Vmware host. What would you recommend?

[vern96]

Good evening-

I am looking to build a box that will run Windows and Vmware workstation. I want to use this box to build all kinds of virtual machines so that I can learn different Os's (namely Linux) and also learn how to setup various servers (DNS, Apache, etc)

I do want the flexibility to upgrade this computer if/when I am done using it as a learning tool.

I am not into gaming, or video editing, but am into digital music.

Any recommendations for Mobos, memory amount, CPU, HD.... etc?

Any info is appreciated!

[The Wise Monkey]

You're going to need lots of memory to run VMWare properly - I'd recommend 4GB, which means you'll need a 64-bit OS. Vista 64-bit seems to be the majority choice at the moment.

You should also think about a quad-core CPU, as running emulations of OSs is very processor intensive. The Q6600 from Intel is probably the best bang-for-buck at the moment. Either that, or go for the E6750 dual-core CPU, which is probably the best dual-core at the moment in terms of price-performance ratio.

If you are into music like you say, you may want to spend a bit more than usual on a sound card and speaker setup. The Creative X-Fi Platinum series is one of the best available at the moment.

Hope this helps. :)