QuietIce
Disabled
- Joined
- May 7, 2006
- Location
- Anywhere but there
Cases are a waste of money!
I've been keeping track of the "Caseless" thread and found many others like me - not exactly running caseless but certainly not running inside a full case either. I've now "assembled" my third "non-case" rig and was curious what other solutions are out there. Always looking for new ways to save money on the DC farm, yet have a running 365/24/7 rig. The main idea here is that the machine be not only 100% usable & running but also be secure in some way. Components scattered over a desk or thrown into a big box don't count - that would be truly caseless. This is for "non-case" solutions that will remain in this configuration for several months or even years. But that still leaves a lot of open ground and unique computing solutions. So here are a few simple rules for "non-case" rigs:
1. The motherboard needs to be secured somehow. It must either be attached to something using some form of fastener (screws, nails, rope, wire, etc.) OR be confined by walls made of any (semi-) solid material allowing only small amounts of lateral (side-to-side) movement OR non-skid "feet" on a non-skid surface. Again, this is "non-case", not caseless.
2. All other components (PSU, HDD, Etc.) must be mounted/confined in a similar manner to the motherboard. This usually means the PSU has to be mounted to something since the fans/cooling would be limited by walls - but if it works (see #4) it's good! Minimal components would be motherboard, video (if not on-board), and PSU. HDD is optional as long as you have another booting solution like USB/thumb-drive or network boot. "External" HDDs required to run the system must be mounted.
3. You have to have some easy way to turn on the motherboard using either a switch of some type (crossing wires is OK) or direct access to the motherboard header power switch connector (manual on/off is OK as long as you can get to the connector! ).
4. The rig in the above configuration must be able to start and run 365/24/7 stable. All components enclosed in a box or shelf must have enough circulation to avoid over-heating.
5. Lastly, a picture is worth 1000 words! Relevant comments and stories are welcome but a rig doesn't count as non-case if we can't see it.
That's it! Any solution that provides a stable running computer and physical stability (non-case) is what this thread's about ...
I've been keeping track of the "Caseless" thread and found many others like me - not exactly running caseless but certainly not running inside a full case either. I've now "assembled" my third "non-case" rig and was curious what other solutions are out there. Always looking for new ways to save money on the DC farm, yet have a running 365/24/7 rig. The main idea here is that the machine be not only 100% usable & running but also be secure in some way. Components scattered over a desk or thrown into a big box don't count - that would be truly caseless. This is for "non-case" solutions that will remain in this configuration for several months or even years. But that still leaves a lot of open ground and unique computing solutions. So here are a few simple rules for "non-case" rigs:
1. The motherboard needs to be secured somehow. It must either be attached to something using some form of fastener (screws, nails, rope, wire, etc.) OR be confined by walls made of any (semi-) solid material allowing only small amounts of lateral (side-to-side) movement OR non-skid "feet" on a non-skid surface. Again, this is "non-case", not caseless.
2. All other components (PSU, HDD, Etc.) must be mounted/confined in a similar manner to the motherboard. This usually means the PSU has to be mounted to something since the fans/cooling would be limited by walls - but if it works (see #4) it's good! Minimal components would be motherboard, video (if not on-board), and PSU. HDD is optional as long as you have another booting solution like USB/thumb-drive or network boot. "External" HDDs required to run the system must be mounted.
3. You have to have some easy way to turn on the motherboard using either a switch of some type (crossing wires is OK) or direct access to the motherboard header power switch connector (manual on/off is OK as long as you can get to the connector! ).
4. The rig in the above configuration must be able to start and run 365/24/7 stable. All components enclosed in a box or shelf must have enough circulation to avoid over-heating.
5. Lastly, a picture is worth 1000 words! Relevant comments and stories are welcome but a rig doesn't count as non-case if we can't see it.
That's it! Any solution that provides a stable running computer and physical stability (non-case) is what this thread's about ...