Need Motherboard Advice from the Experts

[DigitalDivide]

I need some advice from the experts.  I'm rebuilding my server and looking for a motherboard.  I checked the Recommended Builds link, http://lime-technology.com/wiki/index.php?title=Hardware_Compatibility#Recommended_Builds, and found the following mb, Asus P5B-VM DO, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131085.  Problem is everywhere I check it's out of stock since it's been discontinued.  I was hoping someone could recommend a board that is very similiar that would do for a new server.  The reason I like this board is I already have a Pentium Celeron D1.8 and Zalmann CPU cooler in my existing server which I would like to reuse, saving me a bit of money.  I probably could reuse my 2GB of ram as well. 

 

If this helps I am building a 15 drive server.  I already have the LIan-Li Armoutsuit 50 which has 9 external drives.  I'll probably be buying the supermicro 5 in 3 drive cages.

 

Thanks!

 

 

[DigitalDivide]

Ok, let me ask it this way.  If I want to have 15 drives in my server, what exactly am I looking for in regards to PCI slots?   Assuming the motherboard has either 4 or 6 sata ports.

 

If I have 1 x PCIe 2.0 x16 and 2 x PCIe x1 will I be able to install 2 Supermicro Add-on Card AOC-SASLP-MV8 or at least one and one Promise 4 Port controller?

 

Also what is the difference between a SuperMicro AOC-SAT2-MV8 8-Port SATA II Controller PCI-X 64Bits 133MHz  and a SuperMicro LSISAS 1068E 8-port PCI-E SAS controller - RAID 0/1/10 - 16MB onboard cache?  Should I use one over the other?

 

Anyone?

 

[BRiT]

You do not care about PCI slots, you care about PCI-Express slots. PCI is NOT PCI-Express. PCI-Express is NOT PCI-X.

 

The well supported SuperMicro SATA card requires at least a 4x PCI-Express slot, but can be used in 8x or 16x PCI-Express slots. With only 1 PCI-Express slot above 4x, you will only be able to use 1 SuperMicro SATA card. If you want to use your 1x PCI-Express slots, you should only use 2 port SATA cards.

 

Other threads and posts exists that list more specifics on the PCI-Express slots including bandwidth constraints.

[DigitalDivide]

Thanks Brit,

 

I've been going through the threads but I'm getting more confused.  Just one clarification, In my situation I am using a LIan-Li Armoutsuit 50 which has 9 external drives.  I'll probably be buying 3 of the supermicro 5 in 3 drive cages.  So is this the card I would need, http://www.amazon.com/Supermicro-Add-Card-AOC-SASLP-MV8-controller/dp/B002KGLDXU??  And I guess I'll also need forward breakout cables right?

 

If my mb ony has 4 sata ports onboard, am I okay with the above Supermicro-Add-Card-AOC-SASLP-MV8 and then two 2 port sata cards for a total of 4 + 8 + 2+ 2 = 16 total drives??

 

Thanks

 

[ohlwiler]

Yes, your plan will work. I would suggest seeking a motherboard with 6 SATA ports. They are very easy to find.

 

Also, yes on the amazon link and the forward breakout cables. Nice case BTW.

[DigitalDivide]

Just wondering if I could get your thoughts on the following motherboard,

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121389

 

Seems like I could use my existing CPU and memory.

[Rajahal]

That board would max out at 15 drives, which is exactly what you want.  You'll need two PCIe x1 cards, such as these.

 

4 onboard SATA + 8 Supermicro card + 4 total on two PCIe x1 cards

[queeg]

That board would max out at 15 drives, which is exactly what you want.  You'll need two PCIe x1 cards, such as these.

 

4 onboard SATA + 8 Supermicro card + 4 total on two PCIe x1 cards

 

onboard (4 Sata + 1 eSata ) + 8 + 4 = 17.

[wsume99]

I'm wondering about ohlwiler's suggestion to get a board with 6 sata ports.  Why wouldn't that be a better or more preferred option?  Like this ASUS board.  You'd basically be trading 2 additional sata ports for one less PCIex1 slot.  It costs $5 more that the Intel board you posted but it saves you from having to buy a PCIe sata card which is definitely more than $5.

 

So as a more general question to the experts, what is better 2 more onboard sata ports or an additional PCIex1 slot?  Is there any difference between the performance of an onboard sata vs. PCEe?

[DigitalDivide]

If I bough that ASUS board I would have to buy new RAM as my current RAM is DDR2 which the Intel board supports.  So either way I'm spending more additional cash, either for a card or ram.  To be honest, I may not even have to replace my existing board.  I will get the 8 Supermicro card and try it out in my existing system.  If it works, no need to upgrade my mb...which I'm really hoping I don't have to do.

[wsume99]

Oops, sorry about that.  I just did a quick search on Newegg for LGA775 and 6 sata ports and forgot to include DDR2 memory.  I checked and there are multiple options available that include DDR2 but not sure about unRAID compatability.  Anyways my primary intrest was the difference between onboard sata and pci express based sata?  Althought you may not have a choice if you are going for a larger server i.e 6-8+ drives.

[DigitalDivide]

Crap, just realized my current mb doesn't have onboard GPU and I'm uisng on PCIE slot for a GPU.  Looks like I'll need to get another mb.

[DigitalDivide]

I may take a look at that ASUS M4A77D afterall.

[bcbgboy13]

Asus M4A77D does not have onboard video  (and for that matter any AMD board with 77 or 770 in the model number).

Not sure why you changing from Intel to AMD if you want to reuse your old CPU/memory.

 

 

[wsume99]

Why not just get a cheap pci grapghis card.  Heck you could even run headless and just skip the video card altogether.

[BRiT]

Not all motherboards will boot without a graphics device.

[wsume99]

Is there a way to tell other than trial and error?

[Joe L.]

Is there a way to tell other than trial and error?

Ask the manufacturer? 

 

google search "ASUS M4A77D headless"

[DigitalDivide]

I ordered the 8 Supermicro Card and breakout cables.  I'm going to see if this will work in my existing mb.  If so then I don't need to spend the cash for a new MB.  Keeping my fingers crossed!

[DigitalDivide]

Received my 8 Supermicro Card but still waiting for the cables.  Once I get the cables is it just a matter of connecting my drives to the card and booting up the server?  If Unraid boots up and sees my drives, does that mean I'm good to go or is there some test I need to run? 

[Rajahal]

Received my 8 Supermicro Card but still waiting for the cables.  Once I get the cables is it just a matter of connecting my drives to the card and booting up the server?  If Unraid boots up and sees my drives, does that mean I'm good to go or is there some test I need to run? 

 

If unRAID detects the drives, you are good to go.

[DigitalDivide]

Thanks!  Keeping my fingers crossed!

[DigitalDivide]

One other question.  I finally received my breakout cables.  To test the SM-8 card can I simply plug the one end of the breakout cable into the card and the other directly into my SATA drives or do I need the Icy Dock stacker?  I haven't had the chance to order 3 of them yet but would like to test my mb to see if it recognizes the SM-8 card.

[DigitalDivide]

Ok well I popped in my SM-8 card and attached one hard drive to the cable.  System won't boot up.  Not sure if there's anything I need to check in the BIOS for it to see the card.  My system had no problem booting with the 4 port promise controller in the PCI slot.  The other problem I encountered is my graphics card is a PCI-E card so I had to remove it in order to pop in the SM-8.  So I can't boot with the SM-8 and view what errors are indicated onscreen.  Oh boy! 

[DigitalDivide]

Well looks like my mb can't boot without a video card.  So now do I now spend $50 for a graphics card only to find out my mb won't work with the SM-8 or do I just buy a new mb...ahhhhhh decisions...