Recycled Hardware Check Please

[landS]

Good day formites,

The switch from my HTPC to Raspbmc has left me with a pile of hardware.  After pulling the old HTPC apart and running across an Amazon sale of 4 4TB drives on Mar 5th - Now I have enough items to build an always on UnRaid machine to replace my power hungry video encoding/storage desktop (I own over 1200 dvds and dozens of TV series on DVD.  Currently using the Raspbmc is not wife friendly due to the time consuming nature of booting up the encoding machine.

Question 1 – Does anyone forsee issues that I may have using some of the following hardware?

Question 2 – Would it be better to use the brand new PSU, or the one from 2009?

Question 3 – with 4 onboard SATA ports, should I just skip using the AOC-SASLP-MV8 until I need to add more drives?

Question 4 – should I even use the 30 GB SSD for anything?

Question 5 - do I need an independent intel NIC or should the onboard NIC suffice?

 

Date Purchased

• Switch TRENDnet TEG-S50G 2013 May http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833156250
  
• Case Fractal Design Define R4 2013 May http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352020
  
• PSU New SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold 2013 May http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151088
  
• PSU Used ENERMAX REVOLUTION85+ ERV1050EWT 1050W 2009 Sept http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817194039
  
• cpu AMD Athlon II X2 250 2011 Oct http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003Z4PB3O/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
• cpu cooler Scythe Shuriken Rev.B 2011 Oct http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002AIS97Q/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
• mobo BIOSTAR TA785GE 2011 Oct http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138167
  
• mobo BIOSTAR TA785GE 128M 2011 Oct http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138155
  
• ram Kingston 2 GB - 1 Stick 2011 Oct
  

• 4 4 TB HD Seagate Backup Plus 4 TB 2013 May http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00829THLE/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
• Spare SSD OCZ Technology 30 GB Vertex 2011 Oct http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NPCTB4/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  
• SAS AOC-SASLP-MV8 & cables 2010 June http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002KGLDXU/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  

 

 

I thank you All!

 

edit: MOBO Goof

 

[garycase]

Question 1 – Does anyone forsee issues that I may have using some of the following hardware?

==>  No, it should work fine.

 

Question 2 – Would it be better to use the brand new PSU, or the one from 2009?

==>  Both are serious overkill for a 4-drive system.  You'll be running them well below their most efficient operating ranges.  I'd use the newer one, simply because it's 650W instead of over a killawatt 

 

Question 3 – with 4 onboard SATA ports, should I just skip using the AOC-SASLP-MV8 until I need

to add more drives?

==>  I'd use the onboard ports as long as they support > 2TB drives (simply attach a drive and you'll know the answer)

 

Question 4 – should I even use the 30 GB SSD for anything?

==>  No.  I suppose you COULD use it as a cache drive; but then you'd have to use the MV8 to get extra SATA ports.    I wouldn't use it at all.

 

Question 5 - do I need an independent intel NIC or should the onboard NIC suffice?

==>  The onboard should work fine.  There have been issues with Realtek NICs, but I'm fairly sure they're all resolved.

 

I'd download the latest UnRAID (RC12a);  create your flash drive;  and simply boot it on the system, with at least one of the drives attached to an onboard port.  On another system, go to the Web GUI (http://tower) and confirm that you see it okay.  You'll then know that (a) the system boots okay;  (b)  the NIC is okay; and © that it "sees" the drive okay.  Then you're ready to go 

[landS]

Thanks Gary,

 

1 quick question left then - if the BIOSTAR TA785GE does not support 4TB drives, do you know if the AOC-SASLP-MV8 via driver updates is OK now for this use?

 

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=20228.0

http://www.avsforum.com/t/1324649/3tb-drives-and-supermicro-aoc-saslp-mv8

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=19108.0

 

If not - do you know of the preferred inexpensive method to get this support (I must really be using poor keywords in google for this search)

 

Thanks again!

[garycase]

Thanks Gary,

 

1 quick question left then - if the BIOSTAR TA785GE does not support 4TB drives, do you know if the AOC-SASLP-MV8 via driver updates is OK now for this use?

 

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=20228.0

http://www.avsforum.com/t/1324649/3tb-drives-and-supermicro-aoc-saslp-mv8

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=19108.0

 

If not - do you know of the preferred inexpensive method to get this support (I must really be using poor keywords in google for this search)

 

Thanks again!

 

I don't have an AOC-SASLP-MV8, so I can't say with certainty;  but I DO know that a LOT of folks on this forum have them and are using them with 3 & 4 TB drives, so Yes, they work with them -- although apparently there may be a firmware update required (based on the posts you linked to -- and the fact you purchased it 3 years ago).

 

[garycase]

... If you want to confirm everything at once, just do as I suggested above (boot to UnRAID);  but also plug in the MV8 and attach one drive to it (and one to the motherboard).

 

Then when you go to //Tower you can confirm that it sees both of the drives -- and that they're shown as the correct size 

[landS]

Great Idea Gary.  I will do just that.

 

Again, my many thanks.

[garycase]

You're most welcome.

 

Post back with your results 

[landS]

I certainly will

fyi - It will be a week or two

[landS]

well - the recycled mobo video out died... I am looking for suggestions here: http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=27757.0

 

Thanks for the help everyone