What's the first thing you do when you get a new laptop or system?
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Same reasons that we don't tune our filesystems for the absolute fastest performance. NTFS isn't the fastest FS out there, but it is fast enough. The differences just are not that important 99.999% of the time.
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@scottalanmiller said:
Because, like nearly everything in SMB IT, performance is not a key issue.
That right there is the god damn truth. It shocked me for a second to see it in black and white but, damn it, it's true.
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OK so speed isn't a driver, but cost often is - wouldn't our systems be less expensive if we dumped the RAID controller? or because Windows is so bad at SR the cost of the controller is worth while?
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@Dashrender said:
or because Windows is so bad at SR the cost of the controller is worth while?
Well if the point is to protect your data ......
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@Dashrender said:
OK so speed isn't a driver, but cost often is - wouldn't our systems be less expensive if we dumped the RAID controller?
Cost isn't a primary driver either or, again, we wouldn't be using Windows, right? Windows is like hardware RAID.... pay more, get less.... except it comes with some "ease of use" features that tend to pay off.
Hardware RAID is super simple when you need to deal with separation of duties or blind swap (datacenter swapping without system admin interaction.) Hardware RAID is "idiot proof" allowing IT pros who don't know how their systems work or don't even know what is running there to do drive swaps based on blinking lights alone. In fact, it makes it so easy, that drive replacement is no longer an IT task but a bench task. No computer knowledge needed. See a yellow light, replace with a matching part. Don't even need to know that it's a computer you are working on.
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@scottalanmiller said:
@Dashrender said:
or because Windows is so bad at SR the cost of the controller is worth while?
Well if the point is to protect your data ......
So that's it - Windows is so bad at SR our data is safer in hardware RAID... I wonder why MS doesn't fix this? Wouldn't customers end up better off? I'm guessing the effort just wouldn't pay off for them?
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@scottalanmiller said:
@Dashrender said:
OK so speed isn't a driver, but cost often is - wouldn't our systems be less expensive if we dumped the RAID controller?
Cost isn't a primary driver either or, again, we wouldn't be using Windows, right? Windows is like hardware RAID.... pay more, get less.... except it comes with some "ease of use" features that tend to pay off.
Hardware RAID is super simple when you need to deal with separation of duties or blind swap (datacenter swapping without system admin interaction.) Hardware RAID is "idiot proof" allowing IT pros who don't know how their systems work or don't even know what is running there to do drive swaps based on blinking lights alone. In fact, it makes it so easy, that drive replacement is no longer an IT task but a bench task. No computer knowledge needed. See a yellow light, replace with a matching part. Don't even need to know that it's a computer you are working on.
I take it software can't or doesn't work like this?
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@Dashrender said:
So that's it - Windows is so bad at SR our data is safer in hardware RAID... I wonder why MS doesn't fix this? Wouldn't customers end up better off? I'm guessing the effort just wouldn't pay off for them?
They are finally addressing it down, it's called Storage Spaces. But only time will tell if it is enough. And you'd still have the blind swap issue. People who run Windows rarely know enough about storage to safely handle non-blind swap systems.
Think about moving to software RAID in your shop. Sure when you implement it today you know what to do. But what about the guy that replaces you or when you call the vendor for a drive replacement . With software RAID the vendor needs you to be involved in a drive swap, they can't do it without you.
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@Dashrender said:
@scottalanmiller said:
@Dashrender said:
OK so speed isn't a driver, but cost often is - wouldn't our systems be less expensive if we dumped the RAID controller?
Cost isn't a primary driver either or, again, we wouldn't be using Windows, right? Windows is like hardware RAID.... pay more, get less.... except it comes with some "ease of use" features that tend to pay off.
Hardware RAID is super simple when you need to deal with separation of duties or blind swap (datacenter swapping without system admin interaction.) Hardware RAID is "idiot proof" allowing IT pros who don't know how their systems work or don't even know what is running there to do drive swaps based on blinking lights alone. In fact, it makes it so easy, that drive replacement is no longer an IT task but a bench task. No computer knowledge needed. See a yellow light, replace with a matching part. Don't even need to know that it's a computer you are working on.
I take it software can't or doesn't work like this?
It could, but realistically does not. It requires intervention on the system side. Still hot swap, nothing gets powered down, but it isn't completely transparent.
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Same as @MattSpeller . I nuke the provided Windows, recovery partition, etc and install vanilla Windows.
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Intel doesn't make their own servers, they make AMD64 clones (or IA64 which are all Intel, but those effectively died out many years ago, no one is buying Itanium anywhere, let alone in the SMB.) AMD64 is essentially the only architecture that exists in the SMB market until ARM moves in.
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Picked up a semi-cheap ASUS gaming laptop that has a lower-end graphics card and amazingly, it can do the 3 1440p screens at 60 Hz out of the box w/ 2 cables and THE BUILT IN screen as well. I'm going to go 3 portrait and the laptop landscape on a stand. Pretty amazed at what this $1250 eyesore can do.
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And best of all it can take 32GB of RAM. EEE.
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The new $1250 laptop with:
And without:
Rapid mode.
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Ok so upon further research it turns out that 2 of the sticks are buried deep in dismantling and 2 are easily accessible. I'm not feeling super confident about the process to get to those other 2 sticks, but desperately want to put in all 32GB. Do you guys know how to find someone that can safely do the install? I don't trust the Geek Squad at Best Buy and have found that they typically have less knowledge than your typical techdestrian. Are there warranty service providers in every state that I might go to? If so how do I find someone trustworthy. Thx.
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@creayt said:
Ok so upon further research it turns out that 2 of the sticks are buried deep in dismantling and 2 are easily accessible. I'm not feeling super confident about the process to get to those other 2 sticks, but desperately want to put in all 32GB. Do you guys know how to find someone that can safely do the install? I don't trust the Geek Squad at Best Buy and have found that they typically have less knowledge than your typical techdestrian. Are there warranty service providers in every state that I might go to? If so how do I find someone trustworthy. Thx.
You'd have to do that with MSI or someone authorized by them to keep the warranty.
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@thecreativeone91 said:
@creayt said:
Ok so upon further research it turns out that 2 of the sticks are buried deep in dismantling and 2 are easily accessible. I'm not feeling super confident about the process to get to those other 2 sticks, but desperately want to put in all 32GB. Do you guys know how to find someone that can safely do the install? I don't trust the Geek Squad at Best Buy and have found that they typically have less knowledge than your typical techdestrian. Are there warranty service providers in every state that I might go to? If so how do I find someone trustworthy. Thx.
You'd have to do that with MSI or someone authorized by them to keep the warranty.
Ah, didn't think of that. The laptop is actually ASUS so I'll try going through them first. Thx.
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@creayt said:
@thecreativeone91 said:
@creayt said:
Ok so upon further research it turns out that 2 of the sticks are buried deep in dismantling and 2 are easily accessible. I'm not feeling super confident about the process to get to those other 2 sticks, but desperately want to put in all 32GB. Do you guys know how to find someone that can safely do the install? I don't trust the Geek Squad at Best Buy and have found that they typically have less knowledge than your typical techdestrian. Are there warranty service providers in every state that I might go to? If so how do I find someone trustworthy. Thx.
You'd have to do that with MSI or someone authorized by them to keep the warranty.
Ah, didn't think of that. The laptop is actually ASUS so I'll try going through them first. Thx.
Did you return the MSI?
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@thecreativeone91 said:
Did you return the MSI?
Sure did. It had a few dealbreakers, mostly a
- Very subpar screen
- MISSING LEFT WINDOWS KEY WTMFF how do you use a PC in 2015 without the left Windows key? I tried mapping it to the Caps Lock key but it was just a productivity killer.
- Got super loud under even weak load.
The great news is the new ASUS, which was a few hundred $ cheaper, delivers on all of those fronts. Under the most intense load I put the MSI under it's still just about silent. It has these giant vents in the back and pushes all of the airflow out that way so you never feel it. It's even cold enough to use to game on your lap, which I did last night. Played a few rounds of Dota 2 on my lap in bed while watching The Fly w/ the gf. Super duper impressed w/ the ASUS so far with the singular exception of it being very ugly. But it also somehow, even w/ a GTX 965 instead of a 970 like the MSI, is able to do my 3 27" 1440p monitors AND its built-in screen, which the MSI could not.
