Optimal workstation for .NET database applications
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Hi, I'm forced to buy a new workstation for our VS 2005 database application developments. The old one, a simple DELL with a 2.5 GHz single core processor, is too slowly. To which features I've to pay attention to get the fastest possible development / compiling / testing environment? Does a Dual Core processor make sense? What about a 64-Bit operating system? How much RAM is recommendable? (We don't work with multimedia-stuff: no video, no music, no 3D rendering and so on, just rather complex database and enterprise application developments). Is there anybody who could give me some pieces of advice? Thanks in advance! Wolfgang
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Hi, I'm forced to buy a new workstation for our VS 2005 database application developments. The old one, a simple DELL with a 2.5 GHz single core processor, is too slowly. To which features I've to pay attention to get the fastest possible development / compiling / testing environment? Does a Dual Core processor make sense? What about a 64-Bit operating system? How much RAM is recommendable? (We don't work with multimedia-stuff: no video, no music, no 3D rendering and so on, just rather complex database and enterprise application developments). Is there anybody who could give me some pieces of advice? Thanks in advance! Wolfgang
You may be able to find a pre-built system like I described below, but chances are you'd have to build it yourself. I listed the parts in the order you'd be likely to be able to specify in a prebuilt system (like Dell), but keep in mind that Dell will give you the cheapest crap they can and charge you more money for it. If you build your own system, you KNOW you're getting the best parts available, and you KNOW you'll be getting the best price you can find. 0) CPU Code 2 Duo 6600 (or better) 1) AT LEAST 2gb of RAM, 4gb would be better 2) A decent PCIe video card (nVidia would be my choice) If you're gonna go with Vista, I would recommend a card that would at least support DirectX 10. 3) A 650 watt power supply 4) A wide screen monitor so you can see more source code on the screen - nothing smaller than 22-inch. 5) Motherboard with a 680i chipset 6) A decent heatsink/fan combo - I use and recommend the Termaltake Ultra 120. 7) A decent case that is big enough to permit decent air flow. make sure the case has a 120mm fan for BOTH intake and exhaust I didn't include drives because selecting those should be a) obvious and b) dependant on how you like your drives configured. Have fun.
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001 -
You may be able to find a pre-built system like I described below, but chances are you'd have to build it yourself. I listed the parts in the order you'd be likely to be able to specify in a prebuilt system (like Dell), but keep in mind that Dell will give you the cheapest crap they can and charge you more money for it. If you build your own system, you KNOW you're getting the best parts available, and you KNOW you'll be getting the best price you can find. 0) CPU Code 2 Duo 6600 (or better) 1) AT LEAST 2gb of RAM, 4gb would be better 2) A decent PCIe video card (nVidia would be my choice) If you're gonna go with Vista, I would recommend a card that would at least support DirectX 10. 3) A 650 watt power supply 4) A wide screen monitor so you can see more source code on the screen - nothing smaller than 22-inch. 5) Motherboard with a 680i chipset 6) A decent heatsink/fan combo - I use and recommend the Termaltake Ultra 120. 7) A decent case that is big enough to permit decent air flow. make sure the case has a 120mm fan for BOTH intake and exhaust I didn't include drives because selecting those should be a) obvious and b) dependant on how you like your drives configured. Have fun.
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001 -
Hi John, thanks a lot for your very precise hints! One more question: does it make sense to use a 64-bit-CPU and OS? Would VS 2005 be able to deal with this environment at all? Wolfgang Berlin/Germany
I use 32-bit, but I see no reason VS2005 wouldn't be able to deal with it (it has compiler stuff for 64-bit).
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001 -
I use 32-bit, but I see no reason VS2005 wouldn't be able to deal with it (it has compiler stuff for 64-bit).
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001 -
I will agree with John about the CPU, PSU>500Watt and the 4G Ram but I don't think you will need something special in graphics and motherboard department. 680 is needed if you want to use SLI x16 or if you're an advanced overlocker...I think a cheap 965 mobo will be good for you...also you don't need expensive GPU...a 8500GT or 7600GT will be fine.
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I will agree with John about the CPU, PSU>500Watt and the 4G Ram but I don't think you will need something special in graphics and motherboard department. 680 is needed if you want to use SLI x16 or if you're an advanced overlocker...I think a cheap 965 mobo will be good for you...also you don't need expensive GPU...a 8500GT or 7600GT will be fine.
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Hi Kallileo, well, I don't need much graphical power, that's right, and I don't care two figs about overclocking. So, how do you think about a 965p DS3 mobo / alternatively a DQ6? Or is there already something better on the market? Wolfgang
It doesn't really matter for you. Any motherboard with 965 is good. The main difference between DS3 and DQ6 is that DQ6 has native RAID support via Intel ICH8R(southbgridge). DS3 has ICH8 and raid support via Jmicron controller not through Southbridge. Both very good mobos. I had a DS4 and I didn't have any problems... If you're going to buy Gigabyte mobo look for 3.3 Version because it has native 1333fsb support for the upcoming Intel CPUs but I think older version will work fine too. Also Asus P5B Deluxe is an excelent mobo.
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It doesn't really matter for you. Any motherboard with 965 is good. The main difference between DS3 and DQ6 is that DQ6 has native RAID support via Intel ICH8R(southbgridge). DS3 has ICH8 and raid support via Jmicron controller not through Southbridge. Both very good mobos. I had a DS4 and I didn't have any problems... If you're going to buy Gigabyte mobo look for 3.3 Version because it has native 1333fsb support for the upcoming Intel CPUs but I think older version will work fine too. Also Asus P5B Deluxe is an excelent mobo.
OK, as a single developer I don't work with a RAID-System; I backup my projects daily on an external hard disk. So far, so good. Aditionally a question, which I already asked John: what do you think about working on a 64-bit OS? Does VS 2005 also work on a 64-bit base (output 32 bit, of course), or does it run with 32-bit, no matter what the OS is able to? Wolfgang
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OK, as a single developer I don't work with a RAID-System; I backup my projects daily on an external hard disk. So far, so good. Aditionally a question, which I already asked John: what do you think about working on a 64-bit OS? Does VS 2005 also work on a 64-bit base (output 32 bit, of course), or does it run with 32-bit, no matter what the OS is able to? Wolfgang
I haven't tried 64bit editions yet so I don't know. Sql Server 2005 64 bit overview: http://www.microsoft.com/sql/editions/64bit/overview.mspx
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I haven't tried 64bit editions yet so I don't know. Sql Server 2005 64 bit overview: http://www.microsoft.com/sql/editions/64bit/overview.mspx
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I will agree with John about the CPU, PSU>500Watt and the 4G Ram but I don't think you will need something special in graphics and motherboard department. 680 is needed if you want to use SLI x16 or if you're an advanced overlocker...I think a cheap 965 mobo will be good for you...also you don't need expensive GPU...a 8500GT or 7600GT will be fine.
kallileo wrote:
I think a cheap 965 mobo
When you buy "cheapo" parts, you get questionable reliability.
kallileo wrote:
also you don't need expensive GPU
I wasn't recommending a killer video card - I was recommending that if he intends to move to Vista, he should get a DX-10 capable card. I have a 8800gtx, but that's still above $500. nVidia recently announced much less capable (yet DX-10-comaptible) cards. They're supposed to be significantly cheaper but I haven't checked them out yet.
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001 -
OK, as a single developer I don't work with a RAID-System; I backup my projects daily on an external hard disk. So far, so good. Aditionally a question, which I already asked John: what do you think about working on a 64-bit OS? Does VS 2005 also work on a 64-bit base (output 32 bit, of course), or does it run with 32-bit, no matter what the OS is able to? Wolfgang
sohst wrote:
OK, as a single developer I don't work with a RAID-System
I'm the same way - every motherboard I've purchased in the last 7 years supports RAID in some form or another, but I don't use it. What I find truly strange is that RAID drivers are almost always provided on floppy disks instead of being included on the motherboard's CD-ROM. I haven't had a floppy drive in my systems for a number of years... :)
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001 -
kallileo wrote:
I think a cheap 965 mobo
When you buy "cheapo" parts, you get questionable reliability.
kallileo wrote:
also you don't need expensive GPU
I wasn't recommending a killer video card - I was recommending that if he intends to move to Vista, he should get a DX-10 capable card. I have a 8800gtx, but that's still above $500. nVidia recently announced much less capable (yet DX-10-comaptible) cards. They're supposed to be significantly cheaper but I haven't checked them out yet.
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001I have change 3 mobos in the last 6 months. I had a gigabyte ds4, a dfi 975X/G and now a DFI RD600. What I say is that since you're not an overclocker or a gamer either u buy a gigabyte ds3(120$) or an Asus Commando(220$) it's the same. Nvidia 8500GT(dx10) cost about 140$ and 8600GTS around 200$. Now about RAID. Raid Drivers are always in floppy disk but I use nlite to intergrate them into the Windows XP cd. So I don't need floppy disk for raid then I install Windows.
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sohst wrote:
OK, as a single developer I don't work with a RAID-System
I'm the same way - every motherboard I've purchased in the last 7 years supports RAID in some form or another, but I don't use it. What I find truly strange is that RAID drivers are almost always provided on floppy disks instead of being included on the motherboard's CD-ROM. I haven't had a floppy drive in my systems for a number of years... :)
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001Well, if my hard disk conks out, I simply have to buy a new one and restore all project data from my backup hard disk. I think, a RAID system only has to guarantee an absoluteley uninterrupted service - normally required at web/file servers. But this doesn't supersede or even matches my backup necessities. So, I personally never used a RAID system and actually never missed it, too. ... Hope, I'm not on the wrong track! :-D
