Server reshuffle


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I have the server (as shown in signature).

 

I want to change it to the following:

 

Fractal Design R5 case

7 x Seagate Archive 8TB drives DATA

1 x Seagate Archive 8TB drives PARITY

1 x Supermicro SAS2LP

 

Everything else stays the same. The reason why I want to do this is to have a smaller case, less hdds and use less power.

 

The SAS2LP can only handle 8 drives and I plan to sell the other one. If I decide I need more drives, is the Intel sata ports on this mobo ok?

 

Is there anything else I need to watch out for on the downsize?

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I have the server (as shown in signature).

 

I want to change it from the to the following:

 

Fractal Design R5 case

7 x Seagate Archive 8TB drives DATA

1 x Seagate Archive 8TB drives PARITY

1 x Supermicro SAS2LP

 

Everything else stays the same. The reason why I want to do this is to have a smaller case, less hdd and use less power.

 

The SAS2LP can only handle 8 drives but and I plan to sell the other one. If I decide I need more drives, is the Intel sata ports on this mobo ok?

 

Is there anything else I need to watch out for on the downsize?

 

I am not convinced that this is a downsize at all. I am refreshing my Main Server with an R5 and (based on my other thread which you have been active in) I am going to use Seagate 8TB drives too.

 

I can fit 14 (13 Data + 1 Parity) 3.5 " drives in my R5 plus 1 x 2.5" SSD for Cache and 1 x 2.5" SSD for Apps/VM.

 

I don't want to use an expansion card until I really NEED to so I have bought a Supermicro X10SL7-F board which has 14 Sata ports on it as well as everything anyone else would want from a server board IMHO.

 

See my build thread here for more info and considerations: http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=37567.0

 

Any input you have positive or negative I will appreciate.

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Its a downsize in terms of power consumption and the physical size of the casing but not in terms of data size!

 

Ah! Clearer now! Ta!  :)

 

If you don't check out anything else in my thread check out this: http://www.caselabs-store.com/hdd-cage-assy-standard/

 

The expansion HDD Cage I chose for the R5 for 4 additional drives. Being able to mount this on the 120mm fan holes on the bottom of the case next to the existing drive cages and have space for 4 more 3.5” drives is awesome. I saw some Caddy’s which were ok but non of this quality. Shame about having to get it shipped from US for me living in AUS but I feel it was worth i without a doubt.

 

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The Caselabs drive cage is indeed a very nice unit -- I've used it a couple times and recommended it to quite a few folks on this forum.  I don't know anyone who's not happy about it ... although some don't like the fact it's not a hot-swap cage.

 

I think the new configuration will be a very nice improvement => the R5 is remarkably quiet (MUCH more so than a Norco); and as you know can hold plenty of drives, especially when you're using 8TB units.

 

Daniel => Just curious if you'd done any "skirting" in the R5 to modify the airflow like you did in the Silverstone case.    I wouldn't think it's needed, since the fans blow directly over the drive cages and the Caselabs cage has its own fan; but I know you've looked very carefully into ways to maximize the airflow for your drives, so was just wondering if you did anything similar on this case.

 

pras1011 =>  If you haven't followed the thread I'm referring to for this, have a look here:

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=31967.msg365137#msg365137

 

 

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Agree with the DS380 for up to 8 3.5" drives.

 

The Fractal Design Mini can hold 9 [6 internal bays plus a 3-in-2 cage for the 5.25" slots] ... and could likely hold 1 or 2 more between the power supply and the drive cage => possibly even a 4-drive CaseLabs bracket if you used an SFX power supply [Don't have one here I can measure, so I can't say for sure].

 

But it's hard to beat the R4 or R5 for a case that will easily handle 14 drives, plus a few SSDs on bracket mounts.

 

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I'd tend to agree with the R4/5 choice.

 

The DS380 is a very nice case, but with 8 8TB drives you'd "only" have 56TB of protected space => that's not bad by any means, but it's only 1/3rd more than the 42TB you already have, so it's not really all that significant of an improvement.    Going with an R5 you can easily fit 14 drives ... which would be 104TB of protected storage using 8TB drives.  THAT is a significant improvement in capacity => and in a case that's much quieter than your Norco; will keep the drives running cool; and is a BIG improvement in the "looks" of the server  :)

 

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There are too many on to eBay to tell which is which. Is there a way to tell by looking at the pictures?

 

No.  If the eBay seller isn't saying exactly what it is, then move on.  Forward and reverse breakouts are not interchangeable, they're wired differently, but look identical.

 

I got mine (genuine LSI ones) off Amazon for reasonable prices.

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Agree - buy from a reputable supplier who specifies exactly what the cables are.

 

... It doesn't really matter if they're 3Gb/s or 6GB/s => either is faster than any of your drives will be able to sustain.    The only transfers that occur at "interface speed" are those that are from the drive's buffer, which is a TINY percentage of the actual transfer activity.    The other case where it would make a difference is if you're connecting an SSD to this interface => in the case a 3Gb/s connection would indeed be a small bottleneck (but not likely cause any notable delays).

 

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