Minisforum MS-01 PCIe Card and RAM Compatibility Thread

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Neb

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Feb 21, 2018
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I have 5x MS01 in a Proxmox cluster. Running about 40 "permanent" always ON VMs. 10 always on LXC containers. Storage is 15x 2TB Crucial T500 (3 per MS01). Ceph is running public and backend networking on bond1, which is 2x 10gb on each node. No transceivers, using direct cables from each MS01 to the 10g switch. Bond0 is 2x 2.5g on each MS01. Both bond0 and bond1are LACP.

Of the 40 VMs running, really just a mix of everything I need. DHCP, DNS, active directory, a Kubernetes worker on each node, Oracle databases, nested ESXi and vCenter, Proxmox Backup Server, pfSense, Plex, iVentoy (PXE boot version of Ventoy), AzureDevops (git repository), MeshCommander, MinIO, Kasm, a lot of stuff. Kubernetes hosts a bunch of databases, media manager, Guacamole, FreshRSS and probably 50 other deployments in total.

I have them mounted vertically in 6U of a super shallow depth rack - 12 inches deep. The front of the rack has 6U of fans pushing air directly into the front of the MS01s. To get most air through them, I designed and 3D printed a custom carrier for the MS01. The MS01 slide into place and lock with a latch at the back of the rack.

The cluster also has 5x i7 Intel NUCs, not because I designed it that way, but because I happen to have them already. Currently the GPUs are Thunderbolt attached to the i7 NUCs and using PCI passthrough for the VMs running Ollama, Open-Webui, Stable Diffusion, ComfyUI, Blender rendering and PiperTTS voice training - mostly.

The rack will get a lot cleaner once I design the mounts the NUCs, or just get rid of them and finish the rack with more MS01s. The single 1gb NIC on the NUCs really limits their usefulness. I also need to design/make the mounts for that growing collection of power bricks under the switch. They. aren't getting any cooling currently but the MS01 and NUCs are icy cold in normal operation.

View attachment 36782View attachment 36783
Any chance you could share the step file? Was thinking about how to best rackmount multiple ms-01's and your setup if by far the cleanest
 

alphasite

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Oct 11, 2021
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sfre

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Apr 23, 2024
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Can confirm this config to work:
MS-01 12900
- Crucial 96GB Kit (2x48GB) DDR5 CT2K48G56C46S5
- Samsung 990 Pro 2TB
- QNAP-TL-R400S (Rackmount-version) incl QXP-400eS card and SFF-8088 cable
- HGST Ultrastar He10: 4x (ZFS mirrored Raid10)
- WD Red SN700 2TB: 2x (ZFS mirrored SLOG)
- QIANRENON 4K HDMI Dummy
- Proxmox 8.2.2
- Meshcommander 0.9.5

Consumes about 60W incl about 4x8W consumed by the spinning disks with a few first LXCs and docker containers (portainer, adguard, caddy, cups, MediaWiki, homepage, ...). More to come.

The SFP+ connector acts as a heat sink ...
 

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Sebo

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Jan 14, 2024
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Very odd. That's the card I have.

Will check the bios version and see what's doing.

Very strange. I'm running 1.22 as well.
@jro77 @Pikeman1868 I just tested my MS-01 (1.22 BIOS) again with Sparkle Intel Arc A310 Eco and it posts.

Here is lspci output from Proxmox

Bash:
00:00.0 Host bridge [0600]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:a706]
00:01.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:a70d]
00:06.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Raptor Lake PCIe 4.0 Graphics Port [8086:a74d]
00:06.2 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:a73d]
00:07.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Raptor Lake-P Thunderbolt 4 PCI Express Root Port [8086:a76e]
00:07.2 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Raptor Lake-P Thunderbolt 4 PCI Express Root Port [8086:a72f]
00:0d.0 USB controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation Raptor Lake-P Thunderbolt 4 USB Controller [8086:a71e]
00:0d.2 USB controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation Raptor Lake-P Thunderbolt 4 NHI [8086:a73e]
00:0d.3 USB controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation Raptor Lake-P Thunderbolt 4 NHI [8086:a76d]
00:14.0 USB controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake PCH USB 3.2 xHCI Host Controller [8086:51ed] (rev 01)
00:14.2 RAM memory [0500]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake PCH Shared SRAM [8086:51ef] (rev 01)
00:16.0 Communication controller [0780]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake PCH HECI Controller [8086:51e0] (rev 01)
00:16.3 Serial controller [0700]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake AMT SOL Redirection [8086:51e3] (rev 01)
00:1c.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-P PCH PCIe Root Port [8086:51bb] (rev 01)
00:1c.4 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:51bc] (rev 01)
00:1d.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake PCI Express Root Port [8086:51b0] (rev 01)
00:1d.2 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:51b2] (rev 01)
00:1d.3 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:51b3] (rev 01)
00:1f.0 ISA bridge [0601]: Intel Corporation Raptor Lake LPC/eSPI Controller [8086:519d] (rev 01)
00:1f.3 Audio device [0403]: Intel Corporation Raptor Lake-P/U/H cAVS [8086:51ca] (rev 01)
00:1f.4 SMBus [0c05]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake PCH-P SMBus Host Controller [8086:51a3] (rev 01)
00:1f.5 Serial bus controller [0c80]: Intel Corporation Alder Lake-P PCH SPI Controller [8086:51a4] (rev 01)
01:00.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:4fa1] (rev 01)
02:01.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:4fa4]
02:04.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Device [8086:4fa4]
03:00.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Intel Corporation DG2 [Arc A310] [8086:56a6] (rev 05)
04:00.0 Audio device [0403]: Intel Corporation DG2 Audio Controller [8086:4f92]
05:00.0 Non-Volatile memory controller [0108]: Kingston Technology Company, Inc. OM8PGP4 NVMe PCIe SSD (DRAM-less) [2646:501b]
06:00.0 Ethernet controller [0200]: Intel Corporation Ethernet Controller X710 for 10GbE SFP+ [8086:1572] (rev 02)
06:00.1 Ethernet controller [0200]: Intel Corporation Ethernet Controller X710 for 10GbE SFP+ [8086:1572] (rev 02)
5b:00.0 Ethernet controller [0200]: Intel Corporation Ethernet Controller I226-V [8086:125c] (rev 04)
5c:00.0 Non-Volatile memory controller [0108]: MAXIO Technology (Hangzhou) Ltd. NVMe SSD Controller MAP1602 [1e4b:1602] (rev 01)
5d:00.0 System peripheral [0880]: Global Unichip Corp. Coral Edge TPU [1ac1:089a]
5e:00.0 Ethernet controller [0200]: Intel Corporation Ethernet Controller I226-LM [8086:125b] (rev 04)
5f:00.0 Network controller [0280]: MEDIATEK Corp. MT7922 802.11ax PCI Express Wireless Network Adapter [14c3:0616]
03:00.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Intel Corporation DG2 [Arc A310] [8086:56a6] (rev 05)
04:00.0 Audio device [0403]: Intel Corporation DG2 Audio Controller [8086:4f92] -
those are PCI devices from the card

And lshw:

Bash:
root@proxmox-ms01:~# lshw -c video
  *-display UNCLAIMED      
       description: VGA compatible controller
       product: DG2 [Arc A310]
       vendor: Intel Corporation
       physical id: 0
       bus info: pci@0000:03:00.0
       version: 05
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: pciexpress msi pm vga_controller bus_master cap_list
       configuration: latency=0
       resources: iomemory:400-3ff memory:6d000000-6dffffff memory:4000000000-40ffffffff memory:6e000000-6e1fffff
  *-graphics
       product: simpledrmdrmfb
       physical id: 4
       logical name: /dev/fb0
       capabilities: fb
       configuration: depth=32 resolution=800,600
 
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Dr3am

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May 31, 2024
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I have searched but could not find the answer. First post, enjoying my MS01 so far.

I am looking to add a U.2 7mm drive. If I add that which m.2 NVMe slot do I lose?

I have all three NVMe slots filled. Do I lose the gen 4x4 slot? Thanks for the help
 

Phenic

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Mar 17, 2015
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I have searched but could not find the answer. First post, enjoying my MS01 so far.

I am looking to add a U.2 7mm drive. If I add that which m.2 NVMe slot do I lose?

I have all three NVMe slots filled. Do I lose the gen 4x4 slot? Thanks for the help
The left most slot is the u.2/m.2 combo port. A u.2 converter would have come in the box.
 

killroy1971

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Jun 19, 2021
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I just bought three Misinforum MS-01s and I'm using the previously mentioned
I've not installed any storage, video cards, etcetera. When I start up the box, I don't get a video signal and it doesn't appear to POST. Has this RAM been verified by other MS-01 owners to work? I'll head to Microcenter this week and pick up a small RAM kit to test this out...it's possible I have bad RAM....and report back.
 

P00r

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May 29, 2024
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I just bought three Misinforum MS-01s and I'm using the previously mentioned
I've not installed any storage, video cards, etcetera. When I start up the box, I don't get a video signal and it doesn't appear to POST. Has this RAM been verified by other MS-01 owners to work? I'll head to Microcenter this week and pick up a small RAM kit to test this out...it's possible I have bad RAM....and report back.
It can take a very long time to boot once you make hardware change, mine stay off for 30 sec easily when I change the ram.
I have a PCIE GPU, no idea if it's normal or not but subsequent boot are ok.
 

Phenic

Member
Mar 17, 2015
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I just bought three Misinforum MS-01s and I'm using the previously mentioned
I've not installed any storage, video cards, etcetera. When I start up the box, I don't get a video signal and it doesn't appear to POST. Has this RAM been verified by other MS-01 owners to work? I'll head to Microcenter this week and pick up a small RAM kit to test this out...it's possible I have bad RAM....and report back.
The system usually takes 1 or 2 minutes for the first boot up due to memory training.
 
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alphasite

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Oct 11, 2021
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I've bought four of these 96GB kits from Crucial and two of them had a bad SODIMM. I bought my first MS-01 and 96GB kit and had a bad SODIMM so ordered a replacement and both in the second kit worked, then I bought a second MS-01 and another 96GB kit and that had a bad SODIMM but the replacement had two working SODIMMs.

These had the same symptom, no display after a few minutes. when I had the bad kits I tested one SODIMM at a time and when I determined one was working tested it in the other slot to make sure both RAM slots worked. I'm going to order a third MS-01 and I'm thinking I might get the Mushkin kit people some people are using instead.
 
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thekobk

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Mar 2, 2024
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I've bought four of these 96GB kits from Crucial and two of them had a bad SODIMM. I bought my first MS-01 and 96GB kit and had a bad SODIMM so ordered a replacement and both in the second kit worked, then I bought a second MS-01 and another 96GB kit and that had a bad SODIMM but the replacement had two working SODIMMs.

These had the same symptom, no display after a few minutes. when I had the bad kits I tested one SODIMM at a time and when I determined one was working tested it in the other slot to make sure both RAM slots worked. I'm going to order a third MS-01 and I'm thinking I might get the Mushkin kit people some people are using instead.
Do you have anything in the pcie slot? It might not be the ram.
 

alphasite

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Oct 11, 2021
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Do you have anything in the pcie slot? It might not be the ram.
No, it was definitely the RAM, as I said I tested each SODIMM individually and the replacement kits all worked. I tested the RAM before I added my PCIe cards and NVMe storage.
 
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quickness

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May 28, 2024
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Did not work
M.2 Accelerator with Dual Edge TPU (E-Key) in wifi slot
I was hoping one of the two TPUs would show up.
Worked
LSI9300-8E
Here are some thermal images with no fan and with a cheap 50mm fan from amazon (Gdstime GDB5010).
I 3D printed a mount for it. I was originally planning on making it friction fit the heat sink but I didn't have the card to measure, so I used 1 screw into the heatsink fins to attach it.

Crucial RAM 96GB Kit (2x48GB) CT2K48G56C46S5 also worked for me.
 

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killroy1971

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Jun 19, 2021
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Reporting back -- the RAM is good! Thank you for your help!

Now I just have to research the SSD sleds and figure out why my Samsung / Sabrent 4TB SSDs aren't being recognized in the MS01, but they are recognized by my MBP via USB adapter.

The M2 slider is in the correct position, so it isn't that. I don't see any additional power setting in the instruction manual. Hmm. Drive initialization on my MBP works. Shame I don't an NVME adapter that would work with this sled.
 

LinkAgg_Junkie

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Aug 12, 2020
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After messing with a handful of dual M.2 PCIe cards, I finally got one that fits the MS-01 with bifurcation running on the card itself.

TXB122 PCIe 3.1 x8 ASM2812 from AliExpress

Now have four 4TB storage drives and a 1TB as the boot drive.

Screenshot from 2024-06-03 14-40-09 copy.png

Most cards with bifurcation are too long, but this one had a perforation on the PCB to snap it off if you didn't need to mount 22110 NVMe's. Also did the mod with covering the PCIe pins with captain tape, so all of my 64GB of RAM shows up just fine.

Ran some benchmarks and the two drives on the PCIe card run twice as fast reads compared to the two drives in the native M.2 slots (same writes).

Now off to test redundant software RAIDs.

IMG_0847.jpeg

IMG_0846.jpg