NAS

[moron101]

Hi,

My current mid tower is completely filled w/o room for addt'l HDDs. I'm looking to expand it w/ an eSata HBA card connected to some kind of self powered HDD cage (for a want of a better word).

Bought this unit (click here) but Truenas Scale did not see any HDDs from it. Put it in my Windows 11 machine and everything is fine.

So wondering if anyone has built a similar rig and if you wouldn't mind telling me which HBA card and what HDD (cage) you used?

p/s I'm not looking for a NAS device (self powered HDD cage that connects over the network).

Thx in advance.


Richard

 

[HoneyBadger]

Hey @moron101

The Amazon link went to the "HF2-SU3S2" model on that page, I'll assume that's the correct one.

The description on the page states that

• This Unit does NOT support Linux

Usually that's a "support" issue rather than pure functionality, but it's possible that the chip used for SATA port multiplication or RAID logic in this unit has no non-Windows/MacOS drivers at all. The eSATA port on your drive controller may also not have Linux drivers.

In general, devices that use of SATA port multiplication or other internal RAID-logic aren't recommended for use with TrueNAS, as ZFS wants to be able to address each disk individually with full bandwidth. It's generally recommended to use things like SAS (Serial Attached SCSI) for expansion shelves.

 

[moron101]

Update (if anyone cares), the following combination works w/ Truenas:

• Cage: click here
• HBA: click here (make sure you pay attention to the jumper pins)

Hope this post helps someone looking to do a same build as myself!

 

[Fleshmauler]

Update (if anyone cares), the following combination works w/ Truenas:

• Cage: click here
• HBA: click here (make sure you pay attention to the jumper pins)

Hope this post helps someone looking to do a same build as myself!

That looks less like an HBA and more like a port multiplier - hopefully it stays working...

Multiply your problems with SATA Port Multipliers and cheap SATA controllers

In the last year or two, we've had a resurgence of users asking about SATA Port Multipliers and cheap SATA controllers. Please, do NOT use port multipliers, and use cheap SATA controllers only after extensive research. SATA controllers and SATA...

www.truenas.com

 

[joeschmuck]

Cage: click here

Clearly states Port Multiplier, could end up being a problem, or not.

HBA: click here (make sure you pay attention to the jumper pins)

I have something similar (see my build for part number), a 4 port internal PCIe card, it just adds four ports and I pass the entire card through for ESXi.

 

[moron101]

Clearly states Port Multiplier, could end up being a problem, or not.


I have something similar (see my build for part number), a 4 port internal PCIe card, it just adds four ports and I pass the entire card through for ESXi.

Yeah, I have an old computer and turning it into a NAS hence the poor man's approach w/ hardware.

Meanwhile, fingers crossed that it stays up... Those used drives might be a problem though... lol

 

[joeschmuck]

So long as you are aware that TureNAS was not designed to be a reuse Old hardware system, in spite of many videos on the internet. Maybe back in the version .7 when iXsystem took over and created version 8.0.

 

[moron101]

Correction on an earlier post that this unit does not work. Turns out it works, user error. I had misconfigured my eSATA port multiplier's pins.