ECC-RAM and consumer-grade hardware

[Bart Grefte]

A while ago I got the idea of replacing one of the two stacks of external hard drives I've got with a FreeNAS-server, the 2nd stack is used as a backup-copy of the 1st stack.

So far I've got one component, which happened to be the most difficult part to get: A Stacker STC-T01. That's that huge case from Cooler Master released back in 2004, which has more than enough room for a bunch of hard drives.

As for the rest, the idea was to find an used Supermicro board, Xeon CPU and ECC-RAM, then I read that there apparently are consumer-grade motherboards and CPU's that seem to support ECC RAM.

However, supporting and actually using ECC-functionality, that's where I get stuck. I can find reports of ECC-modules being recognized, as for proof that ECC-functionality is actually being used, that is something I haven't found much about yet. Mostly just discussions about this.

Now I'm trying to decide between something like an used SuperMicro X10SLM-F and Xeon E3-1240L v3 or something like a (new) Fujitsu D3644-B with i3 8100 and CT16G4WFD8266 ECC RAM.

If ECC actually works on consumer hardware, are there any do's/don'ts to go either way?

 

[PhiloEpisteme]

Fujitsu D3644-B

I would be very surprised if that board did not actually use and support the ECC memory. The chipset Intel® C246 Express Chipset used on that board supports ECC memory and is used on many other server boards. To be honest, that board looks a lot like a server board and a lot less like a consumer board to me.

The board does lack IPMI, which may be of interest to you. It also has audio support which you don't need but won't really hurt anything. It also has wireless and bluetooth, features not worth paying for in a FreeNAS build which won't make use of them. I'd wager that you can get an X10SLM-F used in good condition for less than the new price of the other board if you want IPMI etc.

If ECC actually works on consumer hardware, are there any do's/don'ts to go either way?

Server grade hardware is about more than just ECC. Server grade boards are designed to stay on all the time, for example. They also often lack features not frequently required in servers and instead opt to add features which are more frequently required such as IPMI.

Stacker STC-T01

Does that case support fans in front of or behind the drives?

Once you get closer to buying your parts I'd suggest you throw a parts list up on a new post to this forum. Folks will be helpful in identifying issues etc with the final board you select, memory, cpu, hba, drives, etc.

Best of luck. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

 

[Constantin]

I’d also scan the resources pages here for recommended systems. Then head to eBay for a look at supermicro chassis getting sold, sometimes barebones, sometimes with a board, HBA, etc. complete systems (save for RAM, HDDs, and boot devices) seem to sell at a steeper discount than chassis alone.

Adding ram to older servers is cheap these days.

The only downside of some of these systems is the ensuing electric bill (dual Xeon!!!). But the upside is that you get exactly what you need for a server, at the same price as a “premium” consumer case + PSU, and it’s all server quality.

If I’d known back when, I would never have gone the Lian Li route. The CSE-826/836/846 supermicro chassis series is simply awesome as long as you can live with the case dimensions / shape.

 

[Bart Grefte]

I would be very surprised if that board did not actually use and support the ECC memory. The chipset Intel® C246 Express Chipset used on that board supports ECC memory and is used on many other server boards. To be honest, that board looks a lot like a server board and a lot less like a consumer board to me.

Hmm, ok.

The board does lack IPMI, which may be of interest to you. It also has audio support which you don't need but won't really hurt anything. It also has wireless and bluetooth, features not worth paying for in a FreeNAS build which won't make use of them. I'd wager that you can get an X10SLM-F used in good condition for less than the new price of the other board if you want IPMI etc.

No need for IPMI, I can just hook up a monitor to see what's going on, if needed.

Server grade hardware is about more than just ECC. Server grade boards are designed to stay on all the time, for example. They also often lack features not frequently required in servers and instead opt to add features which are more frequently required such as IPMI.

Well, I've had a MSI board running pretty much 24/7 for about a decade or so (except for the occasional reboot for OS update and OS change), which wasn't classified as server hardware. Did it's job as a router just fine though :)

Does that case support fans in front of or behind the drives?

The Cooler Master 4-in-3 hdd-modules for the Stacker have one in front, however, I was thinking getting a couple of hdd-modules with hot swap bays (front access) which have a fan on the back. Something like https://www.raidsonic.de/products/internal_cases/backplanes/index_en.php?we_objectID=3011

Once you get closer to buying your parts I'd suggest you throw a parts list up on a new post to this forum. Folks will be helpful in identifying issues etc with the final board you select, memory, cpu, hba, drives, etc.

As for the board, yesterday I found someone local who wanted to get rid of a X8SIL, Intel Xeon L3426 and 8GB ECC module for a decent price. From what I can tell, despite the age, these aren't too power hungry. Currently waiting for those parts to arrive. I think those can get me started :)

Haven't chosen hba and drives though. Not even sure about the number of drives yet, depending on which hdd modules I use, I can get over a dozen 3.5" hot swap bays in this case.

Best of luck. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

Thanks :) , it will probably be slow going though. Except the hard drives, I'm planning on getting as much as used parts as possible, to limit the pricetag a bit.

I’d also scan the resources pages here for recommended systems. Then head to eBay for a look at supermicro chassis getting sold, sometimes barebones, sometimes with a board, HBA, etc. complete systems (save for RAM, HDDs, and boot devices) seem to sell at a steeper discount than chassis alone.

The chassis was the biggest problem. Pretty much every seller with a suitable used case (or complete server) only offered pick up, no shipment. Shipping something that big and heavy ain't cheap. Fortunately someone could bring the STC-T01 part of the way, then a couple of hours on the train to get it here.

Adding ram to older servers is cheap these days.

That would be great, the hardware I'm currently waiting for (see above) comes with 8GB.

The only downside of some of these systems is the ensuing electric bill (dual Xeon!!!). But the upside is that you get exactly what you need for a server, at the same price as a “premium” consumer case + PSU, and it’s all server quality.

I've specifically been looking for hardware that doesn't consume much when idle'ing.

If I’d known back when, I would never have gone the Lian Li route. The CSE-826/836/846 supermicro chassis series is simply awesome as long as you can live with the case dimensions / shape.

Those would've been an option if there was someone willing to ship cases of that size/weight.

 

[m_lind]

The i3-8100 is a nice prosesor but i can't find mucht experience info from Freenas.
Does the prosesor work sufficiently with the operating system?

The Fujitsu D3644-B is a nice motherboard see this review:
https://www.elefacts.de/test-96-nas_advanced_3.0__nas_mit_intel_c246_serverchipsatz_und_6x_sata
Price NL: €160,- has only 6 sata connections and a good power consumption

Alternative motherboards?
The Gigabyte C246M-WU4 has 8 sata connections for a price of €166,-
The Gigabyte C246-WU4 has 10 sata connections for a price of €220,-

Please keep us informed of your finding and your conclusions THX.

 

[Wyzard256]

This is something I'm wondering about too. The i3-9100 supports ECC, but are there any boards to actually use that with?

My understanding is that modern Intel systems have the memory controller in the CPU, not the chipset. Wikipedia's "list of Intel chipsets" only has a "Parity/ECC" column in tables for chipsets before that transition, and Intel's ARK pages for modern chipsets make no mention of ECC either, but the CPU pages do. That leads me to think that ECC support these days depends only on the CPU. Yet the specs for the Gigabyte H370M DS3H and ASRock H370M Pro4, for example, say that ECC DIMMs can be installed but they "operate in non-ECC mode". It's not clear why they have that limitation.

I'm trying to stick to current-gen CPUs as a precaution against Meltdown/Spectre-type flaws. (I know even the current ones aren't perfect, but they require the fewest workarounds in the OS.) A Xeon seems like overkill for a home file server, so the i3-9100 seems like a good choice, but trying to get ECC support is making it a pain.

So far I've got one component, which happened to be the most difficult part to get: A Stacker STC-T01

Ironically, I'm replacing an old Linux samba server that's in one of those.

 

[tfran1990]

This is something I'm wondering about too. The i3-9100

There was a guy on this forum selling his ML10 with additional 16g of UDIMM ECC ram as long as you are ok with an i3 6100.
Also check out the post where a user transplants his ml10 into a full tower case.
i did this, its worth it.