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Example configurations and prices for buying new Tranche servers (Updated 12/2006)

This page is dedicated to providing example information about what type of equipment would best work as a dedicated Tranche server, including minimal servers, mid-range servers, and dream servers. By no means is this an authoritative page. It is just an example of what we've found for functional, well-priced systems. Note that in no way is the Tranche project sponsored by BoldData. We've simply found them to have excellent prices, good service, and an easy-to-use website for configuring servers.

Before considering the following servers please note some very important points. Tranche servers require minimal amounts of RAM and CPU cycles. It is much more helpful to have a fast internet connection and lots of disk space. If you are buying a new server, the most cost effective thing to do is to buy a server that can hold many hard disks. Once you own the server, it is relatively cheap to buy more hard disks later. You need not fill all the hard drive bays immediately. See the cost per GB of disk space on the dream machine versus the minimal machine for an example.

One final point. We've assumed that you are interested only in rack mounted systems. Normally you can buy a desktop PC for a slightly cheaper price, but they are more difficult to stack nicely in a dedicated server room. It is also difficult to find a desktop PC that can fit more than 6 hard drives inside a single chasis.

• Minimal ($1,927): 1U Rackmount, 512MB RAM, 1.5TB disk space, 1.8GHz processor, Gb ethernet
• Mid/Low-Range ($3,881): 1U Rackmount, 1GB RAM, 3TB disk space, dual core 1.8Ghz, Gb ethernet
• Mid/High-Range ($3,000-9,901): 3U Rackmount, 1GB RAM, 9TB disk space, dual core 2.0Ghz, Gb ethernet
• Dream Machine ($5,134-18,526): 3U Rackmount, 2GB RAM, 18TB disk space, dual core 2.0Ghz, Gb ethernet

Minimal Server ($1,927 or $1.28 per GB disk space):

This is a server for the those looking at a small sized, low-end solution. For casual use the system will perform very well; however, it is limited to 1.5TB of disk space and the server won't scale as nicely when handling lots and lots of simultaneous users.

Easy upgrade options include adding more RAM and a faster processor. The example configuration uses the lowest of available options.

Easy downgrade options include selecting smaller disks. 500 GB disks are cheaper at the loss of some space. If you used 500GB disks the system would be closer to $1,500.

Base System: BoldData's M64A-1512

Mid/Low-Range Server ($3,881 or $1.29 per GB disk space):

This is a server for the those looking at a lower cost mid-range server. This server should preform well even with heavy use, but it is limited to 3.0TB of disk space. The big difference between this and the Mid/High-Range box is this box does not require a separate (expensive) SATA RAID controller in order to handle 4+ hard disks. This saves a little money, but unless you know you won't use more than 3TB of space, it is highly recommended that you buy the Mid/High-Range system so that you can easily add up to 9TB of space.

Easy upgrade options include adding more RAM and a faster processor. Both of which aren't really required for Tranche.

Easy downgrade options: This server has 4 hard disks each costing $558. You can easily buy fewer disks to save a relatively large amount of money at the expense of less storage space.

Base System: BoldData's M64A-1624

Mid/High-Range Server ($3,000-9,900 or $1.1 per GB disk space):

This is a server for the those looking at a lower cost high-range server. This server should preform well even with heavy use and it has a lot of space relative to most 3U rackmount servers.

Easy upgrade options include adding more RAM and a faster processor. Both of which aren't really required for Tranche.

Easy downgrade options: This server has 12 hard disks each costing $558. For example, you could buy the base system with just 2 disks for $3,500 and buy more disks when funds became available. Alternatively, you could look at buying smaller disks.

Base System: BoldData's M64A-36212

Dream Server ($5,134-18,526 or $1 per GB disk space):

This is a server for the those looking to effectively buy the most disk space possible. This server should preform well even with heavy use and it provides about as much disk space as possible for a 3U rackmount server. While it is labeled the "Dream" server it really is cheap compared to the cost of hiring a full time employee, and it is always safe to have extra disk space for storing Tranche data.

Easy upgrade options include adding more RAM and a faster processor. Both of which aren't really required for Tranche. Depending on your operating system you may wish to add more RAM to more effectively handle the 24 hard disks.

Easy downgrade options: This server has 24 hard disks each costing $558. For example, you could buy the base system for less than $6,000 and buy more disks when funds became available. Alternatively, you could look in to buying smaller disks.

If you really want a dream setup, buy three or more of these servers and spread them across different networks. Tranche automatically does a poor man's RAID and replicates data across servers. Tranche also automatically uses as many servers as it can find to give the fastest possible uploads and downloads. It is likely that you'll see a big speed bump in downloads if you go from having one server to many.

Base System: BoldData's M64A-56224