Hi!
Long time lurker, new subscriber!
I'm upgrading my WAN and LAN from 1G to 10G, so I need/want to replace my Synology DS218+ with 12TB of available storage with an all-flash NAS/hypervisor with 10G networking (RJ45 or SFP+).
I already own a Dell Precision 3280 Compact and I wonder if I could convert it. It has 1 M.2 WiFi slot, 2 M.2 2280 slots, 1 PCIe x1 slot and 1 PCIe x8 slot (both x16 physical).
How can I fit 1x OS NVMe, 4x 4TB NVMes and 1x 10G adapter inside of this?
Maybe a low profile PCIe x8 to 4 M.2 slots with a bifurcation chip, and a M.2 to 10G adapter?
I can't find a modern PCIe 4.0 x8 to 4 M.2 card that would fit the case, and I'm not sure about the implications of such a setup.
Thank you in advance for your help!
Hi! I have the same Precision 3280 Compact, and there are actually two fairly practical ways to do this.
Dell gives you two onboard M.2 2230/2280 Gen4 NVMe slots, one M.2 2230 WLAN slot, plus two full-length physical PCIe slots electrically wired as x8 and x1.
Option 1 — 5 NVMe SSDs + 5GbE
Use one onboard M.2 slot for the OS NVMe and the second onboard M.2 slot for another NVMe.
In the PCIe x8 slot, use a dual-NVMe card with its own PCIe switch, rather than a simple bifurcation adapter. Two examples are the AXAGON PCEM2-ND and QNAP QM2-2P-344A. The AXAGON is particularly interesting because it is PCIe x8 and explicitly works without motherboard PCIe bifurcation thanks to its onboard ASMedia switch. The QNAP also uses an onboard PCIe-switch architecture and supports two NVMe drives.
Then use the x1-wired PCIe slot for one more NVMe on a simple single-drive NVMe adapter. Obviously that SSD will only have one PCIe lane available, so I would use that position for a drive that does not need maximum sequential performance.
That gives:
Onboard M.2 #1 → OS NVMe
Onboard M.2 #2 → NVMe
PCIe x8 → PCIe-switch card → 2× NVMe
PCIe x1 → 1× NVMe
WLAN M.2 A/E → RTL8126 5GbE NIC
-------------------------------------
Total → 5× NVMe + 5GbE
For the WLAN slot, there are inexpensive M.2 A+E-key RTL8126 5GbE adapters with a cable to a separate rear RJ45 board. I am already using this type of adapter successfully in another machine, and it is a very neat solution for these compact systems.
Option 2 — 4 NVMe SSDs + real 10GbE
If 10GbE is more important than having the fifth SSD, I would sacrifice one of the motherboard M.2 NVMe sockets for the NIC:
Onboard M.2 #1 → OS NVMe
Onboard M.2 #2 → M.2 10GbE NIC
PCIe x8 → PCIe-switch card → 2× NVMe
PCIe x1 → 1× NVMe
-------------------------------------
Total → 4× NVMe + 10GbE
There are now M.2 M/B+M-key 10GbE adapters based on controllers such as Marvell/Aquantia AQC113/AQC107, with the Ethernet controller on the M.2 board and a cable going to a separate RJ45 daughterboard. AQC113 versions support 10/5/2.5/1GbE and Linux. There are also M.2 M-key SFP+ adapters based on the Intel 82599EN if SFP+ is preferable.
So you do not necessarily need a 4×M.2 bifurcation card at all. In fact, for the 3280 I think a dual-M.2 card with a real PCIe switch is the cleaner solution, because it does not depend on Dell BIOS bifurcation support.
The only things I would pay particular attention to are cooling and physical clearance. Five NVMe drives plus a PCIe-switch chip in a 2.5-liter chassis can generate quite a lot of heat, and the AQC107/AQC113 10GbE controllers also run hot. I would definitely use heatsinks and make sure the internal airflow is not obstructed.
So, in short: 5 NVMe + 5GbE is quite realistic, or 4 NVMe + 10GbE if you want the faster network.
