How would you use an 8-core server

[tamoneya]

I may be getting a nice 8-core server from my old company at a very nice price because according to them it is to slow(yes I know). Its intel based ~2 GHz per core, 8 cores, plenty of harddrive and 4 GB RAM (FB-DIMM). I was really excited when I heard about this amazing find but then realized I have nothing that needs 8 cores. I have been thinking for several days and cant think of anything that I could do with it. I know about F@H but I dont want to get this server for the purpose of F@H. I will almost definately give spare CPU cycles to F@H but I dont want it to just be F@H. Any suggestions (except maybe "give it to me") are welcome.

[zmjjmz]

F@H and/or SETI

[tamoneya]

I know about F@H but I dont want to get this server for the purpose of F@H. I will almost definately give spare CPU cycles to F@H but I dont want it to just be F@H.

I am already familiar with F@H as I have it on my desktop and laptop. I have heard of SETI as well but dont run it. Any other ideas of what it would be good for.

[zmjjmz]

You could help the poor chaps who got that encryption virus.

[Canis familiaris]

Are two CPUs each of four core each?
Because I know no Intel processor in the market which is 8-core.

[Pasto]

I would use it to view myspace pages with adobe's flash plugin

[tamoneya]

i believe it is a two processor board with two quad cores. I have to check on that one.

pasto +1. Dont forget the blinking text.

[scragar]

you could run 8 virtualboxes with about 450MB of ram each, more than enough to test every distro you've ever wanted side by side :P

why not help out the comunity by compiling some of the latest versions of some of the packages that are a little out of date with the spare power(which BTW I would be intrested in doing if someone could help me out with details on what I should do to contribute in such a way)?

and I'm out of ideas, other than renting it's power out(come on, some people have intensive tasks and are willing to pay for a virtualbox on your server that they can remote log into kinda like a thin client sort of thing).

[tamoneya]

you could run 8 virtualboxes with about 450MB of ram each, more than enough to test every distro you've ever wanted side by side :P

why not help out the comunity by compiling some of the latest versions of some of the packages that are a little out of date with the spare power(which BTW I would be intrested in doing if someone could help me out with details on what I should do to contribute in such a way)?

and I'm out of ideas, other than renting it's power out(come on, some people have intensive tasks and are willing to pay for a virtualbox on your server that they can remote log into kinda like a thin client sort of thing).

This is more what I was looking into. Compiling stuff for ubuntu seems like a very worthy cost and I would definitely rent it out but I dont know how to get started on something like this. Is there some list I can add my computer to so that ubuntu gives me packages to compile?

[scragar]

I honestly have no idea, my computer is turned on 24/7 and the average load is minuscule, so I really want something for it to do when I'm sleeping, compiling something sounds like a worthy cause to me.

Would be very nice to see Ubuntu offering a BOINC style aproach to compiling in future(you install a manager type program, select what programs you want to help compile, then it downloads the source of latest version and compiles it, packages it and uploads it back, just like boinc does with data analysis, you can even have 2 or 3 people work on the same program to check that no-one's been adding in nasty code or whatever during the compile)... Would also make it much easier to find out what we need to do to help out...

[tamoneya]

ive got to get to bed but I think tomorrow I am going to try crawling around on the developer wiki to see if I can find anything of interest. I will post back here with any results I find.

[toupeiro]

Well, you could harden it and make it a internet based private host. Web, Shell.. whatever..

[mech7]

3d rendering... video editing... gaming... lots of options :D

[barbedsaber]

ive got to get to bed but I think tomorrow I am going to try crawling around on the developer wiki to see if I can find anything of interest. I will post back here with any results I find.

PM me if you find anything, I mean, I have a 2.4 ghz, and some old computers, waiting for something like this.

[maniacmusician]

4 Xorg sessions running electricsheep :)

[dominiquec]

Offer virtual private servers for folks with lots of number-crunching requirements.

[Canis familiaris]

Compile 64bit binaries for latest version of OpenOffice 3 Beta and post it somewhere.

[Solicitous]

cmdline install and play nethack?

If you're having trouble of trying to work out exactly what you could do with a high spec machine as that, either turn into a lighting fast desktop and rub it in to everyone, or given the fact that you're buying it for a nice price possibly on sell it to someone who really needs it and make a tidy sum in the process.

[paul101]

you could put vista on it... :lolflag:

[barbedsaber]

you could put vista on it... :lolflag:

I dont know if it would meet minimum requirements, maybe. :)

[hessiess]

get into 3D computer graphics.

[zachtib]

Install VMware ESX or VMware Server (2.0 is very nice) and use it to run virtual machines

[SirThom]

Predicting weather.

[kevin11951]

3d rendering... video editing... gaming... lots of options :D


get into 3D computer graphics.

dont these things require a hell of a GRAPHICS CARD... a 16 core processor still couldn't play half-life 2 if it has a vesa graphics processor...

unless i really messed up, and are completely wrong.

[mips]

Just keep in mind that is going to be very noisy and suck up lots of electricity ;)

[Lostincyberspace]

dont these things require a hell of a GRAPHICS CARD... a 16 core processor still couldn't play half-life 2 if it has a vesa graphics processor...

unless i really messed up, and are completely wrong.
Ray Tracers utilize the cpu only. So graphics cards are not needed except to view them after.

But games do use graphics cards and so do other rasterized based graphics do.

[tamoneya]

ive got to get to bed but I think tomorrow I am going to try crawling around on the developer wiki to see if I can find anything of interest. I will post back here with any results I find.

It appears that compiling is done not all at once but by individuals on individual packages. It is handled by the MOTU team: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MOTU. It seems as though this idea wont work in the sense that I could compile large chunks of the repository. I however think I will try and lend a hand to the MOTU team since it seems interesting however it wont be utilizing the server.


EDIT: since someone else mentioned power I thought I should add that it runs on a 400 W powersupply so it is comparable to an average desktop these days.

[FlyingIsFun1217]

If I were you, I'd rent it out as a Blender Farm. Plenty of developing artists who wouldn't mind using it for some complex scenes.

Personally, I'd use it as a GCC compile farm.

FlyingIsFun1217

[tamoneya]

how exactly do I get in contact with these artists?

[FlyingIsFun1217]

how exactly do I get in contact with these artists?

This would be your best bet (http://www.blendernation.com/). Quite often, they post announcements with companies who do such services.

Whatever you do, hopefully you get the best out of it!

FlyingIsFun1217

[tamoneya]

This would be your best bet (http://www.blendernation.com/). Quite often, they post announcements with companies who do such services.

Whatever you do, hopefully you get the best out of it!

FlyingIsFun1217

those are companies offering servers to help with rendering. My case is the opposite: I have plenty of server power.

[FlyingIsFun1217]

Yes, which is why if you sold some render time to those people, it might be an optimal use for you (if you have nothing else to do).

FlyingIsFun1217

[steveneddy]

Keeping warm in the winter?

Heck, I can't even keep a single core server busy lately.

[gletob]

I'd use it as a server LAMP, SSH, FTP, Samba, CUPS, DNS, Etc

[tamoneya]

I'd use it as a server LAMP, SSH, FTP, Samba, CUPS, DNS, Etc

IM doing all of that stuff with an old P4. Those protocols are not CPU intensive.