10BASE-T or SFP+? Which is best for me?


andyps

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I'm closing in on my final components for my unRAID build and I need to select my 10GbE networking. My server will be in a separate room from my main desktop (45ft away), so I need distance to be supported. I'm really new to 10GbE, but I've been doing lots of reading. As I understand it, SFP+ is limited to 10m cabling with standard DAC, but with transceivers connected to fiber, it can go much farther. Is this correct?

 

10BASE-T ($400-450):

Dell W605R or Intel X540-T1

ASUS XG-U2008

There is also this 2 port card (not sure what advantage this gives me): AOC-STG-I2T

 

SFP+ ($475ish):

Mellanox Connectx-2

Cisco SFP-10G-SR Transceivers

OM3 Fiber Cabling

TRENDnet TEG-30284

 

Is there an advantage to one or the other? I definitely like the switch I have selected for the SFP+ setup over the RJ45 setup. 2 extra 10GbE ports for future expandability. That said, I do already have several rooms with CAT6 runs, so that makes 10BASE-T attractive too.

 

Has anyone found one to be faster/better than the other with unRAID?

 

To save money, I might just do two cards and a direct connect at first, then add in the switch later down the road.

 

Love any feedback and personal experience with setups similar to this. Hoping to run a Raid 10 cache with at least 4 SSDs, so I would like to maximize over network data rates. Thanks!

 

 

 

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