Want to get used case for my new NAS server, how to know..

[katit]

I'm building FreeNAS server and seems like SuperMicro is a popular MB and case for such builds.
I'm sure many people will be interested to learn same info. I scanned eBay for 2U and 3U cases and there is a lot available for $200 shipped. With power supplies. There is complete systems with motherboards for little more. I need only case, power supplies and need to make sure I can use caddies and install my motherboard.. I'm really new to server hardware, with desktops I know I can put smaller MB into larger case.

All this looks good, but how can I tell if it is going to work for me? I guess I need to look at MB form-factor. If I picked X10SL7-F for my build, it's micro-ATX

Does it mean I can fit any bigger case?
Should I look at cases with power supplies on a side?
2U cases will fit all the drives I will ever want, should I still go with 3U for some reason?
Are those caddies hot-swappable and easy to connect? Do they fit standard 3.5 hard drives?

Any other pointers or suggestions on how to tell if case will or will not work?

Example:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Supermicro-...182?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5676a44f6e

From the look of it - I like it. Plenty of HDD slots. But the motherboard is larger than X10. Does it mean I can use this case without a problem?

 

[PigLover]

Does it mean I can fit any bigger case? Generally, yes. SM cases have mount points for most standard MB form factors.

Should I look at cases with power supplies on a side? If you are using SM rackmount then get one with their PSU. Caution: older SM PSUs are loud. Look for ones with Gold or Platinum rated PSUs (mostly because they are quieter - but also because they are more efficient).

2U cases will fit all the drives I will ever want, should I still go with 3U for some reason? Get the 2U with 12 3.5inch hotswap or the 2U with 24 2.5inch hotswap. Generally look for the "TQ" or "A" model backplanes (with no SAS expander). If you do get one with a built-in expander make sure it is the SAS2 version. LSI SAS1 expander chips have lots of problems with SATA drives, but the SAS2 are excellent.

Are those caddies hot-swappable and easy to connect? Do they fit standard 3.5 hard drives? Yup - easy to plug in/out. Standard drives fit.

Any other pointers or suggestions on how to tell if case will or will not work? Make sure you get a chassis with 4-pin PWM fans so that your MB can slow them down for quiet operation. 3-pin fans will scream.

 

[T_Minus]

For sure make sure it's capable of PWM fans, and if you're planning to upgrade or re-use chassis make sure it's haswell friendly

 

[xnoodle]

Generally, you can go look at Supermicro's page for that specific u size (aka 2u), and mouse over the models and see which looks to be the one you're researching. Once you're at the specific chassis page, you can look at the power supply options and the expansion slots to try and narrow down a model. This isn't 100% accurate though, as parts are fairly interchangeable and it's quite possible the eBay chassis you're looking at is customized.

That being said, that specific chassis looks to be a SC826 with 7 LP expansion slots. While the spec page doesn't mention support of microATX boards, I do see people have used that chassis with other mATX boards like the X9SCM or X8SIL.

Specs page shows it should come with 3 80x38mm 4 pin PWM fans.

 

[T_Minus]

Self promo I have a 2U listed with motherboard that's well within a 'budget' build, with a kick-ass super micro chassis, and motherboard updated to support v2 CPUs arleady It's more up to date than the older chassis, and probably similar price once you factor in what it comes with --- just a heads up

 

[katit]

I'm pretty handly and if needed - I can modify case a little, no biggie. I can replace fans if needs to be with quality PWM fans, right?

xnoodle, this is kind of how I researched by looking at pictures and trying to compare. But as you said website might not have old models listed anymore and who knows how it was modified..

2 questions remaining:

1. How can I tell if PSU gold or platinum. And. Can I just replace fans in PSU with quiet PWM ones? Fans is probably one of the things to go on older hardware, so I'd like to replace them anyway..

2

Generally look for the "TQ" or "A" model backplanes (with no SAS expander). If you do get one with a built-in expander make sure it is the SAS2 version. LSI SAS1 expander chips have lots of problems with SATA drives, but the SAS2 are excellent.

How can I tell? I'm definitely going with 3.5 caddies as I'm building just a storage... And what is expander? I thought it's just a "breakout" board so I connect SATA cables to it and drives connected to it from caddies. No?

 

[T_Minus]

PSU will say 80+ GOld or Platinum on it.

Expander backplane has 8087 connection, non-expander has SATA connections all over it.

 

[katit]

What about rails? Some servers for sale have them and some don't. If I have a rack, can't I just screw it in? I have no experience, so far I have light switch and router in a rack, screws on front is fine. But for rack mounted server it may not be adequate. So, should I also get or look for case that has rails included?

T_Minus: re: Advertisement
I'm building FreeNAS and have certain MB and CPU in mind. I'm interested in case with power supply only.

 

[T_Minus]

If you're putting a server in a rack then you should use rails. At the very least you can use a cheap shelf if you can't find rails. The shelf screws in the front AND back for added safety, and holding power just like the rails do. Keep in mind some chassis are longer than some racks -- so spec them together if you haven't pre-planned this.

No problem @katit was trying to save ya a few bucks

Cool build, I continue to watch it.

 

[katit]

I have some old "Sun Microsystems" rack, full size I beleive. It is 34 inches deep not including doors. I assume that should fit any server, right?

T_Minus, I'm always for saving couple bucks but I don't see how

Rails: On eBay they have 2u and 1u and 3u rails. Are they any different? Price-wise they have new ones for $100 and anything below that.. Is that sounds good?

 

[T_Minus]

$30 for a shelf vs $100 for new rails, that's how.

If you get used rails it's about a wash And rails sure make it nice.

Other than that, sorry can't help ya save anymore than keep an eye on ebay

 

[katit]

Ho do those rails look differ? For example. Some cases sell with "rails". I assume they mean it's only piece that attaches to case. Then, I need to get "external" rails and mount those to the rack, right? Also, it's at home and I wonder if I actually need them. Thing is - rack is in a basement. If I do anything to the box - I will most likely want to pull it out and work with it next to my desk. In this case, it's probably even more convenient to have just a shelf.

Can you point me to one of those shelfs? I have some that I use for DVR and other things, but those shelfs mount only to the front and I doubt they will hold server.

 

[T_Minus]

Some sell complete some don't be sure ask/check about the rails w.the seller.

If you're not going to work on it there then ya I'd just use a cheaper shelf and it's WAY easier to slide in/out & off but may use 1U of extra space depending on the shelf if I recall.

I'll check for the ones I got and let you know -- they have some that are also FULL and 50% length but full 4 post.

 

[katit]

Ok. Right now I have a chance to get this chassis(brand new) for <$300 shipped. To me they look great and even it's not GOLD - fine with me, it's 1+1 800W PS. Does it mean I can run only one power supply at a time? Or how does it work?

Supermicro | Products | Chassis | 2U | SC826E1-R800UB

Also, I think if fans too loud I can slow them down a little (resistor) because it is going to be NAS server with very low load and heat output.

What do you guys think?

 

[britinpdx]

A couple of things to be aware of ..

The "E1" indicates that it's an older SAS expander backplane running at 3Gb/s. It will have SFF-8087 connections so plan to get a reverse breakout cable in order to connect the onboard LSI SAS 2308 on the X10SL7-F (4x blue SAS/SATA connectors) to the expander backplane.

The "U" in the "R800UB" postfix indicates that's a UIO (Universal IO) chassis. It requires a vertical riser card so that full height IO cards can be installed in a horizontal plane. The X10SL7-F motherboard is not a UIO motherboard, so don't plan on using any of the PCI-e slots in this chassis. See the Supermicro Web Site for more details on UIO.

The "R" in the "R800UB" postfix means that it's a chassis that supports power supply redundancy. It has a power distributor that allows two (redundant capable) power supplies to be plugged in and powered up, so that if one supply dies the chassis can keep running. If you only plan on running one power supply, then you will likely have to pull the second power supply (no need to connect AC to it), otherwise the chassis sees a power supply plugged in but not putting out DC and throws an error. I have an SC486 that runs happily with one power supply connected, but only if it's in the lower slot. If I run only only one PSU in the upper slot it gives a temp error.

The Supermicro chassis decoder can be found here ..

I've used some of the older Supermicro chassis with the older generation power supplies and they are not quiet by any means, so if noise is a potential issue, you may also need to swap power supplies to something newer that are not only quieter but efficient.

I personally wouldn't choose this chassis for the X10SL7-F.

 

[T_Minus]

Wrong chassis for that motherboard as @britinpdx said.

FWIW the chassis I mentioned earlier is nearly identical but missing the top row of hot swap drives, and a few other misc changes, BUT the major is it accepts universal motherboards for vertical PCIE card mounts.

The board you want to run is a mATX so you really have a lot of options and don't have many PCIE slots anyway... but you need to be VERY careful on the casiss you pick or it may not work at all or how you think. Nothing wrong with Sata 3Gb.s IMHO for spinners.

 

[katit]

So.. From what I read - it will work. As long as I don't plan to use any PCIE cards, right? Because I didn't plan any. This board has everything that's needed for this server.

Big PLUS is that it's NEW and includes rails.

Another issue is power supplies. Is there a measurement on "efficiency"? How much more efficient will be newer power supplies?

Because I'm building just a storage/FreeNAS with "spinners" - there will be no CPU load, not much heat I think. But number of slots is important. As I said, 8 slots is basically what I will fill right away leaving me out of place for expansion..

EDIT: Going back to original case I was looking at:
Supermicro 2U Server X8DTN BAREBONES HW RAID Add CPU RAM HD | eBay

It's CSE-826 and it's got X8DTN+ motherboard which means I can fit X10 in there no problem. Correct? And it's cheaper..

 

[katit]

I see. On a picture it shows that not only cards can not be installed, there is no standard square opening for IO ports.

 

[PigLover]

Wouldn't touch it...

 

[T_Minus]

Too old chassis again. Not suited for your needs.