[Beowulf] another crazy idea

[Douglas Eadline]

Not so crazy.

Years ago I had some L shaped pieces of steel made that allowed
nodes to slide in horizontally as you describe (and for the same
reasons). It provided enough of a lip to support the node
that was attached normally on the front. Actually I still have
them in part of my server rack (in the closet in my home office).
Every once and a while I may need to test a node or two and
I just slide them in, no messing with rails or anything.

--
Doug




> in the spirit of Friday, here's another, even less realistic idea:
> let's slide 1U nodes into a rack on their sides, and forget the
> silly, fussy, vendor-specific, not-that-cheap rail mechanism entirely.
>
> how often do you actually pull out nodes, and of those few times,
> how often do you really need the node suspended in space by the rails?
>
> if I'm going to pull a node, I usually take it to a bench or cart
> where it's more convenient/pleasant to work on.  I wouldn't mind if
> the nodes were stacked side-by-side, supported by a couple stout bars.
> being able to shove nodes around within a stack wouldn't be bad.
> if the metal-on-metal slide sounds aversive to you, lube it up,
> or stick some teflon pads in there.
>
> heck, it would be harder to charge $1000 for an empty rack, too.
>
> nodes could still be bolted in place.  there might even be some minor
> advantages in avoiding unintended air circulation/mixing.
>
> regards, mark.
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--
Doug

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