Need Help With Computer Build

[ServiceXp]

Hello Guys and Gales,

Long time BlueIris user that has a somewhat daunting task ahead of me. Sorry for the long post.

The 'Goal': I need to consolidate 3 machines into one always on (low powered if possible) machine that doesn't break the bank. It also so needs to be somewhat compact (Case dims cannot be greater the 16"H x 20" D Width is not a problem)

Current Setup:

1) WHS 2011 Machine: 40TB (8 Storage Drives and 4 worker SSD ) DrivePool storage built on a Asrock C2550D4I. (way under powered but lots of SATA ports) This machine handle backup services, but I'm also using Acronis.
2) TV Recording Machine: Phenom II X6 1090T 3.2 GHz W/ 8Gigs of Ram with 4TB windows based RAID, Win 7Pro. This box contains 3 Cards (2 OTA Tuners and 1 InfiniTV4 Cable Card Network Tuner). The software used is SageTV, MCEBuddy, and Comskip All Donor's additions. (so can use 'hardware acceleration') This box can handle recording up to 8 shows and remuxing (not transcoding) 4 before running into problems (80-90% CPU usage)
3) Blue Iris / HomeSeer Machine: i5-4570s 2.9 GHz W/ 12Gigs of Ram. Win10Pro. This box handles BlueIris 6 IP Cams Recording Direct to Disk. It also handles a fairly complex Home Automation system based on HomeSeer. This box typically runs @ 35% CPU usage. Blue Iris is optimized for Intel's acceleration.

What I'm Looking for:

My Primary Goal is to end up with ONE machine that can handle the above work load with the addition of Plex (which requires transcoding and none of the machines above are up to the task)

My budget is <2K. I don't need any Storage Drives (If I can find a MB and Case to handle a lot of drives that will fit my space requirement) So I'm thinking I'll need a Case, MB, PSU, RAM, Processor, 2 M.2 Drives, and unfortunately a video card??? (All the machines above have on board video) I have a 1050 I can use, but I just don't know if it will meet the demand. Do I go AMD or Intel for the above requirements.

My biggest problem is I don't know where to start.

PS: I forgot to add, the cameras are routed via a 100 Mbit POE Switch to the Blue Iris machine, but the rest of the network is 1 Gbit. The data stream moving between the Blue Iris machine and the camera's is typically ~30-40 Mbps.

 

[mat200]

Hi ServiceXP,

I'm not certain if putting all 3 into 1 system is the best approach.

What is your goal? Save energy? Reduce space? Reduce heat? ...

 

[ServiceXp]

Hi ServiceXP,

I'm not certain if putting all 3 into 1 system is the best approach.

What is your goal? Save energy? Reduce space? Reduce heat? ...

Good Question, thanks for asking

Couple of reasons,
1) I'm getting tired of maintaining 11 systems in my house and this seams like an area that I think I can consolidate. (old man syndrome)
2) System backup space is getting out of hand, I have over 9 TB of 'Critical' OS Drive back up's and cloud storage pricing seems to keep going up.
3) I have 2 of the three boxes sleeping, (Server and Recording boxes) which creates intermittent software/hardware issues (I'm getting tired of dealing with those also) and power draw on the BI/HomeSeer box is running about 47w so that's pretty good. I doubt very seriously I could ever match that with the system needed but I'm willing to pay more in electricity to hopefully make my life a bit easier.
4) I want to setup Plex, and in order for me to do that I'll need a MUCH more powerful machine anyway.
5) Did I mention I'm getting tired of maintaining 11 systems..

 

[mat200]

Hi Service,

As you have probably already thought about this, each machine runs services which need access to the underlying hardware - thus not many good options for consolidation into a VM.

Machine 2 definitely is hitting the CPU too hard - and as it is an older CPU certainly could use an upgrade...

Hmmm.. it is an interesting challenge.

 

[looney2ns]

Good Question, thanks for asking

Couple of reasons,
1) I'm getting tired of maintaining 11 systems in my house and this seams like an area that I think I can consolidate. (old man syndrome)
2) System backup space is getting out of hand, I have over 9 TB of 'Critical' OS Drive back up's and cloud storage pricing seems to keep going up.
3) I have 2 of the three boxes sleeping, (Server and Recording boxes) which creates intermittent software/hardware issues (I'm getting tired of dealing with those also) and power draw on the BI/HomeSeer box is running about 47w so that's pretty good. I doubt very seriously I could ever match that with the system needed but I'm willing to pay more in electricity to hopefully make my life a bit easier.
4) I want to setup Plex, and in order for me to do that I'll need a MUCH more powerful machine anyway.
5) Did I mention I'm getting tired of maintaining 11 systems..

Its always best to to keep BI on a dedicated machine.

 

[ServiceXp]

Why is that? I've been running BI and HomeSeer on the same machine for several years now with zero problems, albeit the machine is grossly over resourced for those two programs..

 

[fenderman]

Why is that? I've been running BI and HomeSeer on the same machine for several years now with zero problems, albeit the machine is grossly over resourced for those two programs..

simple, because this often causes problems - then you have folks wondering why they have issues...you want a vms to run on a clean machine...run all your other non essential crap on another...you would not attempt to run your automation software on a standalone NVR either...dropping 2k on something like this makes no sense..better off spending on better cams...
I dont understand what possible maintenance you have to do to your machines...leave them be....you should replace your tv box as it is a powerhog...

 

[ServiceXp]

Can a standalone NVR run HomeSeer? In my situation, (BI on averages uses 2-8% of CPU cycles and I don't need more/better camera's) I think if it could and had the resources to handle it I would try it. I suspect however it can't and it wouldn't.

Oh If I could just 'leave them be', I would. As I alluded to above, I've been having hardware issues on all three boxes. In the last year I've spent over 700 bucks on power supplies, ram, and hard drives. These 3 machines are not ageing well, I've even had to replace a CMOS battery. I know hardware problems are just part of the 'game', but I'd much rather have just one box to maintain and put money into modern system(s).

I think I've narrowed down the CPU to the i7-8700 for it's QSV ability.

 

[bp2008]

You say now that BI uses 2-8% CPU, but before you said that box was at 35% CPU usage. Does homeseer really use ~30%?

 

[fenderman]

Can a standalone NVR run HomeSeer? In my situation, (BI on averages uses 2-8% of CPU cycles and I don't need more/better camera's) I think if it could and had the resources to handle it I would try it. I suspect however it can't and it wouldn't.

Oh If I could just 'leave them be', I would. As I alluded to above, I've been having hardware issues on all three boxes. In the last year I've spent over 700 bucks on power supplies, ram, and hard drives. These 3 machines are not ageing well, I've even had to replace a CMOS battery. I know hardware problems are just part of the 'game', but I'd much rather have just one box to maintain and put money into modern system(s).

I think I've narrowed down the CPU to the i7-8700 for it's QSV ability.

hard drives and memory are fixed costs regardless of machines used...
If you are going through a bunch of power supplies there is something wrong on your end.

 

[ServiceXp]

You say now that BI uses 2-8% CPU, but before you said that box was at 35% CPU usage. Does homeseer really use ~30%?

It depends on what's going on within the house. HomeSeer itself is extremely cpu efficient, however the plug-in all add up, and I have about 23 plug-in running. Here is a snapshot I just took with the house pretty much at idle.

 

[bp2008]

With a Blue Iris load that small, you don't really even need Quick Sync for it, and it won't even save much power. Maybe Plex or something else will use it however?

 

[ServiceXp]

hard drives and memory are fixed costs regardless of machines used...
If you are going through a bunch of power supplies there is something wrong on your end.

You correct, they are a fixed cost, as I alluded to. That said I'm getting tired of multiplying those costs and my time by 3.

 

[ServiceXp]

With a Blue Iris load that small, you don't really even need Quick Sync for it, and it won't even save much power. Maybe Plex or something else will use it however?

If I turn off all the acceleration "hardware and tricks" features inside BI, I run about ~20% utilization. So I do think I need QSV, and yes I found out yesterday that Plex will use QSV as a 1st priority accelerator. This is what's pushing me to Intel. I get less cores, threads and lanes with the 8700 but QSV works so darn well I think it's the correct decision.

 

[fenderman]

You correct, they are a fixed cost, as I alluded to. That said I'm getting tired of multiplying those costs and my time by 3.

they are fixed regardless of how many systems you have...you are not multiplying them for each system...if each of your 3 systems need 4gb of memory then a single system would need 12...if you need 12tb or storage you need 12tb of storage regardless of the number of systems....how many power supplies have your replaced?

 

[ServiceXp]

they are fixed regardless of how many systems you have...you are not multiplying them for each system...if each of your 3 systems need 4gb of memory then a single system would need 12...if you need 12tb or storage you need 12tb of storage regardless of the number of systems....how many power supplies have your replaced?

That would be true if they were all the same, but they are not. Different power supplies (2 in last year; TV (atx) and Server boxes (sfx)), and RAM (BI and HomeSeer, and TV Boxes also last year). So you're correct, The CMOS battery and the drives are the same. That said I would have 4 less of those drives because they would be redundant moving to one box with the upgrades. (3 drives in TV Machine and 1 Drive in the BI/HomeSeer Machine.) I would actually need more RAM, quite a bit more to help with the addition of Plex, but it would all be the same type.

I hear your concerns about "because this often causes problems" and I get it but I think , at least in my case, it's a pretty safe move due to BI's resource consumption for my setup.

 

[uglybug]

This is pretty compact & low watt consumption: input 10-20 dcV (solar anyone?)
System sleep mode: 0.98W
SSD standby: 13.05W
In operation: 15.2W

two hdmi ports (camera license-$ are required beyond 4 cams)
TBS-453A - Hardware Spec - QNAP

tons of software
TBS-453A - Software Spec - QNAP

Make sure to follow the compatibility list for memory & drives
Compatibility List - QNAP

TBS-453A - Features - QNAP

5bay expansion -a separate unit (8 bay unit also available)
UX-500P - Features - QNAP

 

[fenderman]

That would be true if they were all the same, but they are not. Different power supplies (2 in last year; TV (atx) and Server boxes (sfx)), and RAM (BI and HomeSeer, and TV Boxes also last year). So you're correct, The CMOS battery and the drives are the same. That said I would have 4 less of those drives because they would be redundant moving to one box with the upgrades. (3 drives in TV Machine and 1 Drive in the BI/HomeSeer Machine.) I would actually need more RAM, quite a bit more to help with the addition of Plex, but it would all be the same type.

I hear your concerns about "because this often causes problems" and I get it but I think , at least in my case, it's a pretty safe move due to BI's resource consumption for my setup.

You are a power problem if you have many power supply failures...you didnt need more memory for your BI system...not sure why you would need 4 less drives...you are consolidating 3 machines into one, that saves two drives for the OS...if your drives are dropping like flies you have something else going on....use SSD for OS drives.
Problems caused by running other software concurrently on the same system is not related to resources but conflicts and crashes.

 

[fenderman]

This is pretty compact & low watt consumption: input 10-20 dcV (solar anyone?)
System sleep mode: 0.98W
SSD standby: 13.05W
In operation: 15.2W

two hdmi ports (camera license-$ are required beyond 4 cams)
TBS-453A - Hardware Spec - QNAP

tons of software
TBS-453A - Software Spec - QNAP

Make sure to follow the compatibility list for memory & drives
Compatibility List - QNAP

TBS-453A - Features - QNAP

5bay expansion -a separate unit (8 bay unit also available)
UX-500P - Features - QNAP

this locks you into qnaps vms which does not even come close to blue iris functionality...as well as the licensing fees at 60 a pop..

 

[NoloC]

Problems caused by running other software concurrently on the same system is not related to resources but conflicts and crashes.

If you are serious about the cameras being used for security, you will not risk a failure due to conflicts. If you are watching a bird bath, then OK.
To Fenderman's point, I have a second install of BI on my everyday driver PC that I use for business. I have seen Word completely stall the machine and BI for minutes. No biggy since I have a dedicated pc for BI as well. But interrupts happen!