Introduction

Recently we covered the new Intel Xeon "Clovertown" processor in a detailed review, which is the first quad-core chip for use in servers and workstations. In the meantime, many large server-building companies have started offering off-the-shelf systems based on this new server chip. However, building your own server can be another option: not only do you have more freedom in choosing the components that are used, but you often end up spending less. For those who'd like to build a server based on two Xeon Woodcrest or two Xeon Clovertown processors, we'd like to introduce three suitable motherboards: the Gigabyte GA-7BESH-RH, the Intel S5000VSaSAS and the MSI 5000P Master-S8M.

The three motherboards we're about to discuss are all based on the Intel 5000 chipset which is designed for Xeon processors from the Dempsey, Woodcrest and Clovertown ranges. The most important property of this chipset is the implementation of two separate frontside buses for either processor. When you use Xeons with a 1333 MHz FSB this means that there is a maximum bandwidth between the chipset and the processors of no less than 21 GByte/s. The chipset is paired with fully buffered DDR2-667/533 memory, the so-called FB-DIMM modules. In this field there are some differences between the two editions of the Intel 5000 chipset: the cheaper 5000V uses two memory channels, whereas the 5000P has four. This means the maximum bandwidth for the memory is 21 GB/s. The chipset also offers PCI-Express support and can be combined with an extra bridge chip that allows for the usage of 64-bit PCI-X slots. The matching ESB2 southbridge adds 8x USB 2.0 and 6x SATA 300, among other features.

The three motherboards we covered all employ the Extended ATX format and are suitable for tower as well as rack cases. For the latter option, you do need a case that has a minimum height of 2 U: for use in a 1U case the memory slots would have to be placed at an angle. This shouldn't necessarily be a drawback, seeing as it's not common for users to hand build 1U servers.

Two of the three motherboards have an onboard SAS controller, and this is an option on the third one. SAS (Serial Attached SCSI) is the successor of the long-running SCSI technology and uses serial data transmission just like Serial ATA. SAS has been gaining popularity in the server world in the past few years, and nowadays we are faced with a wide range of SAS hard disks, some even in the 15k rpm range.

Gigabyte GA-7BESH-RH

The Gigabyte GA-7BESH-RH motherboard is built around the Intel 5000P chipset and therefore offers four FB-DIMM DDR2-667 memory channels. Each channel is shared between two slots, so that a maximum can be reached of 32 GB of memory when 4 GB modules are employed. The 5000P chipset has two separate 1333/1066 MHz frontside buses that are connected to the two LGA771 sockets that are suitable for Dempsey, Woodcrest and Clovertown Xeon processors.

The motherboard offers three PCI-Express x8 expansion slots and besides them another two 64-bit PCI-X and a single PCI slot. A notable feature is an Adaptec AIC-7901X SCSI (320 Mbps) controller. While SCSI is quickly losing ground to its successor, SAS, there are quite a few system builders out there that remain faithful to the trusty old SCSI, until the new serial version has clocked in enough experience. An expansion card can add an SAS controller. Another part of the motherboard is devoted to a dongle that activates the RAID functionality of this optional LSI controller. Intel's ESB2 southbridge provides six SATA ports, as well as software RAID 0, 1, 5 and 10.

Onboard graphics is a must on a server motherboard, and so Gigabyte employs ATI's ES1000 chip which is designed especially for the job. The board also has a pair of Gigabit LAN ports, both powered by an Intel GilGal chip (82563EB). Round the back, lodged between the I/O connectors we find an NMI (non-maskable interrupt) button that can be used to force a hardware interrupt. The motherboard has six connectors for fans that can then be managed and controlled by software. It's completely IPMI (Intelligent Platform Management Interface) compliant, which makes it suitable for remote monitoring of temperatures and voltage, among others. The IPMB connector to use this functionality is also found on the motherboard.

In our price comparison, we can find this motherboard for prices of around € 389 (The Netherlands). The 7BESH is a fine server motherboard by Gigabyte. The onboard SCSI controller won't be to everyone's liking, but it's ideal for those still wanting to make use of SCSI products in a new Xeon server.

Intel S5000VSaSAS

Intel itself sent us the S5000VSaSAS, a motherboard based on the 5000V chipset. This is the version with "just" two memory channels, meaning the maximum bandwidth for the memory is only half of the 5000P-based boards' figure. Nevertheless Intel fitted four FB-DIMM slots per channel, making for a maximum capacity of 16 GB. Just like the other boards in this test, this motherboard is suitable for Dempsey, Woodcrest and Clovertown Xeon processors, using either 1066 or 1333 MHz buses.

In terms of expansion slots, Intel offers two PCI-Express x8 slots, two 64-bit PCI-X slots and a single PCI slot. This might be less than on other boards, but Intel makes up for this by providing almost all important server functionality onboard. Intel also uses its own GilGal chip to power a pair of Gigabit ports, and for video functionality we once again came across the ATI ES1000 chip.

The motherboard offers SATA as well as SAS for storage purposes. The ESB2 southbridge supports six SATA devices with an option for software RAID and SAS is supported by an onboard LSI 1064E controller, which can handle four SAS drives. The ports for these are shared with SATA 3 through 6, therefore reaching a total of six rather than ten attached hard drives. An optional dongle opens up the possibility to use software RAID 5 for SATA as well as SAS.

Naturally Intel supports the IPMI standard for remote server monitoring, and the relevant IPMB connector is present on this motherboard. Up to eight fans can be managed from the motherboard. For diagnostics, Intel takes things one step further by installing LEDs next to every memory slot and each processors slot, that light up if there is a problem in the respective slot. The backside of the board shows another six LEDs in between the I/O connectors that can indicate eventual problems for the system manager. Intel bundles its own System Management Software to remotely monitor the motherboard.

Our price checker shows the Intel S5000VSaSAS being available from a starting price of € 469. This makes it a little more dear than Gigabyte's offering, even though it uses the cheaper version of the 5000 chipset. An advantage of this particular board is that Intel is the developer of both the chipset as well as the motherboard, which should yield an unmatched measure of stability.

MSI 5000P Master-S8M

The MSI 5000P Master-S8M is without a doubt the most lavish motherboard in this review. Just like Gigabyte, MSI chose to use the P version of the 5000 chipset, which uses four memory channels and yields a maximum memory bandwidth of no less than 21 GB/s when DDR2-667 FB-DIMMs are used. Per channel there are no less than three attached memory banks. Each bank supports a maximum of 4 GB, bringing the total up to 48 GB. This means the 5000P Master-S8M already has a headstart for use in very high-end database servers.

MSI also offers two storage options. First of all there are four SATA connectors, attached to the Intel ESB2, which supports RAID 0, 1 and 10. The board also houses an LSI Logic 1608 SAS controller, which can service no less than eight SAS drives. For this purpose two wide SAS ports are mounted on the board. MSI includes cables to transform each wide connector into four regular SAS connectors. Right by these ports there is room for a dongle that can activate the RAID5 capability of the LSI controller.

In terms of expansion cards, MSI offers three PCI-Express x8 ports, a single 64-bit PCI-X port, and another plain PCI port. Just like the other two boards, tje MSI 5000P Master-S8M has a pair of Gigabit LAN connectors powered by Intel's GilGal chip. MSI chose another path for its onboard graphics: rather than use the ATI chip found on the other boards, a unique controller by ServerEngines is used. This chip not only offers a standard VGA port for the 2D imagery of a server OS, but also offers built-in KVM-over-IP functionality. Especially for this purpose, a third LAN connector can be found on the backplate. Special software allows for the remote control of the entire server, even the BIOS.

Other features of this motherboard include the NMI (non-maskable interrupt) button by the I/O connectors and support for IPMI. The pricing of this particular board is unknown at the time of writing.

Table of Comparisons

In the table below, the features of the three motherboards can be compared.

Brand	Gigabyte	Intel	MSI
Product name	GA-7BESH-RH-SAS	S5000VSASAS	5000P Master-S8M
Format	Extended ATX	Extended ATX	Extended ATX
Supported processor(s)	Intel Xeon Demspey / Woodcrest / Clovertown	Intel Xeon Demspey / Woodcrest / Clovertown	Intel Xeon Demspey / Woodcrest / Clovertown
CPU socket	Dual Socket 771	Dual Socket 771	Dual Socket 771
Processor bus speed	1333/1066 MHz FSB	1333/1066 MHz FSB	1333/1066 MHz FSB
Memory type	FB-DIMM DDR2-667/533	FB-DIMM DDR2-667/533	FB-DIMM DDR2-667/533
Chipset - Northbridge	Intel 5000P	Intel 5000V	Intel 5000P
Chipset - Southbridge	Intel ESB2	Intel ESB2	Intel ESB2
Amount of memory channels	4	2	4
Integrated videocard (model)	ATI ES1000	ATI ES1000	ServerEngines Pilot
PCI-Express x16 slots	0	0	0
PCI-Express x8 slots	3	2	3
PCI-Express x4 slots	0	0	0
PCI-Express x1 slots	0	0	0
PCI-X-slots	2	2	2
PCI-slots	1	1	1
FB-DIMM-slots	8	8	12
USB 2.0 - Total	8	7	6
USB 2.0 - Onboard connectors	4	4	2
LAN - Chip	Intel GilGal (82563EB)	Intel GilGal (82563EB)	Intel GilGal (82563EB)
LAN - Speed (Mbit/s)	1000	1000	1000
LAN 2 - Chip	Intel GilGal (82563EB)	Intel GilGal (82563EB)	Intel GilGal (82563EB)
LAN 2 - Speed (Mbit/s)	1000	1000	1000
Parallel ATA connectors	1	1	1
Serial ATA connectors	6	6	4
SAS connectors	8 (optional)	4	8
Extra SATA (RAID) controller	-	-	-
SAS controller	optional	LSI Logic 1064	LSI Logic 1068
SCSI controller	Adaptec AIC-7901	-	-
RAID 0/1 support SATA	Yes	Yes	Yes
RAID 0/1 support SAS	optional	Yes	Yes
RAID 0/1 support SCSI	Yes	-	-
RAID 5 support SATA	Yes	optional	Yes
RAID 5 support SAS	-	optional	-
RAID 5 support SCSI	-	-	-
NMI button	Yes	-	Yes

Conclusion

Gigabyte, Intel and MSI each offer neat solutions to self-assemble a Xeon-based server. By using the cheaper 5000V chipset, the Intel motherboard is the least advanced of the three, but at the same time it is widely used by professional server builders, an indication of its edge in terms of reliability and support over Gigabyte and MSI.

The Gigabyte board stands out by including an Adapted SCSI controller. Whoever intends to build a new server from scratch will be better off using SAS straight away, but for those who have previously invested in SCSI devices, or would rather opt for this proven standard, the Gigabyte board is a great solution.

The 5000P Master-S8M is clearly the most advanced motherboard in this review. Outstanding features are among others the twelve memory slots, the eight-way SAS controller and the special chip that combines video and KVM-over-IP. For those looking to build a heavy-duty database or storage server, the MSI board is the ideal choice. Sadly, we have yet to see it on the streets.