FCS is Apache web application that is working with PostgreSQL database server. Other than these it also uses a number of external software dependencies for various parts of its operation, which all have different requirements for RAM and/or CPU (some processes are CPU intensive, some require more RAM). 

Requirements

1. CPU
   • CPU is critical to overall operation of the server
   • It is required by many subsystems - database, software RAID, FCS
   • Minimum requirements for high performance server: 6 core CPU at 3.5GHz
2. Memory
   
   • System memory is primarily used by FCS and database
   • It is very important to use high quality memory to avoid data corruption
   • In the past we experienced on one occasion a catastrophic data corruption caused by bad RAM module
     • we managed to resolve this by restoring data from backups
     • this caused data loss of several hours because of our backups procedure at that time
   • Minimum requirements for high performances server: 64GB ECC RAM
3. Software RAID / Disk system
   • We recommend to use SSDs for database operations and HDDs to store user data (facts data) 
   • We setup software RAID for the following reasons:
     • It does not require expensive hardware controllers
     • It can work with different types of hard drives
     • In case of hardware failure it is possible to put hard drives in different server / disk controller and access the data (hardware RAID controllers are usually not interchangeable, in case of a controller failure it is necessary to replace it with the exact same model)
   • It is important to use high quality and high reliability SAS/SATA HDDs like Hitachi Ultrastar series
   • SSDs are generally much more reliable than HDDs and lower grade SSDs may also be used (consumer grade SSDs)
   • Chasis should have HDD trays that allow to easy replace failed HDDs/SSDs without shutting down the server
   • Minimum requirements for high performance server: HDD 2x3TB, SSD 2x256GB
   • Recommended requirements for high performance server: HDD 3x3TB, SSD 2x256GB
4. Chasis
   • For the purpose of high availability it is important to have dual PSU chasis
   • Each PSU should be connected to independent power source
   • Chasis should also have the possibility to replace failed PSU online (without shutting down the server)
5. Remote console
   • For the purpose of installation/maintenance/troubleshooting work it is important to be able to access the server console remotely
   • This is a requirement when we perform OS upgrades
   • It is recommended to also have the possibility to remotely mount CD/USB images
   • The type of the console is not important, it might be HP iLO, Dell DRAC, etc. or any other hardware solution for IP KVM
6. Operating system (for details concerning Software see: expl: A. Software Requirements (FCS) )
   • List of supported operating systems
     
     • Debian GNU/Linux Stretch (recommended)
     • Debian GNU/Linux Jessie
       
     • Ubuntu Server 16.04 LTS