Potential Deal: 2 x Dual 2011 nodes @$199, Quanta Openrack

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funkywizard

mmm.... bandwidth.
Jan 15, 2017
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CPUs run at 70 degree Celsius just after ten minutes of 100% load (unless ambient temperature is 15 degrees); heatsinks get hot, and the pulled air is really warm too, but fans operate at the lowest speeds (slightly faster when system gets heated), I know this, because once I pulled out one fan and made it run at 100%, and it was a rocket!

And I don't want to have a rocket racket, but fans being a bit louder to sustain CPUs under 73 degrees is perfectly reasonable, and heck, it will be alright to have a turbine noise when it's necessary.



These CPUs have max T Case of 73 degrees, that's why I'm worried so much.
I wish Intel quoted specifications for core instead of tcase. The 73c temp reading you're getting is core, which always runs hotter than tcase. Tcase is only a useful metric for heatsink manufacturers, as they know to expect to dissipate X watts of heat being provided at a temperature no higher than tcase. They can then make some assumption on the maximum ambient temperature and airflow, and figure out how good the heatsink needs to be.

Long story short, if you hit tcase as your core temps, you have more thermal headroom. Maybe 5c, maybe 15c, I don't know.
 

kfriis

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Apr 8, 2015
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Hi guys -

Does anyone have an M.2 NVME (or SATA) drive working with a PCI-E adapter card in an Quanta Open Compute Windmill-type server?

I would think it would be a great way to expand and add fast storage using one of the PCI-E slots. I realize that booting from the NVME drive will probably not be possible but you can use the existing SATA for that.

(also posted in another thread, but it seems like this might be a main thread for these systems).
 
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iguy

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Feb 23, 2017
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Hi guys -

Does anyone have an M.2 NVME (or SATA) drive working with a PCI-E adapter card in an Quanta Open Compute Windmill-type server?

I would think it would be a great way to expand and add fast storage using one of the PCI-E slots. I realize that booting from the NVME drive will probably not be possible but you can use the existing SATA for that.

(also posted in another thread, but it seems like this might be a main thread for these systems).

I got it working by modifying the BIOS. Amazing speed by the way. I got the SM951 and modified the driver to install on Windows Server.
This might not work if you are coming from A07 as the DMI tables might have a different size. It won't crash and leave you with a bad flash but simply won't start at all. No worries in trying.

http://www.filedropper.com/modf03c3b11
This is B11 with NVME support. To get BOOT working just disable everything else, set it UEFI and it'll boot. To verify it's recognizing the storage look in the bios boot menu, you'll see PATA3 in BSS menu or something like that listed. Don't boot from it, instead look for [Windows Boot Manager](in main boot window) if using windows.(after having it installed)...

http://www.filedropper.com/modf03c3b10
This is B10, same deal but never complained about DMI table size mismatch or otherwise. No visible difference between the two aside from a few updated bios settings and efi modules.

If you have any issues let me know but no cussing at me if it somehow crashes. I strongly suggest having an SPI flash little gadget around($10), just for peace of mind. I'll help with the procedure as well if needed.

BTW: I have 6 nodes, all with B10/B11 using NVME

Best Regards
 
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kfriis

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Wow iguy - you are amazing. Just what I was looking for - somebody who has made it work.

Just to be sure we are talking about the same type of server - this is what I have:
QUANTA OPEN COMPUTE SERVER 2x NODES 4x 8 CORE E5-2650 2.0GHz 16GB RAM NO HDD | eBay

I have never done a BIOS mod before - and am not sure how to use a SPI flash (or where to get one). Are there some relatively easy-to-follow instructions somewhere you can point me to?
 

iguy

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Feb 23, 2017
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2019-03-07 22_12_56-Window.png
The ASUS one you posted is some serious stuff!! But the idea is correct, and the nodes you posted are the right ones as well. I have nodes A07, B08, and B10( sticker by the 1gb ethernet )

This is the one I use: New M.2 NVMe SSD NGFF TO PCIE 3.0 X16 Adapter M Key Interface Card 6941701009999 | eBay

You don't NEED the SPI programmer, but having one around would ensure success. This is the one I have: 1PCS USB Programmer CH341A Series Burner Chip 24 EEPROM BIOS Writer 25 SPI Flash 806998424473 | eBay
Is cheap enough to have one just in case something happens and you need to flash the chip itself without relying on the motherboard.

Let me know if you need any instructions.

Thanks
 
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kfriis

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Thanks for all your information and for the BIOS mod files.

I understand the desire for the SPI as a backup. I am willing to take a chance and do the flash using just the motherboard. Is this done just as you would for a consumer board using some flash SW? If so, which SW would I use? I have flashed motherboards before, but not a server and I also do not know which software to use.

Thanks for all your help.
 

ArcyneTheFirst

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Jan 22, 2016
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Is there an alternate hosting site for the newest firmware? I don't have a Filedropper account and the side seems to require sign-up to download the B10/B11 firmware. Note, I have the Quanta board.
 

Mehmet

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Mar 26, 2016
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View attachment 10630
The ASUS one you posted is some serious stuff!! But the idea is correct, and the nodes you posted are the right ones as well. I have nodes A07, B08, and B10( sticker by the 1gb ethernet )
Thanks
Asus one needs pcie bifurcation which requires motherboard support.

Does A07 bios support m.2 cards or do I need to upgrade B10 or B11 firmware?

Is there anybody who uses intel p3700 pci version or something like it?



Thank you
 
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hmartin

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Sep 20, 2017
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Can someone with a dual node chassis tell me the weight?

I'll be in the US soon for an industry conference. Since shipping to the EU is quite dear (and most sellers refuse) it would be nice to throw one in the checked luggage. But I've only got 20kg, and while the dimensions of the chassis are available, I haven't found the weight published anywhere.

I'm looking at the CTO offer: 2 nodes with heatsinks, backplane, and PSU.
 

kfriis

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Apr 8, 2015
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... and you could also just "split up" the server by taking out the boards from the chassis. That will give you flexibility to use several pieces of luggage.
 

kfriis

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Apr 8, 2015
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@iguy

Thanks for the modded BIOS files. I was able to flash your modded B10 file w/o problems. It did not like the B11 due to size mismatch as you mentioned.

After flashing to the modded B10 BIOS, I booted up both Windows Server 2019 AND VMWare ESXi 6.7 U1 (latest version). Neither Windows nor VMWare is showing anything remotely related to NVMe anywhere.

Are there any other steps other than flashing with the modded BIOS file I should do? At this point, I don't even care about booting the NVMe drive - I just want to be able to use it as a storage device.

If it makes a difference, I have the Intel 660p 2TB NVMe drive. It is mounted in a generic eBay MVMe-to-PCIe adapter.

Thanks!
 

iguy

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Feb 23, 2017
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Form I understand you have 2 nodes, one with Windows and the other with ESXi, and you tried booting/viewing from OS, the drive(same drive?) from both nodes and nothing would show up in BIOS or the OS.

Also, Did you check this(from the previous post):
To get BOOT working just disable everything else, set it UEFI and it'll boot. To verify it's recognizing the storage look in the bios boot menu, you'll see PATA3 in BSS menu or something like that listed. Don't boot from it, instead, look for [Windows Boot Manager](in main bios boot window) if using windows.(after having it installed)...

Questions:

Have you tried booting/checking the NVMe drive using another machine, capable of the technology from the factory? (Trying to rule out the drive itself)

What's your UEFI boot settings like?

BONUS =]
#### Tools ####
To help with the task I have included a tool capable of that in the shared file below. Look into SCEWIN(AMISCE) folder, read the "Command to Run.txt" file. Rename "nvram.txt" to something else prior to running the commands found in the text file if you want to compare your settings with mine.(I use winmerge to compare text files, feel free to use anything you feel comfortable with)

Be careful if you plan to re-import the modified dump from your system, changing BIOS settings might crash your system during next boot. If you have a dump will make it easier to replicate the settings after clearing the BIOS though.

As you guessed, most of these tools are not for the unadvised-everyday-bios-configuration-tasks, they are intended for mass-deployments, custom manufacture modifications, etc... use with caution. Let me know if you have questions.

Some of the utilities found in the shared zip are described here:
https://ami.com/ami_downloads/Aptio_Utilities_Data_Sheet.pdf

and here:
Server Platform Services SPS Manageability Engine ME Firmware & Tools

The ZIP file also contains previously shared BIOS images and tools needed to flash them aside form some other interesting stuff.

Have fun:
Gofile - File sharing platform, anonymous and free
 
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