmware while possible is extremely unlikely, especially unlikely if you're not booting into OSX and running their updates (has there ever been an over the air update outside OSX?).

author: radar_macgyver
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 09, 2020, 11:59:38 pm
content: These guys have short-depth 1RU cases:http://www.plinkusa.net/1u.htmAnd also offer I/O panels for popular mini-ITX boards.

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 13, 2020, 05:39:37 pm
content: Finally got something! Thanks all for valuable tips looking for interesting hardware.Got a couple of chassis including their original guts, the Intel D510M0 boards. Both will be replaced, but I bought both pieces for the price less than a single new empty chassis, so I'm quite happy anyway.

author: fordem
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2020, 04:26:19 pm
content: Lenovo has a number of "one liter" form factor models commonly referred to as the "Tiny" - slightly larger than an old 5-1/4 half height disk drive (if you know what that looks like). You could get two of these in a 1U rack space and have room left over. They are virtually silent in operation, some models do have a PCIe slot, most have dual video, gigabit ethernet and USB ports galore.

author: SiliconWizard
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2020, 04:39:11 pm
content: You can find a few Mini-ITX motherboards these days supporting reasonably powerful CPUs.The thing you'll have to work on though (possibly) is the CPU heatsink solution, so that it can fit the available height.

author: artag
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2020, 08:52:11 pm
content: I bought a firewall on ebay. It was packaged as a 1U rack but is a pc internally. It's not very powerful so is much quieter than a typical server.Aopen's Digital Engine media servers are really small. You can fit two side by side in a 1U rack.

author: Lord of nothing
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 26, 2020, 10:12:30 pm
content: Which one?

author: Holes Flow
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2020, 10:45:26 pm
content: I was going to say the HP DL360 and the like, until you said "Quiet"...But seriously, why not a 1U laptop tray with... a laptop in it?

author: Yansi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2020, 07:23:55 am
content: I said NO SERVER so it should get caught even before the "quiet".There are numerous reasons why not a notebook. Dedicated rack PC with just PWR-ON button on the front is all that was needed (and couple specific ports on the back side, which servers do NOT have).

author: wizard69
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 20, 2020, 06:32:58 am
content: I'm not sure why you are crying no server and at the same time asking for a 1U solution. Makes absolutely no sense because anything in a 1U format is going to be called a server even if in reality it isn't. Your obsession with the word server is blocking you from finding the right solution for your needs. Noise is controlled by buying the coolest running processor that will do the job. That means a 35 watt processor instead of a 90 or 120 watt processor.For example this board seems to meet a lot of your needs:https://www.newegg.com/gigabyte-b450-i-aorus-pro-wifi/p/N82E16813145086?cm_sp=SearchSuccess-_-INFOCARD-_-Mini+itx-_-9SIA4REBMZ9832-_-2&Description=Mini+itx.It is a mini-ITX and could be slotted into a Mini-ITX case from Supermicro, add some fans and you could have the perfect platform that is an expensive board but there are solutions well under $130. In the end you get what you pay for and frankly I'd consider something more upscale for a the better features. Right now AMD is the better option for performance per watt but if you have a couple of weeks I'd wait for the new APU's to come out and would look towards the lower end power wise.So why this particular aorus? Nothing specific, it was the first one found. I does have dual video ports and an M.2 slot. You will want an integrated M2 slot on anything that gets knocked around in travel. However these days even $130 class board has an M.2 slot. the only negative with AM4 boards is the lack of a lot of 1U cooler options with only one listed. the other reason I'm looking at Mini-ITX is to find minimalist board that hopefully runs much cooler than an ATX board.In a nut shell if you want a 1U rack space solution you need to look at 1U server chassis, compact motherboards, Mini_ITX in this case and APU type chips.Quote from: Yansi on June 01, 2020, 07:23:55 am