Hello all!
There has been a LOT of discussion about this particular issue during the last year of so.
The issue...
The Supermicro AOC-SLG3-4E2P x8 PCI-e card, with quad port OCuLink and PLX switch, is a wonderful HBA in theory, enabling access to NVMe storage devices.
Coincidentally the IcyDock ToughArmor MB699VP-B drive cage came on the market roughly around the same time as this HBA. At first they seemed like a perfect match...
The MB699VP-B's specifications seemed perfect:
Potential solutions...
This issue has been discussed many times in the STH forums. The generally accepted answers were either:
Does anybody know what is the model/s of the Intel drive cage/s that matche/s the Supermicro AOC-SLG3-4E2P HBA? I'd rather keep the SM AOC-SLG3-4E2P if I can. Here is the list of all Intel options: Drive Bay Options Product Specifications . I feel like I'm searching for a needle among a very large haystack.
Could somebody please help me with the model number/s of the Intel hardware I need?
I'm prepared to use 2x 5.25" drive bays of my Supermicro CSE-747 chassis. I will end up with 4 spare 2.5" bays, but that may be very useful in future. It's the only solution now anyway. Thanks all!!
There has been a LOT of discussion about this particular issue during the last year of so.
The issue...
The Supermicro AOC-SLG3-4E2P x8 PCI-e card, with quad port OCuLink and PLX switch, is a wonderful HBA in theory, enabling access to NVMe storage devices.
Coincidentally the IcyDock ToughArmor MB699VP-B drive cage came on the market roughly around the same time as this HBA. At first they seemed like a perfect match...
The MB699VP-B's specifications seemed perfect:
- 4x 2.5" bays for NVMe drives;
- occupyies one 5.25" bay on the main chassis;
- the backplane provides mini-SAS HD (SFF-8643) connectors (which could join to OCuLink ports at the other end, on the Supermicro HBA);
- the backplane supports hot swapping for the SSD's.
Potential solutions...
This issue has been discussed many times in the STH forums. The generally accepted answers were either:
- Find an appropriate Intel drive cage and attach it to the Supermicro HBA with Supermicro OCuLink to mini-SAS HD (SFF-8643) cables. These drive cages take 2x 5.25" drive bays on the chassis and provide 8 2.5" SFF drive bays with a hotplug backplane.
- Find an Intel drive cage and an Intel HBA in PCI-e card form factor. Use this kit and repurpose the Supermicro AOC-SLG3-4E2P.
- Wait for version 2 of the IcyDock ToughArmor MB699VP-B drive cage. Email communications with IcyDock indicated they were sincere about taking care of their affected customers. But I do not want to wait indefinitely. So I got a refund on the IcyDock drive cage and will explore the above two options.
Does anybody know what is the model/s of the Intel drive cage/s that matche/s the Supermicro AOC-SLG3-4E2P HBA? I'd rather keep the SM AOC-SLG3-4E2P if I can. Here is the list of all Intel options: Drive Bay Options Product Specifications . I feel like I'm searching for a needle among a very large haystack.
Could somebody please help me with the model number/s of the Intel hardware I need?
I'm prepared to use 2x 5.25" drive bays of my Supermicro CSE-747 chassis. I will end up with 4 spare 2.5" bays, but that may be very useful in future. It's the only solution now anyway. Thanks all!!