Lolight

The $3.99 listing sold out, but the seller just relisted the last 30 units or so. Keep in mind the price has jumped to $13.99

@SpencerJ ?

It would be perfect timing for you to upgrade to a durable industrial USB flash drive at the minimum cost. I'd suggest buying today - the stock is about to run out. https://forums.unraid.net/topic/199642-psa-on-industrial-mlc-usb-boot-drives-mlc-nand-end-of-life-and-last-accessible-stock

That SSD enclosure setup was definitely a clever hack back in the day, but I think you have a misconception about how Unraid uses the flash drive compared to a regular PC OS. Unlike Windows or Linux, Unraid runs entirely out of RAM -- meaning the drive is basically idling 99% of the time. It only writes tiny configuration files when you save settings, so it doesn't experience the wear and tear or degradation of a standard OS drive. All those horror stories about failing USB drives just come from people buying cheap, low-quality plastic sticks out of the bargain bin. You don't need to overcomplicate it with an SSD setup. If you just grab a proper, high-quality industrial USB flash drive, you'll get rock-solid reliability without risking future boot issues or TPM licensing headaches.

May I ask why? Asking cause I've never heard of anyone else using the same configuration. Since you're already swapping out the motherboard and having to deal with the license transfer anyway, it might be a great time to just ditch the SSD-in-a-USB-enclosure setup and switch back to a quality industrial USB flash drive. That way you won't have to worry about future updates breaking things or running into these weird boot device issues again.

Solid decision. Just sit tight and see what happens. If component prices keep skyrocketing over the next few years, it'll totally obliterate the consumer hardware market completely. But hey, I'm sure it's totally sustainable long-term to price out 99% of your retail customer base. Something's gotta give eventually. Until then, definitely don't hand your hard-earned cash over to those greedy memory giants who are currently swimming in so much cash they're handing out half-million-dollar bonuses to line workers. Let them eat their Lamborghinis while the rest of us try to make our current PCs last until the next decade.

It might not be completely bricked. Try this. Even if the SSD is completely inaccessible now, it may have overheated or hit a firmware controller crash. Power down your server completely, unplug the power cable, and let the SSD sit unpowered and cool down for at least half an hour. Plug the SSD into a Linux machine (or boot into a Linux Live USB) and check if the OS can actually see the drive by running lsblk from terminal. If the drive shows up as 0GB, uninitialized, or with a generic Phison/Silicon Motion fallback name, the SSD controller has suffered a firmware panic/brick. Software tools won't help in this case. If it wakes up even momentarily, do not try to boot Unraid normally. Immediately plug in an external drive and use ddrescue to dump a raw image of the dying SSD before it locks up again.

Those Google results are AI generated summaries based on general knowledge rather than actual hardware verification -- which is exactly the problem with Sandisk's locked proprietary controllers. Nobody can confirm what's inside without opening the drive physically and then deciphering components markings which by itself is not an easy task since Sandisk is not exactly known for info sharing. The summaries may be accurate for that model line generally but can't account for the component swaps SanDisk has made over production runs without changing model numbers. Your decade of reliable operation is the best evidence you have -- and it's actually pretty good evidence for that specific component set.

Hey Richard. When replacing the SanDisk -- there's a surplus listing on eBay right now for industrial MLC Innodisk drives at $3.99 Much more durable than consumer drives. https://forums.unraid.net/topic/199642-psa-on-industrial-mlc-usb-boot-drives-mlc-nand-end-of-life-and-last-accessible-stock/

Good call on stocking up -- and thanks for confirming the $3 offer floor. That's useful for anyone still on the fence. At $3 per unit for industrial MLC there's essentially no reason to hesitate regardless of how many systems you currently run.

Interesting that USB 3.0 worked when USB 2.0 didn't -- that's the reverse of the usual pattern here. If it's a USB 3.0 drive running in a USB 3.0 port you've solved the immediate boot problem but may be creating a longer term one -- USB 3.0 drives in USB 3.0 ports run significantly hotter. You could run a quick test to isolate the problem. Grab a different USB 3.0 drive. Download a fresh copy of the Unraid trial and write it to this test drive. Shut down the Unraid server completely. Unplug the original Unraid flash drive. Plug the newly created test USB drive into the same USB 2.0 port that you were trying to use before. Power the server back on and see if it boots up successfully. When it boots up, you'll need to find its new IP address. If the server boots up successfully: this proves the motherboard, the USB 2.0 port, and the OS version are all working fine. It confirms the issue is specifically isolated to the original flash drive (likely a failing controller). If it fails to boot: the problem lies deeper within the motherboard's USB handling, BIOS settings, or the new OS kernel's interaction. When the test is done, simply shut down the server, unplug the test drive, and plug the original drive back in. The data is completely untouched on the hard drives, and everything will be right back where you started.

You're spot on for being suspicious -- the PSU is easily the most overlooked component in a system, right up until it causes trouble. It is always a smart idea to replace a very old PSU before it actually fails. When it finally dies, it doesn't always go quietly -- it can take your other components with it. That said, don't just rush out and grab the first bargain bin power supply you see. Quality matters a ton here. Definitely check out the PSU Tier lists before buying anything to make sure you're picking up something safe and reliable. Choose at least C-Tier or better. https://tuerie.github.io/psu-tier-list/ https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1akCHL7Vhzk_EhrpIGkz8zTEvYfLDcaSpZRB6Xt6JWkc/edit?gid=1719706335#gid=1719706335

Corsair PSU models use three different types of cables. As a general rule of thumb, you should always swap out all the cables and use the new ones that come with your new power supply even if of the same brand. You only can leave the existing cables in place if both your old PSU and your new PSU use the exact same cable generation (for example, replacing an old Corsair RM750x Type 4 with a new Corsair RM850x Type 4).

Update on the Innodisk 3ME USB flash drive on ebay. After appearing to sell out earlier yesterday the drive has been relisted. The seller has confirmed approximately 200 units remaining. At the current depletion pace -- accelerated by recent bulk orders -- this is the genuine final window. The last bulk order placed on July 22nd was for 171 unit. eBay item 327273841855 -- $3.99 per unit. For anyone who saw this thread and didn't act yet -- this is the last realistic opportunity.

That's a more precise framing from both of you and worth acknowledging. The probabilistic argument is fair -- unverified AI output is a real problem and the temptation to skip verification exists. That's a legitimate quality concern. But there's a difference between "AI output often has quality problems therefore disclose and verify" and "AI formatting is obvious therefore suspect." The first is a reasonable quality standard. The second is what's being applied here -- style as a proxy for quality rather than actual evaluation of the content. The disclosure at the end of my post was exactly what MowMdown is now describing as acceptable -- AI used for assistance, result revised and verified, transparently disclosed. If that's the standard then ReginaldBull should never have been turned away from the repo.