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SBC-selection for Zabbix proxy
This short document describes and compares two selected Single Board Computers (SBC's) wich are capable of running Zabbix proxy.
There are only two SBC's documented as these are the top picks of previous comparisons not mentioned in this document.
Table of Contents
1 Purpose
In order to run a Zabbix proxy, there needs to be a compute module where it can be run on. A Raspberry Pi could be a perfect example of this. However, the downsides of a Raspbarry Pi are the following:
- SD-card: once the SD-card reaches its max read/writes, the Zabbix database can no longer function properly and makes the Zabbix proxy corrupt.
- USB: Running the database alternatively on an external USB-stick can be an option. However, once the USB is removed at any point in time, the Zabbix proxy will again be corrupt.
The upside is that a Raspberry Pi can operate on POE using the POE-hat.
Running the device on POE makes it plug & play capable.
1.1 Solution
To prevent the device configuration to get corrupted, there need to be some prerequisites for future purchased devices.
Prerequisites;
- Device has onboard storage (eMMC or equivalent) with a minimum capacity of 8Gb
- Device supports POE-power
- Device has minimum 2Gb of RAM
- Device has onboard Wifi support (nice to have)
2 Raspberry Pi computing module (CM4 - ARM based)
| Figure 1: RPi - Compute Module 4 |
(Buy on SOS-solutions).
The regular Raspberry Pi 4 does not support onboard storage. Therefore, the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 is a candidate.
It supports 8 to 32Gb of onboard eMMC-storage and has 1 to 8Gb of LPDDR4 SDRAM with a quad-core CPU.
The compute module has a cost of €93,70 at the time of writing for the top-spec (8Gb RAM, 32Gb eMMC).
Because of high demand, the mid-tier spec (4Gb RAM, 16Gb eMMC) is not available.
In adition to the module itself, there needs to be a base-board wich provides the IO and a POE to convert the 48V-POE to 5V.
The board featured in the below image (Figure 2) adds a cost of €51,50 at the time of writing.
| Figure 2: RPi - Compute Module 4 IO-board (from WaveShare) |
(Buy on Amazon).
Caution! Not all IO-boards natively have POE-support!
An alternative to the board mentioned above (Figure 2) could be the TOFU-board, it is more compact but, still requires an extra POE-hat and is more expensive.
Final cost overview (CM4):
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Compute Module | €93,70 |
| IO-board | €51,50 |
| Total cost | €145,20 |
references: CM4, IO-board
3 Pico-ITX AL05P (Intel based)
| Figure 3: Pico-ITX - AL05P (model BC-23E30) |
(Buy on DFI-store).
This SBC has native POE-support for 48V.
It contains an Intel Atom X5-3930 dual-core processor and has 2 to 4Gb of DDR4 RAM.
Next to that, it has a capacity of 16 to 64Gb onboard eMMC-storage.
(Full datasheet can be viewed here).
According to Intel's roadmap, it has a supported CPU Life Cycle of 15 years.
Price for this product (model BC-23E30) from manufacturer site self is $341.
This comes down to €319,67.
reference: Pico-ITX - AL05P
4 Khadas VIM3 (basic)
The device ("basic" model) is similar in specifications (6core CPU, 2Gb RAM, 16Gb onboard eMMC-storage) to previous mentioned devices, howerver it also supports Wifi.
It still needs an extra module to work with POE. The extension board also adds support for SIM and provides extra M.2 slots.
However, if the board is connected via Wifi. This module is excesive (or rather a nice to have extra) to our setup.
The Khadas VIM3 (basic model) costs €140 and the extension board €51,63 at the time of writing.
| Figure 4: Khadas VIM3 |
(Buy from Khadas or AliExpres)
| Figure 5: Khadas VIM3 - extension board (POE, 2x M.2 add-on) |
(Buy from AliExpress)
This board has is the most powerfull for its price and connectivity when comparing to the previous mentioned boards. Reasontly the Khadas VIM4 whas announced and has an 8core CPU but, is a bit overkill for this project. Plus the Khadas VIM4 has a price bump of $100.
Final cost overview (Khadas VIM3):
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Khadas VIM3 | €140 |
| Extension-board | € 51,63 |
| Total cost | €191,63 |
reference: Khadas VIM3
Conclusion
Both options are great.
The CM4 is almost equal to the Intel board in terms of specifications and has a lower price tag (half of the Intel board).
However, when talking about the future, Intel comes out ahead and has a bonus of the 15y life cycle support. Next to that the Intel board is capable of running native Windows an can come in handy for potential future projects that need this functionality.
In the end, for a Zabbix proxy, the CM4 will perform perfectly fine with mid-tier specifications (4Gb RAM, 16Gb eMMC).
Last and not least, the Khadas is also a nice option with its 6core CPU, 2Gb RAM and 16Gb eMMC-storage for originally €5 more than the CM4 configuration.
But because there is a standard shipping cost, an extra €40 is added (already in price listed above).
Extra's
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