Needs no bulk storage — a small boot SSD is enough. Spend the budget on CPU, RAM and network instead.
Hardware requirements by tier
Three tiers for every workload: the minimum that works, the recommended sweet spot, and the comfortable headroom level. These are the same tiers the WisePC decision engine uses when it plans a build around your goal.
| Tier | CPU cores | RAM | Storage | GPU | VRAM | Network |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | 2 cores | 2 GB | 0 TB (ssd) | None | — | 1 GbE |
| Recommended | 4 cores | 4 GB | 0 TB (ssd) | None | — | 2.5 GbE |
| Comfortable | 6 cores | 8 GB | 0 TB (ssd) | None | — | 10 GbE |
| Overkill | 10 cores | 13 GB | 0 TB (ssd) | None | — | 10 GbE |
Beyond Comfortable — 10 cores, 13 GB RAM, 0 TB (SSD): headroom you will never use for this workload alone. Put the difference into storage, backup or silence.
Recommended system shape
Derived by the decision engine from the recommended tier — the same logic that plans full builds.
Light requirements (4 threads, 4GB RAM) fit a sff prebuilt system — simpler and more efficient than building from parts.
One box or a separate machine?
Keep on the main serverLightweight always-on service — a separate system would add cost, energy and maintenance for no benefit.
Whether this workload deserves its own system or should live on the main server.
What will it cost?
Market-neutral EUR bands from the reference drive model (≈ = estimated street price). Live component prices resolve on the build page for your region.
Compute (CPU, board, RAM, GPU) is not included — see the recommended build for live prices.
Which tier do you need?
- Pick Minimum (2 cores, 2 GB RAM) only for a single-purpose machine on a tight budget — expect little headroom.
- Recommended (4 cores, 4 GB RAM) is the sweet spot: enough for the workload plus the usual side-services, without overspending.
- Pick Comfortable (6 cores, 8 GB RAM) when this workload shares the machine with others or will grow — you pay for headroom, not for anxiety.
- GPU rule for this workload: None.GPU rule for this workload: None (no discrete VRAM needed).
Also covered in this guide
Router / gateway
Routing, NAT, DNS for the home or lab network.
VPN
WireGuard/OpenVPN endpoint for secure remote access.
VLANs
Segmented network with VLAN-aware switching.
2.5GbE network
2.5 gigabit connectivity, great for fast network storage and backups.
