Elsewhere on the forum I've read about the A4 APUs from AMD as being the cheapest way (with new parts) to built a transcoding capable unraid build. I understand these chips are also efficient and run cool. Assuming this to be correct, I'm wondering what I would be best advised to partner it with. This is the processor I am thinking of getting.

 

AMD A4-3300 2.50GHz Accelerated Processor Unit (Socket FM1)

http://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecials/Other+products/AMD+A4-3300+2.50GHz+Accelerated+Processor+Unit+%28Socket+FM1%29+-+Retail+?productId=46454

 

Would this be any good?

 

MSI A75MA-P35 AMD Hudson D3 (Socket FM1) DDR3 PCI-Express Micro-ATX Motherboard

http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Components/Motherboards+-+AMD/Socket+FM1+-+AMD+A75/MSI+A75MA-P35+AMD+Hudson+D3+%28Socket+FM1%29+DDR3+PCI-Express+Micro-ATX+Motherboard+?productId=48933

 

I've read elsewhere on the forum that people have reported success with the recent betas with this motherboard but no reports of thorough usage. I'm a bit clueless when it comes to comparing mother boards. I'm going to be putting it into a Fractal Define R3:

http://www.ebuyer.com/236437-fractal-design-define-r3-black-pearl-case-usb3-0-fd-ca-def-r3-usb3-bl

 

I know that I want a MB with 6 sata3 sockets + an expansion slot that will let me put in an additional 2 port sata card. I'll be starting off with 5 disks. If I can boot from an internal usb port then that is even better, but budget is priority, so I could sacrifice that if the price difference is substantial.

 

Any suggestions really appreciated (buying in the UK)

Should be ok, MSI have been making fantastic motherboards lately and IMO their warranty process is also fantastic (and fast) if you can deal with them directly. The only concern might be the LAN, as 8111E's have had some reported issues although that may have been resolved (I haven't been following those threads sorry, just search for 8111E in general support and you should find plenty of info).

 

LimeTech released a 5.0-rc5-8168 today which may address the issues. I wouldn't be too concerned as this is a VERY common onboard NIC and it's likely most of the boards you look at will be running these. Alternatively an aftermarket Intel PCI-E 1x could be added but this will add to the cost.

 

Edit: NIC appears to be fine with the newer 5.x releases, these are not however compatible with 4.7

See: http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=18562

Thank-you very much for the confirmation. I've certainly seen reports that its NIC is ok with the beta releases and I would jump straight on to the beta with my server.

 

I see that the case can fit an ATX whereas this is a Micro ATX mb. It is dumb to put a microatx when there is space for an atx? Am I paying extra for miniaturisation? Or is this microatx missing slots that would be useful for later expansion for when I eventually need another two sata ports? If so, any suggestions to other similarly priced (preferably cheaper) boards are appreciated.

 

Are you able to tell if this board has an "internal" usb socket where I can hid the usb boot drive? Is that a bank of 6 usb ports on the top right in the picture?

 

Saving other concerns, it looks like I might go for this AMD A4-3300 combo and this mb. Thanks a lot!

 

EDIT: Actually, I'm sure those six sockets are sata ports lol (see what sort of fool you are working with here!) So, I assume no internal usb on this board?

I guess the motherboard has an USB-header on-board which can easily be converted by a adapter/cable to an internal USB-socket that can take a USB-stick.

 

http://www.allekabels.nl/na/0/1146114/MBz-USB-Pinheader-Bu-%3E-2x-USB2.0-A-Bu-V.html

 

This is an example from a Dutch site. There are other flavors/options too.

You can buy a USB header to USB port/s adapter from eBay, I just searched for "USB header" and this was on the first page:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dual-Port-USB-2-0-Pin-Header-Adapter-Left-Facing-/200680722844?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2eb980d19c

 

I pulled apart an old USB backplate for my build and ended up tucking the flash drive up behind the motherboard tray. Should be able to see it from the photos in my build log (link in sig).

 

A lot of unRAID builds use a small form factor motherboard such as ITX/M-ATX in a Full-ATX case as we require the space for drives and cooling but don't need all the features supplied by most full size motherboards. If the case supports full ATX then 99% of the time it will also support M-ATX even if it doesn't state it. A Define R3 will definitely support a M-ATX board and is a great choice for an unRAID built. A word of warning though, the server will not be light

Thanks - I'll grab one of those headers of ebay. Looks like I'm decided on this MB. Now to get a final "that should work" on the other parts. Just pricing up my options. I'll post back to this thread once I've had the build up and running for a while with any comments on this MB.

 

Thanks!

Thanks - I'll grab one of those headers of ebay. Looks like I'm decided on this MB. Now to get a final "that should work" on the other parts. Just pricing up my options. I'll post back to this thread once I've had the build up and running for a while with any comments on this MB.

 

Thanks!

 

The CPU should be fine, I've test booted 4.7 & 5.x with an A4-3400 on an MSI A75 board and all went well, I didn't have time to do much more testing than that. Can you post the rest of your hardware and we can check for any possible issues? Generally speaking though most modern hardware is fine with unRAID

Good to know! Last night after selecting the rest of the bits I posted a full build check thread in the hardware forum:

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=21034.0

 

That is actually with the slightly higher powered processor. With the bundle that I found, there was virtually no difference in price so I figured the extra power might be useful. Any insight appreciated