[PLUG] low power desktops

[Keith Lofstrom]

On Mon, Dec 15, 2008 at 07:26:21PM -0800, Eitan Tsur wrote:
> Yeah, those look about the same size as what I built.  Same price too.
> Granted, no assembly required for the Eee's.  Are those using the dual-core
> processors?  (Shouldn't need the power of the second core, but it's a
> difference of around 4 watt TDP between one and two cores...  I've even
> considered using one of these low-power systems for a low-traffic email/web
> server...  Do they have an internal or external power supply?  (Have to
> consider availability of (I assume) proprietary power supplies if it's
> internal).  Also, some of these small cases have a laptop tether slot so you
> can lock them to your desk, etc...

What started this thread for me was working with an ALIX board from
PC Engines, running the flash-optimized OpenWRT.  Using a CF card
with JFFS for mass storage, these consume 3 to 4 watts, and the full
kit costs less than $200 (and a heck of a lot of time to configure)
from Netgate.com .

I will be using mine for a firewall, OpenVPN, DNS, DHCP, etc. 
The ALIX uses an AMD Geode with a built-in crypto engine, so it
runs AES encryption faster than its 500MHz clock would imply.

I'm not sure ALIX boards make good email servers - flash writes
relatively slowly.  But if you keep your email forever, like I do,
then flash seems as good a way as any to do so.  With volatile
files and queues stored in ramdisk you are not limited by flash
write time, but there is a risk of losing messages during power
failures.  On the other hand, at 4 watts, a small battery backup
unit will last a long time.

The ALIX has a connector for a 2.5 inch hard drive instead of a
CF card, but the power would go up and it probably would not fit
in the metal case that Netgate offers.  The ALIX does not have a
connector for video, though the Geode chip has video outputs.

For an interactive desktop system, I want a faster processor, and
the Atom-based machines look right for that.

PTP plans to standardize on these, so there will be a lot of local
knowledge around here.

Keith

-- 
Keith Lofstrom          keithl at keithl.com         Voice (503)-520-1993
KLIC --- Keith Lofstrom Integrated Circuits --- "Your Ideas in Silicon"
Design Contracting in Bipolar and CMOS - Analog, Digital, and Scan ICs