Frank Steinmetzger wrote: > Am Mon, Apr 15, 2024 at 08:04:15AM -0500 schrieb Dale: > >>> The physical connector is called M.2. The dimensions of the “sticks” are >>> given in a number such as 2280, meaning 22 mm wide and 80 mm long. There >>> are >>> different lengths available from 30 to 110 mm. M.2 has different “keys”, >>> meaning there are several variants of electrical hookup. Depending on that, >>> it can support SATA, PCIe, or both. NVMe is a protocol that usually runs >>> via >>> PCIe. So for a modern setup, one usually buys NVMe drives, meaning they are >>> connected via PCIe either directly to the CPU or over the chipset. >>> >> >> Ahh, that's why some of them look a little different. I was wondering >> about that. Keep in mind, I've never seen one in real life. Just >> pictures or videos, or people talking about them on this list. > I use one in my 10-year-old PC. The board only provides PCIe 2.0×2 to the > slot, so I only get around 1 GB/s instead of 3 which the SSD can reach. But > I bought the SSD with the intention of keeping it in the next build and I > don’t notice the difference anyways. > >>> There is also the other way around that: an adapter card for the M.2 slot >>> that gives you SATA ports. >>> >> I didn't know that. > I actually thought we mentioned it already in an earlier “NAS thingy” > thread. :) > > https://www.reddit.com/r/selfhosted/comments/s0bf1d/m2_sata_expansion_anyone_use_something_like_this/ > https://www.amazon.de/dp/B09FZDQ6ZB > Maybe you find something if you search for the controller chip (PCIe to > SATA): JMB585. From what I’ve just read though, the cheap chines adapters > don’t seem to be very sturdy. One person advised to put an adapter M.2 → > normal PCIe into the M.2 and then use a normal-formfactor controller card. > After all, an M.2 slot is just a PCIe×4 slot with a different connector. > > BTW: there are also NVMe SSDs in the old 2.5″ format. This formfactor is > called U.2, but beware the enterprise-level prices.
It could have came up but slipped my mind. Lots of things slip through nowadays. :/ Those you linked to are nice. There are some PCIe cards that go up to a dozen or so drives and still give pretty good speed. A PCIe card would be better for the new build, given the larger number of sata ports. Either way, I try to spread it across two connection points. Example, I have a data and crypt mount point each having three hard drives. All my data mount point drives are on one card. All my crypt mount point drives are on one card. If one card quits all of a sudden, that whole mount point is gone. If needed, I could move drives to the other card until I can replace the card. >> I've seen some server type mobos that have SAS connectors which gives >> several options. Some of them tend to have more PCIe slots which some >> regular mobos don't anymore. Then there is that ECC memory as well. If >> the memory doesn't cost to much more, I could go that route. I'm not >> sure how much I would benefit from it but data corruption is a thing to >> be concerned about. >> […] >> The problem with those cards, some of the newer mobos don't have as many >> PCIe slots to put those cards into anymore. I think I currently have >> two such cards in my current rig. The new rig would hold almost twice >> the number of drives. Obviously, I'd need cards with more SATA ports. > Indeed consumer boards tend to get fewer normal PCIe slots. Filtering for > AM4 boards, the filter allowed me to filter up to 6 slots, whereas for AM5 > boards, the filter stopped at 4 slots. > AM4: https://skinflint.co.uk/?cat=mbam4&xf=18869_5%7E20502_UECCDIMM%7E4400_ATX > AM5: https://skinflint.co.uk/?cat=mbam5&xf=18869_4%7E20502_UECCDIMM%7E4400_ATX My new build will be a Ryzen 9 7900X which is AM5. I try to stick with known good brands of mobos. I currently use Gigabyte. I'd be happy with ASUS and a couple others. Supermicron I think is a good brand for server type gear. I notice all the ones listed in your link for AM5 is ASUS. I don't recall ever having one but I've read they are good. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one of them. >> One reason I'm trying not to move to fast right now, besides trying to >> save up money, I'm trying to find the right CPU, mobo and memory combo. >> None of them are cheap anymore. Just the CPU is going to be around >> $400. The mobo isn't to far behind if I go with a non server one. > One popular choice for home servers is AM4’s Ryzen Pro 4650G. That’s an APU > (so with powerful internal graphics), but also with ECC support (hence the > Pro moniker). The APU is popular because 1) on AM4 only APUs have graphics > at all, 2) it allows for use as a compact media server, as no bulky GPU is > needed. > > Speaking of GPU: We’ve had the topic before, but keep in mind that if you go > with AM5, you don’t need a dGPU. Unless you go with one of those F > processors. So there is one more slot available. > I prefer to have a separate video card. That said, I don't require much of a video card. The biggest thing, it has to have at least two output ports. I use one port for my monitor and the other for watching TV. If the mobo comes with more than one port, I could go that route. After all, one could buy one really fast PCIe SATA controller and hook up a lot of drives in that really fast video card slot, if they make such a beast. Dale :-) :-) P. S. In the middle of proofing this thing, I had company to show up. Then I did some garden work and some other things. I hope his post makes sense. Sometimes I read a post several times before hitting send. By the time I got done to finish this, my train of thought was long gone. Reminds me of that Star Trek thing about space. ROFL
