http://www.tranquilpc-shop.co.uk/acatalog/BAREBONE_SERVER_Series_2.html#a225

I'm loving the size and specs of this. I would love unraid running on something like this, but it is already pricey without adding shipping to the US. Anyone seen anything like it in the US? I guess the norco 520 is the closest to it I've seen. I would rather build something from scratch but I haven't really found the perfect case for an atom board.

If you can accept one less drive in a slightly different format, check out one of my mitx rigs.

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=2031.msg14752;topicseen#msg14752

 

It does not have allot of drives, but it can be paired with an ATOM board for low power applications.

There is also an internal spot for a 2.5" drive and a built in card reader.

 

I read somewhere that one of the 5 drive Acer NAS servers was able to run unRAID.

Also with a bit of hacking I bet a Thecus 5200 could run unRAID.

 

 

Ahhh yes the 'ole Chenbro case. I think I've asked you questions about it in the past, before I thought about going with an atom board. I've had a hard time figuring out if a flex atx board would fit okay in it. I have also seen the Acer NAS system. My experiece of Acer in the past has not been good. But maybe I should look again. 

Ahhh yes the 'ole Chenbro case..... I've had a hard time figuring out if a flex atx board would fit okay in it.

 

No. It's very tight. Even ITX board is tight. 

Depending on where the memory is determines if you can fit a slimDVD drive.

Also the PCI Riser card works,. but there is not always a place to bolt down the card.

I cut a piece out of the back and put an eSATA plug for faster backups.

This also helps by holding down the PCI card.

 

If you go with an atom board, just get one with 4 sata ports.

If you have the spare case, buy the riser card and card reader now. Sometimes they are hard to get and if they stop getting produced you will be out of luck.

 

It's a nice case once you get it together. I outgrew the m-itx format for unRAID. However it makes a great administrative server and DVD ripper. ;-)

I have been eying a few Atom boards with 4 SATA ports. A couple were listed as flex-atx though. Maybe I can find an Atom board w 4 SATA ports that is mini-itx. For my needs I doubt I'll ever run more than 3 disks. The SFF is perfect for me. I mainly want compact, quiet and low wattage. I'll relax a bit on compact in order to have QUIET and low wattage. That Tranquil PC server though seems to meet all the criteria. I'd love to build my own though.

 

I've found threads on that Acer Aspire easyStore. I'm going to look hard into it too. I just hate to pay for the WHS license I'll never use.

 

The Thecus N4200 looks nice too.

Looks like Supermicro has a few new ATOM mini-itx boards with 4-6 SATA ports. One D410 and 2 D510. If all the proper drivers are available in unRAID I may have found my mobos to choose from.