Mini ITX server rackmount 2U

Ideal for small home servers to mount in your network cabinet.
130h 28m
32× print file
0.15 mm
0.20 mm
0.40 mm
1701.00 g
322
662
2
12 k
updated August 12, 2023

Description

PDF

Intro

I've designed this case as a replacement for my current home server. The drive capacity has increased so much the last years, you need a lot less drives to get the same or more capacity. 
My current home server is already 10 years old and quite bulky. We had some space left in our network rack (30 cm depth) and I was seriously thinking about making the new homeserver fit in there somehow. Since I did not like the (limited available) cases I've found, the decision was made to create something myself.

It took me months of drawing and redrawing in Fusion 360 (currently at v203), but it fits like a glove now and I'm very happy with the result. It's even sturdier (sags less) than my Ubiquiti rackmount products!


Updates

  • 2023-08-12:
    The current setup is running for 2 months straight without any issue, so the durability and strength looks to be ok!
    I'm also designing a 1U extension unit for multiple HDD's due to the many requests I'm getting. It should just attach to the current parts.
  • 2023-06-15:
    A local heatwave is the perfect time to stresstest a system. During a long datatransfer session, I noticed that the harddrives were getting to hot for my liking (60°C) due to a lack of airflow. Therefor I've designed yet another set of pieces for this puzzle: a rear fan mount to pull air through the harddrives. No supports needed for the 3 new pieces. It bolts to the spare plate with 2 M3x16 screws.
  • 2023-06-11:
    Updated the walk through with more pictures of my own installation. Removed the work in progress notification since it's been completed and used in my own setup.
  • 2023-05-27 : 
    Added another version of the rear attachment (v2) that slides on and is tightened from outside. This one is easier to add while trying to mount it inside the network cabinet and have no access from behind. It makes use of the nut instead of a heat insert. 
    Tip: use some contactglue (just a small drop) to fixate the washer and nut so it does not spin while tightening the screw.
  • 2023-05-23 : 
    Added frontpanel with startbutton and usb (no oled).

Project constraints

I had some restrictions for myself and my hardware in this project:

  • It had to fit on a printbed of 18cm x 18cm (Prusa Mini+);
  • I did not want to use glue if possible: if you want to swap/upgrade a part of the puzzle, you should be able to do so;
  • It should make use of easily available hardware to bolt everything together. I mostly have M3 (and some M4) lying around, so those were used;
  • It had to fit 2U (8.88cm) in height;
  • It should adhere to the standards to mount in a rack. It makes it more universal for (re)use.

I ended up with quite a large, yet fun puzzle to make and everyone should be able to print it.

Dimensions

The rack itself has the following dimensions when finished:

  • Width: 
    • 487mm (outside with mounting brackets)
    • 440mm (outside, without mounting brackets. This needs to be able to fit between the 2 vertical rails of your network rack)
    • 427.9mm (inside usable space)
  • Height:
    • 88.106mm (outside)
    • 73.222mm (inside usable space)
  • Depth:
    • 302mm (front to back)

Required parts to print

Bottom

  • 1 x rackmount front IO
  • 1 x rackmount SSD
    • 1 x fan mount middle
    • 1 x SSD rack
    • (0 to 5) x SSD trays (5 max)
    • 1 x fan diffuser (optional)
  • 1 x rackmount HDD
    • 1 x HDD rack
    • (0 to 4) x HDD slide (2 per HDD)
  • 1 x rackmount PSU
    • 1 x PSU mount
  • 1 x rackmount MB/CPU
    • 4 x Motherboard PIN
  • 1 x rackmount SPARE
    • 1 x HDD rear FAN mount [added on 2023-06-15]
      • 1 x HDD rear FAN mesh
      • 4 x HDD rear FAN clip
  • 6 x bottom support bracket

Roof

  • 1 x roof front IO
  • 1 x roof SSD
  • 1 x roof HDD
  • 1 x roof PSU
  • 1 x roof MB/CPU
  • 1 x roof SPARE

Front/back

  • 1 x Front panel start (todo) / OLED
  • 4 x frontpanel regular
  • 1 x backpanel MB
  • 1 x backpanel MB-PCI
  • 1 x backpanel PSU

Optional

  • 2 x rackmount rear rackattachment V1/V2 [added on 2023-05-27] (optional)
    • You can additionally secure the case to the back pillars for added support.
  • 2 x rackmount front plate (optional but advised)
    • They serve to distribute the pressure of the M6 bolts so they don't break adhesion between layers.
    • The surface is smoother with this part and you can even change the color for added effect.

Notes:

  • The SPARE part has no useful purpose for me yet, so I designed it with a ‘hole’ floor so that I (or you for that matter, show me some extensions!) can add functionality. 
    Things that spring to mind are:
    • PCI extensions, 
    • an extra 60mm fan,
    • PiKVM location (which I really would like to do if the damn things were available somewhere).

Required assembly hardware

Things need to be bolted / glued together, so this is what you'll need extra.

  • 40 (at least) x M3 x 10
    • To bolt everything together
    • Washers M3 x 9 are optional but highly advised to distribute pressure!
  • 4 x M4 x 25
    • To bolt the back to the front.
    • M3 (with large washers) will also work.
  • 40 (at least) x M3 standard threaded inserts by CNC Kitchen
  • Some 6-32 screws to mount the PSU, 2.5 inch SSDs and/or 3.5 inch HDDs.
  • Contact glue for the roof
  • Startbutton
    • I used an R13-508 pushbutton with LED.
    • Some 22/24 AWG wire with terminators for motherboard pins.
  • (optional) USB 3.0 2x to MB header
    • I used a DeLock 82942.
    • Secured with 2 M3 x 10 with threaded inserts.
  • (optional) OLED display
    • I wanted to mimic the Unifi display, but with server specific data. So I used a Pico W and ESPHome with TrueNas Scale integration to display statistics.
    • OLED SSD1306 display
    • Raspberry PI Pico W
    • Molex splitter to manhandle into a Pico W.

I'll update this list when forgotten parts come to mind.

Fits the following computer components

  • 1 x mini ITX motherboard
  • 1 x TFX power supply
  • 5 x SSD (2.5 inch drives)
  • 2 x HDD (3.5 inch drives)
  • front USB 3.0 plugs
  • 1 or 2 x 60mm intake fans

Due to the height you can use the stock cooler or even fit a custom, low profile one (Noctua NH-L9i in my case)

Printing

Oh boy, you'll need some time and filament for this, but it's worth it :)


First off:
DONT use the GCODE files and slice the models yourself! 
They are only added to give a rough time and material indication for the total project.

Basically, I used the following settings for everything to print, but some small deviations might be present (see included 3mf files).

For the large parts

  • Material:
    • PETG for strength purposes. 
    • It might work with PLA(+).
  • Perimeters
    • 4 perimeters for the case itself;
    • 3 perimeters for internal components.
  • 0.20mm layer height with 0.4 nozzle (the only nozzle size I have)
    • I played it safe with these settings. You could use more height or use a larger nozzle, but I can not vouch for the rigidity.
  • 5 top layers, 4 bottom layers 
  • 10% gyroid infill.
  • Solid infill threshold area : 40mm²
  • No skirt (heatbed size restriction for mini)
  • 3mm brim to avoid detaching / curling.
    • Your miles may vary here. Some parts worked flawlessly without brim, others would curl up, especially corners of larger bottom pieces.
  • Use the autopaint supports feature in PrusaSlicer 2.6+ to generate supports, they work marvelous.
  • Support style snug (less cleanup)

Since this project uses a lot of plastic and I only had 1kg of each color, I decided to split up the parts in multiple colors. So you can chose what color you use for the visible parts (when looking at the rack) (Prusament Jet black PETG in my case) and invisible parts (Prusament Orange PETG). 
The internal components are printed in Prusament PETG Urban Grey to be complete.

For the front and backpanels

  • Material:
    • PETG or PLA(+) should all work. 
    • I don't expect the PSU to give out heat in excess of 50°C, but that is something I still need to evaluate.
  • 2 perimeters
  • 0.15mm layer height makes the gyroid look beter
  • No top or bottom layers
  • Infill:
    • 15% gyroid infill
    • Full infill or all top/bottom layers for the screwhole (PrusaSlicer modifier)

Be mindful of the gyroid orientation or you might end up with 1 (or more) front/backpanels that do not have the same line direction.

Multi color notes
I left the filament changes in the 3MF/GCODE files, so be mindful of those if you want to print in 1 color!

Assembly

Another fun part!

  1. Put all the bottom parts and roof parts together like a big puzzle. Everything should fit relatively smoothly. Everything has good tolerances? Great! Now disassemble it again.


     
  2. Add the bottom brackets and build up piece by piece while securing them with M3 x 10 and  (optional) washers. The nut should be at the bottom so the bolt doesn't hit anything later on like the motherboard.



     
  3. Add the M4 (or M3) bolts to fix the front and back together. Max length of the bolt should be 25mm! It will hit the harddrives later on if they are longer!
    Congratulations, the base is ready and should be relatively stable already.
    The true strength of this case comes from the accessories that joins the roof and bottom together. So lets continue to stiffen up the box.


     
  4. Let's do the threaded inserts now. There are many of them to sink in. Get yourself a soldering iron and get melting! Melt the insert down for about 90% and push the rest with a screwdriver until it's flat. Don't forget the base and roof parts!


     
  5. Now add the motherboard pins and the SSD-rack. These will strengthen the base significantly to the point you can carry it with 1 hand.


     
  6. I wanted to avoid this step, but I decided to do it anyway. I've glued the roof parts all together. I still might redesign it with the same mechanics like the base part, but since the room inside the case is at a premium and the roof itself has no real load on it, it should suffice. 
    I was also afraid that should one of the nuts/bots ever come lose due to vibrations, it would fall on the fan/motherboard with (potential) devastating results.
    After glueing (and waiting 24h to cure) it will give you a rigid plate that will add yet another bit off rigidity to the box.



     
  7. Now you can add the last pieces to the bottom: PSU mount, FAN mount, HDD rack and optionally the rear attachments. You can start testfitting other components now!


     
  8. From here on, you can fit your own parts in the order you want. I did my startbutton/USB ports/OLED screen first and then started to add components in.
    The startbutton slides in from the side and is secured with it's own fastener. It is a bit pressed in by default, but it should not short the pins (like an actual push). Measure this with your own multimeter to be sure! 
    Since the plastic in front is very thin, you can push the button properly, yet have a custom button face. I really like it, especially when the led is on.



    After some soldering, I've got a completed (and working!) front panel with startbutton with led, usb ports and information OLED screen/Pico W piggy bagging from the 5V PSU rail.




    Note: I did end up NOT using the OLED. My soldering iron had an unfortunate encounter with the screen while trying to resolder a wire :(
     
  9. Next up the fan



    Optionally add the diffuser to direct the flow away from the ATX 24-PIN/RAM. You can't miss, add it with the ‘top’ text facing up. Use some spare M5 screws if you have any.


     
  10. Next up : Motherboard and PSU
    Tip: you can hide unused or excess cables between the PSU and the outer wall, giving you a bit more room between the frontpanel en PSU.


     
  11. Optionally assemble the HDD rear FAN mount by screwing in the fan, placing the mesh into the mount and secure it with the 4 clips. This will prevent any cable from being chewed up by the fan.





    Add the HDD rear FAN mount to the spare plate on the first row of holes near the harddrives. It's secured with 2 M3 x 16 screws with a washer on both sides.
     
    Since this part is sandwiched between the bottom plate, the roof and the sidewall, it will create a separated enclosure and force the fan to pull air through the harddrives and thus cooling them. It dropped my temperatures with more than 20°C!
    Be careful that you don't pinch the SATA data and/or power cables. There is a small hole in the side to pass them through.


     
  12. Add the storage like 2.5inch SSD's and 3.5 inch HDD's. You will need to attach them with the appropriate screws (6-32). Don't use M3 here since it will destroy the thread!


     
  13. You'll have to do some cable management, but now you can get to the disks from the front if one is defective without removing the full rack. Neat right?
    You can run cables underneath the motherboard and use zipties at the HDD rack or use the holes in the spare rack part.
    If you are using the rear fan mount, be mindful of the latches/clips for the mesh when managing the cables. You might accidentally hit them and thus releasing the mesh.


     
  14. Add both rear attachments if you want to use them. Use a v2 rear attachment at one side if you don't have full access to the rear of the rack. This way you can slide the case in the rack and reattach the rear part from the side.


     
  15. Add the roof and secure them with M3x10 (or longer if you ran out of 10mm).
     
  16. Add the front and backpanels and secure them with M3x10. Don't use much force on the screws in the front and back. Their only function is to prevent the plate from falling out. They serve no structural or strength purpose.
    Once everything is assembled, you'll notice that the box is quite rigid now.




    Note: the cable at the back is a 4-pin fan connector extension cable that will run a couple of Noctua fans in my network cabinet. The speed is being controlled by the motherboard.
     
  17. Assembly done! You are ready to place it in your rack.
    1. Slide the unit in from the front. Make sure 1 rear attachment is a V2 part if you have no access from behind and make sure its NOT attached now.
    2. Connect everything up: power, USB, ethernet,…
    3. Screw in the front screws. Don't forget the front plate to distribute the pressure! 2 screws per side is sufficient.
    4. Screw in the back screws. 1 of them was more then enough in my case. Attach the v2 attachment to the case first off course, if required.
    5. Done! 

Support
If you appreciate my effort, go ahead and give this design a like and share it with your friends! Any donation is also much appreciated to cover the filament costs. 
I hope you'll have as much fun out of this as I did designing, printing and assembling this case and server. 

Bonus tip: get some extra PTFE tubes for your hotend if you use a Prusa Mini because printing for tens of hours with PETG is apparently not beneficial for the device. I had to troubleshoot and replace my hotend PTFE tube in the process of this print.

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The author marked this model as their own original creation.

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