Atomic PI -- Server Hardware

[edwindrood]

I would like to know if anybody has any experience installing 3CX on Debian 9 on the Atomic PI hardware.
I have just purchased an Atomic Pi from Digital Loggers.
I see that they have them without the eMMC onboard for US $32.50.

My end-goal is to have a small 3CX SBC installed in each remote branch office supporting less than 10 phones each. I realize that I could use a "Raspberry Pi 3B", but I think I would get a better solution with Atomic Pi.

Pros:

• Boards are cheap (being liquidated). These have nothing to do with Raspberry Pi AT ALL.
• They are x86 compatible (Intel Atom Processor -- runs Windows or x86 Linux)
• Regular BIOS supports booting from USB
• Massive heat-sink -- May never need a fan to cool.
• Currently they are being sold from a variety of sources.

Cons:

• Limited supply of these. (This specific board is not being currently manufactured.)
• No suitable hardware case available. (perhaps I will need to "fabricate" something.
• Only two USB ports. Only One USB connector "Ready to Go" (other is 4-pin header)

I am open to other ideas for small cheap reliable computers (to use as SBC in remote offices).

If nobody posts to this thread, I will post later with results of my testing on loading SBC on Debian 9 to be able to boot from an external USB hard drive.

 

[cobaltit]

I don't really see how this is a better solution than a Raspberry Pi which you can get anywhere but to each their own.

As far as if they will work, this should answer the question:

https://www.3cx.com/docs/recommended-hardware-specifications-for-3cx/

 

[BrenttG]

Some people prefer to try and force a square peg into a round hole, and then when it doesnt go smoothly, rather than going back and getting a round peg, they instead go looking for a bigger hammer.

You can only cheap out so far before you sacrifice reliability.

If you want a small piece of hardware, that is guaranteed to be debian 9 X86-64 compatible, and works amazingly well for an SBC, here is what we use, they are actually made of metal, the whole chassis is the heatsink, and you can have an SBC running in 10 minutes flat from unboxing, in includes 4 GB RAM, quad core Atom with AES-NI, and a 32 GB REAL MSATA SSD, not a eMMC, or SD Card, or any of that crap. The SSD and RAM are also replacable/upgradable, it uses Laptop DDR3, and mSATA SSDs.

https://www.amazon.com/Firewall-Mic...ld=1&keywords=protectli&qid=1592541249&sr=8-6

This same piece of hardware also works perfectly to run a debian 3cx server itself as well... but i would recommend a larger SSD for extra space for recordings, etc...

 

[edwindrood]

Thank you, BrenttG for your reply. This is exactly what I was hoping for. A small, fast, reliable computer. Our business is suffering financially, and the $319 price tag is a bit steep. I have until the first of the year to make any final decisions... so I will keep that Protectli Vault in mind. I hope I end up using those Protectlis instead of something cheap.

I LOVE raspberry pis. I do worry about the performance. I have another reason I don't want to use a raspberry pi (but I won't get into it right now).

Comparatively speaking... The PI 3 B+ is about the same cost as the "Atomic PI" but comes with 2GB DDR3L 1600 RAM and Intel Atom x5-Z8350 quad core CPU 1.9GHz USB 3.0.

I was thinking I might get more performance with this over the RPI. I just happen to own one one of these "Atomic" computers. I shall do some testing and perhaps later post some results. I might never put these in production -- but we shall see.

 

[BrenttG]

I LOVE raspberry pis. I do worry about the performance. I have another reason I don't want to use a raspberry pi (but I won't get into it right now).

Comparatively speaking... The PI 3 B+ is about the same cost as the "Atomic PI" but comes with 2GB DDR3L 1600 RAM and Intel Atom x5-Z8350 quad core CPU 1.9GHz USB 3.0.

I was thinking I might get more performance with this over the RPI. I just happen to own one one of these "Atomic" computers. I shall do some testing and perhaps later post some results. I might never put these in production -- but we shall see.

Just to make sure you don't take a wrong road, there are other protectli models that are cheaper, and feature Celeron CPUs, DO NOT use them, they are very slow, not worth your time. There are also I3 and I5 CPU models, these work fantastic and pack even more horsepower in the same size box, but are more expensive.

 

[edwindrood]

I have tested an "Atomic PI" set up as an SBC (standard -- not beta) on Version 16.

It works great and it is Cheap! This will probably be our solution. Only read this post if you are also going to test the Atomic PI with 3CX.

Once again, I just want to repeat that this has nothing to do whatsoever with Raspberry Pi (other than the low price). This has an Intel Atom quad-core CPU with 2GB RAM (PC3L 1600).

I have not installed Windows 10 -- only Debian 9.

Just to point out the Pros and Cons:

Pros:

• Single-Board computer costs under $40
• Runs Great as a 3CX SBC (Probably would work as small PBX)
• Has regular BIOS and runs 64-bit i386 architecture.
• Has eMMC 16GB internal Hard Drive
• Can boot from internal eMMC, SSD Card, USB Drive, or Network.

Cons:

• Although there are probably thousands of these in-stock, Aaeon will probably never make these boards again.

Caveats:
Problem #1) BIOS Settings Retension (cmos)

• Needs a new CMOS battery! Pretty much any one you pick up has been stored for a while and needs a new CR2032 battery on a pig-tail.
• There is no power switch on the board itself, so it just powers up when you plug it in. There is a button on the board that says "RTC Reset". If you press that button, the system reboots. HOWEVER, it is NOT a system reset switch -- it will reset all CMOS settings back to factory default (including TIME). Here is foolish me thinking it would simply reboot -- NOT.

Problem #2) Only Supports UEFI booting.
This was another "Gotcha" for me. I used balena Etcher to write the 3CX installer to an SD card.
I popped it in and it booted up. 3CX gave me a warning about booting from Hybrid mode and asked me if I wanted to continue with UEFI installation. HUH? I said yes and installed on an external USB drive. It would never boot from the USB Drive after initial configuration.
Here is Why:

• Etcher did not write the correct UEFI mode to the SD Card.
• There was already a clever UEFI partition on the internal eMMC that would look for an SD card at every boot and allow the SD card priority over the eMMC (never the external USB) --Always only booted from eMMC.

Here is what I did to fix the problem:

• I deleted all partitions from the internal eMMC hard drive. Although I could use that for the only drive, I want to rely on a USB 3.0 laptop hard drive instead.
• I put the 3CX iso onto the same SD card using Windows and Rufus instead (UEFI option)
• After installing to the external USB drive, I see it as an option in the BIOS boot menu now.

Problem #3) Extra parts needed.
As I mentioned, these are available from a variety of sources for under $40. (Sometimes $31 on Amzn)
Once you have the single-board computer, you will also need:

• A 5V 4A power adapter (plus goes on pins 3,5,7,9,11,13, minus on Pins 2,4,6,8,10,12,14 -- on connector on under-side of board)
• You can purchase a "Baby Breakout Board" to use for connecting power (2.5mm barrel connector)
• You can purchase a case or print one on a 3-D printer.
• You can purchase (or make) a USB cable for the second usb port. The board has a USB 3.0 port connector on board, but the second USB port requires a special cable (and is only USB 2.0)
• You can purchase WiFi antennas.
• The WiFi on board cannot be disabled in the BIOS. (it can be "ignored") The two standard tiny IPX connectors are for dual-band WiFi antennas -- but are not supplied when you buy the board.

All of the above are optional except for the Power Supply. If you are installing on the internal eMMC and only using ethernet, you could probably do well with only 2.5A. Power supply can range in price from $5 to $15

My total cost results may vary:

• Atomic Pi Board: $34
• CR2032 battery with pig-tail $2
• Baby Breakout board $9
• Case (with spot for Laptop Hard Drive) Free -- print on friends 3-D printer.
• Power Supply: $9
• Vantec USB3 to SATA adapter: $12
• Brand-New Laptop Hard Drive: $33

That ended up being US $99 total, but I think I am going a bit overboard with the external hard drive. Probably would work well and reliably on the internal 16GB eMMC Hard Drive.

 

[BrenttG]

Factor in the labor time you expended getting it all working, which any regular company tasking their employees with a task like this would have to pay them for, and you spent far more then the ready to use box's recommended above.

Combine that with the fact you show the client this pile of parts you have put together on the left, or this tiny little sleek black box on the right that even mounts on the wall nice and cleanly, which do you think they will opt for?

Think of it this way, I race cars in my free time, street cars, modified, and suped up. I could either go around to junk yards pulling apart engines, swapping around parts for months, and finagling together a Frankenstein style engine build and hope that it would work properly in the end.

Or i could order an engine purpose built for the job, ready to be dropped in, and tested, and warranted against pre-mature failure, and built up from there taking far less time, energy, and stress.

There are many ways to do a job, but there are very few right ways.