November 20, 20196 yr Hi all Running the Avoton 8core SOC from ASRock Rack with 12 onboard S-ATA ports (Intel/Marvell). https://www.asrockrack.com/general/productdetail.asp?Model=C2750D4I#Specifications This config has been reported as being problematic. I recently shelled out for two new drive cages but I'm not happy with the performance, not to mention the cable spaghetti inside the case. The system has been somewhat unstable since I made the switch, so I think it might be time to invest myself out of it. Either it's the combined intel/marvell controllers in use, or it's the hot-swap cages. Either way, something has to give. I've finally found my dream case, a Silverstone: https://www.servethehome.com/silverstone-cs381-review/ Quoted: "Connectivity to the drives is provided via two SFF-8643 ports. That means one can use 12G SAS3 as well as SATA III." What kind of card would I be wise to invest in, for my UnRaid setup, if I just want something that works and don't want to fiddle around with anything. I'm applying KISS here to avoid any hassle. Getting Sata III for all drives is a nice add-on too. Thanks in advance for your advice.
November 20, 20196 yr Any LSI with a SAS2008/2308/3008/3408 chipset in IT mode, e.g., 9201-8i, 9211-8i, 9207-8i, 9300-8i, 9400-8i, etc and clones, like the Dell H200/H310 and IBM M1015, these latter ones need to be crossflashed.
November 20, 20196 yr Author 25 minutes ago, johnnie.black said: Any LSI with a SAS2008/2308/3008/3408 chipset in IT mode, e.g., 9201-8i, 9211-8i, 9207-8i, 9300-8i, 9400-8i, etc and clones, like the Dell H200/H310 and IBM M1015, these latter ones need to be crossflashed. AFAICT something like this would fit the bill, then? https://www.computersalg.dk/i/1311729/lsi-sas-9300-8i-sgl-lagringskontrol I've zero experience with this type of thing.
November 20, 20196 yr Author 39 minutes ago, johnnie.black said: Yes. Alright. Then the only issue seems to be, that my motherboard only has a pci-e 2.0 port. Will that have any drawbacks, or will this card not suffer any bottlenecking from this? It's quite an expensive part, so if I'm going to be bottle-necking, maybe I should instead be looking at a new mainboard/cpu too.
November 20, 20196 yr suffer any bottlenecking from this? Not with 8 disks, there can be with more disks (using an expander ) or SSDs.
November 20, 20196 yr Author I was planning on using the LSI part for the 8 hot-swap bays, and use on-board SATA 3 for my dual SSD cache. Any particular care that needs to be taken when upgrading, or can one just chuck it in and expect it to install and be good to go? What kind of cabling does this require? Cheers, Johnnie.
November 20, 20196 yr 1 hour ago, Froberg said: can one just chuck it in and expect it to install and be good to go? It's plug'n play 1 hour ago, Froberg said: What kind of cabling does this require? SFF-8643 to SFF-8643
November 20, 20196 yr Author 23 minutes ago, johnnie.black said: It's plug'n play SFF-8643 to SFF-8643 This looks about right: https://www.computersalg.dk/i/1506947/supermicro-sas-internt-kabel-sas ? So two cables if I get the Silverstone case, and good to go? You mentioned the chipset should be in IT mode, what does that mean exactly?
November 20, 20196 yr 3 hours ago, Froberg said: AFAICT something like this would fit the bill, then? https://www.computersalg.dk/i/1311729/lsi-sas-9300-8i-sgl-lagringskontrol I've zero experience with this type of thing. While @johnnie.black is obviously correct and this item will do the job perfectly, if you plan to only use SATA 6Gb/s drives on this box (and not SAS3 drives), it might be an overkill. Looking at your source, this may serve you just as well, for a fraction of the cost. If you go that route, you will need two SFF-8087/SFF-8643 cables, such as this.
November 20, 20196 yr 9 minutes ago, Froberg said: So two cables if I get the Silverstone case, and good to go? Yes. 9 minutes ago, Froberg said: You mentioned the chipset should be in IT mode, what does that mean exactly? Some models form the ones listed above can be IT or RAID mode, 9300-8i is IT mode only.
November 20, 20196 yr Author 6 minutes ago, doron said: While @johnnie.black is obviously correct and this item will do the job perfectly, if you plan to only use SATA 6Gb/s drives on this box (and not SAS3 drives), it might be an overkill. Looking at your source, this may serve you just as well, for a fraction of the cost. If you go that route, you will need two SFF-8087/SFF-8643 cables, such as this. Yes, I only plan on using those drives - thanks for the heads up! I agree that price is much more eco-friendly. (as in economy)
December 8, 20196 yr Author Sorry to awaken this again.. Availability of this case near-zero. Looks like it has airflow issues too. Considering just swapping out the drive bays instead, for this: https://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=605&area=en Am I understanding it correctly, that I can use either S-ATA connectors or SAS? Here's the amazon listing for it; https://www.amazon.de/dp/B019HE69FO/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2M5PYT35WPB8S&keywords=fs305&qid=1575766363&sprefix=FS305%2Caps%2C172&sr=8-1
December 8, 20196 yr 8 hours ago, Froberg said: Am I understanding it correctly, that I can use either S-ATA connectors or SAS? It can use SAS or SATA devices, cables are SATA type, SAS devices will only work if connected to an HBA with SAS support.
December 8, 20196 yr Author Ah, so I'd have to get the SAS card and a s-ata breakout cable if I wanted to go this route?
December 8, 20196 yr Yes if plan to use SAS devices, SATA devices will still work with any SATA controller, including onboard.
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