Supermicro BPN-SAS-846A compatibility

[beeph]

Backplane BPN-SAS-846A 1 4U 6Gbps Backplane Supports 24x3.5" SAS/SATA HDD/SSD w/ iPass Connectors
Backplane BPN-SAS-826A 1 2U 6Gbps Backplane Supports 12x3.5\" SAS/SATA HDD/SSD with iPass Connectors

Hi I'm looking to buy a supermicro chassis, I was wondering if the SAS 846-A and 826-A will be a bottleneck. I'd like to get 3 TB drives in from an old Norco 2008 case. I have the intel m1015 cards [crossflashed IT mode or whatever, yada yada yada] already, but I was wondering if the backplane itself might create problems.

I did a search on forums, and there was a lot of talk about this subject but noone ever definitively tested out this configuration. SAS1 is obsolete i know, but if it works 'good enough' then I can save alot of $$.

 

[Dice]

You will need to look at backplanes that are " BPN-SAS2-x". Those support drives larger than 2-3TB.
The SAS(1) backplanes create problems when being populated by several larger drives > 2TB.

 

[danb35]

@Dice, I'm not sure that's the case with the -A backplanes (and for that matter, I've not seen actual test data supporting it for the expander backplanes either, but that's another matter).

@beeph, no, those backplanes will not be a bottleneck--they just run a single SAS channel to each drive. The expander backplanes can (in theory) be a bottleneck, but that doesn't seem to be an issue in practice either.

 

[beeph]

of course if $$ were no object I'd get an SAS2 backplane. But since it's a -A backplane, with no expander, can I 'get away' with a SAS backplane? And still use my 3TB drives? or is there some other firmware/chip on the SAS-846A that causes the M1015 to not recognize >2TB? If anyone has any experience with the 846-A and 826-A or just SAS1 supermicro backplanes with the -A option that can positively confirm there will or wont be problems I can save ALOT of $$.

I'm not concerned with data bandwidth at all. I used the wrong term, I'm talking about the >2TB size limitation as it applies to the entire chain of the Motherboard->HBA->Backplane-> 2TB+hard drive. Believe me I dont want to go through this hassle, but we're talking SUBSTANTIAL price savings, so I gotta ask.

 

[danb35]

of course if $$ were no object I'd get an SAS2 backplane.

I understand, and if you already have three HBAs, that makes sense. If not, consider that though the SAS2 expander backplane costs extra, you'd only need a single HBA (or none at all, if one is integrated in your motherboard as it is in mine) to run all the drives, which could save a fair bit of money.

It's known that SAS1 HBAs won't support (or report) drive sizes greater than 2.2 TB (and I think that's TB, not TiB, but I'm not certain). MrRackables states that the SAS1 expander backplanes (the -E1 models) won't work for larger drives if fully populated, but at least implies that larger drives will work if the backplane isn't fully populated (and exactly what that means is uncertain). I'm not aware of anyone who's used the -A backplanes. I would think they'd work with any size drives, because as I understand it they're simply a passive board--pretty much the PCB version of a breakout cable. But that's only a gut feeling, and I'm afraid I don't have any actual data to share on the subject.

 

[Dice]

@danb35 thnks for picking up the slack. I was too quick on the trigger. Did just notice this was a 6Gbps / SAS1, don't think I've seen that before.

 

[beeph]

Hrm the case i was looking at Supermicro SC847A-R1400UB only supports one intel mobo: Supermicro X8DTU Motherboard

I'm looking at it and it looks like there's 6 on-board SATA ports and one PCI-E port.. this would mean i could only get 6 + 1 M1015 or 10 drives on here?

Is there a reason why X8 isn't liked. Dual xeon's should be good enough and it supports over 100gigs of RAM.

 

[danb35]

The M1015 supports 8 drives, or many more if used with a SAS expander. I don't think it's the case, though, that this chassis only supports the X8DTU. If you do use that board, it supports a riser card--see https://www.supermicro.com/products/nfo/UIO.cfm for more information on that.

The X8 series tends to be a bit slower, and considerably more power-hungry, than X9 or later. It's entirely adequate in terms of CPU power and memory capacity, and it's definitely cheaper than newer gear, but you'll pay a bit more for electricity.

 

[beeph]

is there an X9 or X10 that will fit in that chassis?
https://www.supermicro.com/products/chassis/4U/847/SC847A-R1400U.cfm

I was going off the spec. $$ isnt that important to me, I just dont want to spend 1000$+ on an X10 server when it's really just for personal use. I'm not cheap, I just dont believe in throwing away $$.

Problem is last time i went TOO cheap.. I was an early adopter I got a RPC-2008 case with 'gamer hardware'.. an AMD mobo and a phenom chip that melts 90C anytime the tests run. This was like 5+ years ago.. back in my 30's when my brain still functioned reasonably well so I could deal with the issues via tweaking. I think this beast increased my power bills 50$ a month over a 5 year period, so that's 3000$ in electricity i spent by 'saving' money haha.

Thanks for all the help. I'm looking to spend under 800$ on case [obviously used] + PS + backplane + mobo + CPU. I already have 2 M1015's. ECC RAM + storage I plan to spend as a i need.

I ate up the 8 bays on the Norco pretty quick with 2TB drives.. and mirroring, so. I need 3u+

 

[danb35]

is there an X9 or X10 that will fit in that chassis?

I was looking at the part of that page that said "4U chassis support for motherboards up to size ATX, E-ATX, 13.68" x 13", UIO motherboards". But having said that, while they might mount in that chassis, the slots in the back panel for the expansion cards wouldn't line up at all.

I picked up my system (with E5-2660s instead of the 2670s) for $1185 shipped, about a month ago. I still need to sell the RAID controller that came with it, which should bring my final cost to around $1000. Still more than your stated budget, but it came with the RAM, and it has SAS expander backplanes, so I just need a single pair of SAS ports (which conveniently are on the motherboard). You might get lucky and find another one like it.

 

[beeph]

How about the CSE-836TQ-R800B? It's cheap and has a direct attached backplane. It supports X9 and X10 mobos. I was thinking about mixing and matching my M1015 for 8 drives, using the onboard SAS2 controller on the mobo, or the onboard SATA ports to fill the gap. Is mixing and matching onboard with the PCI-E m1015 an issue?

 

[danb35]

Is mixing and matching onboard with the PCI-E m1015 an issue?

No issue at all.

That chassis should be fine, and the -TQ backplane won't have any issues with drive compatibility. It really will be a rat's nest to cable, though (I speak from experience here, with an 826TQ). Board compatibility should be fine, as the expansion slots are in their ordinary location and orientation.