darkside40, uldise thanks for suggestions.

Hi everyone, I've done a bit of research and still not 100% sure what kind of SAS/SATA controller I should get. I need to expand my storage so I'm trying to find the best card that is compatible with the latest version of unRAID and doesn't introduce too much latency. I currently have a Gigabyte GA-Z87M-D3H mobo. I'm not currently using any virtualization and likely won't be in the future. 

 

From what I can tell from these forums a controller that doesn't have any RAID capabilities is preferred, am I correct? What's the verdict on the SuperMicro AOC-SAS2LP-MV8? Is it compatible with my mobo? Is there a better option in the same price range?

 

I guess a PCIE x8 is preferred over x2 or x4 so it doesn't create a bottleneck for parity sync? Anything else to be on the lookout for?

 

TIA

 

1 hour ago, MPulse said:

What's the verdict on the SuperMicro AOC-SAS2LP-MV8?

The AOC-SAS2LP is no longer a preferred solution for unRAID.  It used to be, and it still works well for many people, but there have been a large number of issues caused by Marvell drivers - so much so that it's hard to recommend them anymore.  Get an LSI based card like the LSI 9201-8i, IBM M1015, Dell PERC H310, etc.  Search the forums for LSI and/or Marvell.

On ‎10‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 11:31 PM, tdallen said:

 

The AOC-SAS2LP is no longer a preferred solution for unRAID.  It used to be, and it still works well for many people, but there have been a large number of issues caused by Marvell drivers - so much so that it's hard to recommend them anymore.  Get an LSI based card like the LSI 9201-8i, IBM M1015, Dell PERC H310, etc.  Search the forums for LSI and/or Marvell.

 

I have 4 of the SAS2LP-MV8's.

So is the LSI SAS 9211-8i HBAi a good replacement??

or the HighPoint RocketRAID 2720SGL ??

If you have 4 cards in one server, it may be easier to use 16i cards.
Else, yes use 9211-8i if you can have them for a reasonable price. Alternatively get the rebranded 9240-8i as tdallen suggested and crossflash em to 9211-8i. Check the hardware wiki for more info. See link in my sig.

Thanks Fireball3, I am not concerned at price at the moment, as my 2x Towers which have 2 each, after 10 years are on their last legs and trying to build a new one and save as much as possible.

 

See here for the history if interested. See Ready for some HD upgrades after 10 years running UnRaid Thread, I could not post a direct link..sorry

 

Appreciate your reply, Thanks

Steve

 

Edited October 14, 20178 yr by HK-Steve

If you aren't having trouble with the AOC-SAS2LP's I don't know that I'd be in a rush to replace them.  A lot of people continue to use them without issue.

https://forums.lime-technology.com/topic/59091-marvel-issues-starting-point-for-investigation/

 

That said, I personally wouldn't buy any more for use with unRAID, and I think the LSI -16i cards are a great recommendation given the size of your systems.

3 minutes ago, tdallen said:

If you aren't having trouble with the AOC-SAS2LP's I don't know that I'd be in a rush to replace them.  A lot of people continue to use them without issue.

https://forums.lime-technology.com/topic/59091-marvel-issues-starting-point-for-investigation/

 

That said, I personally wouldn't buy any more for use with unRAID, and I think the LSI -16i cards are a great recommendation given the size of your systems.

 

Thanks tdallen,

No I have not had any issues at all with them over the 10 years, but it is more hard drives that are wearing out now, end of life.

Most are at 5 years run time or longer, so not really a complaint as I got my money's worth.

 

I was going to buy some more AOC-SAS2LP's but looked in here and saw that they are no longer the best card.

As I am building a new Tower, I wanted to the best card that will last me, possible another 10 years before I have to think of updating again. That is why cost is not really a big deal..

 

This is the rest of the new gear I am looking at for the new Tower,

Intel Core i7 i7-6700K (4 x 4.0 GHz) Processor

16 GB DDR4 2400 MHz (2x 8 GB)

ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming ATX Mainboard

 

Much appriciated

The LSI 9201-16i sounds like it would be ideal, with good deals on eBay.

On 10/11/2017 at 4:31 PM, tdallen said:

 

The AOC-SAS2LP is no longer a preferred solution for unRAID.  It used to be, and it still works well for many people, but there have been a large number of issues caused by Marvell drivers - so much so that it's hard to recommend them anymore.  Get an LSI based card like the LSI 9201-8i, IBM M1015, Dell PERC H310, etc.  Search the forums for LSI and/or Marvell.

I have one of these in my ASUS p8p67-v LK motherboard.  It worked great from UR 5.x through 6.2.  Once upgrading to 6.3, I've started to have problems with lockups and such.  Is there a post or write up on the kinds of errors one can see?  I suppose I could just buy one of these cards and try it...  Is it such that I could simply replace the SAS2LP with a 9207-8i?  and the drives would line up properly or would there be a 'process', I'd need to do to get all the drives setup properly?

Just now, jeffreywhunter said:

Is it such that I could simply replace the SAS2LP with a 9207-8i?  and the drives would line up properly or would there be a 'process', I'd need to do to get all the drives setup properly?

Just replace one with the other, no need to configure anything.

Just now, johnnie.black said:

Just replace one with the other, no need to configure anything.

My mobo (ASUS P8Z77-V LK) has 2xPCIe 3.0x16 (dual x8) and 1 PCIe x4.  From a lanes/throughput perspective, would it be better to get the 9201-16i or two 9207-8i?  In other words, would 2 cards at x8 perform better than 1 card at x16?  PCIe 3.0 x8 runs at 7880MB/s and the x16 at 15760MB/s (duh, double).  So I think its a tossup, but not totally clear on the lanes vs performance conversation when it comes to these HBA adapters.

 

That said, my processor is an i5-2500k, which only supports up to PCIe 2.0, so at this point, even though the x16 card supports pcie 3.0, the processor does not.  So again, toss up?  If I upgrade the process to an i7-3770k (fastest the mobo supports @ $100), which does support pcie 3.0, then would that affect the decision? 

 

Its cheaper to do 1 x16 HBA vs 2 x8, so is that the decision point?  What am I missing?

40 minutes ago, jeffreywhunter said:

From a lanes/throughput perspective, would it be better to get the 9201-16i or two 9207-8i?  In other words, would 2 cards at x8 perform better than 1 card at x16?

 

Note that both are x8 max and the 9201-16i is PCIe 2.0 while the 9207-8i is PCIe 3.0, so in this case the 9207 would have double bandwidth per disk with PCIe 2.0, much more than that on a PCIe 3.0 board/CPU, still the 9201-16i has adequate bandwidth for spinners, for SSDs it's a different story.

7 hours ago, johnnie.black said:

 

Note that both are x8 max and the 9201-16i is PCIe 2.0 while the 9207-8i is PCIe 3.0, so in this case the 9207 would have double bandwidth per disk with PCIe 2.0, much more than that on a PCIe 3.0 board/CPU, still the 9201-16i has adequate bandwidth for spinners, for SSDs it's a different story.

Would the 9207-8i sata ports be faster and/or more efficient than the ports on the motherboard?  Would it make any sense to go with the latest 12GB/s cards (i.e. LSI 9300-8i) so as we eventually convert from spinners to ssd, we'd be ready? 

Edited November 24, 20178 yr by jeffreywhunter

3 hours ago, jeffreywhunter said:

Would the 9207-8i sata ports be faster and/or more efficient than the ports on the motherboard?

It would be faster with all SSDs than your current board but the same for HDDs, it will add about 10w to your power consumption, if that's what you mean by more/less efficient.

 

3 hours ago, jeffreywhunter said:

Would it make any sense to go with the latest 12GB/s cards (i.e. LSI 9300-8i) so as we eventually convert from spinners to ssd, we'd be ready? 

Not unless you plan to buy SAS SSDs, all SATA devices will still link @ 6Gbps max.

 

On 9/22/2017 at 9:40 AM, Popple2000 said:

 

So, is this particular unit plug&play? or is more setup required?

Thanks

 

On 9/22/2017 at 10:01 AM, Frank1940 said:

I just plugged it and it worked.  It does add a few extra seconds to the boot time and it does have a control key combination to get to the card's BIOS but I have never even looked at it.  I did order it with the P20 firmware.  (I contacted them and they responded quickly with instructions on how to request that version when I placed the order.)  Don't forget that you have to get cables...

 

Is the P20 firmware required or is P19 ok?    Any difference between these cables?

 

https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Internal-Mini-SAS-Breakout/dp/B018YHS8BS/ref=as_li_ss_tl?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=DZD42M5Z36H2R4GR309H&linkCode=ll1&tag=orf0f-20&linkId=c3bab21c2c2bc7ba96b86d6729fcb651

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FBYS2U/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&psc=1&linkCode=ll1&tag=orf0f-20&linkId=06f97486c1b60e0bf2573dabff7f3b02

 

1st time using one of these cards, so pardon my lack of knowledge / experience.   I have 8 ports on my motherboard and looking to add 4 more drives.  Any issues with running both the card and on-board SATA ports?   

3 hours ago, luisv said:

Is the P20 firmware required or is P19 ok? 

 

I found somewhere that the P20 software was preferred over P19 but I don't remember the exact reason.  Since the vendor from whom I got the card offered it as a free upgrade, I simply requested it.  Perhaps, someone else will jump in here and provide you with a better answer.  (You could also search for P19 (or P20) in this thread and see what you find.)

 

3 hours ago, luisv said:

Any difference between these cables?

 

None that I could see.  You need the forward breakout cables.  (I actually purchased the second that you listed.  Have not had any issues.)

 

3 hours ago, luisv said:

Any issues with running both the card and on-board SATA ports?   

 

None.  These boards are very compatible with using both sets of ports.

Thanks @Frank1940 !

Was thinking of upgrading and cleaning up my case ... looking at getting two of the cards Frank1940 linked.  The same seller has this card, of which I would only need one.

 

New LSI 6GB SAS Expander Card PCI-E Board for 9270-8i 9261-8i

https://www.ebay.com/itm/301891588661

 

Would it drop in unRaid and play well as is? 

6 hours ago, jamesk9 said:

Would it drop in unRaid and play well as is? 

That's a SAS expander, still need an HBA to connect to it.

WIll this card work out of the box for unRAID and work in supermicro motherboards easily 

 

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/LSI-9211-8i-LSI00194-8port-6Gb-s-PCI-Express-2-0-SATA-SAS-RAID-Controller-Card/292329341360?hash=item44102fc1b0:g:2GIAAOSweZJaCbQS

3 minutes ago, shanehm2 said:

WIll this card work out of the box for unRAID

Yes, it might need to be flashed to IT mode, but it's easy, like a bios update.

 

3 minutes ago, shanehm2 said:

and work in supermicro motherboards easily 

It should work with most, can't say it will work with all

Edited January 4, 20188 yr by johnnie.black

Ok thnx for that  I am future prepping for my next major upgrade

5 hours ago, shanehm2 said:

WIll this card work out of the box for unRAID and work in supermicro motherboards easily 

 

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/LSI-9211-8i-LSI00194-8port-6Gb-s-PCI-Express-2-0-SATA-SAS-RAID-Controller-Card/292329341360?hash=item44102fc1b0:g:2GIAAOSweZJaCbQS

 

I took a quick look at your E-bay link and I suggest you look carefully at the pictures.  Notice that the LSI logo is missing on some of the pictures.  (It should be between the heatsink and the connector.)  This could indicate that the card is counterfeit!  Reading the description lead me (From the USA) to believe the text was written by a non English speaking person.  I realize that you are from Australia and probably  have fewer sourcing options but I would be a bit careful.