Could you repurpose those old desktop pieces for something?
Could you repurpose those old desktop pieces for something?
I don't know if it's possible to do this. I own my old desktop parts: the motherboard, graphics card, memory, and power supply. My drives and the computer case are gone. The motherboard is a Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3-B3. Can you tell me if I can put all that in a small case? Would running it on my home network make it act as a video and music server, maybe even a seedbox? Or is this old machine more powerful than something like that needs to be? We own a bigger apartment now than before, so the system could live somewhere quiet outside our usual place. I was wondering if anyone had ever tried this on eBay or if there are simpler ways with just an extra Raspberry Pi (I have one spare). Thank you!
I just mentioned having parts, but I didn't think I'd need to use them. If I hadn't said that someone would have asked, "do you have a GPU on your system?" 😆 And yes, the CPU is there too, along with its basic fan. How am I supposed to test it without a monitor connected? Honestly, I don't know how to set anything up if I can't see anything. Just install windows on an HDD and use my regular monitor to get everything working temporarily? How do I troubleshoot in the future if I can't see a screen? Surely you don't leave something like this running with a big monitor all the time??
To start this up, you just need a monitor. You don't actually need the disk driver or the graphics card (GPU) to test it out. Simply plug the monitor into a port on the motherboard and hit enter. It should show up in the BIOS screen and let you move around from there. Depending on what you plan to do with it, you can easily set things so that it boots and runs even without a keyboard, mouse or monitor attached. I would think about running a Linux version instead of Windows because it's easier to control remotely once everything is ready. It also fixes the problem where you can't get an old version of Windows while trying to get a new one working, plus Microsoft wants $100 for just upgrading Windows 10 even on very old junk hardware.
I really want to try installing Linux. I need to figure out how to actually use all of this stuff. What will a day look like? How do I wire it up? I prefer putting my videos on the TV over ethernet because that's much less laggy when playing 1080p video.
One cool way to repurpose that hardware would be a NAS (network storage) box. You can use it for backups, extra space, or other stuff. It's probably not super safe because of how old and worn out the parts are, so you should definitely have more than just one copy. There are many free open-source operating systems for these things to download and run. You could use it for storage, but also for remote access or sharing files. Be careful about that part though. If the NAS and its hardware aren't needed any longer, throw it away in a way that helps the environment instead of just throwing it into landfills.
Yeah, I think so too. Just wanted to make sure it was connected to my big screen TV for better pictures. I'm not fond of streaming 1080p video over WiFi because that's slow and buggy. That's why I use an ethernet cable to connect my RPi Kodi to a drive on my desktop computer instead.
Maybe: https://www.dignited.com/93511/connect-f...t-network/ (Not a recommendation or endorsement - just a potential solution to consider. There may be others.) Pay close attention to all specs and details. Especially caveats, warnings, and other fine print. Read the applicable User Guides/Manuals and visit the manufacter's websites to read FAQ's and Forums (if any). Watch for both what is said and what "is not said". In the meantime somone else may offer other ideas and suggestions. Also take a look in the Home Audio & Theatre Forum. You may find some additional ideas therein.
look for an old, cheap screen to attach to your bike or something similar. thrift stores near me often have TVs and monitors for free or very little money. even a small 17-inch screen in 720p quality would work fine for now. but you can probably find a better used TV around here that is bigger than 32 inches, has high definition, and comes with an HDMI cable. I just put one of these out on the street earlier this week to see what people are selling.
You add some windows and use remote desktop to change things. This is the simplest way. The most popular choice is Linux or Freenas. You can run Ubuntu Server with Docker, run Proxmox, and manage several VMs. As long as they are headless, you can get a lot of machines with 8GB to 32GB of RAM. linuxserver.io has many Docker images for easy use. Plex or Jellyfin are great choices for media storage. You won't be able to transcode much video here. You might only have the passmark score for 1080p H.264, which takes about 2800 points to reach one. I wouldn't recommend spending too much on an old generation that is no longer in use. It won't sell for a lot of money either.