This is part 2 of my Gigabyte R281-T91 ARM64 server unboxing and installation. In this post we will be installing some basic hardware components so that the server can be booted up and have an operating system installed. I purchased this as a bare bones system from ThunderXForums.

A few days ago I did what most people would call an impulse buy for a very expensive wireless mechanical "gaming" keyboard. Even though the desire for this hardware has been prevalent for many years, this kind of keyboard has only recently started to become a reality. A year ago you'd have a lot of difficulty finding a keyboard with this combination of features. Razer is the latest to come out with there attempt at satisfying the needs of the market.

This is mostly going to be a visual post.  I will unbox my newest server, my first high powered ARM64 (aarch64) system.  It's a Cavium/Marvell 56-core ThunderX2 put together by Gigabyte and sold by ThunderXForums.  I have lots of experience with inexpensive ARM based single board computers.  The PineBook Pro, all types of Raspberry Pi's (including the 400), Pine64, Rock64, Orange Pi, Banana Pi, and even the ASUS Tinker Board.  Those are all fine low powered devices good for... well...

I've been using Plex Media Server (on FreeBSD of course) for several years. I had even signed up for the premium product... Plex Pass to support their work. Sadly a lot has changed in the past few years regarding Plex, and not all of it good. For about a year or two, it's no longer possible to even manage your server without signing into a Plex Account.

This is a complement to a related post on how to turn any printer into a network printer, but for a scanner. Using the same low-cost Raspberry Pi hardware you can scan over Ethernet or Wifi.