June 2, 20179 yr I'm looking for thoughts on how to mount 4 SSD drives in some form of fan cooled external enclosure. Currently I have 2 SSD drives in my case and they are mounted in these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0080V73RE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I want to add at least 1 if not 2 SSD's. to my system. The expansion slot mount is clean and keeps everything in the case. However: 1. the SSD's run hot during parity checks. There is little to no air movement around them in that slot. 2. I may be able to get 1 more in there but I'm not sure I could add 2 if I wanted. I may play around with changing the card layout as one option and using for of those, IF I can make it work. I also do not want to take up my 3.5" internal slots with the adapters. I have 12. 10 have HDDs, 1 has a warm spare, and 1 is open for future. I've been looking for an external case that can hold up to 4 - 2.5" drives, preferably fan cooled, doesn't use it's on proprietary RAID controller, and has an interface that will work with unRAID. Has anyone seen a piece of hardware like this? My current hardware configuration is as shown in my signature. (2 drives models need to be updated, but the rest is accurate). Thanks in advance.
June 4, 20179 yr if you still have 5.25' slot maybe you want to check icy dock's option like this? https://www.amazon.com/ICY-DOCK-Mobile-Comparable-Tray-less/dp/B01M0BIPYC/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1496551681&sr=1-2&keywords=icy+dock+2.5+enclosure Edited June 4, 20179 yr by rowid_alex
June 4, 20179 yr Author 11 hours ago, rowid_alex said: if you still have 5.25' slot maybe you want to check icy dock's option like this? https://www.amazon.com/ICY-DOCK-Mobile-Comparable-Tray-less/dp/B01M0BIPYC/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1496551681&sr=1-2&keywords=icy+dock+2.5+enclosure Thanks for the response. I have seen 4 drive docs for a 5.25 but not 6. My issue is, the Antex 1200 used drive cages that take the 5.25" slots in groups of 3 and turns them into 3.5" slots. There are cages that make 4 or 5 3.5" slots out of the same space, but these have great airflow around them and they came with the case. So taking 1 slot means I have to lose the cage losing 3 slots. There is probably a solution along these lines where I replace all my drive cages with 4 or 5 drive cages and leave the top 3 slots for SSD's or future something. However, now we're talking substantially more $$. Edited June 4, 20179 yr by TODDLT
June 6, 20179 yr Author 18 hours ago, HellDiverUK said: IcyDock do a 6-drive unit that fits in a 5.25" slot. Appreciate that, and I think it's the same one noted above. I may have an "in-box" solution but would still like to know if there is an external case like this.
June 6, 20179 yr I'd think any eSATA external dock would do the trick nicely. e.g. https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16817392059 (This would also not restrict you to SSDs, or even the 2.5" form factor -- you may never use that capability, but certainly doesn't hurt to have the option.)
June 6, 20179 yr ... StarTech has a 4-drive unit (a bit pricey): https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817707406&cm_re=Startech_4_drive_dock-_-17-707-406-_-Product
June 6, 20179 yr Author I've seen products like this and have a single slot unit I use for pre-clears. I don't think I'd want to use that for a permanent mounting situation, but it does bring up a question. Those units have a single eSata connection. Can unRAID see multiple drives through a single eSata, would you get the right data transfer rate for 2 or 4 drives?
June 6, 20179 yr I don't use my dual-drive unit with UnRAID, but it works fine on my main (Windows) box. Clearly the max xfer rate for the 2 drives is limited to the SATA-III connection, which would be a slight bottleneck with a pair of SSDs (Mine is used for occasional connection of backup drives, which are high-capacity spinners -- so there's no bottleneck). I DO think the SATA controller it's connected to has to support port splitters ... but most modern controllers do. As long as your controller supports port splitting, I'd expect it to work just fine with UnRAID. But I can understand why you might not want to use it for a permanent mount for the drives. If you'd prefer a smaller and enclosed case for your drives -- with independent SATA connections -- you could use a pair (or more) of these: https://www.amazon.com/MiniPro-eSATA-6Gbps-External-Enclosure/dp/B01M0SLHJ1/ref=dp_ob_title_ce
June 6, 20179 yr Author 1 hour ago, garycase said: If you'd prefer a smaller and enclosed case for your drives -- with independent SATA connections -- you could use a pair (or more) of these: https://www.amazon.com/MiniPro-eSATA-6Gbps-External-Enclosure/dp/B01M0SLHJ1/ref=dp_ob_title_ce That might work for an external solution, thanks. I'd prefer one case but not sure there is going to be a single case for 2-4 drives that works on a SAS or with independent eSata connections. It's a pretty narrow list of specifications. I found this for a possible internal solution: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IB6I43K/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER My concern is this will "hang" or "sag" on the bracket connection in a tower orientation. The product above in my orignial pot has a bracket that hangs on on unused expansion slot in the case holding it in position. I'm not sure what the dual drive bracket will or won't do. for $11 I ordered one and we'll soon find out. If it does I think I can fit two of these inside the case and solve the issue. Do you ever worry about heat on an SSD during parity checks? this dual bracket isn't enclosed like the single one is, but there are two drives pretty tight together.
June 6, 20179 yr 6 minutes ago, TODDLT said: Do you ever worry about heat on an SSD during parity checks? SSDs don't usually get hot with reads, they do with long writes.
June 6, 20179 yr Agree with Johnnie => SSDs generally only heat up with intensive write operations. Reads are MUCH less stressful and don't result in any notable heat issues. Another thought r.e. your desire to put the drives externally => you could buy the Icy Dock 4-drive unit designed for a 5.25" bay, and simply use it externally. It requires 4 SATA connections and a single SATA power connection -- but you'll need these with any external unit anyway (unless it uses a port splitter). https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817994181 You could also buy a 5.25" external case and simply mount the unit in that. Hard to find these days -- if I was doing this I'd probably just buy this [ http://www.ebay.com/itm/APS-External-5-25-SCSI-Drive-Enclosure-Case-50-pin-Centronics-IDKAPS-690/142402711042 ]; rip out the electronics; and perhaps spray paint it black -- then mount the Icy Dock unit in the case.
June 7, 20179 yr Author 5 hours ago, johnnie.black said: SSDs don't usually get hot with reads, they do with long writes. I'll look again next parity check, but I thought it was over 40 deg C. Maybe I'm remembering the other SSD that was removed.
June 7, 20179 yr Author 5 hours ago, garycase said: Another thought r.e. your desire to put the drives externally => you could buy the Icy Dock 4-drive unit designed for a 5.25" bay, and simply use it externally. It requires 4 SATA connections and a single SATA power connection -- but you'll need these with any external unit anyway (unless it uses a port splitter). https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817994181 Thanks, this looks like the general idea I had in mind. What is single channel SAS? I'm familiar with an SAS to Sata cable that can run 4 drives off one SAS port. This unit says it is compatible with single channel SAS and has 4 individual SATA connections.
June 7, 20179 yr It simply means it's got individual connectors and doesn't use a single SATA connection with a port splitter. The unit is close to "perfect" for what you want to do, as long as you can either find a case to mount it in; or if you decide it looks "okay" just sitting by itself.
June 8, 20179 yr Author 20 hours ago, garycase said: It simply means it's got individual connectors and doesn't use a single SATA connection with a port splitter. The unit is close to "perfect" for what you want to do, as long as you can either find a case to mount it in; or if you decide it looks "okay" just sitting by itself. The case was shown in the first reply above and I initially said no, but wasn't thinking about mounting it on it's own outside the case. It would work functionally, but may try to dig up a separate external case for it if I got that way. Thanks to all for input on this. I got the small internal bracket today and will see how sturdy it is this weekend, then go from there.
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