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Lenovo Thinkcentre/ThinkStation Tiny (Project TinyMiniMicro) Reference Thread

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tinfoil3d

QSFP28
May 11, 2020
873
400
63
Japan
Hello @Parallax please update the guide for m720q and m920q, using an older P/N 01AJ902 either causes it to be limited to x4 instead of x8, or completely not detect the card(plugging an nvidia card taken off more modern p340 tiny and putting it in only causes the fan to spin but no detection whatsoever).
It appears both of these need 01AJ940 not 01AJ902. 01AJ902 works just fine(x8) for p320 tiny.
And yes, it's good idea to keep all those older models in your post because sometimes you can get one of those for peanuts and they can still do a good job being a server.
Honestly this is very frustrating to see all these various models have so many small differences to the baffles and pcie pinout... can't you just make it one-fits-all...
 

tinfoil3d

QSFP28
May 11, 2020
873
400
63
Japan
After receiving a dead i7-7700 for my P320 tiny i've tried my luck with G3900 that was cheap and that did work. I bought another i7-7700 from a seller that stated "this thing works"(first attempt was a bet on something that "may or may not work"). Put it into P320 tiny(35W config with aluminum/copper heatsink) and loaded all 4 cores: temps instantly jump from ~40C at idle to 90C+ in few seconds. Air that comes out is warm not hot, which means if you need to utilize this thing at close to 400% load you need to replace the heatsink with all-copper one (p/n 01EF554 ) for more efficient cooling.
 

a5ian300zx

New Member
Aug 26, 2012
25
10
3
I am was struggling to use Taoboa (created an account but kept saying to me to login even though I was already logged in) and then Superbuy.

I have a P360 Tiny and wanted a PCie riser card and also Thunderbolt 4 add on card. - plan is to install my 10Gbe adaptor which i already have.

could some one post the links from TaoBoa so i can add them to Superbuy.

I did find one PCIe Riser card in the UK from the below link.

Lenovo 5C50W00909 CARDPOP BLD Tiny8 PCIex4 5C50W00909
 

bobbysteel

Member
Nov 20, 2022
35
12
8
I am was struggling to use Taoboa (created an account but kept saying to me to login even though I was already logged in) and then Superbuy.

I have a P360 Tiny and wanted a PCie riser card and also Thunderbolt 4 add on card. - plan is to install my 10Gbe adaptor which i already have.

could some one post the links from TaoBoa so i can add them to Superbuy.

I did find one PCIe Riser card in the UK from the below link.

Lenovo 5C50W00909 CARDPOP BLD Tiny8 PCIex4 5C50W00909
Use the Ali express app it's a bit friendlier to direct ship outside China.
US $40.00 15% Off | New Original Workstation PCIE16 Riser Card For Lenovo ThinkStation P340 P350 M90Q Tiny6 5C50W00877 Fast Ship
 

bobbysteel

Member
Nov 20, 2022
35
12
8
Not many people seem to have bought them so I don't see much feedback or info I'm afraid. The Lenovo Tiny motherboard has some specific, presumably proprietary, ports that are supposed to be connected by short wire connectors to the Thunderbolt board, but I don't know what these do or the consequences of them not existing (because of you using a generic board, say). As noted in the original post there were issues reported when using the x16 riser and you needed to use the x4 one specifically when using the (Lenovo) Thunderbolt card - I do not know which Tiny models this applies to or even if it is still a problem because I just don't see posts about it.

There, I've told you everything I don't know. ;) Sorry not to have more information.
I bought a selection of risers and pcie cards so will report back soon!
 

Parallax

Active Member
Nov 8, 2020
417
208
43
London, UK
Hello @Parallax please update the guide for m720q and m920q, using an older P/N 01AJ902 either causes it to be limited to x4 instead of x8, or completely not detect the card(plugging an nvidia card taken off more modern p340 tiny and putting it in only causes the fan to spin but no detection whatsoever).
It appears both of these need 01AJ940 not 01AJ902. 01AJ902 works just fine(x8) for p320 tiny.
And yes, it's good idea to keep all those older models in your post because sometimes you can get one of those for peanuts and they can still do a good job being a server.
Honestly this is very frustrating to see all these various models have so many small differences to the baffles and pcie pinout... can't you just make it one-fits-all...
I used a 01AJ902 for a while in an M720q without any issues, and I've not had negative reports about them before. Can you elaborate?

Also saw a positive report on the Lenovo forums with an M920q.
 

tinfoil3d

QSFP28
May 11, 2020
873
400
63
Japan
I have two 01AJ902 and recently tested nvidia taken from p340 in m920q, it wasn't detected. two mlx3 dual-port 40gbe cards(354A) x8 were detected but were "limited by x4" in dmesg and were slow, as expected. Didn't have other devices on hand.
As for 720q i didn't test it myself, but made a conclusion from a series of posts by @Danjo in this very thread https://forums.servethehome.com/ind...yminimicro-reference-thread.34925/post-345065 my firsthand experience wasn't with m720q but m920q + 01AJ902 and i'm waiting for 01AJ940. 01AJ902 only works fine in P320 here.
 
Last edited:

tinfoil3d

QSFP28
May 11, 2020
873
400
63
Japan
To be clear, for m920q I did try resitting cardS and riserS(i tested two pieces of each), did try removing NVME thinking that may be affecting, tried setting x8 slot speed to auto and gen3 in bios, nothing produced an expected x8 3.0 result with these cards. And nothing helped to detect nvidia.
 

Parallax

Active Member
Nov 8, 2020
417
208
43
London, UK
To be clear, for m920q I did try resitting cardS and riserS(i tested two pieces of each), did try removing NVME thinking that may be affecting, tried setting x8 slot speed to auto and gen3 in bios, nothing produced an expected x8 3.0 result with these cards. And nothing helped to detect nvidia.
OK, I'll update the original post with warnings about the riser and advise people use the other models.
 

tinfoil3d

QSFP28
May 11, 2020
873
400
63
Japan
Done. Thanks for going through the troubleshooting @tinfoil3d !
Sure, everything for the community. We all want to avoid unnecessary purchases and wasted time. Will also post back when I get the 40 version to see if it truly solves the problem(while im pretty sure it should, would still post).
 

a5ian300zx

New Member
Aug 26, 2012
25
10
3
All the info and part numbers for the risers (including the M90q Gen 3) are in the original post.
Thanks have ordered one from the UK seller. It is on pre order.

It is for my new P360 spec.

12900 i9 processor 65w
32gb ddr5 4800mhz
1TB WD 850x pcei 4.0
Realtek 2.5GB nic
WiFi 6 (6E was not available for some reason)
Comes with 230w psu
I also updated the speaker to the premium one (which sounds way better) and fine for youtube videos.

I also have two m720q i5 9400T and one has a 350-T4 with 01AJ940 and is being used as sophos xg firewall. The other was used as a pc with another 01AJ940 and 10gbe (I had tested intel x550-T2 then ended up with asus 10gbe (marvel).
 

Numbernine

New Member
Oct 17, 2022
5
0
1
Does anyone know where to buy the little blue plastic retaining clip that's used in lieu of a screw for the M.2 drive on the underside of the M720q (possibly other units as well)? I accidentally broke one of mine in the process of trying to get it open. Lenovo's part number for this is 01EF751 but all the prices I've seen for this part are outrageous - I'm not paying $35USD for that little clip! There must be a reasonable way to get one of these (maybe even 3D printing?) or another solution that could be used?
 

tinfoil3d

QSFP28
May 11, 2020
873
400
63
Japan
There must be a reasonable way to get one of these (maybe even 3D printing?) or another solution that could be used?
TBH a poor man's solution would be some kapton tape over the SSD. These are generally heat-tolerant.
I do keep a box of all sorts of screws from recycled computers and that helps a lot sometimes.
 

dinjo

New Member
Nov 25, 2022
20
1
3
Any info on which brand ssd does Lenovo uses in it m90q gen3 I ordered 256gb gen4 2280 model does it has heating issues?
 

tinfoil3d

QSFP28
May 11, 2020
873
400
63
Japan
Could be random @dinjo
All the previous versions of lenovo TMM were using two thermal pads under the nvme to spread heat off to the motherboard, at 256g it shouldn't be an issue.
 
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dinjo

New Member
Nov 25, 2022
20
1
3
Oh what are those random brands and does increase in size results into more heat I was thinking to install 1tb but not sure sata, nvme gen 3 or nvme gen 4