The GIGABYTE GA-MA785G-UD3H is a fairly new motherboard. When deciding on hardware I could not find anyone who commented on using this MB with unRAID. I just want to let everyone know it works great with unRAID (so far).

 

I bought this MB mainly because it had the correct south bridge chip to unlock the second core on my CPU (overkill for unRaid I know). I planned for 12 hard drives and since it already had 6 SATA ports, I was able to get 3 x 2-port PCIe cards for a total of 12 ports.

 

The original build post is here

If you could do some Level 1 testing on this board it would be much appreciated.  Check out the Motherboard Rating System and the unRAID wiki for some links to example on how it is to be done.  I have added the board to the Hardware Compatibility Page but would love to get the level 1 testing verified.

Will do in the next few days. From what I gather, I need to run a parity check and post my syslog for level 1, right? I have the Pro License with 8 drives (including the parity).

Will do in the next few days. From what I gather, I need to run a parity check and post my syslog for level 1, right? I have the Pro License with 8 drives (including the parity).

 

Yup, the Motherboard Rating System and the Hardware Compatibility Page both explain what each level entails and what needs to be done.

 

If you can get level 1 (and 2 later on) done that would be much appreciated.

I've done a parity sync to complete level 1 testing. The log is attached. I did kill the dir_sync, proftpd, and Subsonic process ID's beforehand.

 

Oct 17 21:32:04 unraid kernel: md: sync done. time=35928sec rate=40779K/sec

Oct 17 21:32:04 unraid kernel: md: recovery thread sync completion status: 0

 

I noticed a few lines in the log that may/may be a concern...

 

Oct 17 22:30:01 unraid hdparm[30714]:  HDIO_DRIVE_CMD(identify) failed: Input/output error

Thanks for the info!  I recently bought this board (the Newegg combo with the Sempron 140 was too good to pass up), though I'm currently using it in my desktop, since I needed the HDMI port for output to my TV.  Still, good to know that I can always use this board for my unRAID server in the future.  I'm actually using the Sempron 140 in my unRAID server at the moment, since I had another more powerful CPU better suited for the desktop.

 

BTW, is it sad that I now often recognize mobo names by their full however-many-digit code?  I mean, the 785G part is easy, since that's the south bridge, but I actually remembered the UD3H part as well.  Are you guys as nerdy about this stuff as I am?

I noticed a few lines in the log that may/may be a concern...

 

Oct 17 22:30:01 unraid hdparm[30714]:  HDIO_DRIVE_CMD(identify) failed: Input/output error

 

That sequence of lines actually refers to the hdparm command issued to sdb (which is slightly out of order in the logging).  sdb is your Patriot flash drive, and hdparm does not know how to handle USB devices, as far as I know.

Kind of resurrecting a post from the dead.  I'm considering getting this board, and was wondering how it's been working out?  Also, What sata controller cards would be recommended with it? 

I am using this board and it is working out very well so far.  About 2 weeks into my transition to the new Unraid server using the new MB (had a week plus of vacation in there too).

 

I am using both the 6 on board SATA ports and a Rosewill 4 port PCI-X card.  That gives me 10 drive slots (and I have room for one more PCI-X card as I have another slot to use).

 

The card is below and it works verty well (I am using the latest 4.5 beta but I think it works in the 4.4 build as well - might want to verify).

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816132018

 

Seeing 110+ MB/s on pre-clears with both the MB SATA and the PCI-X card.

 

I have an AMD Sempron 2.7 on the motherboard with 2GB ram.  Supermicro 3 to 5 drive cages.

 

Rick

dredge, so it looks like the 16x slot will work with a PCIe card. I contacted gigabyte and I was told the PCIe x16 only works with video cards. I never got around to testing this. How many of the PCIe slots are you using currently?

 

VampyreGTX,

This board has been working with no problems. I planned to have a total of 12 drives in my unRaid (3 slots to grow). Using the 6 on board and getting three Rosewill RC-207 PCI Express x2  cards. There is a link to my build thread in the original post.

I am planning on using this motherboard as well with the AMD Sempron 140 Sargas 2.7ghz processor. Since I am a complete noob - do I need to buy a heatsink/fan combo for this too?

Thanks, and I apologize if this is off topic.

I am planning on using this motherboard as well with the AMD Sempron 140 Sargas 2.7ghz processor. Since I am a complete noob - do I need to buy a heatsink/fan combo for this too?

Thanks, and I apologize if this is off topic.

 

No, a fan comes with the processor.

Oops - nevermind. I see from the website that it is included. Sorry about that.

Now for another question - did the motherboard BIOS need to be updated prior to running the Unraid software?

unRaid worked without a BIOS update, but I did update hoping I could unlock the second core (I have the same Sempron 140). I was one of the unlucky ones.

Just built my unRaid server yesterday with this MoBo and the Sempron 140 and I was able to unlock it as it shows as a Athlon X2 in the memtest now.  Time to figure out how to set up and use unRaid, just need to wait on my reverse breakout cables to install my HDD's in my Norco 4220 case.... and get replacement fans.... I know remember why I always tried to avoid the delta 'screamer' fans.......

Nice. I was not able to unlock the second core. Although, the members here were right, a single 2.7GHz is plenty for normal unRaid setups.

i figure the one core is enough.... but if ya got it... why not use it?  

I should have this up and running fully by the weekend and hopefully, will work on Lvl 1 and 2 testing to get the mobo page updated.

I am also considering this mobo and was ready to pull the trigger. Since in the the thread it has been mentioned several times regarding the PCI-e x 16 slot and its uncertainty for running a PCI-e SATA card, can I implore one of the owners to please check if a x1 or x4 card works in this slot. For me it is a deal breaker as I want 16 drives to be supported.

 

This is from the manual:

• 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, running at x16 (PCIEX16_1) (Note 4)
  (Note 4) If you are installing a PCI Express graphics card, be sure to install it in the PCIEX16_1 slot for optimum performance.
   
  
• 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, running at x4 (PCIEX4_1) (Note 5)
  (Note 5) The PCIEX1_2 and PCIEX1_3 slots share bandwidth with the PCIEX4_1 slot. When the PCIEX4_1 slot is populated with a x4 card, the PCIEX1_2 and PCIEX1_3 slots become unavailable.
  

i figure the one core is enough.... but if ya got it... why not use it?  

 

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, as I very well may be, but:

 

1) Unlocking the 2nd core is akin to over-clocking (i.e. it uses more power) ...this is the part I'm unsure about...

2) unRAID (as a stock install, at least) won't ever use the 2nd core since it doesn't ever use very much of the processor anyway

 

So you are basically just wasting power for no gain.  Stock unRAID will not run any faster with a dual core CPU versus a single core CPU.  If you are running a bunch of add-ons on your unRAID server, then it makes sense.  Otherwise, there's no point.

Not completely true. One could enable the second core (akin to overclocking) and take advantage of it on a stock unRAID. This can be done by enabling asynchronous input/output for Samba and tweaking the tunable parameters for md_num_stripes, md_write_limit, and md_sync_window.