What's a good value (inexpensive :-) ) controller to replace Dell Perc H310?

[jang430]

Hi. I'm building a second NAS, Unraid. What's a good controller to use? I'm currently using Dell Perc H310. What improvement will the new controller give? Has to be capable of 8 SAS or SATA ports.

Thanks for your help.

 

[nthu9280]

Not familiar with Unraid but if you are just going to be using mechanical drives H310 equivalent (LSI SAS2008 based) are still more than enough. You can go with HP H220 / 9207-8i / 9217-8i equivalents based on SAS2308 to get the PCIe3 speeds and higher IOPS. They can be had for $35-$40 range.

 

[jang430]

Yes, still will be using mechanical drives. But looking into refurbished SAS drives. Does the new controller help? How does SAS2308 help in this scenario? Is it because it's PCIe3?

 

[andrewbedia]

You would need far more than 8 mechanical drives to really exceed what a PCIe 2.0 card such as H310 can do. I recommend you stick with it as you won't see any benefit from a newer card.

 

[jang430]

It just so happens I'm building a new unit. Not really replacing old card. Is H310 still the unit to buy?

 

[andrewbedia]

H310 generally is the cheapest one. Any 9211-8i or rebrand (Dell H310/H200, IBM M1015, etc) should work fine for you.

 

[jang430]

So H310, H200, IBM M1015 are all using the same 9211-8i?

 

[EffrafaxOfWug]

See the sticky at the top of this forum:

https://forums.servethehome.com/ind...and-hba-complete-listing-plus-oem-models.599/

 

[TeleFragger]

I needed 2x hba's as well and I bought 2 off ebay. HP H220 and upgraded the fw and running them now. Running GREAT!!!! also they came with sas to sas cables (not that I will use them) but came at same price as others without.

if you want to know who I got them from just hit me up...

 

[jang430]

I needed 2x hba's as well and I bought 2 off ebay. HP H220 and upgraded the fw and running them now. Running GREAT!!!! also they came with sas to sas cables (not that I will use them) but came at same price as others without.

if you want to know who I got them from just hit me up...

Yes, I'd love to know from where you got it. And how much? Is the HP220 any better than Dell Perc H310? In build?

 

[TeleFragger]

I cant answer if any better but i read this does what it says.. and $40 each. He has more...

HP LSI 638834-001 // SAS9205-8i H220 HBA Full Height with Cables 696551642587 | eBay

 

[nthu9280]

It's not the build, but the RAID chip is different (newer) as discussed earlier in the thread. If you are going to use with spinners, you are not going to see any difference in performance.

 

[jang430]

@TeleFragger , @nthu9280 , thank you, I'm considering an Dell Perc H310, about 30+.

 

[DanielWood]

The SAS2008 chipset is off my recommendation list for one reason. As of RHEL8, the drivers have been removed and will have to be re-added manually.

My current go to is the HP220 with its SAS2308 chipset and PCIe 3.0 (Will still perform great in a PCIE x4 electrical slot.)

 

[TeleFragger]

The SAS2008 chipset is off my recommendation list for one reason. As of RHEL8, the drivers have been removed and will have to be re-added manually.

My current go to is the HP220 with its SAS2308 chipset and PCIe 3.0 (Will still perform great in a PCIE x4 electrical slot.)

Love both of mine but in server 2019