Moving my Windows Home Server 2011 to the HP ProLiant N54L G7 MicroServer

By: John Stutsman

Last July, 2012, I wrote about how I Installed Windows Home Server 2011 on a 60GB SSD in a HP ProLiant N40L MicroServer and using that as my primary home server. More recently in March, 2013, I wrote about Updating my Windows Home Server 2011 installed on the HP ProLiant N40L MicroServer where I detailed several updates I had done including how I replaced my 60GB OS drive with a larger 256GB OS drive, re-installed Windows Home Server 2011 (“WHS-2011”) onto the new OS drive, and then moved my Pool of data to the newly installed OS.

More recently I have been testing the performance differences between the HP ProLiant N40L MicroServer (“N40L”) and the HP ProLiant N54L MicroServer (“N54L”). When I completed the tests of Windows Server 2012 Essentials (“S2012E”) on the N40L and N54L I decided that after testing WHS-2011 on the N40L, when I moved my WHS-2011 to the N54L for performance testing that the N54L would be WHS-2011’s new home.

Windows Home Server 2011 on the HP ProLiant N40L MicroServer

Before I started the move over to the N54L this was the configuration of Windows Home Server 2011 on the N40L. This was the same configuration I used to test the performance of WHS-2011 with Intel’s NAS Performance Toolkit on the N40L.

• Windows Home Server 2011
• HP ProLiant N40L MicroServer
• BIOS-MOD Flashed to unlock BIOS and enable AHCI and SATA II Maximum Speed for on-board SATA Port and eSATA Port
• 8GB Kingston RAM KVR1333D3E9SK2/8G
• OS Drive: Crucial M4 256GB SSD SATA III
• HighPoint Rocket 640L PCIe Card providing SATA III Port for OS Drive
• Data Drives: 5 x ST3000DM001
• Western Digital SuperSpeed PCIe USB 3.0 Card
• Icy Dock DuoSwap MB971SP-B
• Other Software Running: StableBit Scanner & DrivePool, AllWay Sync, MicroSoft ForeFront Client, Server Backup
• DropBox and SkyDrive also loaded
• The Target Folder NASPTxPerfTest was created in StableBit’s DrivePool with Folder duplication turned off (this was only for the NAS Performance Toolkit Tests)
• NIC updated with HP Broadcom 1Gb Driver for Windows Server 2008 x64 Editions version 15.4.0.19 (19 Feb 2013) cp017879.exe

• Backup drive for Server Backup: WD20EADS in Rosewill RX-DU300

Figure 1 -- Preparing to move HAL to his new home

Configuration of the HP ProLiant N54L G7 MicroServer

The N54L had been flashed with the latest BIOS-MOD based on the most current stock BIOS (#O41 July 29, 2011) and all settings were as identical as I could make them with the N40L.

Before I made the move from the N40L, everything (RAM, PCIe Cards, HDD’s) was removed from the N54L and replaced by comparable items from the N40L

Windows Home Server 2011 on the HP ProLiant N54L G7 MicroServer

After the move to the N54L this was the configuration of Windows Home Server 2011 on the N54L This is the same configuration I will use to test the performance of WHS-2011 with Intel’s NAS Performance Toolkit on the N54L.

• Windows Home Server 2011
• HP ProLiant N54L MicroServer
• BIOS-MOD Flashed to unlock BIOS and enable AHCI and SATA II Maximum Speed for on-board SATA Port and eSATA Port
• 8GB Kingston RAM KVR1333D3E9SK2/8G
• OS Drive: Crucial M4 256GB SSD SATA III
• HighPoint Rocket 640L PCIe Card providing SATA III Port for OS Drive
• Data Drives: 5 x ST3000DM001
• Western Digital SuperSpeed PCIe USB 3.0 Card
• Icy Dock DuoSwap MB971SP-B
• Other Software Running: StableBit Scanner & DrivePool, AllWay Sync, MicroSoft ForeFront Client, Server Backup
• DropBox and SkyDrive also loaded
• The Target Folder NASPTxPerfTest was created in StableBit’s DrivePool with Folder duplication turned off (This is only for the NAS Performance Toolkit Tests and will be deleted afterwards)
• NIC updated with HP Broadcom 1Gb Driver for Windows Server 2008 x64 Editions version 15.4.0.19 (19 Feb 2013) cp017879.exe

• Backup drive for Server Backup: WD20EADS in Rosewill RX-DU300

Moving Windows Home Server 2011 to the HP ProLiant N54L G7 MicroServer

Everything that was in the N40L (RAM, PCIe Cards, HDDs) was moved to and installed in the N54L. I also moved the Top Panel that covers the ODD area because that had my WHS-2011’s Server Name (Hal-9000) on it and as I was in effect moving HAL -- the Top Panel should reflect that.

When I first powered on HAL in the N54L I hit F10 to go into the N54L’s ROM-BASED SETUP UTILITY and in the BOOT menu I made sure that my OS Drive was addressed first.

After those very minor changes the WHS-2011 worked just like it did before on the N40L – only snappier.

Figure 2-- HAL at home in the N54L

References

Installing Windows Home Server 2011 on a SSD in a HP MicroServer N40L

Updating my Windows Home Server 2011 installed on the HP ProLiant N40L MicroServer

Useful MicroServer Links & References

MicroServer Hardware Links

Performance Measurement of the HP ProLiant N40L and N54L G7 MicroServer and Other NAS Devices