Home server made simple. A Raspberry Pi is now too mainstream, too costly, too underpowered, too sophisticated, too naked and not using a heatsink and case? Raise the curtain on the Zimaboard, an all-in-one alternative with two LAN and SATA ports and even a PCIe slot, absolutely configurable, with a stronger X86 as a substitute of an ARM processor and nearly limitless expandability. With this, it desires to conquer the maker, DIY and shopper hearts.
Christian Hintze, 👁 Enrico Frahn, ✓ Brian Burriston (translated by DeepL / Ninh Duy), Published 🇩🇪
“The Zimaboard is a low-cost single board server for makers and geeks” states the producer’s web site. “Worlds First Hackable Single Board Server” is written on the packaging. The time period “inexpensive” could also be debatable (3 fashions, 120 to 200 US {dollars}).
The Zimaboard desires to be an X86 alternative to the Raspberry Pi and invite customers to experiment. For this, the producers depend on an uncomplicated all-in-one bundle on the one hand, which offers a single board pc (SBC) with a warmth sink, case and numerous sensible connections on the opposite. And not to neglect: This shouldn’t be an ARM SBC, however an Intel X86 system, so you have rather more software program compatibility. Even if the CPU already has a number of years below its belt, Windows runs on the small board thanks to the quad-core CPU.
On the opposite hand, the open strategy for maker and shopper is stored, which is why the Zimaboard absolutely depends on open supply and extensions.
This mixture permits the SBC with Intel Celeron Apollo Lake to be configured as a house server, media server, router or all kinds of different tasks, relying on the consumer’s needs. Important in this regard is definitely additionally the consumption, which is meant to be solely 6 W. Similar to the Raspberry Pi, there are only some limits to your individual concepts.
We would describe the design of the Zimaboard as fairly attention-grabbing. If you did not know what the Zimaboard was about, you can be puzzled at first. Because of the PCIe slot on the aspect, you might simply mistake it for a trendy enlargement card at first look.
The board measures about 13.8 cm in size, it’s about 7.4 cm huge (~5.4 x 2.9 inches) in most locations, and the PCIe slot protrudes one other 0.65 cm (~0.3 in) on the aspect.
The higher aspect consists nearly solely of metallic cooling fins, in order that purely passive cooling can be utilized right here, and a lot of the ports might be protected on the entrance on the identical time. The grey design with orange accents makes the massive cooling fins look fairly trendy. In the entrance, the place the metallic covers the ports, the “Zimaboard” lettering can also be in orange.
At the underside, now we have partially clear plastic or black tinted Plexiglas. The underside is sort of utterly flat, solely 4 small black Phillips screws break by the graceful base plate, which additionally makes the board simple to open. Here we additionally discover the product identify in orange in addition to three white stripes that run parallel alongside the size of the case. The Zimaboard shouldn’t be a naked board just like the Raspberry Pi.
The Zimaboard is effectively constructed. The higher and decrease sides in addition to the circuit board are tightly assembled, there aren’t any gaps. Especially the metallic higher aspect appears very secure and protects in opposition to damages. However, you should not put an excessive amount of strain on the board, the plastic underside shortly emits threatening cracking noises, however the whole lot stays secure on the highest.
There is a gap to the proper of the PCIe slot, the place filth might get inside. However, the opening is intentional, since there are contacts right here that may be soldered to additional connections, for instance energy, switches, LEDs and the like.
The producer IceWhale Tech presents three variants of the Zimaboard, whose designations are primarily based on the reminiscence tools and are thus simple to keep in mind. Thus, the smallest Zimaboard 216 solely presents 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of eMMC storage. The Zimaboard 432 already has 4 GB RAM and 32 GB eMMC and the biggest Zimaboard 832 has 8 GB RAM and additionally 32 GB eMMC. The connectivity is similar, however the CPU and reminiscence configuration differ. The producer despatched us the highest mannequin.
Each Zimaboard is provided with an X86 Celeron CPU, the smallest mannequin Zimaboard 216 with the twin-core N3350 CPU, the opposite two with the Quad Core N3450. All three have built-in Intel HD Graphics 500, which is clocked 50 MHz decrease in the low spec mannequin.
| Equipment/Model | Zimaboard 216 | Zimaboard 432 | Zimaboard 832 |
| Processor | Intel Celeron N3350, Dual Core | Intel Celeron N3450, Quad Core | Intel Celeron N3450, Quad Core |
| Graphics | Intel HD Graphics 500, 200 MHz base, 650 MHz burst | Intel HD Graphics 500, 200 MHz base, 700 MHz burst | Intel HD Graphics 500, 200 MHz base, 700 MHz burst |
| RAM | 2 GB | 4 GB | 8 GB |
| Onboard MMC reminiscence | 16 GB | 32 GB | 32 GB |
| TDP/Power consumption | 6 W | ||
| Connections | 2x SATA 6.0 Gb/s, 2x GbE LAN (Realtek 8111H), 2x USB 3.0, 1x PCle 2.0 x4, 1x Mini-DisplayPort 1.2 ([email protected]), Power DC 12V 5.5 x 2.5mm | ||
| Features | Passive cooling; Virtualization: Intel VT-d, VT-x; Security: AES-NI; Transcoding: Support for 1080P movies, Decoding: H.264 (AVC), H.265 (HEVC), MPEG-2, VC-1 | ||
| Size & Weight | 138.7 x 81.4 x 34.9 mm; 278 g | ||
However, the SBC solely turns into actually versatile with its connections: Two GbE LAN ports by way of a Realtek 8111H present server potential, two SATA 6.0 Gb/s ports let the Zimaboard change into cloud storage by way of linked SATA storage. In addition, there are two USB-A ports 3.0 and a mini DisplayPort 1.2 with [email protected] However, essentially the most attention-grabbing characteristic might be the PCle 2.0 x4 slot. Almost any variety of enlargement playing cards might be linked by way of this, of which the producer itself presents some on its homepage. For instance, playing cards with further LAN ports or playing cards with M.2 ports and so on.
The software program is among the highlights on the Zimaboard, regardless that you can after all change it with your individual OS concepts, identical to on the Raspberry Pi. The pre-put in CasaOS with Debian as the bottom is graphical and internet-primarily based, so it may be managed comfortably from the browser and can be utilized fairly simply and intuitively even by newcomers. For instance, the dashboard offers a very good overview of CPU and reminiscence utilization, mass reminiscence utilization, all put in apps, and so forth.
The spotlight of the software program developed by Zimaboard producer IceWhale is that it manages all different apps in Docker containers. Via the “App Store”, numerous apps might be put in in containers pre-configured on the push of a button, together with effectively-recognized software program comparable to Jellyfin, Proxmox, NexCloud, pfsense, OpenNAS and many many extra.
Docker administration additionally makes it simple for a number of apps on the Zimaboard to run concurrently, every in their very own compartmentalized environments, with out affecting one another, if that’s desired.
The first setup is tremendous easy: You join the Zimaboard to the ability provide and the router by way of LAN cable, and you can join to the board by way of browser and CasaOS. The first software program can then be put in by way of the App Store.
Alternatively, you can join a monitor and keyboard/mouse and use the board as a PC. However, we want to use it as a flexible server. Windows runs, however the efficiency shouldn’t be actually designed for that.
The largest problem: deciding at the start which undertaking you truly need to implement – a media server to play your individual movies, your individual cloud storage, an online server, a firewall, a router, a gaming server…. Ahh, so many potentialities!
If in doubt, merely implement a number of tasks directly, utilizing digital machines with Proxmox, for instance. The app shouldn’t be obtainable in the shop, however can be put in by way of USB stick. For this, you have to join a monitor and keyboard and enter the BIOS (sure, an Intel PC) to change the boot order (boot from the USB stick). But you additionally want an exterior storage, the interior eMMC shouldn’t be sufficient for Proxmox.
And so you begin to assume greater step-by-step, however the first tasks are additionally fairly easy with what the Zimaboard brings from itself.
For instance, establishing a neighborhood media server, over which you can watch your individual films and movies. For instance, you can set up Jellyfin from the App Store in CasaOS with simply two clicks. Then you begin the app, arrange entry information, add a number of movies to the Zimaboard, specify the folder in Jellyfin, and you’re carried out. And you can watch the movies from any PC in your community. The identical applies if you need to share information simply between a number of gadgets in the community. If you have a site or get one, you may entry it on the go.
Most of it labored and was splendidly simple. We stumbled throughout a number of minor errors. First, there was the replace button. The replace didn’t work by way of the button in the settings. Just a few terminal instructions from the seller (“curl -fsSL get.casaos.io/update | sudo bash”) revealed that some names in the git repository had modified and the replace button couldn’t hyperlink to the right variations. But a easy “sudo apt update” might resolve the whole lot manually.
The set up of PCIe playing cards shouldn’t be solely unproblematic. Since they’re often designed for desktop PCs, they often include a slot bracket, which might make set up troublesome. Depending on the mannequin, the slot bracket sits precisely on the Zimaboard case, in order that the cardboard cannot be inserted simply. If you get a card the place the slot bracket does not contact straight, it no less than covers the MiniDP port. In case of doubt, you both have to take away the slot bracket or bend it to the aspect.
The Zimaboard doesn’t want an lively fan, it’s passively cooled, thus noiseless. The massive, metallic cooling fins are accountable for dissipating waste warmth, which additionally give the board its unmistakable design. Since your complete higher aspect is roofed by the cooling fins, the floor temperatures in the Zimaboard are very restricted. During idle intervals we measured a temperature of about 32 °C (89.6 °F) on the higher aspect.
Under extra demanding duties, comparable to transcoding movies (Intel Quicksync help) or different hundreds, the board naturally warms up extra. After about 5 minutes of video transcoding in Jellyfin, we measured up to 43 °C (109.4 °F) on the higher aspect, whereas the underside remained barely cooler at 38 °C (100.4 °F) .
The dashboard exhibits a CPU load of two% when idle with out an lively app or different load. The system consumes just below 2 W.
When taking part in an MKV video together with transcoding, a CPU load of 55% is displayed. The consumption will increase to round 8 W.
Generally, the consumption doesn’t exceed 10 W even below greater load. This additionally corresponds to what IceWhale states for the Zimaboard.
Pros
+sensible all-in-one design
+many connections
+passively cooled
+low consumption
+clear CasaOS with Docker
+additionally invites newcomers to experiment
Cons
–few apps in the shop
–PCIe slot doesn’t match optimally for a lot of playing cards
–Hardware transcoding solely up to 1080p
Experimenters and even newcomers will benefit from the Zimaboard. It presents an unbelievable variety of potentialities that invite you to mess around and try issues out, as a result of tasks might be carried out comparatively shortly and simply. With minimal obstacles you may learn quite a bit with the Zimaboard, simply making an attempt issues out, the entry barrier is low. In this manner, nearly anybody with a little analysis can implement a media server, cloud server, gaming server or numerous different tasks with the Zimaboard.
The Zimaboard is silent, trendy, versatile, simple to use and invites experimentation. With the straightforward CasaOS you can shortly implement your individual server tasks.
Of course, the processor is now not up to date, even when the efficiency is significantly better than on the Raspberry Pi. But the CPU continues to be from 2016, IceWhale might replace their board, perhaps there can be a brand new era of Zimaboards quickly (in accordance to IceWhale most likely on the finish of the yr). And the PCIe slot shouldn’t be optimally aligned, in order that the slot bracket interferes with numerous enlargement playing cards and has to be eliminated, additionally in order not to cowl the MiniDP port.
The Zimaboard is on the market in three variants at Zimaboard.com. The weakest one begins at round 120 US {dollars}, the medium model prices round 160 US {dollars} and our check mannequin with the very best options prices round 200 US {dollars}.
Transparency
The current overview pattern was made obtainable to the creator as a mortgage by the producer or a store for the needs of overview. The lender had no affect on this overview, nor did the producer obtain a duplicate of this overview earlier than publication. There was no obligation to publish this overview.
A C64 marked my entry into the world of PCs. I spent my pupil internship in the restore division of a pc store and on the finish of the day I used to be allowed to assemble my very own 486 PC from “workshop remnants”. As a results of this, I later studied pc science on the Humboldt University in Berlin, with psychology additionally being added to my research. After my first job as a analysis assistant on the college, I went to London for a yr and labored for Sega in pc recreation translation high quality assurance. This included engaged on video games comparable to Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed and Company of Heroes. I’ve been writing for Notebookcheck since 2017.
Translator: Ninh Ngoc Duy – Editorial Assistant – 313711 articles printed on Notebookcheck since 2008
My major duty as an editorial assistant is sustaining the Library part, which aggregates critiques from different publications and channels. In addition, my every day breakfast is Notebookcheck’s lengthy listing of latest content material, which I comb by to choose essentially the most attention-grabbing subjects for translation from English to French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Dutch.”
Christian Hintze, 2023-06-25 (Update: 2023-06-25)
…. to be continued
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