Re: Putting together a computer from old components

On 11/29/2021 6:26 AM, Spiros Bousbouras wrote:
> The Intel management engine and the analogous from AMD creep me out so I
> want to put a computer together using old processors from before these
> facilities came into the picture. Operating system will be Linux. I
> already have AMD Sempron and Athlon processors and now I need the rest.
> www.pcupgrade.co.uk  sells old motherboards. I have a few questions
> related to my endeavour :
> 
> Is there any notion of compatibility between computer cases and
> motherboards ? If yes , how do I ensure that I get a case such that an old
> motherboard (one with an AM2 socket) fits ?
> 
> Are there any issues related to my efforts I should be aware of ? I mean
> issues specific to putting a computer together from old parts.
> 
> The only experience I have in putting a computer together is adding
> components to a barebones computer but I've never done it from scratch.
> 

How many computers do you currently have ?

Is there a specific objective this computer has to meet ?
Is it running the heating system, recording security video,
stuck in the loft ?

People don't usually start building computers for no reason.

Perhaps if you described your objectives and provided some
background, we could offer some suggestions.

*******

One of the problems with older motherboards, is the "bad cap" problem.
For example, a regular poster here, he bought a "spare" motherboard.
His original motherboard failed. Well, the spare only operated
for a short time before it failed too. Viewing a picture of the
new failure, it had a leaking capacitor on it, and that's why
it is unstable and won't behave properly.

When buying the old stuff, you want materials not of that
generation, to reduce the risks involved in "investing in junk".

If it were not for the "bad capacitor era", I could be a bit
more encouraging about Smithsonian-style compute projects.
But as long as scumbags are willing to sell broken goods to
people, it's sometimes safer to buy newer kit.

There was one (exceptional) Dell model, where 99% of the
motherboards failed. And it means, if you shop for a "spare"
one of those, it is virtually guaranteed to be defective.
Whey you buy those, the advert must say "has been completely re-capped".
Recapping can cost $50 to $100, and you have to find someone
willing to do the work (it is hard work and not for the
squeamish as a form of employment).

*******

You could do an RPi 4 and use an SSD for storage with it.
There's no ME on that. Some of the Pi models are in shortage
right now, and only the higher end ones might be available
(like the one with max RAM).

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/raspberry-pi-4-ssd-test,39811.html

    Paul