Rackmount Server Anatomy 101 | A Beginner's Guide

This video is a beginner's guide to rackmount servers where I use a Dell PowerEdge R410 1U rackmount server as an example to introduce the anatomy of a typical rackmount server. I will compare this with typical desktop PC parts to help those familiar with PC building, but might be new to enterprise servers. For convenience, if you want to skip to certain sections, here's the index:
0:00 - Rackmount server anatomy 101 introduction
1:37 - Server PSUs, PDBs, etc.
12:27 - Cooling system / Fans
29:06 - Storage sub-system
40:40 - Main system board
51:42 - Server chassis
If you'd like to support this channel, please consider shopping at my eBay store: ebay.to/2ZKBFDM
eBay Partner Affiliate disclosure:
The eBay links in this video description are eBay partner affiliate links. By using these links to shop on eBay, you support my channel, at no additional cost to you. Even if you do not buy from the ART OF SERVER eBay store, any purchases you make on eBay via these links, will help support my channel. Please consider using them for your eBay shopping. Thank you for all your support! :-)

[@JasonRichardsone]

I know this is 2 years old but thank you fordoing this movie.

[@ArtofServer]

You are welcome. Thanks for watching!

[@nightcoffeeshot3631]

Impossible. Someone who actually knows how to explain server related stuff and make it practicing. No bullshit, pure gold.

[@ArtofServer]

LOL. Glad this was helpful to you! Thanks for watching!

[@renegaed]

honestly your videos are some of the best I've seen, You go into so much detail and explain things very clearly. Thank you for taking the time. It's very helpful fo those of us who have no experience in such things.

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks for your humbling words! It's very much appreciated and keeps me going! Thank you for watching!

[@dmitryboldyrev7364]

I've never seen such videos on youtube yet. I'll definitely watch it many many times to learn more about servers.

[@ArtofServer]

hope it was helpful!

[@CrazyLegsFE]

This video is a must for the enthusiast that hasn't been in the server world in the last decade. It gets you familiar with proper nomenclature for components commonly used in servers and therefore helps you finetune your search when setting up your first server. AOS thank you keep up the great videos!

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks!

[@Solar_and_Security]

I got into server hardware about a year ago, I don't work in a data center environment, so this filled in a lot of the gaps of basic knowledge you would get in that setting, so thanks, this was very informative.

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it helped!

[@christopherbui7315]

Just so you know, I'm watching this in October 2020 and still learning a lot. Thank you

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it was helpful!

[@matthewdouglas2373]

Exactly what I've been looking for. We recently had two HP DL360 G9s refuse to boot after starting an upgrade process and swapping out the CR2032 battery on the board *seemed* to be the solution to get them to boot. I've been researching and planning my first home lab build and it was a lot of fun to service my first servers and I've learned so much from your channel already.

[@ArtofServer]

Oh yea, bad CMOS battery causes all sorts of weird things to happen. Glad this helped! :-)

[@jimholloway1785]

I really appreciate the detail you go into for each component of the server.. Keep up these great videos.

[@ArtofServer]

Thank you for your kind words and support! :-)

[@merlingt1]

This is without a doubt the single greatest video for anyone getting into this. Thank you!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching!!!

[@Sunil-yz7ig]

This is one of the best videos I have seen about server hardware overview.

[@ArtofServer]

Thank you! I'm glad this was helpful! Thanks for watching!

[@MuminovicGoran]

I'm just gonna let this play as I fall asleep it's so soothing listening to it :), will rewatch other time Edit: just woke up, continuing :)

[@ArtofServer]

LMAO!!! I don't know if that's funny or scary... let's just say it's funny...

[@MuminovicGoran]

@@ArtofServer haha well it's over I am addicted to IT now :), you know how other people just play Netflix to fall asleep, anyway it was nice listening about power supply air flow, better than Emily in Paris :) I tried to watch the whole thing after work but was too tired

[@GlendonGross]

I really enjoyed this... I have several servers at home, and I never understood them at the level of detail that you have presented. Thank you! Recently I purchased a Sun T6320 Server Module, without realizing that it doesn't contain a power supply! Fortunately, though, I was able to transplant the 32 Gigs RAM and the two SAS hard drives to a Dell PowerEdge 1900 that has been sitting idle for a while... I was very happy when the memory was detected with no errors and the RAID controller was able to detect the SAS drives! Anyway, thanks again for your excellent presentation, which I found very helpful.

[@ArtofServer]

Thank you 😊 glad you found this helpful!

[@Titanium783]

Incredible video. I learned so much from watching this one video on server rack components. Thank you!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it was helpful! Thank you for watching! Check out the rest of my channel! :-)

[@devereadian851]

I am building my first rack mount server. Your video is very helpful. Thanks a lot!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it helped!

[@JohnDunnIsSoFun]

I work with newer gear, but got an old 410 free to play with. This video was a good reference and gives me the confidence to go ham on it!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad this helped! Thanks for watching!

[@davidpowle7117]

This was very insightful thank you for taking the time to make this video.

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it was helpful!

[@randallclark8299]

Thanks for the very helpful video(s). In early 2019, I had the opportunity to set up a used Dell PowerEdge R810. Fortunately, it powered on OK and I installed Debian 9 after a couple of repartitioning cycles and has been running a memory intensive simulation application. It would have been nice to have had this video and the R710 build series videos available at that time. I am updating this server recently (2021) and it all makes more sense now.

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it helped!

[@almitra100]

As I watched this video and you mentioned about Hollywood BS where a guy finds a table and chair within a DC, an ad popped up and it had a guy standing by a rack holding a tablet and smiling at the screen. I just found it so coincidentally ironical!

[@ArtofServer]

Lol. That's too funny 🤣

[@123456dirtman]

Brilliant, simply brilliant! Keep up the good work.

[@ArtofServer]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@und3rgr0undfr34k]

Amazing content. Very well made. Thanks a ton!!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching!

[@DrRussell]

FANTASTIC overview thank you so much Sir!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!

[@TechGuyDave]

Awesome vid. Keep em' coming!

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks for watching!

[@akithered]

This video was pretty great. Thanks!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad you liked it!

[@kwamefisco]

nice one. such a detail video. Thanks

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it was helpful!

[@seanpatmore3929]

like you videos, you have a very clear way of explaining things and make the whole job of servers a little less daunting

[@ArtofServer]

glad you liked it! thanks for watching!

[@seanpatmore3929]

@@ArtofServer when you have 5 mins could you advise on something im having trouble with, i have the same kvm unit as you use its the 17in one and documentation is sparse, i cannot get it to work properly with a switch, the 180as, it picks up oscar when i press print screen but it keeps saying mouse not connected, it works fine if i plug straight into server its just the switch is a pain as monitor has one usb and one ps2 end but back of switch has 2 ps2 inputs so i have to use an adaptor on the one usb and i dont think it likes it, what adaptor ref do you use mine says 520-289-512

[@ArtofServer]

@@seanpatmore3929 yeah, i think you're on the right track... it's the PS/2 adapter. I had to try several until I found one that worked. not sure what it is... the adapters that didn't work, would work in other situations, just not with the KVM switch, so it's just particular.

[@oah8465]

as usual fantastic video

[@ArtofServer]

Thank you so much 😀

[@aburr518]

This is so helpful thank you!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it was helpful!

[@lkdipeolu]

Good lesson. Thanks. I am new to enterprise server. I just got r710 this week.

[@ArtofServer]

Glad this was helpful! Be sure to checkout my R710 series if you got a R710. And congrats on your new server!! :-)

[@midhunramachandran5131]

Subscribed... Lot of knowledge u r sharing

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks! glad you enjoyed this!

[@Scott_Mericle]

Dude this video is awesome. Someone I used to work with, gave me an IBM x3850 M2 server. I opened it up and I was like.... uhhhhh?? LOL. It was very daunting and I wish I had discovered this video sooner. It would have taken out, “the darkness,” of my IBM server. But now I have a little 500gb SAS array on it, 4x xeon X7350 procs, and 64gb of DDRII ECC memory. I run ESXi on it and it’s a lot of fun! I really enjoy my server, even if it is 12 years old. It does plenty just fine for modern use. This video really helped hammer in what I needed to know for better understanding. So thank you very much!

[@ArtofServer]

So glad this was helpful! Yeah, I've had a few people ask me this, so that's where the idea for this video came from and I'm glad it's already getting some good use. Yeah, even old servers can still be useful today. We have so much compute capacity now on this planet...

[@Scott_Mericle]

Art of Server , Yeah man it’s a lot of fun. I actually bought a Supermicro X9DRi-LN4F+ because of your X9DR3 video. I already had a both a 9340-8i and a 9217-8i, so I felt like the X9DRi was plenty for me. And it has been. You’ve had a positive affect on me. You’ve also had a negative affect on my wallet! Stop being a bad influence!! Lolz

[@ArtofServer]

@@Scott_Mericle LOL

[@nashaatmena7687]

thx for your nice arrangement video about RackMounted Server

[@ArtofServer]

Glad you like it!

[@karenholmes2764]

Thank you for a great video.

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks for watching. I hope you found it helpful! :-)

[@vars-itlearnings7467]

appreciate your efforts

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks a lot

[@Sam_mah006]

this is the best. respect man, carry on , omg so so good

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed this! :-)

[@QuikTechSolutions]

Outstanding overview! Thanks so much! Subbed and looking forward to more of your content!

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks! Glad it was helpful. Thanks for watching!

[@QuikTechSolutions]

@@ArtofServer i’ll be watching your Dell R710 series build. Building my first server, Super Micro soon. Built desktops, but never a server. I can see already that your content is going to be super helpful to me. Thank you so much.

[@ArtofServer]

@@QuikTechSolutions cool! Check out my in-depth reviews of some supermicro motherboards. Those should help if you are using supermicro parts.

[@QuikTechSolutions]

@@ArtofServer will do, thanks.

[@zenbum2654]

Great video. Thank you.

[@ArtofServer]

Glad you liked it!

[@edwinkm2016]

Very useful. Some additions: Most serverboards have VGA. Beware of (stock) CPU coolers size in combination with the fan shroud As you noted in other video. Proprietary header (on button, led’s) connector

[@ArtofServer]

Great point! Thanks for watching!

[@edwinkm2016]

Another potential issue when using non-server motherboards and severgrade fans. I am not sure if said boards can drive high power (watt) fans.

[@edwinkm2016]

And because I have a Supermicro board I have also power i2c connectors so the bmc can read the statistics. Maybe you can do a video about I2c, SGPio, fan, temperature control, bmc integration and sideband cables. This is not common for pc builders

[@divyangkamble7918]

Great video got full idea

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it helped

[@zaharib]

Wonderful video kind sir 😊👍🏼

[@ArtofServer]

Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for watching!

[@zaharib]

@@ArtofServer Hi! Thanks for your reply. I downloaded your fabulous Dell 710 build guide on my phone and have been going thru your videos! Thanks so much for that playlist and guide too… 🥰 I really am learning heaps from that series… and boy are you fast on the cli… 🤪

[@EngineerNik]

Just continue =) informative and so usefull for me. I Began creating my own server rack. Bought x79 motherboard for Dual lga 2011 xeons and 1 server case with Dual 1366 xeons.. Now searching for a cheap sever rack for home usage

[@ArtofServer]

Thank you! I'm glad this video was helpful to you! :-)

[@erikrosvall4387]

Hey, i learnd so much from u! Great teacher! I wounder if u could make a video about flashing hba cards, sas cards etc... Keep up the great work!

[@ArtofServer]

Thank you for watching and glad they have been informative! Yes, I will have some LSI firmware flashing videos coming this year!

[@lpseem3770]

I like how LCD panel can show alerts, ex. "Intrusion detected", when hard drive was pulled off and on again, even when a serwer was powered down. R410 is a quite machine and I would use in my daily job, if I could make it quiet. I prefer 2U just for loudness factor and they also look better. :)

[@ArtofServer]

there are some 1U servers that are quieter than a 2U from the same generation.

[@niknasrul7186]

Thank you for the introduction. Im a dell client technician eager to learn about server

[@ArtofServer]

Glad this was helpful. Thanks for watching!

[@shemeemshara3253]

Thank you so much :)

[@ArtofServer]

You're welcome! Thanks for watching!

[@123456dirtman]

Thanks!

[@ArtofServer]

Thank you so much for your support! :-)

[@Mr.Leeroy]

5:28 Efficiency peak for ATX PSUs is usually at 50% of rated power

[@vaddimka]

Exactly, I’m pretty sure server power supplies are no different, it would not make sense

[@johnrehnald]

thank you for this! reviewing for a job interview.

[@johnrehnald]

Hope you make a 2021 version of this on a more modern server! :) Just wishful thinking. Maybe a quick one since, this is already extremely detailed. Thanks again!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad this was helpful for you. Thanks for the suggestion and thanks for watching!

[@alexjunior6353]

I so much appreciate your insightful and detailed presentation. Please advice me on the exact features and technical specification to lookout for in buying a Dell R720. I intend to install, if possible ESXi 7 and run Eve-Ng and Cisco CML2 on it.Thank you .

[@ArtofServer]

For the R720, at least for storage controller, you should watch this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qWLEqKGje7xmodk For the rest, I'll have to make a video on the R720 one of these days...

[@rbw9692]

Bedankt ✊🫣

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it helped! Thank you for your support! :-)

[@Fr492001]

Awesome vid, this was a great brushup on server parts and general knowledge. I had a question in regards to that R410 server; I happen to own one, and its the really low budget configuration you were talking about with the single pdu and no backplane with all drives connected directly to SATA cables. I wanted to know if its possible to add a backplane to these units so that the drive is hotswappable? Also can I replace the single pdu with the redundant ones so long as I buy the board for it? I'm trying to find out what are my options for it besides plugging in some drives and using it as a freenas server. If you happen to know how to update the BIOS on it when you do not have a iDRAC card I would appreciate it. Overall I got a really cheap machine (cost me $80) and I'm trying to find out what are my options.

[@ArtofServer]

I think it is possible to retrofit those parts, but I've never done it so no first hand experience. Thanks for watching!

[@sko3225]

@2:34 there are locking power cables that won't come off accidentally. You can literally hang a server on one of these. I know them as IEC Lock C13. They bite into the protective contact.

[@majoraslayer64]

This was a great video, thanks! Many of us know the advantages using server hardware brings in server-role applications, but we all need somewhere to start to learn what we're really getting into. This video was extremely informative and a valuable resource. Next up, I need to learn the software side; namely do I need some kind of NAS-like server software (such as Synology, Unraid etc.), or can I just throw an OS-dedicated SSD into it and install Ubuntu Server like I would on a desktop?

[@ArtofServer]

Glad it was helpful!

[@leo-rq2ei]

Awesome i’ll give you a high five 🖐

[@ArtofServer]

Thanks

[@freddobrowski2974]

where did you get your server rack and slide out screen and key board ?that is a nice set up .

[@ArtofServer]

The rack I picked up locally off craigslist. The kmm/kvm setup I ordered from ebay.

[@LJdaWade]

First 10minutes, you said the word, "Power Supply" a record number of times!

[@ArtofServer]

LOL all for my viewers! :-)

[@nogoodjae]

Great videos. I was hoping you can help me with something. I have a 4u chassis that has 5 8087 SAS ports for the 20 drive bays. I was looking for a cable to connect to the motherboard but haven’t came across anything, I’m new to this so I was hoping you can help me. Thank you

[@ArtofServer]

I think my video on SAS cables will help you: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hYiXYmx-rLpqqck

[@oah8465]

can you delve into SDS (software defined storage) stuff like Ceph, GFS?

[@ArtofServer]

Yeah, it's actually on my list of content ideas, but it's already a very long list.

[@devans83]

Can you do a vid on the R720 with potential mods? Thanks.

[@ArtofServer]

I have plans to do that, but the upgrades I mentioned in my R820 videos also apply to the R720. Check those out! :-)

[@123saltgaming6]

Please cover hp Blade system c7000 c class

[@ArtofServer]

thanks for the suggestion. unfortunately, i'm not a big fan of HP these days and don't have access to their stuff anyway.

[@BryanChance]

So a friend of mine is decommissioning bunch of DELL servers, A10 Networks AX2500 and cisco switches. I could use those equipment to build a home lab right?

[@ArtofServer]

sure. have at it! :-)

[@Willriii]

This is very, very informative, especially the compare and contrast to the high end desktop world. If I understand correctly with the right riser and PCIe controller you could run multiple SSDs? maybe one SATA straight off the board for the OS? I'm trying to avoid RAID. One other question. and you touch on this, is the motherboard socket for the cpu. How upgradable are they?

[@ArtofServer]

Glad this was useful to you! :-) Upgrade-able socket? not sure what that means... but if you're talking about upgrade-able CPU, then yes there are many CPU options for the LGA1366 socket in this example.

[@Willriii]

@@ArtofServer Yes, I meant with that given socket are there many choices for upgrading the CPU. Thanks for the answer

[@ArtofServer]

Yes, for this generation of servers, look up all the westmere-ep Xeon cpus for upgrade options. Do note that the higher TDP cpus require a gen-2 motherboard for the R410 and other 11G poweredge servers.

[@Willriii]

@@ArtofServer I've got a 710 on order. I'm somewhere in episode 2 or your 710 build.

[@Willriii]

Thanks for taking your time to share your expertise

[@rogernevez5187]

25:53 *You can see here, over this funnel. I mean, reverse funnel.* Diffuser

[@seanm9378]

Hi and thanks for the great info as usual. For a Dell R710 i installed esxi 6.7U3 and it works great, h700 raid card, idrac6 enterprise, 96gb ram, twin x5675 cpu’s and one 4 port gbe intel 82576. My issue is that my intel 4 port gbe 82576 card just bugs and drops packets and needs to be reset or unplug the ethernet cable and replug to get it back up. Anyways, i didnt think that would happen, its all over the net but no resolution so...but it did so i want to move up to a 10G Base-t card. Do you have any idea what would work great with esxi 6.7u3 and have recommendations? I am not going to move up to another version, this pretty much seems to be the last update for it i will do. Any help would be appreciated, i dont have cards i can test with and it would be a costly thing to just trial and error. Thanks a bunch and great vids! 👍🏻

[@ArtofServer]

I don't have specific recommendation with VMware as I haven't used it much recently. But they do have a HCL and you should choose something that is on their HCL. I would imagine anything Intel or broadcom would be on the HCL, but I'm just guessing so double check that. If Intel x520-da1 is on the HCL, I do have those in my store

[@seanm9378]

Ok, thanks... you mean the HCL from vmware correct? If so, the x540-t2 is on it for version 6.7u3. As for a Dell, they dont really give many options for it that i found. Thanks again.

[@ArtofServer]

@@seanm9378 yes, HCL from VMware.

[@------country-boy-------]

fun fact: thats the exact model server i am using right now for my desktop computer!!! (except i dont have the dual redundant power supplies 😭) Anyways i deactivated the onboard matrox graphics chip in bios and then installed a graphics card in the pci slot. Also i removed the raid card, the SAS drive back plane, CD drive and also the drive trays to increase air flow. I use just one solid state drive connected to onboard SATA port. I had to splice the power supply cable to adapt a power connector for the SSD. I heard its safer not to use a raid card because if the raid card fails its really hard to recover the data from hard drive. its better to make backups every day to a separate drive. I use Ubuntu Mate but would like to try other versions of linux. Anyways it works amazing for Blender Animation!!! I highly recommend using a program called Multibootusb to make bootable usb drives to install the operating system onto the SSD. Make sure you are connected to internet during installation to help with install !!!! Some other things i learned during this project: -The little lid switch push button that activates when top cover goes on can be broken off. just use pliers to break it off. That way fans dont rev up to full rpm when top cover is removed. -When plugged in the server needs to sit for about 45 seconds or so to do diagnostic tests. If it is plugged in and powered on right away the fans will rev up to full rpm during boot up and its annoying. Would love to know a bios update to skip the 2 minute boot time! -You can really feel the power of a server when doing a lot of things at the same time. The fans rev up to full and its just cranks through the rendering like a heavy piece of machinery. My electric bill has gone up but worth every penny. My next project will be a Dell R710 - bigger but better air flow and more room for graphics cards!!!

[@UnkyjoesPlayhouse]

I would go for a R720, much more power efficient and more PCIe slots to play with :)

[@------country-boy-------]

@@UnkyjoesPlayhouse 👍

[@panzerofthelake1623]

Can you use a regular desktop micro atx motherboard with this?

[@ArtofServer]

no

[@christiansalvationist2324]

please i have a hp HP DL360 Gen8 server, and it produces extremely loud noise, it's not fan related too, please any help

[@ArtofServer]

if it is not the fans, where is the sound coming from? what kind of sound is it?

[@UmbraAtrox_]

I have a supermicro CSE-825. It has the "inner" rails mounted but no sliding parts. It has a sticker which says "only use rev B" Can someone tell me which partnumber to buy?

[@UmbraAtrox_]

Nvm i found this kzbin.info/www/bejne/n2WZeptnbpyjirs

[@ArtofServer]

Glad you found it!

[@martingerlach_1990]

Does @ArtofServer have a video how to build a rackmount server with the motherboard of a laptop instead of a motherboard of a TowerPC? If yes, then you might show us how to make a rackmount server with the motherboard of a laptop! Is it more complicated than making a rackmount server with the motherboard of a TowerPC?

[@ArtofServer]

I do not. I'm not sure why someone would want to do that?

[@AlexPerez-fc3ov]

LOL, oh yes people do sit in datacenters. I have some hearing loss at a particular frequency because of it. Cold yes.

[@steelernation1895]

I just bought a dell poweredge r 420

[@ArtofServer]

congratulations on your new server!

[@steelernation1895]

Thanks

[@georgewang7770]

At 19:53 the auto caption translates your voice to "imagine like 42 of these in Iraq"

[@ArtofServer]

I didn't notice that! LOL

[@MuminovicGoran]

Tom Cruise can sit on a chair in a data center :)

[@ArtofServer]

LOL depending on his mood, he might jump on the chair.

[@johnwouters9835]

thank you for this video, really excellent job!

[@ArtofServer]

Glad you liked it!