Another Help What HBA Should I Consider Post

[t0ny84]

Hi,
I have recently purchased a NetApp (LSI?) Class 3650 Model 0834 Storage Array, it uses 2 x NetApp Drive Module PN 45822-00 to connect to the computer.

The storage array currently (and for the near future) will be filled with 12 x 4TB Seagate EXOS Drives.

After doing a lot of reading and Youtubing I feel I am not close to finding a suitable HBA to connect the Storage Array to my server. I am in Australia and the availability of reasonably priced HBAs seems near nonexistent. I have considered purchasing one through eBay from China but have read multiple forum posts that these cards may be counterfeit or have limited life expectancy. In addition, I have read that some HBAs may not work due to having a 2TB maximum hard drive capacity per drive.

HBA Requirements
External - to connect to the storage array.
Price - The cheaper the better
Speed - Any speed e.g. 3gb/s, 6gb/s, 12gb/s etc. It will mainly be used for cold storage \ storing of tv series and movies.
Ports - 2 ports as the storage array has 2 x drive modules.

The following are cards that I have shortlisted from eBay Australia with where the seller is located, price and if it is already flashed in IT Mode. I ask if you have had experience with any or all of these cards if you could please give me some advice on what would be the best option(s). If anyone knows if any of the cards would work and do not need IT Mode Flashed can you also let me know?

Name \ Model	Location	Price (including postage)	IT Mode?	Link
489103-001 HP HBA	Australia	$30.00	Unknown	489103-001 HP HBA PCIE 2-PORT SAS CONTROLLER | eBay
Adaptec AAR-1225SA	Australia	$28.00	Unknown	Adaptec AAR-1225SA PCI Express Dual Port eSATA II RAID Control Card UNT 624684 | eBay
DELL PERC 5E (M778G)	Australia	$26.00	Unknown	M778G - Dell PERC 5/E Dual Port SAS HBA | eBay
DELL PERC 5E (M778G)	Australia	$36.00	Unknown	M778G DELL PERC5E SAS HBA 2P PCI-E | eBay
DELL PERC 5E (M778G)	Australia	$27.00	Unknown	Dell PERC 5/E Dual Channel 8-Port PCI-Express SAS Controller with 256MB Cache E2 | eBay
DELL PERC 5E (M778G) (256MB Cache)	Australia	$28.50	Unknown	Dell PERC 5/E Dual Channel 8-Port PCI-Express SAS Controller with 256MB Cache E2 | eBay
DELL PERC 6E	Australia	$35.00	Unknown	DELL PERC 6E | eBay
DELL PERC 6E	Australia	$35.00	Unknown	DELL - PERC 6/E SAS RAID Controller CARD with Cache and BBU PN 0J155F | eBay
Dell PERC H200E	China	$42.77	Unknown	Dell PERC H200E 6Gb/s SAS PCIe HBA 2 Port Ext SFF-8088 12DNW = LSI 9200-8E | eBay
Dell PERC H200E	China	$37.51	Unknown	Dell PERC H200E 6Gb/s SAS PCIe HBA 2 Port Ext SFF-8088 12DNW = LSI 9200-8E | eBay
HP SAS 3801E-HP (489103-001 488901-001)	Australia	$19.52	Unknown	HP SAS 3801E-HP Dual Port SAS PCI-E 489103-001 488901-001 | eBay
LSI 9200-8E SAS9200-8E	China	$32.51	Yes	LSI 9200-8E SAS9200-8E 6Gbps ext SAS HBA P20 IT Mode ZFS FreeNAS unRAID NoROM | eBay
LSI 9200-8E SAS9200-8E	China	$35.20	Yes	LSI 9200-8E SAS9200-8E 6Gbps ext SAS HBA P20 IT Mode ZFS FreeNAS unRAID NoROM | eBay
LSI 9212-4i4E	China	$28.00	Yes	LSI 9212-4i4e 6Gbps SAS HBA IT Mode ZFS FreeNAS unRAID | eBay

Alternatively, I am considering dismantling the storage array and hacking together something using its backplane or possibly buying a backplane such as HP Proliant 25 Bay Backplane and using it with an internal SAS HBA.

Name \ Model	Location	Price (including postage)	IT Mode?	Link
HP P410 462919-001	Australia	$14.50	Unknown	HP P410 462919-001 SAS RAID Controller Full Profile w/512MB Cache No Battery HPE | eBay
DELL H200 H310 9200-8I 9210-8I 9211-8I 9220-8I 9 P20	China	$15.95	Yes	DELL H200 H310 9200-8I 9210-8I 9211-8I 9220-8I 9 P20 IT Mode ZFS FreeNAS unRAID | eBay
HP P410 0MB 462919-001	China	$16.50	Unknown	HP P410 0MB 462919-001 Smart Array SAS RAID Controller Card no cache card Batter | eBay
HP P410 512MB 462919-001	China	$16.37	Unknown	HP P410 512MB 462919-001 Smart Array SAS RAID Controller Card FBWC 578882-001 | eBay
Dell PERC S300	Australia	$15.00	Unknown	Dell PERC S300 SAS/SATA card 3Gbps | eBay

As always a big thank you to everyone for their input.

t0ny84

 

[Chriggel]

If you're doing it, I strongly suggest spending a bit more money. Some of these are so old, they even have SFF-8484 connectors. I haven't seen any of those in a long time. Some of the cards listed here aren't even worth their already low price. Also, some are RAID controllers and not HBAs.

And don't try a hacking operation like that. You're trying to connect proprietary parts to each other, with custom physical layouts, custom power connectors and so on. That HP 25 Bay backplane is probably from a 2U DL380 server and will not easily fit anything else. It's also SFF, so 2.5" and not 3.5".

There's a reason why you can get these NetApp arrays and similar devices fairly cheap. You're now trying to connect to it on the cheap as well, which isn't a bad thing per se, but maybe you'll spend as much or even more for the connection. Moving the drives to a standard drive cage / backplane will also not be cheap.

 

[BeTeP]

The Dell H200E should be around $20 shipped

Dell H200E IT Mode 6Gb/s SAS/SATA PCIe HBA 2 Port Ext SFF-8088 12DNW 012DNW | eBay

<li> Brand DELL MPN DELL PERC H200 EAN Nicht zutreffend UPC Does not apply</li>.

www.ebay.com

Everything you've read and watched online re LSI HBA "fakes" from China is utter bullshit. As in there are many unscrupulous sellers and ordering from another country makes it more difficult to deal with returns but there was never a problem with spotting obvious scams like some morons claimed.

 

[t0ny84]

...

@Chriggel, happy to spend more money just don't want to waste money e.g. buying something that isn't compatible and will just be e-waste if I can't resell it.

The backplane idea came about from watching an Art Of Server YouTube video, possibly using something like a SuperMicro BPN-SAS2-826EL1 with an LSI 9207-8i HBA Card using SFF-8087 to SFF-8087 cables to connect them. Though won't move forward without further research.

Do you have any suggestions on which card \ model I should be looking at keeping in mind External would be preferable?

Thanks again.
t0ny84

...

@BeTeP thanks for the advice will add a consideration next to this card.

Thanks again.
t0ny84

 

[Chriggel]

Do you have any suggestions on which card \ model I should be looking at keeping in mind External would be preferable?

Since I knew that was coming, I already thought about putting that information in my last post. But honestly, this is really tricky and I wasn't sure what to say. In my opinion, this is a waste of money anyway, to a certain extent, because of that old NetApp array. You don't yet know if anything we're talking about is ever going to work.

What I'd probably do is this:

See what type of external SAS cables you can get for reasonable prices. Relevant are SFF-8088 to SFF-8088 and SFF-8644 to SFF-8088. Decide whether it's going to be a RAID controller or HBA you need/want. If you want to run ZFS or any other type of software RAID, you'll need a HBA, otherwise you could consider a RAID controller.

Based on the results of the former, you can limit the controllers you're looking for. The LSI 92xx-xe generation will have SFF-8088 ports, the 93xx-xe to 95xx-xe will have SFF-8644. You could get Dell/HP/... branded cards, but check if you can get the latest firmware for it. This probably means cross-flashing, because the original firmware might be old, especially for the 92xx and maybe even 93xx generation, and IR mode only if it's a HBA. You want IT mode firmware on the HBA for ZFS, for other use cases IR might be fine as well.

All SFF-8088 equipment is legacy at this point and should be fairly cheap (we've already seen some cards, it should be true for the cables as well). The problem is, you're probably not going to use it ever again for anything else. Usually I'd recommend getting at least a 93xx or even 94xx generation card as they'll be of more use down the road, but the SFF-8644 to SFF-8088 cables might be more expensive and/or harder to get and because of that SFF-8088 end, you're probably not using them ever again either.

If all that isn't possible or fails in some way, you can think about putting the drives that came with the NetApp array into a different array or standard drive cage / backplane setup, if they don't have a custom firmware and work with other controllers. But that's a bridge we're going to cross when, or if, we get there.

 

[t0ny84]

...

Thank you, thank you, thank you

The system I will be using will be either OMV, TrueNAS or UNRAID as the server itself will mainly be a NAS with the occasional docker (or style) containers (e.g. nGINX, Sonarr, Radarr).

Due to current system limitations (PCIe slots and space), I will try the NetApp Storage Array with an external HBA. Long term, once I have sourced all the necessary components to build \ update my server I think I will end up going down the path of internal HBA as these are more readily meaning I can get a better card for the same price as an older external card.

Comparing the different series cards for this test scenario I have decided to stick with a 92xx series card (to be confirmed). I will look at 93xx and 94xx cards for the long-term setup.

I have a shortlist of cards I am comparing, once compared I will reply to or update this post with their details for input \ guidance.

Again,
Thanks so much
t0ny84

 

[t0ny84]

These are my shortlisted cards:

Card Name	Connector Type
Dell PERC H200e	Unknown
Dell PERC 5e (M778G)	Unknown
Dell PERC 6e	Unknown
LSI 9200-8e	SFF-8088
LSI 9286-e	SFF-8088

 

[Chriggel]

PERC H200E: SFF-8088, it's the external version of the H200 which has internal SFF-8087 ports.
PERC 5e and 6e: Oh boy, SFF-8470. Haven't seen those in a LONG time SFF-8470 to SFF-8088 does exist, but I'd suggest that you take these off your list.
9200-8e: HBA
9286-8e: RAID

The 92xx cards seem to be your best and almost only option. 9200 is your need a HBA, 9286 if you need hardware RAID. They're so old, they're basically close to the limit of what's reasonably usable. I don't even know if they already support drives over 2 TB, you might want to check the specs first. It was an issue with old cards.