Budget SFF Recommendations for Windows based 3CX (15 extensions)

[Fred2k]

Hi,

I'm looking for recommendations for a SFF system to run a 3CX PBX on Windows (Standard Annual license).

Doesn't need to be too beefy as it will only be running ~15 extensions, no ISDN, 2 SIP trunks, was thinking Celeron or above and around 8GB RAM.

Before anyone says it, I have read this article but I was hoping for recommendations from 3CX users.

Budget would ideally be £300-£400 ($500)

Thanks

 

[Alphabetic]

Hi,

Have you had a look to see if a Pi would suit your needs?

https://www.3cx.com/blog/docs/raspberry-pi-pbx/

 

[Fred2k]

No, because I believe from what I've read I'll struggle to get Windows 10 installed on it. Was looking more at the Intel and Giagbyte NUCs

 

[Alphabetic]

Have you got a requirement for Windows 10?

 

[Fred2k]

Just that I know nothing about Linux, and a deadline to get the PBX operational so trying to keep my life simple!

 

[Alphabetic]

its really easy, I started off with no Linux knowledge and now all my 3CX deployments are linux either VM or Pi.

Give this a read and see how you feel https://www.3cx.com/docs/installing-pbx-raspberry-pi/

Once you're up and running I recommend PuTTY to SSH to the Pi and WinSCP to browse it like file explorer.

As long as you have backups you needn't worry. But, its your choice I suppose.

 

[Fred2k]

Thanks for the suggestion, I will look into it more.

What's so terrible about using Windows though - the additional overheads?

 

[Alphabetic]

Nothing really. But, Linux is free.

Plus there are Windows Updates which is another chore, scheduled reboots for these to apply. And If I have dedicated servers I can have as many Linux instances as I want vs. limited Windows installations meaning I make more ££ per dedicated server.

 

[JohnS_3CX]

No, because I believe from what I've read I'll struggle to get Windows 10 installed on it. Was looking more at the Intel and Giagbyte NUCs

The Raspberry Pi is strictly Linux (Raspbian). There is no 3CX edition for ARM-based Windows.

You can use late i3 or i5-based SFF but avoid avoid any lesser CPUs as you will probably want the device to last you a while.

 

[Chris-MBN]

Fred2k,

I have been running similar sized 3CX deployments on Dell OptiPlex Micro PCs and Windows 10 Pro since 2015. Machines with an Intel i3 and 4GB or 8GB and 128GB SSDs typically. They can be purchased for less than $500 US depending on the generation.

 

[Fred2k]

Chris-MBN: yes they look decent. Might go with the OptiPlex 3070.

Thanks for everyone's input