BUILD Help with hardware selection for Mini ITX build

[Tom_]

Hi all,

I'm researching my first FreeNAS build and would appreciate some advice with parts choice. I have read the Hardware Recommendations thread and Cyberjock's ZFS PPT (thanks, authors!) and lots of other threads in the forum so far.

The intended use is file serving only (maybe with one jail to run a couple of services like dnsmasq). I have a separate HTPC so I don't need to transcode on the NAS and I won't want a lot of processing power. Low power consumption, low noise and small footprint are my priorities.

Here is my current plan for the system at €650–700:

• ASRock C2550D4I (~€300)
• Fractal Node 304 (€80)
• 2 × Crucial 8 GB DDR3 PC3-12800 ECC CT102472BD160B (~€200)
• Seasonic SSR-550RM (€100)

I already have two 2 TB WD Red drives so I think the obvious choice for storage will be 6 × 2 TB drives in RAIDZ2.

Specifically, I'd like suggestions for better value MB +/- CPU setups (e.g. socket 1150 MB + i3 CPU). My main motivation for the Avoton is the Mini ITX form factor and I can't find many other MiniITX server boards. The most reasonable thing I found with IPMI and ECC is the ASRock E3C224D2I but that will only take a maximum of 16 GB RAM, which means I'm stuck if I want to expand, and it is only about €40 cheaper anyway (E3C224D2I €210 + i3-4130 €100 + Kingston ECC RAM €150 = €460 vs. €500 for the C2550D4I + Crucial RAM).

To me the Seasonic PSU seems like overkill at 550 W so I'd also be happy to hear a recommendation for another one that can power 6 HDs.

Any other comments on the build would be useful!

Many thanks for reading,

Tom

 

[zambanini]

I suggest a A1SAi-2550F
+ some nice hba und you should be happy

 

[Ericloewe]

Don't go with Atom unless you don't plan on moving beyond 6 drives. PCI-e connectivity is very limited.

Going with microATX makes component chocies much easier, but there's also an "extended miniITX" board from ASRock that's kinda like an X10SL7-F shrunk down - it'll fit in that cool new Lian-Li case (which, like all Lian-Li stuff, is rather expensive).

As for the PSU, you could even go as low as a Seasonic G-360, for up to 10 drives, but it's not modular. You can easily drop down to the G-450, though.

 

[Tom_]

Thanks for the useful replies.

I will look into the A1SAi-2550F but right now I can't find the RAM SuperMicro recommend for it inside the EU (I'm in France). Is there a particular reason you prefer it to the ASRock?

I want a small system and plan to stick with 6 drives, so I wouldn't need an HBA. In fact I was planning a 4-drive system until I read up on ZFS. 8 TB of storage is more than enough for my current needs and I can upgrade to 16 GB with 6 × 4 TB drives if necessary in a few years. The small footprint is more important, which is why I am aiming for Mini-ITX.

I had missed the G-450, but that looks better to me. Thanks again!

 

[Ericloewe]

Well, ASRock still has a few things to iron out on their server boards, whereas Supermicro tends to have fewer of those issues.

For what it's worth, the FreeNAS Mini uses an ASRock C2750 board, though.

 

[faulerbeamter]

The Asrocks additional Sata-Ports are drawing a Lot of Power (I've read about 10 W more @ idle) and their stability isn't quite what you'd want in your Nas

 

[Tom_]

Thanks, both of those answers make sense. It looks like I would be able t0 get 2 × 8 GB Crucial DDR3 PC3-12800 Unbuffered ECC 1.35V RAM in FR for about €200. I guess it's not too much of a risk to use this with the A1SAi-2550F, even though it's not on Supermicro's tested memory list?

 

[Ericloewe]

Thanks, both of those answers make sense. It looks like I would be able t0 get 2 × 8 GB Crucial DDR3 PC3-12800 Unbuffered ECC 1.35V RAM in FR for about €200. I guess it's not too much of a risk to use this with the A1SAi-2550F, even though it's not on Supermicro's tested memory list?

Well, it doesn't fit, so it's a non-starter. But the QVL does have Crucial, from what I've heard, which is easy enough to acquire.

 

[Tom_]

OK, now I'm confused...

I thought Crucial CT5203829 was the right RAM. It's 204-pin SO-DIMM @ 1600 MHz, which is what is listed on the Supermicro site for the A1SAi-2550F. And the Crucial site says it's compatible with the A1SAi-2550F.

 

[Jailer]

Well, it doesn't fit, so it's a non-starter. But the QVL does have Crucial, from what I've heard, which is easy enough to acquire.

It fits on the Supermicro A1SAi-2550F board he posted, it takes 204 pin SODIMM's. He switched gears on ya. ;)

 

[Ericloewe]

It fits on the Supermicro A1SAi-2550F board he posted, it takes 204 pin SODIMM's. He switched gears on ya. ;)

You're right, I got confused.

OK, now I'm confused...

I thought Crucial CT5203829 was the right RAM. It's 204-pin SO-DIMM @ 1600 MHz, which is what is listed on the Supermicro site for the A1SAi-2550F. And the Crucial site says it's compatible with the A1SAi-2550F.

Sorry about that. It'll fit.

 

[Tom_]

Ah, OK. I see how I muddied the water there.

I'm going to go with the Supermicro A1SAi-2550F as suggested. I hope the crucial RAM I linked above will be not cause problems.

Thanks again for the help, it is much appreciated.

 

[sremick]

The Asrocks additional Sata-Ports are drawing a Lot of Power (I've read about 10 W more @ idle)

I have 6 drives and my system draws 40-45W idle total (CPU, fans, etc).

 

[faulerbeamter]

in its 01/2014 issue, c't magazine (THE german IT-magazine, that's not some build-your-first-PC-Bulls***-Paper) ran a test: the Supermicro A1SAi-2750F was idling @ 16,8 W while the AsRock C2750D4I pulled 26 W. No typo, twentysix... the PLX PEX8608-BA50BC PCIe Switch which is necessary to connect the AsRocks additional SATA Controllers, seemingly is the power hog. Talking of the C2750 boards, the C2550 boards have the same layout but a different cpu.

@sremick
your board doesn't have or need that power-greedy PCIe switch as it
a) only has 6 SATA-Ports (which should do for most Home Servers) and
b) isn't an Atom Platform, which is quite short on PCIe Lanes

My quoted answer applies to the comparison of the C2xxx boards only, which maybe i should have made a little clearer

 

[Tom_]

Interesting, was anything plugged in to the Marvell SATA ports during that test? (Not that it matters to me, I ordered the Supermicro board, just curious).

 

[cyberjock]

in its 01/2014 issue, c't magazine (THE german IT-magazine, that's not some build-your-first-PC-Bulls***-Paper) ran a test: the Supermicro A1SAi-2750F was idling @ 16,8 W while the AsRock C2750D4I pulled 26 W. No typo, twentysix... the PLX PEX8608-BA50BC PCIe Switch which is necessary to connect the AsRocks additional SATA Controllers, seemingly is the power hog. Talking of the C2750 boards, the C2550 boards have the same layout but a different cpu.

@sremick
your board doesn't have or need that power-greedy PCIe switch as it
a) only has 6 SATA-Ports (which should do for most Home Servers) and
b) isn't an Atom Platform, which is quite short on PCIe Lanes

My quoted answer applies to the comparison of the C2xxx boards only, which maybe i should have made a little clearer :)

That is pretty interesting. I haven't heard of such comparison before. Any chance there's a link on the internet for that article!?

 

[faulerbeamter]

@Tom_
nope, no drives attached, it's getting even better/worse: they even disabled the Marvell ports... same result - because you can't cut off the PCIe-Switch. That very switch wouldn't be necessary if they had used Atoms integrated GBE-Controller; this way the board has one PCIe device too much to talk to the Atom-CPU and the Switch jumps in place. Which kind of leads us back to what @Ericloewe said: they're still learning how to build server boards.
The article then refers to the Supermicro board which they have tested in 2013 (2013/23).

@cyberjock
nah.. unfortunately, it's pay for the paper or pay for the pdf (1,50 EUR, http://www.heise.de/artikel-archiv/ct/2014/01/056_Serverboard)

 

[cyberjock]

Bah.. can't even figure out how to buy it since I speak/read no German.

 

[faulerbeamter]

the article wouldn't help you then - it's in german language as well. And we all know what google translate can do to a rather complex text...
To be precise, the article in 01/2014 is just about the AsRock board, they mention the Supermicro board as a less power-hungry alternative. In 23/2013, they tested the Supermicro board as they introduced the c2xxx-platform in general... so there's no head-to head-comparison.
I have both papers before me and i'm happy to help if you have more questions

 

[wintermute000]

C2550d user here. 6*4tb raid z2 + scratch ssd disk for torrents/logs + dedicated iscsi ssd. Comfortably max out gigabit. Full build in my signature