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Building a new Computer Forensics Workstation

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(@redcellsecurity)
Eminent Member
Joined: 19 years ago
Posts: 37
Topic starter  

I have decided to build a new CF workstation. What features do you recommend?

I am thinking that I would like the following

4 GB of RAM
removable hard drive caddies with built-in write blockers
Intel Dual Core CPU

Please comment and criticize! Actual experience and feedback would be appreciated, along with actual hard ware recommendations such as brand and model numbers… thanks. The more details, the better!


   
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(@armresl)
Noble Member
Joined: 21 years ago
Posts: 1011
 

Dell M1710 laptop.

Incredibly fast, can have a nice RAID config, I've not had a problem since they first rolled off the line.


   
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(@redcellsecurity)
Eminent Member
Joined: 19 years ago
Posts: 37
Topic starter  

Thanks… how much RAM in yours? Specs? Thanks.


   
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Alan
 Alan
(@alan)
Trusted Member
Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 53
 

I have decided to build a new CF workstation. What features do you recommend?

I have just finished building our CF computer the sepcs are-

Supermicro H8DCE Dual processor montherboard
Key Features
1. Dual AMD® Opteron™ Support,
(Dual Core Ready)
1000 MHz HyperTransport Link
2. nVidia® nForce Pro 2200 (CK804) /
nVidia® nForce Pro 2050 (CKIO4)
Chipset
3. Up to 16GB DDR400 SDRAM (or)
Up to 16GB DDR333 SDRAM (or)
Up to 32GB DDR266 SDRAM
4. Dual-port Gigabit
LAN / Ethernet Controller
5. 8 SATA ports
6. 2 (x16) PCI-Express,
2 (x4 using x8 slot) PCI-Express,
3 32-bit 33MHz PCI
7. AC97 6 channel Audio
8. 8 Fan support with Speed Control

2 x AMD Opteron processors (Dual-Core 275 / 2.2 GHz - Socket 940)
4 GB memory
Tableau Forensic Drive Bay Controller Model T335
Belkin Firewire 800 cards
6 x removable drive carriers
1TB disk storage (RAID)

I am still burining it in but from some inital testing its seems to be very quick.

Alan


   
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Jamie
(@jamie)
Moderator
Joined: 5 years ago
Posts: 1288
 

Alan,

Would you be able to disclose (either publicly or via PM) a ballpark figure for the total cost of your new rig?

Cheers,

Jamie


   
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Alan
 Alan
(@alan)
Trusted Member
Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 53
 

Alan,

Would you be able to disclose (either publicly or via PM) a ballpark figure for the total cost of your new rig?

Cheers,

Jamie

Hi Jamie,

I'm happy to give you the full cost broken down, I'll need to do this over the weekend as I am currently on a client site.

Alan


   
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Jamie
(@jamie)
Moderator
Joined: 5 years ago
Posts: 1288
 

Thanks Alan, much appreciated!

Cheers,

Jamie


   
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deckard
(@deckard)
Trusted Member
Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 77
 

maybe i've missed it, but what case did you use for this monster?

Bill


   
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Alan
 Alan
(@alan)
Trusted Member
Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 53
 

maybe i've missed it, but what case did you use for this monster?

Bill

Coolmaster CMStacker 810


   
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Alan
 Alan
(@alan)
Trusted Member
Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 53
 

Alan,

Would you be able to disclose (either publicly or via PM) a ballpark figure for the total cost of your new rig?

OK here we go….

Coolmaster stacker 810 EATX case £109.00
Enermax INFINITI 700 watt PSU £119.00
Supermicro H8DCE motherboard £202.51
Cricial memory 4 x 1GB £70.99 = £283.96
Belkin Firewire 800 and USB 2.0 card £84.59
Tableau Forensic Drive Bay Controller Model T335 £235.00 (purchased from the USA)
2 x AMD Opteron 275 dual core £149.00 x 2 = £298.00
256mb Leadtek PX7600GT graphics card £77.00
3 x DATA Port SATA drive carriers (complete assembly) £23.70 (purchased from the USA)
3 x DATA Port IDE drive carriers (complete assembly) £20.10 (purchased from the USA)
4 x Maxtor 250GB SATAII 8MB cache hard drives £34.99 = £136.96
Windows XP SP2 OEM £72.67
BENQ FP241W 24" LCD Monitor £519.42

The DVD RW and the floppy disk I ripped from an old machine.

I Think that it… All prices are in GBP and exclude VAT
The 24" monitor is a God send as I can have cases and notes open at once, but you could use a two monitor setup for less.

I used 4 x 1GM memory modules because each CPU has a seperate memory controller and I put 2GB in each of the two banks.

The Belkin 800 firewire card is really fast, it has one internal port which was ideal for attaching the Tableau Forensic Drive Bay Controller.

One thing to note is that Windows XP only sees 3GB of memory!!

Alan


   
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