Anyone have any thoughts on the newer Adaptec RAID adapters?

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jcl333

Active Member
May 28, 2011
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Hello all,

I just posted my new build in the DIY storage server section, and one of the things I am still considering is which RAID controller to use.

I am very tempted to use one of the new Adaptec controller, they have very nice features and interface.

My use case is for a RAID6 array using WD RED hard drives. I am thinking I will go with the 16-port version, as that is enough ports to be able to utilize an 8x PCIe 3.0 interface if I ever need that much bandwidth or use lots of SSDs. I don't think it is quite worth going with the Q versions that support SSD caching, but I am considering it.

I don't really care about price. I am going for latest and greatest features as I will probably have this card for awhile. They have very favorable reviews on Newegg.

Also, anyone think about using the new ReFS from Server 2012 on their RAID arrays?

Thanks

-JCL
 

jcl333

Active Member
May 28, 2011
253
74
28
Yes, great informative post. Thanks for that. I am going to follow up with Andreas.

-JCL
 
I am currently testing Adaptec 7805Q with MaxCache 3 cards, http://www.adaptec.com/en-us/support/raid/sas_raid/sas-7805q/ , in Windows Server 2012 servers and Windows 8 workstations.
I made the switch away from LSI since LSI no longer supports configured disk spin-down, see http://blog.insanegenius.com/2012/11/21/lsi-turns-their-back-on-green/

So far I am happy.
The web based maxView management software needs some work, e.g. the drive power state is correct in the events view, but not always correct in the state view, Adaptec confirmed it is a bug and it will be fixed.

Volumes slow down and spin down as configured, small changes to disk is cached and the drive does not spin up.
I also tested MaxCache using two SSD drives in RAID1, no issues, but have not done any perf testing yet.

P.
 

odditory

Moderator
Dec 23, 2010
381
59
28
How much was the Adaptec 7805Q? Because the pricing I'm seeing online seems obnoxious for an 8-port card, did you look into Areca at all? Latest/greatest dual RoC 1882 series can be had for half the price and spindown is bulletproof as is the out of band (web based) mgmt gui.
 

jcl333

Active Member
May 28, 2011
253
74
28
Thanks for your post ptr727

That is very frustrating about the LSI controllers. I am considering getting one for use with ZFS, but the lack of power management is making me think twice now (ok, maybe think about 50 times at this point)

Areca is a very good card, but I don't see many people using them in ZFS / don't know if they can be "flashed to IT mode". I wonder if the power down is an issue if it is an LSI HBA?

Other than that, I love the advertised features of the Adaptec card. Price for me is a secondary issue if it has worthwhile features and good reliability and performance.

-JCL
 

omniscence

New Member
Nov 30, 2012
27
0
0
I am currently testing Adaptec 7805Q with MaxCache 3 cards, http://www.adaptec.com/en-us/support/raid/sas_raid/sas-7805q/ , in Windows Server 2012 servers and Windows 8 workstations.
I made the switch away from LSI since LSI no longer supports configured disk spin-down, see http://blog.insanegenius.com/2012/11/21/lsi-turns-their-back-on-green/

So far I am happy.
The web based maxView management software needs some work, e.g. the drive power state is correct in the events view, but not always correct in the state view, Adaptec confirmed it is a bug and it will be fixed.

Volumes slow down and spin down as configured, small changes to disk is cached and the drive does not spin up.
I also tested MaxCache using two SSD drives in RAID1, no issues, but have not done any perf testing yet.

P.
Did you have the chance to test and maybe benchmark the MaxCache feature yet? I plan to get an Adaptec controller but I can't decide whether that feature is worth the price premium.