Epyc 7313P - H12SSL-CT WIP Server

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evanmarc

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May 15, 2022
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Hello everyone, I'm getting ready to build my first server (with actual server parts) and want to make sure I'm not overlooking anything. This will replace my existing i7-3770 server and will use as a NAS and running data automation tasks.


OS: Proxmox (w/ TrueNas Core VM)
CPU: Epyc 7313P
MoBo: Supermicro H12SSL-CT
Case: Rosewill RSV-l4412U
HDD: 48TB (8x6TB Seagate IronWolf ST6000VN0016)
SSD: 4TB (2x2TB Samsung 870)
M.2: 250-500GB m.2
RAM: 256GB (8x32SB DDR4-3200 ECC)
Add-in: 3ware 9500S-12
Power: EVGA SuperNOVA 1600

The server will host:
- TrueNAS Core VM (pass through 3ware controller with the HD and 2 SSDs)
- Windows VMs (1 for automation on apps, and the rest for work/testing)
- Apache Airflow VM
- Docker (e.g., databases, Portainer, etc.)

I'm planning on using this for the next 5+ years and want to make sure the parts work well together.
 

j_h_o

Active Member
Apr 21, 2015
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3ware 9500S-12 is pretty ancient. Are you sure you didn't intend to use at least an LSI 9211-8i or something as a SAS controller for the drives you have?
 

evanmarc

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May 15, 2022
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3ware 9500S-12 is pretty ancient. Are you sure you didn't intend to use at least an LSI 9211-8i or something as a SAS controller for the drives you have?
Honestly, I picked a controller that would allow me to include my 8 HHD with 2 SSDs. However, I have no problem switching to a different controller (like the LSI 9211-8i). It looks like I would need to get 2 cards to support the the 10 drives.
 

j_h_o

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Apr 21, 2015
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Gotcha. Your board has:
a) onboard SATA ports to which you can connect 8 SATA drives
and b) an onboard LSI 3008, which can handle 8 drives with an 2x (SFF-8643 to 4xSAS/SATA cable)
You probably don't need this 3ware controller at all.

If you wanted to unify all the drives on 1 controller, you could consider an Intel RES3FV288 or RES3TV360 (either should be available on eBay in the US at ~reasonable prices) -- so you'd connect the onboard LSI 3008 to this expander card, and then the expander would give you a quite a few more SFF-8643 ports (to which you'd use the same cable to out out to SAS/SATA ports).

I would personally consider a Supermicro CSE-846 instead of the Rosewill chassis.

EDIT: Can you share specific part numbers for the RAM you're considering? It'd be good to confirm compatibility...
 
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BlueFox

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Oct 26, 2015
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The H12SSL-CT already has a built in SAS HBA. You can hook up 16 SATA drives. Not sure why you'd want another. As mentioned, that 3ware controller is so ancient that it won't even physically fit in your motherboard.
 

evanmarc

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May 15, 2022
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The H12SSL-CT already has a built in SAS HBA. You can hook up 16 SATA drives.
If my research is correct, the 2 SAS and 6 of the SATA ports use the came chips so I'm limited to either SAS or SATA. I would love to be wrong because that opens the number of drives for me.

a) onboard SATA ports to which you can connect 8 SATA drives
and b) an onboard LSI 3008, which can handle 8 drives with an 2x (SFF-8643 to 4xSAS/SATA cable)
The controller serves 2 purposes:
  1. Gives me enough SATA ports to connect all my hard drives; and
  2. Allows me to pass-through the entire controller to TrueNAS.
Ideally, I would love to just pass through the controllers on the board, but I wasn't sure if that was possible.

One option is to just pass the HDDs and swap out Samsung 870 with a larger m.2 drive for OS and local VMs. Then there is no need for the controller.
 

j_h_o

Active Member
Apr 21, 2015
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You could do a SAS expander, then passthru the onboard 3008 + expander.

As far as I can tell, the drives you want to use for the host are SATA/could use the onboard m.2 or SATA ports, correct?
 

evanmarc

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May 15, 2022
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I wasn't aware of SAS expanders, but that sounds like a much better option.

You are correct. The plan is to pass the HDD to TrueNAS and have the host control the m.2 (proxmox) and SSDs (VMs).
 

BlueFox

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Oct 26, 2015
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If my research is correct, the 2 SAS and 6 of the SATA ports use the came chips so I'm limited to either SAS or SATA. I would love to be wrong because that opens the number of drives for me.
They don't. You can look at the system block diagram for the motherboard in the manual. You have 8 SATA ports off the platform and 8 SAS ports (which can be all SAS, all SATA, or a mix of the two) from the integrated Broadcom 3008 HBA. 16 drives total with no extra parts (of which all can be SATA and up to 8 can be SAS).
 

evanmarc

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May 15, 2022
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I'm glad to be wrong. :) That means I can drop the controller, hookup the HDD to the SAS (SAS-to-SATA cables) and pass the 3008 to TrueNAS. If I'm understanding the manual correctly, that means I have SATA 0-7 available for other drives.
 

i386

Well-Known Member
Mar 18, 2016
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Case: Rosewill RSV-l4412U
Looks like this chassis uses hdd cages which might be problematic for two reasons:
Rosewill is blocking visitors from EU so I can't say if these cages support sas ssds/hdds (plastic notch in the connectors for data and power)
And hdd cages are usually "cheap" and can become problematic after 2+ years (cooling, power and data signal problems)
and SSDs (VMs)
Be aware that these are consumer drives and not made for 24/7 workloads
 

evanmarc

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May 15, 2022
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Rosewill is blocking visitors from EU so I can't say if these cages support sas ssds/hdds
Good to know. I'm starting to lean toward getting a non-hot swappable case. I can get a better quality case and I don't have to worry about the hardware failing.

Be aware that these are consumer drives and not made for 24/7 workloads
I'm looking at updating the drives to enterprise at this point. I want this system to be low maintenance and while consumer drive prices are great, I value being able to almost set it and forget it.
 

Sean Ho

seanho.com
Nov 19, 2019
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seanho.com
L4412 cages are just passthrough (TQ-style) with one 7-pin per drive. The drive side is 8482. Both SATA and SAS(2/3) will work just fine. They are a bit cheap and plasticky compared to an 846, but also quite a bit cheaper.

L4500 is even cheaper and fits 15x 3.5" drives, without hotswap.