PC Peripherals solutions for 24/7 dl rig

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random2 said:
^ you dont need monitor, kb, mouse if its going to be a minimal d/l rig. you can always access it through the network from the main rig.

So the setup can be just a box with power + network cables connected.

EEE will be pretty compact solution, but I think the celeron setup works out cheaper.
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my point n suggested config exactly :P
 
random2 said:
you can always access it through the network from the main rig.
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For which your Main Rig needs to be on right? ;)

If you look at the OP, he keeps having power cuts every 3 hours, which means switching his main rig on is a task. Besides, the whole point of a low-powered download rig is lost if it isn't self sufficient.

Just my view.
 
^ You need to access the download rig only while adding downloads and other admin work. Other times only the d/l rig will be on and will be doing what its supposed to do. And if one is at a remote location like office, one can assess the d/l rig through IP or dyndns.

EEE is a good but expensive option. Thats the only -ve.
 
I been looking for this solution for over 4-5 months for a torrent box aka 24x7 pc & a music file server (or something to stream mp3 off it)

I considered min-itx pcs, thin clients, old broken laptops, NSLU, ADSL Router + Torrent type things.. & even mac-mini :-P

We have around 6-10 hour of power cuts here in NCR/Delhi everyday (Yea its a village :-P). Even with powerbackup/inverters and stuff, my power hungry pc does not last for more than 2 hrs. & so my search for a reliable 24x7 box started.

Pricey Apple FanBoy Option: So I was kinda tilting towards macmini (although I wouldnt buy it anytime soon, I think it awaits an upgrade) coz i believed it wud be reliable than other miniitx pcs, its got wifi which was big plus point a beautiful eye candy os which can replace my main PC. I think it would take say 30-60W when downloading (I didnt want the pain/fun of assembling all the mini-itx components) but hey its Apple, its expenisve.

Cheap Laptop Option: So my second choice was EeePC, and plugging in the 16G USB thumb drive to it or those portable drives. Very low on power, has wifi & everything but a low disk space (I just hate that tiny resolution, good thing is it can do 1280 x 1024 via external monitor)

Cheap MinITX Option: Another choice was the Koolu.com thin client, I can add my own drive & maybe upgrade the RAM & it will be able to stream music if needed, but wait it doesnt do wifi, maybe usb-wifi would do it good. And hey its geode processor low on power.

My current setup:
I am using dell insp 1720 as 24 hr download lappie. Its connects to my Airtel wifi connection most of the time, but at nights 2.20 AM it connects to BSNL ;-) & starts sucking the tube.
 
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I'm using my laptop and my 4GB USB stick with utorrent portable(regular uTorrent with settings.dat deleted :P ) to download files to for now.

Advantages:

1) Restful sleep as there is no noisy gfx card or PSU.

2) Expecting a monthly power saving of upto Rs 500/-(which is how much less my bill was earlier when I would not download.)

3) Noticed that it is much easier to share the ethernet line with a laptop vs my 2nd desktop as there is no need to connect monitor, keyboard,mouse and power line to 2nd PC(which is what made me give up on my download rig in the 1st place).

4) My family members do not wonder what is going on as the laptop is very discrete vs the desktop :bleh: .

Disadvantages:

1) When the USB key is switched between laptop and PC, the change in the drive letter for the USB key requires that I remove delete the torrent entry from utorrent, set download location with new drive letter and re-add torrent. It resumes perfectly however after a recheck.

2) Am restricted to 2-3 downloads of large files and have to keep clearing the USB stick for more downloads. (I think I'll switch to 8GB or my laptop HDD to ease this problem.)
 
^^ I am little geekier,

Maybe u can share ur USB drive on each pc and mount/map them locally as \\127.0.0.1\USBDrive$\ as x:/ and save urslef from the trouble of changing drive letters ;-)
 
The Eee Pc is like a perfect solution but is a lil' expensive than others.
Getting the Intel ITX board and finding a perfect PSU will be lil' difficult or expensive. I would suggest buying a 2.5" HDD with A 3.5" IDE 2.5" IDE Converter cable. As it will consume less power as compared to a 3.5" HDD.

Another option is to buy a low end OLD Laptop or as others suggested a Router, NAS with a torrent client etc....

I'm looking for something that can run on a 20-40 watt Solar panel. And also a good battery which lasts long [Not Amaron :lol:]. So basically a mobo+CPU+RAM+HDD combo that consumes 20-40 Watt MAX even at full load. Options are using Flash drives or RAM drives & the Intel ITX Board with a PICO PSU. But my search is still on for a better thing right now i have one but it uses 50-60 Watts max at full load.
 
guthmann said:
^^ I am little geekier,

Maybe u can share ur USB drive on each pc and mount/map them locally as \\127.0.0.1\USBDrive$\ as x:/ and save urslef from the trouble of changing drive letters ;-)
Click to expand...

Hmm...never thought of that. Lemme try it. Btw, Network Places is where to begin right(am quite new to these network thingies)?
 
Anyone heard of the Popcorn Hour? it has torrent downloading option too + serves as a media center - can watch upto 1080p movies if connected to tv. supports H264 and AAC formats as well [though it lacks ogm support :( ]

availablilty is an issue i think, seems to be long waiting list.

Link: Welcome To Popcorn Hour
 
if im not mistaken.. someone on TE has this.. i think it was Burnz... not too sure.. remember having seen a thread abt ti.
 
^ yes Burnz has it. and Rio got a external hdd enclosure which also has a torrent client (it can run as standalone downloader). Both are good options.
 
N correction: It doesnt have SATA2 ports It DOES have SATA ports And i think he wanted option to convert it into a HT later too
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Umm, the reason I got a separate celery and jetway mobo was coz the original D201GLY did not have SATA at all

The new ones come with SATA I and IMHO are the best choice for a cheap and efficient D/L rig

either way, any of these are too underpowered to be a proper HT

My existing setup consumes ~50W and sits behind the books in a corner bookshelf

The fan is wired to the 5V line so it is near silent too

For all I know, it does not even physically exist
 
superczar said:
Umm, the reason I got a separate celery and jetway mobo was coz the original D201GLY did not have SATA at all

The new ones come with SATA I and IMHO are the best choice for a cheap and efficient D/L rig

either way, any of these are too underpowered to be a proper HT

My existing setup consumes ~50W and sits behind the books in a corner bookshelf

The fan is wired to the 5V line so it is near silent too

For all I know, it does not even physically exist
Click to expand...

oops...sorry bout that then :ashamed: must have been someone else..... :ashamed:

BUt yeah, with SATA it seems a pretty good option ;)
 
@burnz dude - u have both asus eepc and the popcorn hour box. which of the two eats less power, is good for downloading torrents and less costly?
 
^ Mate, I feel for your situation particularly (Due to the Power Cuts), the EEE PC will suit you better as you can check the progress and add new downloads even with your main rig turned off.

Just my 2 cents.
 
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