ABIT IP35 Pro

[bb80301]

I'm building 2 Unraid servers.  I ordered 2 identical sets of components:

- AB9 Pro Motherboard

- Celeron 420

- 2x 1GB G-Skill PC2-6400 memory

- Antec Earthwatts 430 PS

- ATI PCI Video card

- 4x 1TB Seagate drives

- Coolermaster Centurion 5 case & 4 in 3 drive module

 

Newegg, for some reason, sent me 1 AB9 Pro and 1 Abit IP35 Pro motherboard (instead of 2 AB9's).  I took a look at the specs, and it looked like the IP35 Pro is a newer and higher-end board, so I figured that I'd keep it rather than hassle with RMA.  I did a search and found one person considering the IP35 Pro, but nobody confirming that it works.

http://www.uabit.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=32&Itemid=48&page=2&model=381

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813127030

 

I built the first system using the IP35 Pro and Unraid 4.3 B6.  First thing I did was to flash the motherboard bios to the latest rev (rev 16; 3/18/08)

 

It boots into Unraid.  I'm able to login to root, but I get no network connection.  ifconfig e0 indicates that the system is not seeing my ethernet adapter.  The green LED next to the ethernet cable turns on, indicating a connection to the switch.

 

I'll build out the other system tomorrow w/ the AB9 Pro board -- hopefully, I'll have better luck.  In the meantime, does anyone have any advice for the IP35 Pro system -- my guess is that the ethernet adapter (Realtek RTL8110SC rather than RTL8111B used on the AB9 Pro) is not compatible w/ Unraid, but maybe I'm missing something?

 

Thanks for any help!

bb

[RobJ]

It does appear to have a Realtek RTL8110SC chipset, PCI only, and that is supported by the r8169 driver, included with unRAID.  I noticed other negative reports online, associated with Linux use.Typing lsmod at a console prompt will show what modules are loaded, hopefully r8169.  Typing 'ethtool -i eth0' will give network driver and version, if installed.

 

You may want to add a NIC to this board.

 

[cohiba]

Your setup is eerily similar to my hardware (Centurion 5, Earthwatts 430, Cel 430, 2GB RAM).

 

Don't know if it helps, but when I added a gigE card (NetGear GA311 using Realtek 8169) to my server, I went through several boot cycles where it just would not load.  Then, after 4 or 5 attempts, after no hardware or software change (I had brought it down to get the syslog, that's it), the server came up, loaded the 8169 driver, and has worked fine ever since!

 

So, in my own long-winded way, especially since you appear to be using the same driver, I would suggest booting your server a few more times.

 

I am running 4.3b6, btw.

 

Why are you building 2 servers?  One for you, and one for someone else??

[bb80301]

Thanks a bunch, RobJ and cohiba.  I finally got it going w/ the IP35 Pro.  In addition to the issue w/ the network, I also saw on the boot screen that my drives were in IDE mode.  I went into the bios and changed the drive mode.  On my next boot, it started seeing my ethernet adapter.  Then, I couldn't get it to get a DHCP address.  Then, I switched the cable to the other port (there are 2 ports on the IP35 Pro) --- and I finally was successful!

 

To answer cohiba's question - yes, I'm building another server for a friend who "just had to have one" when I told him about what I was doing.

 

Thanks, again.

bb

[aiden]

I hate to dig up old threads, but this is exactly what I'm needing help with.  I can get an Abit IP35 w/4 GB of RAM and a Quad 6600 for $150 from a guy who is upgrading.  I know that's a lot of overkill, but it's cheaper than anything I could buy new unless I went REALLY low tech.  So, my question is, will this board work with 4.5?  bb80301, did you have to do a lot to get this board to behave?  What has your experience been?  Thanks guys.

[prostuff1]

I hate to dig up old threads, but this is exactly what I'm needing help with.  I can get an Abit IP35 w/4 GB of RAM and a Quad 6600 for $150 from a guy who is upgrading.  I know that's a lot of overkill, but it's cheaper than anything I could buy new unless I went REALLY low tech.  So, my question is, will this board work with 4.5?  bb80301, did you have to do a lot to get this board to behave?  What has your experience been?  Thanks guys.

 

IT should work, but there are always exceptions.  A lot has been updated in 4.5 and one of the newer Realtek drivers might work better.  There really is only one way to find out.  If that fails for some reason then you can always buy an Intel NIC (usually very well supported) and use that after disabling the onboard Realtek NIC.

[bb80301]

That server w/ the ABIT IP35 Pro motherboard, Celeron processor, & 2GB memory is still running great.  No problems once I got the stuff mentioned above sorted out.  It's currently running 4.5 Beta 6.

 

You may want to repurpose or sell that quad core processor & substitute in a Celeron (sells for $40 shipped at Newegg).  It will run cooler & use less power.

 

Hope this helps.

 

BB

[luksak]

Hi

 

I also got the IP 35 PRO. Is it still running? Why don`t we add this to the compatibility list?

 

Another question about the rest of my hardware: I got the E8400 Core 3 Duo. What ecological but still fast enough processor would you suggest?

 

And another one: I have got the NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 512. would I be able to set up unRAID and then remove that card?

 

Thanks in advance

 

Lukas