I've read Raj's MoBo recommendations and the link he included hat mentioned the NON LE version of the Asus M4A78LT-M vs the LE brand due to the NIC.

However, if I spend the $29 to get an Intel Pro 1000 PCI NIC, is this board good to go w/ an AOC-SASLP-MV8 SATA cards and another SATA controller card for a 15-drive system?

I'd like to know this as well. I don't understand what the differences are in the LE and non-LE version that would affect performance in unraid. If there is no difference, then I'll go ahead and get the LE version since it's available.

Differences: Atheros (LE) vs Realtek NIC (non-LE)

 

If you replace the NIC on the LE with an (preferably) Intel NIC you will be good to go. I believe the 5.0Beta has improved the Atheros NIC support with an upgrade to a newer kernel. 

If NIC is the main issue for why most motherboards don't make the UNRAID recommended cut, why not just recommend a PCI NIC as the standard hardware for a build.

$20 for a guaranteed nic seems like cheap insurance instead of fighting a battle of connectivity.

I'd like to know this as well. I don't understand what the differences are in the LE and non-LE version that would affect performance in unraid. If there is no difference, then I'll go ahead and get the LE version since it's available.

 

I'm curious about this too.  I am struggling to find the non-LE version too.  I've read in these forums to shy away from the LE version, but I'm curious what's the big difference.  If there is a big difference or something that will cause problems, I've been looking at the BIOSTAR TA785G3HD ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138181 ).  Any ideas on whether this would be a good substitute to the M4A78LT-M? 

If NIC is the main issue for why most motherboards don't make the UNRAID recommended cut, why not just recommend a PCI NIC as the standard hardware for a build.

$20 for a guaranteed nic seems like cheap insurance instead of fighting a battle of connectivity.

The Atheros NIC is the difference (affecting file transfers).  The "LE" is not recommended because of this. Atheros driver support has improved with the newer kernel and latest unRAID 5.0Betas.

 

Oftentimes, there can be an equivalent board without having to buy a PCI NIC for an additional $20.  Not having to mess around with a board can be what sells a person on a specific MB.

 

If there is a big difference or something that will cause problems, I've been looking at the BIOSTAR TA785G3HD ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138181 ).  Any ideas on whether this would be a good substitute to the M4A78LT-M?  

A good substitute.  

Did find the

 

 

M4A78LT-M

 

and the M4A785-M

 

@electronics emporium

I'd like to know this as well. I don't understand what the differences are in the LE and non-LE version that would affect performance in unraid. If there is no difference, then I'll go ahead and get the LE version since it's available.

 

I have the non-LE and as of 5b12a it works perfectly.

 

It's a case of using the onboard NIC vs having ANOTHER component in the system.

 

Personally I'd get the non-LE.

Arguably the same concept applies for any MB using the 8111E nic as well.  So many good ones out there except for that one spec. 

Absolutely right.  If you want to spend the extra $20-$30 on a PCI NIC, then pretty much any motherboard can be used with unRAID (there are still a few that have chipset or other incompatibilities).  A PCI NIC will use slightly more power than an onboard NIC and it is one more component that can go bad in a system, one more link in the chain that can be broken.  This is the reason I always recommend boards that do not require a separate NIC.

 

If I were presented the choice between a $70 motherboard and that required a $30 NIC to work with unRAID and a $100 motherboard that didn't need a separate NIC, I would choose the $100 motherboard.  The price is the same, but the number of components and power consumption is lower.

Is an intel PCI nic faster than the onboard ones though?

 

josh

No, it will be the same speed.

No, it will be the same speed.

Not always true, but in general Raj is correct.  It really depends on the driver quality and Intel drivers in Linux are usually pretty good.