Supermicro HBA Experiences?

[Mr_N]

Just wondering if anyone has used one of these: AOC-S3008L-L8e which looks to be similar to the LSI 9300-8i but just cheaper :)

Both use the LSI SAS3008 controller which is listed as supported by freebsd but im not sure if that means it'll automagically work with FreeNAS...

 

[SweetAndLow]

The drivers are beta so that means it works but is not vetted.

 

[Mr_N]

So anyone got a bit of spare coin and wants to vet it? :)

 

[marbus90]

What @SweetAndLow means is that the drivers for the LSI 3008 chipset (used on both cards) are not community-tested and proven.

Supermicro cards are closer to LSI than HP, Dell and IBM rebrands. You'll only need the proper firmware version without crossflashing. If you're using a chassis with 6Gbps expanders, rather use the AOC-S2308L-L8e cards.

 

[Mr_N]

Why would anyone use the AOC-S2308L-L8e when the IBM M1115 is same thing but cheaper and easier to find :)

 

[jgreco]

Why would anyone use the AOC-S2308L-L8e when the IBM M1115 is same thing

I wasn't aware that the LSI SAS2308 was the same as the LSI SAS2008.

Cite?

The 2308 isn't going to be meaningfully different to the average FreeNAS user, but if you need SR-IOV or are attaching SSD's and would find the better PCIe useful, the 2308 may be a good choice. And they're definitely not the same thing.

but cheaper and easier to find :)

Also some people buy stuff from Supermicro because you can get vendor support, and the products are priced on par with the IBM stuff, unless you're finding stuff being pulled from systems and dumped on eBay.

For kicks, try crossflashing a Dell H310 for use on FreeNAS. It's fuuuun.

 

[marbus90]

I wasn't aware that the LSI SAS2308 was the same as the LSI SAS2008.

Cite?

It isn't - biggest difference might be PCIe 3.0 x8 support vs. the usual 2.0 x8 on 2008 based cards. But that does only translate from 4GB/s to 4.8GB/s max transfer speed due to 8 SAS Lanes not pushing out more. Still, I would go with PCIe 3.0 x8 supporting hardware as the 2308 is tested and proven (used in the TrueNAS no less) as well as the 2008.

 

[jgreco]

While the newer product is newer and shinier, as I previously said, while it isn't the same chipset, it also isn't meaningfully different to the average FreeNAS user except possibly for a few edge cases. Given the two products at the same price? 2308, sure.

 

[Mr_N]

my bad i ended up clicking the wrong link after searching for AOC-S2308L-L8e on google...

i was just thinking of making the move to 12Gb/s HBA instead of buying another M1115 or some middle ground like the AOC-S2308L-L8e once i needed more ports, was still planning on using a 6Gb/s SAS expander in the mean time as i dont really need 12Gb/s all the way to 6Gb/s sas drives currently.

maybe when that time arrives the LSI 3008 controller will have been tested more in the community :)

 

[Mr_N]

I remember seeing it somewhere mentioning which firmware to use with any LSI SAS3008 based cards but i cant find it now :(
Can anyone point me in the right direction? (it was something like P5 but i dont trust my memory :))

 

[cyberjock]

I remember seeing it somewhere mentioning which firmware to use with any LSI SAS3008 based cards but i cant find it now :(
Can anyone point me in the right direction? (it was something like P5 but i dont trust my memory :))

I've seen several people provide evidence that they need P5 firmware, but I wouldn't assume that it is confirmed by me because:

1. The driver is very beta
2. Virtually nobody with serious FreeNAS experience is going to drop money on a 3008 card because of #1.

I wouldn't be against putting one in my test system and using it to see how good/bad it does. But there's no way I'd ever recommend it for any kind of production box.

 

[Mr_N]

Yeah im torn between future proofing with the 12Gb/s cards and just going with the 6Gb/s supermicro option mentioned above, but theres only going to be a $27 difference in price and i already have the cables for the connectors on the 3008 card to my sas expanders...

 

[cyberjock]

Did you read my post about 12Gb and NVMe?

https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?threads/124-bay-12gbps-sas3-setup.30478/#post-196969

I've pretty much said that 12Gb/sec stuff is pretty much useless, and not likely to be overly important for avoiding bottlenecks except in very very very large (and very very very expensive) situations.

And I'd argue the difference is more than $27. It's potentially the reliability of your server (and its data) on the line. $27 is just the cost of buying the hardware. You are very likely to find lots of hidden costs when you have *any* kind of problem with that card. ;)

 

[Mr_N]

You make a persuasive point :) ... Do you know anyone who wants to buy the 4x Adaptec 2279700-R cables i will never use? ;)

 

[Hobbel]

I use the AOC-S2308L-L8e in my current build. Don't have longterm experience (just 3 days), but it works out of the box (downgraded to P16) and does what it is expected to do ;).

 

[Mr_N]

Good to know, what firmware did it come with?

 

[Hobbel]

mine was shiped with v19. But with the UEFI sas2flash tool it was downgraded in seconds ;)