BUILD LGA 2011 Build with X10SRL-F

[x64]

Usage

• I would be the only user on this server.
• 24/7 torrenting with rtorrent.
• I use Usenet a lot for both downloading (with NZBGet) & uploading (with JBinUP using Java), which means a lot of rar'ing & unrar'ing, creating par2 files & repairing damaged files with them.
• Browsing the files on Windows & Mac machines, but mostly Windows so that I can add the NAS as source on Kodi.
• Backups with Crashplan.

Build

• Motherboard: Supermicro X10SRL-F-O (LGA 2011)
• CPU: Intel® Xeon® Processor E5-1620 v3 (10M Cache, 3.50 GHz)
• RAM: Samsung DDR4-2133 32GB/4Gx72 ECC/REG CL15 Server Memory M393A4K40BB0-CPB
• PSU: EVGA 750 GQ 80+ GOLD, 750W ECO Mode Semi Modular
• HDDs: HGST Deskstar NAS 3.5-Inch 6TB 7200RPM SATA III 128MB Cache Internal Hard Drive
• RAID Card: IBM M1015 46M0861 (x2)
• Chassis: NORCO 4U Rack Mount 24 x Hot-Swappable SATA/SAS 6G Drive Bays Server Rack mount RPC-4224

Is it worth to get this chassis instead?: Supermicro SuperChassis 1200W 4U Rackmount Server Chassis CSE-846A-R1200B

My plan is to start with 1x 32GB RAM, 8x 6TB HDDs in 1 dev RAIDz2 (to be expanded to a total of 3 devs in the future with the same setup when I have more funds)


Questions

1. What do you think of my build? did I miss something?
2. What and how much cables would I need?
3. Just to confirm, I can use PCI-E 2.0 card on PCI-E 3.0, right?

 

[BigDave]

Board, CPU & RAM = Great ( I'm green with envy)
7200 RPM drives will require more enclosure cooling ability, Norco doubtful...
M1015 must be flashed to get rid of RAID firmware (but you already know this, right?)
EVGA PSU not needed, quality rackmount cases typically come with one or two of their own.

Just to confirm, I can use PCI-E 2.0 card on PCI-E 3.0, right?

Yes

What and how much cables would I need?

This would depend on the case purchased and the interface to the backplane.

Note: Used Supermicro 4U rackmount stuff gets sold everyday, if you don't mind used hardware.

Things to BE AWARE of:

• Most rack mount cases produce a substantial amount of fan noise.

• Some of the older backplanes, only work with drives up to 2.2GB in size.

• With 24 drives in a case, the use of the case's Air Shroud becomes essential to proper cooling.

"what's this clear plastic dust cover thing for, can't we just leave that off?"

 

[x64]

7200 RPM drives will require more enclosure cooling ability, Norco doubtful...

So you are saying that Supermicro would be a much better choice than NORCO overall, right?

M1015 must be flashed to get rid of RAID firmware (but you already know this, right?)

Yes, I'm aware of that.

EVGA PSU not needed, quality rackmount cases typically come with one or two of their own.

NORCO doesn't seem to have a built in PSU, unlike the Supermicro case that I mentioned.

This would depend on the case purchased and the interface to the backplane.

I'm asking because this would be my first time building and dealing with hardware, so I basically don't know what cables that would be included and what to buy separately and how much.

 

[Fuganater]

You want a Supermicro SC846E16-R1200B This way you only need 1x M1015 or 9211-8i HBA. Solid build, plenty of cooling with real server grade fans and not the crap NORCO puts in theirs.

 

[x64]

You want a Supermicro SC846E16-R1200B This way you only need 1x M1015 or 9211-8i HBA. Solid build, plenty of cooling with real server grade fans and not the crap NORCO puts in theirs.

Seems a better option, but could you explain to me how is it gonna save me "1x M1015 or 9211-8i HBA"? does it comes with raid card?

....

Also, cables... anyone wanna guide me here?

 

[jgreco]

Seems a better option, but could you explain to me how is it gonna save me "1x M1015 or 9211-8i HBA"? does it comes with raid card?

....

Also, cables... anyone wanna guide me here?

No, it comes with an expander backplane. You need to go read

https://forums.freenas.org/index.ph...-sas-sy-a-primer-on-basic-sas-and-sata.26145/

and focus on cabling and SAS expanders.

 

[Fuganater]

Seems a better option, but could you explain to me how is it gonna save me "1x M1015 or 9211-8i HBA"? does it comes with raid card?

....

Also, cables... anyone wanna guide me here?

Well the NORCO chassis uses 6x backplanes to connect all 24 drives so you need 6 cables which means you need 3x HBA. With the Supermicro chassis I linked, you only need 1x HBA because the backplane is an expander which means 1 cable can handle all 24 drives.

 

[x64]

So if I'm understanding this correctly, I will only need 1-to-1 mini-sas cable the goes from one of the three ports on the backplane to one port on the RAID card, right?

 

[jgreco]

For an expander backplane, correct. For something else (-A or -TQ), you end up needing an HBA lane for every drive, so you need multiple cables (and multiple HBA's). The expander backplane does limit you in terms of overall bandwidth to the storage, but it is not an unreasonable limitation for HDD's.

 

[Black Ninja]

Speaking of limits: I understand that backplane with sas expander will limit the bandwidth for obvious reasons , but will it limit anything else ?

Sellers for used SuperMicro SC846E1-R900B with 9211i are warning their buyers this:

"BPN-SAS-846EL1 SAS Expander (24x 3.5" SAS/SATA Hot-swappable Drive Bays)***3TB and 4TB Hard Drive may not be recognized by the backplane if fully populated."

Is that true ?

 

[jgreco]

The, uh, let's see, the 846EL1 is 3Gbps SAS, yes, the expanders might not work. We just advise everyone to get SAS2 or SAS3 expander backplanes.

 

[Black Ninja]

It might not work for hdds over 2TB period , but is what they are saying make any sense (it will not be their first mistake) ?
According to this you can put few 3TB and 4TB and will work , but if you fill all 24 ports wont ?! Is this how expanders work ?

I am reading the "SAS-y"sticky again but can't connect the dots ?

 

[jgreco]

It might not work for hdds over 2TB period , but is what they are saying make any sense (it will not be their first mistake) ?
According to this you can put few 3TB and 4TB and will work , but if you fill all 24 ports wont ?! Is this how expanders work ?

I am reading the "SAS-y"sticky again but can't connect the dots ?

No, I'm pretty sure they pulled some Chinglish from somewhere and then misparsed it further.

 

[Black Ninja]

I figure that would be the case. It's not my first misunderstanding with them, but they have a tons of used servers with attractive prices.

 

[jgreco]

Yes, attractive prices because all the 2TB-or-smaller disks have died and nobody sees purchasing large fleets of tiny drives as practical.

 

[Black Ninja]

Yeah that's true, but didn't buy one with drives. I bought twice from "Mr.Racktables" because of the chassis and rails mostly, but I regret when I see the condition of the item when arrived. I should've got a new one.:)