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Minisforum MS-03

Home Lab, Virtualization, Edge AI / Local LLM Inference, Network Appliance (Router/Firewall), NAS, Compact Workstation

Overview

The Minisforum MS-03 is the successor to the popular MS-01 compact server, built on Intel's Core Ultra Series 3 (Panther Lake) platform. It upgrades networking to dual 10GbE SFP+ plus a 10GbE RJ45 and a 2.5GbE RJ45, while supporting up to 128GB DDR5 memory, triple M.2 NVMe storage with U.2 enterprise SSD capability, and a 50 TOPS NPU for running large language models locally. It is positioned as an edge AI mini workstation for home labs, virtualized infrastructure, local AI inference, and network appliances.

Key Highlights

  • Four-port networking: dual 10GbE SFP+ (Intel X710), a 10GbE RJ45 (Realtek RTL8127), and a 2.5GbE RJ45 (Intel i226-LM) — an upgrade over the MS-01
  • Intel Core Ultra 9 386H (Panther Lake) with 50 TOPS NPU, running 35B local LLMs at up to ~22 tokens/s for edge AI
  • Up to 128GB DDR5 memory and triple M.2 NVMe storage (two PCIe 5.0 x4 + one PCIe 4.0 x1), plus U.2 enterprise SSD support via included adapter
  • PCIe x16 expansion slot (electrically 4.0 x4) for low-profile network adapters, HBAs, storage controllers, or accelerators
  • Intel vPro remote management and dual USB4 40Gbps ports (Thunderbolt 4 controller) for unattended IT deployment and high-speed peripherals

Video

Technical Specifications

Brand Minisforum
Model Minisforum MS-03
Processor (CPU) Intel Core Ultra 9 386H (Panther Lake, Core Ultra Series 3, 16 cores / 16 threads: 4 P-cores + 8 E-cores + 4 LP E-cores, up to 4.9 GHz, 25W base / 80W max turbo) — also available with Intel Core Ultra 5 336H
Graphics (GPU) Intel Graphics (Xe-LPG, 4 cores, up to 2.1 GHz), with up to 50 TOPS NPU (Int8) for local AI inference
Memory (RAM) 2x DDR5 SO-DIMM slots, dual-channel, DDR5-5600/6400/7200 MT/s (ships at 5600MT/s), up to 128GB
Storage 3x M.2 NVMe slots: 2x M.2 2280 PCIe 5.0 x4, 1x M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 x1; U.2 enterprise SSD support via included M.2-to-U.2 adapter
Ports & I/O Front: 1x USB-A 3.2 Gen2 (10Gbps) 2x USB-A 2.0 1x 3.5mm Audio Jack; Rear: 1x low-profile PCIe x16 slot (electrically PCIe 4.0 x4) 2x USB4 (40Gbps DP Alt Mode Thunderbolt 4 controller) 2x USB-A 3.2 Gen2 (10Gbps) 1x HDMI 2.1 2x 10GbE SFP+ 1x 10GbE RJ45 1x 2.5GbE RJ45 1x DC-in (19V)
Connectivity Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0
Network Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0, Dual 10G SFP+ + 10G RJ45 + 2.5G RJ45
Operating System Windows 11 Pro (config dependent), supports Windows 11 Pro and Linux (Ubuntu, Proxmox VE)
Dimensions 196 x 189 x 48 mm (7.72 x 7.44 x 1.89 in)
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