[Guide] NAS Killer 4.0 - fast, quiet, power efficient, and flexible - starting at $125

Question on the dell T110 II prebuilt. If I wanted to use SAS drives, do I need to use a dell PERC H200 card, or can I use the LSI cards recommended above? I plan to use Unraid as my OS. Excited! This will be my first build. Been following you guys for a while now.

Yes, Provided that you use the correct cables and compatible drives.

The caveat would be to make sure that the drives are compatible with the model of raid card. For instance if you want to use 4kn drives (which is unlikely), youā€™ll need to use a different model card than in this guide LSI cards are still recommended for this instance itā€™s just a different part number see here for compatability.

Does the E3-1225 have integrated graphics? The table here says no, but the intel website seems to say it does? It has stats for processor graphics at least?

I make mistakes sometimes! Updated the table. It has iGPU.

Thanks for pointing that out.

Hi there! Thank you so much for these builds, it gave me the confidence to try to make my own ā€œUltimateā€ so I could power down 2 desktop Asustor NAS and the Desktop PC running as a Plex server. Iā€™ve got most of the Ultimate build complete but I have a couple of questions:

  1. Should the equipment list for the Ultimate Rackmount build include SATA power splitters? Otherwise I canā€™t figure out how Iā€™m powering 15 hdds.

  2. For the cache/etc. SSDā€™s: does one typically put those in one of the 3.5 bays using a converter tray, or could one have them secured elsewhere (like to the side of the case so as not to take up a HDD slot?

  3. Did you ever make an ā€œUltimateā€ build video? Iā€™ve been using the basic NAS Killer video as a basic reference, but itā€™s unclear what elements of the Ultimate build need to be similarly flashed.

Thank you again!

Welcome @Stucco. Glad we could help!

  1. Should the equipment list for the Ultimate Rackmount build include SATA power splitters? Otherwise I canā€™t figure out how Iā€™m powering 15 hdds.

Yes, it should. I suppose I forgot to add that. You can use the power splitters from the parts list. Sorry about that!

  1. For the cache/etc. SSDā€™s: does one typically put those in one of the 3.5 bays using a converter tray, or could one have them secured elsewhere (like to the side of the case so as not to take up a HDD slot?

For 2.5" SSD, you can ā€œfloatā€ them anywhere thereā€™s room. If youā€™re picky, you can use double-sided hook and loop to put them on the side of the case somewhere. They donā€™t need any cooling and arenā€™t sensitive to placement.

  1. Did you ever make an ā€œUltimateā€ build video? Iā€™ve been using the basic NAS Killer video as a basic reference, but itā€™s unclear what elements of the Ultimate build need to be similarly flashed.

I havenā€™t made a video about the ā€œUltimateā€ build. The only thing that would need to be flashed is the LSI 9201-8i.

Awesome, and thank you again! I canā€™t wait to get this up and running.

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Share your progress with us in #builds:nas-killer-v4-0!

I recently received a Supermicro X9SCM with a E3-1230 V2. The unit booted several times, but either froze or crashed while installing or running the live CD of Ubuntu 18.04.

I did the usual stuff, pulled out all but one stick of memory, removed all add-on cards, removed all drives. After the last freeze it stopped posting, it only gives me 6 beeps. If I remove all the memory, then I get the memory error 5+1 beeps. But with the proper memory installed I just get 6 beeps, they do not repeat. Has anyone experienced this? Google does not yield much in terms of this, other than a possible bad motherboard.

I went ahead and ordered another cpu/mobo so that I can mix and match and find the offender. Any help or ideas would be welcome.

Thanks!

Is there a good replacement for the Featured Build motherboard? It looks like the rest of the parts are available. Trying to keep the cheap!

So for the Ultimate rackmount build you suggest the LSI 9201-16e, did you mean the 16i? That board runs around $115 - do you know of another option thatā€™s cheaper while still being compatible?

Picked up the Rosewill RSV-L4500 because couldnā€™t resist for $50, but prefer a tower form factor if possible. Anyone know any deals on those today? Prefer at least 8 3.5" bays, and preferably fit ATX or smaller for flexibility. Not sure itā€™s worth $50-100 more for tower form factor for something that will sit in a closet.

No, the 16e is listed for adding a DAS later.

The cheapest way to have internal drives is to use the onboard SATA + an 8i.

Ahhhhh, okay, yup, that makes sense. Thank you!

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Found this interesting internal 200w 19v PSU that could be used with the Intel DQ77KB. Would make the mini-itx NAS slightly more expensive, but then then case would be self-contained (no external brick)

https://hdplex.com/hdplex-internal-200w-ac-dc-adapter-with-active-pfc-and-19vdc-output.html

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Iā€™ve seen these! Arenā€™t they super expensive?