Supermicro X9SRL-F + E5-2670v2

[Velcade]

Hey there,

My system is made up of:
MB: Supermicro X9SRL-F
CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2670 V2 2.50GHz 10C/20T
HSF: Noctua NH-D9D i4 3U
Memory: Samsung 64GB (4x16GB) 1600MHz ECC DDR3 1.35V
HBA: Dell H310 6Gb/s SAS LSI 9211-8i P20 (IT mode)
PSU: Seasonic Focus Plus 750 Platinum 750w 80+ platinum
Boot Drives: 2 - Intel 320 series 2.5" 40GB SATA II MLC Internal SSD (mirrored)
Jail Drive: 1- Crucial MX500 500GB 3D NAND SATA 2.5" Internal SSD
Storage Drives: 4- Western Digital Red 4TB NAS Hard Disk Drive - 5400 RPM Class SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache 3.5" (in Raidz2)
Case: Fractal Design R6 black case without the TG side panel
OS Version: FreeNAS-11.2-U3


I removed the front and top panels to increase airflow


Here's a shot of the goods. That Noctua cooler is amazing; silent compared to the server cooler shipped with the board.


I've read these HBAs run hot so I replaced the thermal paste and added a couple 120mm fans for extra insurance.


The Jail drive and the 4 Storage drives. I spaced the drives to improve cooling.


Learnings along the way

• Preinstalled motherboard stand offs can be your enemy. I was getting B7 boot error when populating the blue DIMM slots. I traced it down to C1 DIMM being the issue. I found an extra motherboard standoff (top middle) not used by this board but preinstalled from the factory causing a grounding issue with that DIMM. Once removed everything as been great.
• PLEX PLUS plugin doesn't seem to work for me. I found a work around by manually creating the jail and then using the shell to install PLEX PLUS.
• IMPI is amazing.

This is my first dive into NAS storage so we'll see where the years take me. I followed jgreco guide to burn in and everything seems good-to-go. I have a spare 4TB drive as a back up to drive failure.

Thanks!

I apologize for the sideways photos, can't seem to get them to flip.

 

[Chris Moore]

Looks like a great build.

• VGA doesn't seem to work with this board. I can't figure out if that because the CPU doesn't have a graphics chip or if there's an issue with the board.
• IMPI is amazing.

There could be a defect or I think there is a jumper on the board that can turn off the VGA port. The video for that is provided by a dedicated Matrox video chip on the system board and that is also what renders the video that is piped over the IPMI remote connection, so it doesn't rely on a CPU integrated GPU. I have a couple of those boards myself and I don't recall ever connecting a local monitor to them. The factory default configuration has the IPMI getting an IP address from DHCP, so you can connect power and network and do all the rest of the configuration remotely without ever connecting a physical keyboard, mouse and monitor.

 

[Velcade]

The factory default configuration has the IPMI getting an IP address from DHCP, so you can connect power and network and do all the rest of the configuration remotely without ever connecting a physical keyboard, mouse and monitor.

This is exactly what I did. Once I figured out what IPMI was I plugged into my network and waited for a new IP to show up. Then changed it to a static address and changed the default password. I'll check the jumper tonight and see if it's in the 'on' position.

 

[PhiloEpisteme]

I've read these HBAs run hot so I replaced the thermal paste and added a couple 120mm fans for extra insurance.

Cool solution. I've got a build in the same case. I'm waiting for some expansion slot fan mounts to come in so I can keep my cards cool too.

 

[Velcade]

Cool solution.

Solid pun. ;)

I wanted something easy that would allow me to use existing fans. I have a lot of FD cases and a lot of Dynamic X2 fans lying around.

It sure moves some air.

 

[Snow]

Cool Build Man! I was looking at doing a costume build on my dual Cpu chassis. Only one problem is, if I replace the 3 front fan's for a AIO & Fans how hot will my 20 Hdd's get? As I have now restricted the air flow upfront. That why I have not pulled the trigger. I know My buddy had this same case and he drooped in a 280MM and replaced his Noctua and seen temps as low as 30C to 42C Under load. What Are you getting under air ?

 

[Chris Moore]

I know My buddy had this same case and he drooped in a 280MM and replaced his Noctua and seen temps as low as 30C to 42C Under load. What Are you getting under air ?

Are you asking about the CPU temperature? Mine runs between 40°C and 55°C with a (not very good) air cooler. If you have this type of case and you want to try running a water cooler, mount it in the top of the chassis, not in the front. You don't want to do anything to block the air to the drives because keeping the drives cool is much more important than keeping the CPU temp down because most of your Xeon type processors are good up to around 80°C so running at 55°C is no problem at all for the processor.

 

[Snow]

Are you asking about the CPU temperature? Mine runs between 40°C and 55°C with a (not very good) air cooler. If you have this type of case and you want to try running a water cooler, mount it in the top of the chassis, not in the front. You don't want to do anything to block the air to the drives because keeping the drives cool is much more important than keeping the CPU temp down because most of your Xeon type processors are good up to around 80°C so running at 55°C is no problem at all for the processor.

Oh know I was talking about one of my rack mounted cases comparably. Just was saying how nice this case is to add fans and AIO'S. I plan on 3D printing a custom bracket for a 160MM rad for the rear fan spots on my SC846E2 for a custom rad set up. If only they had a AIO that could do dual Cpu's. :P looks like I am left fully customizing my own Cooler.

 

[Chris Moore]

Dell makes a water cooler that mounts to the the CPU bracket of a 2011 CPU. I put two of them in a dual processor system just last week.
Here is the installation video:
https://www.dell.com/learn/us/en/04/videos~en/documents~esupport-r7910-liquid-cooling-en-v1.aspx

Here is what it looks like:

One water block, one fan, one radiator per each CPU. It works great.

 

[Chris Moore]

Here is a video that shows a little better view of the cooler if you want to check it out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8DhzK77mEA

 

[Snow]

Do you know the Coolers Part number off hand? the link does not say Thanks.

 

[Chris Moore]

Do you know the Coolers Part number off hand? the link does not say Thanks.

TMJK2

https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Dell-Precision-T7910-Liquid-Cooled-Heatsink-TMJK2/273266006262

I bought the ones for work through ServerSupply because my organization won't use eBay, so we got these instead:

https://www.serversupply.com/ACCESSORIES/HEATSINK/POWEREDGE/DELL/TMJK2.htm

Go figure. The part from Server Supply is used and costs more than the new part from eBay.

 

[Chris Moore]

This one is also interesting looking:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Alienware-Area-51-R2-XPS-630-630i-Liquid-Water-Cooling-Heatsink-Fan-K31VH/352470026209
mainly because there is a bit of length to the hoses so the radiator could be mounted elsewhere

 

[Snow]

ServerSupply does sell on eBay lol, I got one of my Switch's and a Server from them.

 

[Velcade]

Cool Build Man! I was looking at doing a costume build on my dual Cpu chassis. Only one problem is, if I replace the 3 front fan's for a AIO & Fans how hot will my 20 Hdd's get?

Thanks! I'd stick with air for a server. Those noctua coolers are virtually silent and keep things nice and cool. The front fans have great cooling potential for the HDDs.

This case is great, lots of room for activities. My main rig is also in a Define R6 chassis, running AIOs for the CPU and GPU.

 

[Snow]

My new case is going to be a Meshify S2 White TG. Love the look off the R6 also the building qulity is great. I used to love Thermaltake cases but they have really let the ball slip, Last 2 cases I've owned where not worth the money I shipped them for.

 

[Velcade]

My new case is going to be a Meshify S2 White TG. Love the look off the R6 also the building qulity is great. I used to love Thermaltake cases but they have really let the ball slip, Last 2 cases I've owned where not worth the money I shipped them for.

I was actually trying to do the same. Case swap my gaming system out for a Meshify S2. However FD said they can't sell individual solid panels in the US for their cases. I didn't want to have a glass side panel for my NAS.

 

[Snow]

Yeah seems Like kinda of a waste unless you like to show it off Here is my rack. I had to cut it in half to get it in:P

 

[Snow]

It would not let me upload both in the same post But this is my baby in the basement. What extra do you get with Plex Plus Vs Normal Plex Server?

 

[Chris Moore]

LED strips. I get it. It's dark in the basement.