I use my desktop PC for Jellyfin and torrenting, but I’m looking for something that I can keep on 24/7 that draws less power and run other self-hosted services on Linux. I would like to have at least 2x 14 TB 3.5" hard drives in or attached to it with the possibility of expanding in the future.

From my research, these seem to be some good options:

  1. Mini PC like this Beelink S12 Pro + USB hard drive enclosure. The price seems reasonable for the specs and low power consumption. Not sure if USB will limit transfer speeds.
  2. ODROID HC-4 or similar SBCs. I feel like these have much lower performance for not much price savings, and it’s harder to get software running up because of ARM. But it seems like they don’t use too much power.
  3. Used enterprise PCs/servers. I know they can be found cheap used, but I’m a little lost at comparing the performance and power draw to other options.
  4. DIY build. I’m interested in getting a Mini-ITX case like this Jonsbo N2 and getting parts for it, but it seems like it will be the most expensive option. It does seem like the most modular and upgradable.
  5. Classic NAS products like Synology. It seems like these are falling out of favor because they are pretty under powered for the price.

What does selfhosted think about these options, and what would you recommend?

  • Bristlerock
    1•1 year ago

    Do you have a NAS? It can be a good way to get decent functionality without extra hardware, especially if you’re doing proof of concept or temporary stuff.

    My self-hosting Docker setup is split between 12 permanent stacks on a Synology DS920+ NAS (with upgraded RAM) and 4 on a Raspberry Pi 4B, using Portainer and its agent on the Pi to manage them. The NAS is also using Synology’s Drive (like Dropbox or GDrive) and Photos (like Google Photos).

    I’ve had the NAS running servers for Valheim and VRising in the past, but they require that fewer containers be running, as game servers running on Linux usually have no optimisation and/or are emulating Windows.

    If I decide to host a game server again, I’ll probably look at a NUC. I’ve done the DIY mini-ITX route in the past (for an XBMC-based media centre with HDMI output) and it was great, so that’s another option.