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Speed-Assembling Servers
Nieriko writes "The Planet is holding competitions to speed-assemble rack-mounted servers. It's like watching latter-day Marines field-strip and assemble their weapons. There is a video on YouTube about this incredible contest. Looks pretty challenging."
That is INSANE. I would love to see a similar competition for wiring up a small sound studio :-)
Living With a Nerd
"It's like watching latter-day Marines field-strip and assemble their weapons."
Well no actually, it looked like any normal IT support guy putting a machine back together, except most people don't even fumble and drop the RAM.
Really, that was fast? I'd be inclined to believe anyone here on Slashdot whose built a machine a few times could do it faster than that. It's not like they even had to build half the machine, the fiddliest components were already in place anyway.
Lame. I was hoping they were going to assemble a 40U rack. Maybe actually use tools. Maybe a stop watch that works the first time you try to stop it. Lame.
This was like watching somebody "speed build" an ARF R/C plane. *yawn* How did this escape from Idle?
With a lanyard their shirts probably don't read like they wanted to.
If you are going to directly quote Boingboing for your summary, say so. http://www.boingboing.net/2010/03/14/speed-assembling-ser.html#comments " Speed-assembling servers Cory Doctorow at 11:05 PM March 14, 2010 At SXSW (where my two of the games my wife commissioned just won Best Game and Best Edugame!), the trade-floor booth for hosting company The Planet is holding competitions to speed-assemble rack-mounted servers. It's like watching latter-day Marines field-strip and assemble their weapons. "
... and that's not speedy.
The youtube clip is some knob plugging in ram and an *IDE* disk cable in what appears to be a several-year-old desktop. If any of you can't match that, turn in your computer geek card now...
Perhaps they should stop fucking about with stuff like this and get rid of the many spammers they have for customers?
Was I the only one that read his shirt as saying "Herpes without capes" due to the placement of his name tag strap? Oh god, it was just me, wasn't it? I'm sick.
NO RAID? SINGLE CPU? NO HOTSWAP PSUS? What the hell kind of "server" is this?!
Roughly as challenging to anyone in IT as doing the laundry is to a full-time housewife. Seriously...
I would like to see them assemble 300 servers including the racks, wiring and software.
Maybe I'm just clumsy but the job isn't truly over until you discover all the cuts on your hands that you didn't realize you made at the time. The ones that have that sort of quantum uncertainty to them in that they don't hurt until you see them for the first time.
Account -> Discussions -> Disable Sigs
Sorry but is Slashdot getting increasingly lame or is it just me?
He'll end up planning server installation within the hour; "real geeks can setup a server in 1.2 minutes", he'll mock you.
"But, they already chosen the different components, invested time comparing and haven't installed software on it, they're just clicking the parts together", will end up in deafmans' ears.
Soon enough, they'll call you a slacker because you took 3 days to get that server-rig running with redundancy system to be able to support your SLA-contracts.
I think we can keep recursing like this until someone returns 1
I can go from a collection of parts to a desktop running Windows in under 15 minutes using a prepared disk image on a USB stick.
Servers are actually a bit easier to deal with than that, since the layout is more open. On a Tyan GT20 (a barebones server platform) there's probably about three minutes of work involved in sticking in the CPUs, RAM and hard drives. If I had a prepared disk image for one I could probably get one of those running in 10 - 15 minutes. The hardest part of the whole thing would be getting the machine into the rack.
-- I wanna decide who lives and who dies - Crow T. Robot, MST3K
I would think that any contest for assembling a computer would involve actually turning the computer on to test if you did it right.
That was not the contest.
Maybe they did not want to show the actual servers before the beginning of the contest and only used the tower to demonstrate on?
Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
We build servers here. First rule is that if you hurry, you're likely to screw something up and end up needing to fix something down the road. The hour of downtime and cost of replacement parts later is not worth any up-front savings in time.
Building a server starts with a bare metal chassis (not just plugging in a few snap-in components to a prebuilt). Integrate your power supply, install system board, from there of course it gets dependent on the specifics... but if you're not spending a fair bit of time trying to be neat, tying your cables down, thinking about how to route the cables for airflow, custom-building cables to fit odd needs, tightening screws with the right torque, and all of that, then you're not really doing a good job. Rack mount servers are especially sensitive to the skills of the designer and builder.
Your rack mount server will end up in a rack somewhere where it may not be pulled out for another five years. There may not be a "second chance" to fix it if you rush through building it - it becomes someone else's problem, perhaps, but they won't be thanking you for it.
Try this on a 1U high rackmount server that's fully loaded and needs a new RAID controller battery!
I don't like building servers any more. Rather I would have had my clients purchasing either well-known systems already builtr and burned, or at least primary assembly. Maybe I would install drives.
Now a more fun competition would be to build a full sized cabinet, rack/stack the servers, create RAID volumes, install and wire a KVM switch, configure the servers to the KVM, wire Ethernet, configure IPs and remote access, and put your hands up. Then let the referees try and remote in to start OS loads. Extra points for configuring to load a network-based image. Of course this all avoids making decisions like volumes and names, but hey, this is a speed demo.
THAT would be fun to watch. Yes, you must velcro the cabling and leave it so that each server can be extended and serviced. Sadly, while stacking a full cabinet probably would take an hour, it would take, what, how long to verify the work? Better way to test would be to leave them ready to accept a push of a multicast image.
Actually, I would rather field-strip an M16. Servers are boring until the OS is running.
deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
Erm, slotting RAM in, connecting some HDD cables and clipping a fan to the case...
LOL, the hardest part (of any PC build, let alone server (that's not a server)) was always trying to figure out which screw thingamajigs the motherboard required inserting into the case and then putting the motherboard in.
That and the inevitable blood spill! An upgrade or new PC requires a sacrifice of blood!
I'd like to see them speed un-boxing heavy servers, cursing at different rail types that require access above and below the rack space allocated to you. I'd also like to see them curse when there isn't enough power outlets available in the rack space you've rented, or there aren't enough cable management systems in place to hold all the stuff that connects your gear together.
That would be much more entertaining.
-ted
It is NOT "like watching latter-day Marines field-strip and assemble their weapons". No Marine would be so clumsy.
Stupidest video. Ever.
"If I have been able to see so far, It is because I went out and bought a damn binoculars" - Ze da Esquina
I mean, by beating the tar out of these nasally nerds, swiping the prize, and taking their iPhone and lunch money while I was at it. Then going back to wedgie them, because damn, that was utterly, tragically pathetic.
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
Some crazy modding going on today...
"It's like watching latter-day Marines field-strip and assemble their weapons."
umm...no, it was not like that at all. It was more like watching a guy plug in a usb cable.
"rack mount"? most racks don't accept full size towers. I'll try to ignore that minor oversight and press on....
So he had to plug in the cables for the hard drive, but not install the hard drive itself, that was already installed for him?
Heck the motherboard was already installed and most of the wiring attached. Over 75% of the work was already done for him. This whole thing was a joke.
This was like a cooking contest that involves seeing who can be the fastest at pulling prepared courses out of the fridge and stuffing them into the microwave.
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
PHB = Impressed by how fast you slap RAM sticks into a glorified desktop. Nice job not running memtest86+, its cheaper for the users to open support tickets after the guarantee expires, right?
Real Techs = Impressed by how cleanly the cables are routed/tied down and how well the equipment and external cables are labeled/documented.
"Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
Is that some kind of church?
fast server assembly? BFD. Servers come already assembled. If you want to wow me, show me a challenge where the guy racks, cables it per standards, labels the server properly, labels the cables, sets the switch port vlans, updates the CMDB, etc. You know, does the WHOLE thing, not just the easy part.
Is having a triple espresso before this competition considered doping or is it just expected...
It appears they can't keep their blog site up. If they can't do that then why would I host there?
I'd rather watch Mike Rowe disassemble a PC in his "tech recycling" job.
"We are Microsoft. You shall be assimilated. Competition is futile."
I don't know about most people on /. but I build outside the case.
CPU, RAM and cables are installed before attaching the mobo to the case.
Then its a simple step of attaching power and HDD cables and Im done.
I dislike working inside a case, get too many cuts
I was hoping to see them install rack-mount computers. Sure, it isn't as fiddly, but when you have 40 of them to do all at once... you tend to get good at it.
you should read everything on the internet as if it had "but I'm probably talking out of my ass" appended to it.
Silly demo...
From boxed components (eg. case, mobo, fans, cpu, etc) to powered up, tested and then repacked for shipping, that would be the challenge!
That was weak... :-/
Do it a lot slower if you want more than a beer as payment ...
I have been a participant of a similar event in my local city back in my high school (like 8 years ago). I tell you what it should be like.
The competition included everything from screwing motherboard to the case, then CPU, heatsink, fan and all the tightening up all screws. And all component from Fan to PSU to HDD has to be fixed by screws, it wasn't a slide in design. The timer stops when POST is passed will a check with all the components position and make sure they are properly fixed by screws. Like you can't pass with a FDD up side down.
Adding to that, it's done in a team of 3. So optimizing who do what and get the shortest time is an added challenge. You know you can't put HDD first before mobo because of those cheap chassis. Then CPU and heatsink must be done on a flat surface before putting it in the chassis, etc.
Not to mention the lack of any sort of ESD strap... Or maybe it was on his 3rd leg... http://xkcd.com/649/
Dude, that is a desktop case, not a rack mount case.. Revise your article please..
Just because it works, Doesn't make it right. - JTM
Is it faster than unloading one Sun BlackBox (http://www.sun.com/service/sunmd/) shipping container?
It would be pretty cool to see someone field-strip, clean, and reassemble a military mobile data center in a shipping container. Including rewiring for network and power.
That would make nice team contest.
Where's the rack mounted server in this video? The outdated desktop wanna be server was already half assembled.
Watch me plug these cables in. Now where's my 6 figure salary because computers are so hard.
Why put that in a server now days?
Does ThePlanet treat the ram and processors on their servers the same way this guy does?
So it was basically putting in two sticks of RAM incorrectly (no dual channel for him - assuming he hasn't already fried the chips) and plugging in a couple of molex connectors that took 50secs.
It would be remotely interesting if it included fitting the motherboard and HSF, which are the only time-consuming parts.
March 15th 2010: Slow News Day
#include <sig.h>
The better test would be to give all the parts set on the table along with all the screws.
Damn straight. I've been assembling for years, and the key to speed is skill with screw insertion.
I prefer an extra long phillips driver for extended reach and increased moment of inertia. The moment of inertia allows screws to be fully inserted by a single spin of the driver. One hand balances the driver lightly, while the other hand gives it a quick spin by the shaft. When the screw head bottoms out, switch to the handle for grip and tighten a final half-turn or so.
A magnetized tip is also essential for guiding screws into place. If your driver is not magnetic, stroke it a dozen or so times in one direction with a strong permanent magnet to make it so.
It takes no more than 1 second to insert a screw this way.
"The Planet is holding competitions to speed-assemble rack-mounted servers. It's like watching latter-day Marines field-strip and assemble their weapons.
Uhh...no. That's not a rack-mount server, that's a pedestal server that is basically a Dell desktop PC with a Poweredge nameplate on it. And they're not assembling shit, they're installing two fans, two memory modules, and connecting two molex power connectors. That's hardly installing a server. And they didn't even power it on at the end to make sure that it was "assembled correctly." Not to mention the lack of a use of an anti-static strap.
I'd say just a cheap desktop scrap... try disassembling and debugging an IBM System x3755.
bah... a new /. low ;)
Mi domando chi à il mandante di tutte le cazzate che faccio - Altan
Quoting the comment by the YouTube uploader:
This challenge was created specifically for a trade show environment where participants may be intimidated by the task and don't have much time to participate.
So it’s a pure publicity stunt. Which is another way to say “viral marketing”. Which is a form of advertising.
And even if not: Any random dude could put that together in that time. Why? Because it actually is a random dude in that video!
Slashdot FAIL!
Any sufficiently advanced intelligence is indistinguishable from stupidity.
He has an unprofessional touch, just crudely jamming everything in place. Hurts to watch that.
The motherboard is already installed, the PSU is there, and the same are the drives. These are the most painful things to install. Especially the PSU and the motherboard. Plugging 2 RAM modules and a fan is too easy for goodness sake. Now you can get off my lawn err... server farm.
Dust is mostly made up of dead skin. If it is just your dead skin, well, a dust mask may be OK for you. However, keep in mind that people are regularly excreting small amounts of their medications through their skin and people also have a tendency to rub various medications (and who-knows-what else) onto themselves as well. Not to mention the various pesticides we regularly squirt onto our pets for flea and tick control. Coming in contact with such chemicals usually isn't a big deal (be careful, wash your hands, etc) but inhaling them is an entirely different matter (especially considering the half-life of some popular pesticides).
For example, I would not want to be the guy cleaning out PCs in/from a retirement home. There's enough hormone replacement therapy going on in places like that you might wind up with gynomastia (well, probably not THAT much =).
Besides, a good respirator is much more comfortable than a dusk mask anyway.
-Riskable
"Those who choose proprietary software will pay for their decision!"
You can improve this situation by adding a 'Troll' bonus modifier in your settings. I moderate, and I use a +5 Troll and +5 Flamebait to catch mismods.
I can snap a memory module into my desktop in under 1 second. Where's my desktop speed-assembly prize?