Cheap systems with hardware virtualization support
I need to build 1 or 2 systems to do some testing of virtualization technologies. They need to be as cheap as possible and there is no need for them to be particularly powerful. I decided to document my search here.
The first thing I decided was that the system would be an AM2+ system with an AMD processor. That decision was obvious as AMD has several processors with hardware virtualization support in the sub $100 range while the cheapest comparable Intel processor is over $150.
Processor: The AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ (Windsor Core) looks like a good buy.
Motherboard: The ASUS M2N-MX SE Plus looks good for the price but I've been burned by systems with only 2 memory slots before. So the ECS A780VM-M2 might be a better pick though I may search for some reviews. If I can find something older, and therefore perhaps more mature and well supported that might be good as well. Perhaps something like the BIOSTAR A740G M2+.
Memory: Cheap DDR2 800, probably 1GB.
Not sure if I'll buy or scavenge drives and cases. Looks like I can get the mb+cpu+ram for around $150 which is nice.




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