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this post was submitted on 20 Dec 2025
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Privacy
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I don't think you have to worry about security with old(er) computers that have been reassigned to be a server. You're going to most likely be running an up-to-date Linux OS, and as long as you keep everything updated, you shouldn't have any issues. Couple that with security deployments, and I think you will be good.
The problem is that very old computers are not as efficient when it comes to electricity to run them. Will it run your power bill up an extra $100+/month. Probably not. I would stay clear of old enterprise equipment because they definitely are power hogs. It really depends on how expensive electricity is in your local. For me, it's relatively cheap. I think I saw an increase of about $25 which is probably a nominal amount that most people would spend on a hobby.
Wouldn't that efficiency thing largely depend on what silicon you're using though? Like, for example, if you have an old AM1 board sitting around, those are 25W APUs and shouldn't use anywhere near that if used as the base for a router.
Meanwhile if you're using, say, an AM3+ board and an FX-4300 for your router, the FX-4300 is a 95W part and more likely to cost more to run by contrast to, say, the Athlon 5350's 25W on AM1.
I would think so, but anecdotally, I didn't see a horrific rise in electrical costs. Most of my equipment is 5 to 10 years old. Some people spend way more on their hobbies so I figured my costs were in-bounds. If you are in a locale where electricity is at a premium, yeah, I'd probably want equipment more modern that has less power consumption. If OP did a little diffing around on ebay, they could probably pick up a dual nic, small form factor, fanless for pretty cheap.