Hi there! *waves*

 

I'm considering a new unRAID setup for my studio, transforming my current editing machine (a pretty powerful hackintosh) into an unRAID server that i can use to store Final Cut Pro video work on. My company is growing, and I'd like to build a NAS rather than have attached storage, so that other people can access my files if required. 

The computer I'm considering using as a base is a five-year old Gigabyte Z77X-UP5-TH with 32 GB RAM, and an i7 3770k processor. I currently have 40 TB of internal attached storage, and once I've offloaded some of that footage to other drives, I'm hoping to use some of it in an unRAID system (formatted first, of course). 

 

I am using a Highpoint 2720SGL card in my machine under Mac OSX and it's working fine to provide RAID 0 configuration to the SAS drives I have in my system currently. I'd love to continue to use this RAID HBA in my unRAID. 

Checking the compatibility charts, it says that the Highpoint 2720 causes parity issues for 6.1.x+, which I assume is all new releases beyond 6.1.x. BUT I know I can use the 2720SGL in plain old single drive mode rather than rely on its on-board RAID chipset.  Anyone know if THAT works with unRAID? 

Cheers, 

 

Nikki. 

It has been some period of time since you posted up and it surprises me that no one has yet responded.  Apparently, you are running a business and setting up an unRAID server to use in your operation.  In my observation, there have been so many many problems with SATA boards that use the Marvell chip sets, that is simply not worth the hassle of 'testing' one to see if it might work in your situation.  

 

Most folks today are going with the LSI based controller boards.  I would read the last half-dozen pages of this thread for ideas:

 

     https://forums.lime-technology.com/topic/11753-sata-controller-cards/

 

 

There are a lot of used cards available from many sources (removed from servers that are been retired).  Some required reflashing the firmware to the IT mode and some have already been reflashed. 

 

I purchased a reflashed LSI 9211-8i card on E-Bay for $89US earlier this year it has worked perfectly.  (Both IBM and Dell have rebranded  LSI cards for use in their servers.   If you use E-bay, buy from a vendor with the good ratings and don't be looking exclusively at price.) For that price, I would think that it would cost you much more in hassles and lost time by reusing a card that has a very spotty record for usability with unRAID.

Hi Frank, 

 

Thanks for this. It's exactly what I wanted. I'm looking at going with a pro build vs a DIY build, and I'm really not sure what's best. Obviously, the Pro build (45 Drives Q30) would require a few months of saving, but I'm going to look at the LSI boards you suggested too to see if I can use existing equipment to do the same thing. 

 

Nikki. 

So, just looping back here with a bit of an update. 

 

The 2720 SGL is unusuable as feared. I'm going to run the system without for a few days to see if that solves some of my problems, but It will be a micro unRAID system until I can get those extra four drives back online. I'm looking for the suggested card, and also a couple of other options. 

 

Nikki. 

Search  IT mode  on E-bay.  You will begin to find that the LSI cards will appear along with the IBM M1015 and Dell H310 cards.  The IBM and Dell cards are used (having been removed from retired servers) while some of the LSI cards are new.  You should be a bit careful about the new LSI cards as some the LSI labeled cards are counterfeit!  (You can have warranty issues with them should the need arise.) 

 

You can also purchase LSI cards that will require that the firmware be flashed to the IT mode.  (LSI does sell some cards with the IT mode firmware already installed but it a very small percentage of the available cards.) This procedure has been documented and a search will find that.  If you want to save a little money you can do it yourself.  All of the IBM and Dell cards will have to be flashed.