LSI Owner's Thread (SAS/SATA HBA and RAID cards)

Haven't seen this one yet:

9201-16i.jpg

http://www.lsi.com/storage_home/pro...ters/sas_hbas/internal/sas9201-16i/index.html

4x Mini-SAS ports for 16 SATA/SAS HDDs at SATA 6Gbps looks quite cool!
 
That card looks really nice, and I'd love one for my next workstation build. However, they're a bit pricey compared to a Dell PERC 6/i, since the Dell's can be found everywhere.

Having said that though, I'm not likely to fit 16 extra drives into a TJ10...I think I'll get that LSI for my server build. :)
 
Anyone have any experience with the LSI SAS 2008 chipset? I just got an X8DTH-6F, which has it onboard. I'm gonna grab an expander and throw it in my 4224
 
EGOvoruhk said:
Anyone have any experience with the LSI SAS 2008 chipset? I just got an X8DTH-6F, which has it onboard. I'm gonna grab an expander and throw it in my 4224
Click to expand...

I have that mobo (actually two of them). I also have Areca 1680ix-24's in the same systems. I use the LSI SAS for 3.5" drives and the Areca's for 2.5" drives - my 4U chassis has room for 8x 3.5" and 12x 3.5" (by using 1x 5.25" to 4x 2.5" mobile racks, as SM likes to call them).

Supermicro support told me that the on board LSI SAS, although SAS-2, is limited to the 8 drives and doesn't support expanders - probably to keep a market for add in RAID cards. And it has no cache, of course. I've found it pretty reliable, but I just use RAID1 and 10, and keep the high performance stuff on the Arecas so it benefits from the 4GB cache. I believe the LSI raid is limited to just two raid volumes as well.
 
aitoribarra said:
Supermicro support told me that the on board LSI SAS, although SAS-2, is limited to the 8 drives and doesn't support expanders - probably to keep a market for add in RAID cards. And it has no cache, of course. I've found it pretty reliable, but I just use RAID1 and 10, and keep the high performance stuff on the Arecas so it benefits from the 4GB cache. I believe the LSI raid is limited to just two raid volumes as well.
Click to expand...

Hopefully Supermicro is just misinformed, or didn't test it. The LSI Website guarantees "interoperability with LSI SAS expanders".

I don't care about the RAID limitations, as I'm going to set the system up HBA. Is the onboard chipset able to be put into HBA mode?
 
EGOvoruhk said:
Hopefully Supermicro is just misinformed, or didn't test it. The LSI Website guarantees "interoperability with LSI SAS expanders".

I don't care about the RAID limitations, as I'm going to set the system up HBA. Is the onboard chipset able to be put into HBA mode?
Click to expand...

The last gen SuperMicros with SAS-1 had a jumper that let you set Initiator Target/HBA mode. Hopefully the new ones are the same.
 
There's a SAS jumper but I think it's just to turn the whole SAS interface off, not switch modes. I could be wrong.

If you do get it working with an expander, particularly if you try RAID on it, please post about it, it would save using up a PCIe slot for another RAID card when I need more 3.5" drives...
 
sub.mesa said:
Haven't seen this one yet:
4x Mini-SAS ports for 16 SATA/SAS HDDs at SATA 6Gbps looks quite cool!
Click to expand...
Haven't looked at the spec yet, any interesting changes from sas2008 except 4 vs 2 sas-ports?

EGOvoruhk said:
Anyone have any experience with the LSI SAS 2008 chipset? I just got an X8DTH-6F, which has it onboard. I'm gonna grab an expander and throw it in my 4224
Click to expand...

EGOvoruhk said:
Hopefully Supermicro is just misinformed, or didn't test it. The LSI Website guarantees "interoperability with LSI SAS expanders".

I don't care about the RAID limitations, as I'm going to set the system up HBA. Is the onboard chipset able to be put into HBA mode?
Click to expand...

The LSI 9211(which is an sas2008 controller) works with the HP SAS Expander atleast, though I haven't tested it with 24 drives attached, yet... only non-(hw)raid tested...
 
New firmware available for the following cards:

MegaRAID SAS 9260-4i
MegaRAID SAS 9260-8i
MegaRAID SAS 9260DE-8i
MegaRAID SAS 9261-8i
MegaRAID SAS 9280-4i4e
MegaRAID SAS 9280-8e
MegaRAID SAS 9280DE-8e

Firmware: 12.11.0-0016 (APP-2.110.03-0967)
Date: 27-SEP-10
Filename: 12.11.0-0016_SAS_2108_FW_Image_APP-2.110.03-0967_u1.zip

http://www.lsi.com/lookup/License.aspx?url=/DistributionSystem/User/AssetMgr.aspx?asset=55634&prodName=MegaRAID%20SAS%209280DE-8e&subType=Firmware&locale=EN or non-direct http://www.lsi.com/storage_home/products_home/internal_raid/megaraid_sas/6gb_s_value_line/sas9260-4i/index.html#Firmware

Changes: http://www.lsi.com/DistributionSyst...16_SAS_2108_FW_Image_APP-2.110.03-0967_u1.txt
 
well we need someone to test the new Firmware with the EVGA boards, there is a big time issue with the previous firmwares and evga motherboards.
 
Define "issue" and "EVGA boards", please.

The reason I'm curious is I tested previous fw and one older(not sure which, but can find out via logs if needed) with a 9280de with a evga 680-sli a few weeks back without any noticeable issues, though no intense testing were conducted.
 
there is a major issue of the firmware and evga motherboards not working together, a real bummer to be honest. the new firmwares will not work and evga/lsi both point the finger at each other. several posts, at several sites, document it.

http://www.evga.com/forums/tm.aspx?&m=486164&mpage=1

there are a bunch over at XS and other places too if you google...
 
EVGA 680-sli had major issues with Areca cards if I remember correct, was not fixed by P33(last bios) and the mobo is EOL since long... The thread was very old and now seems to have gone MIA, can't find it...

What if you try and disable as many(try all if you can) onboard stuff as possible?
Try a PCI-gfx as well, just for the sake of testing...
 
yea, not only me, but tons of other nerds have tried :)
the board does not physically have enough option-rom.
 
seems like an odd thing to cut down on, especially since it's marketed as a premium board....
for your sake, lets hope it's a (bios)coding glitch... but on the other hand, evga isn't too eager to fix bios-issues...
 
lizardking009 said:
The last gen SuperMicros with SAS-1 had a jumper that let you set Initiator Target/HBA mode. Hopefully the new ones are the same.
Click to expand...

There are two different firmware's that you can use depending on which you want, by default it is HBA mode. Although I can't get either to see SATA drives with my X8DT6, so maybe I should look for a jumper too.
 
Compu, thanks for all your insight on this and other forums regarding SSD's and especially the 9280-8i. I've just built an eight C300 128GB drive server around the 9261-8i card in a supermicro SC213A chassis and X8DT6 and things look great so far. My software FastPath key (LSI00266 - MegaRAID FastPath software) just arrived by email today, so I'll try to post before and after benchmarks.
 
holy cow, that will be an awesome setup! cant wait to see you results :)
i hope they have fixed the instructions that come with the key, they have the wrong illustration on there for the key placement! if you need any help give me a holler!
those C300 are just killer with that card :)
 
Does anyone know which LSI card the PERC H800 is the equivalent of? Is it flashable with LSI firmware? Do you get the SSD features (SSD Guard, and the optional fastpath and cachecade?)

The Dell card is interesting in that the cache and BBU are one module and therefore transportable, and I've seen them orderable with 1GB cache - but only with a Dell server purchase. They also seem cheaper than the LSI cards. But I'd want the LSI SSD features, and also compatibility with non-Dell JBOD enclosures.
 
aitoribarra said:
Does anyone know which LSI card the PERC H800 is the equivalent of? Is it flashable with LSI firmware? Do you get the SSD features (SSD Guard, and the optional fastpath and cachecade?).
Click to expand...
LSI 2108 ROC http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/products/pvaul/en/perc-technical-guidebook.pdf (page 10)
but
"SAS only" http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/products/pvaul/en/perc-technical-guidebook.pdf (page 6)
"SATA interface drives are not supported with PERC H800" http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/products/pvaul/en/perc-technical-guidebook.pdf (page 13)
 
sweloop64 said:
LSI 2108 ROC http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/products/pvaul/en/perc-technical-guidebook.pdf (page 10)
but
"SAS only" http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/products/pvaul/en/perc-technical-guidebook.pdf (page 6)
"SATA interface drives are not supported with PERC H800" http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/products/pvaul/en/perc-technical-guidebook.pdf (page 13)
Click to expand...

Yep, those are the limitations (probably arbritrary, to reduce Dell support costs / increase margin / lock-in) that I was hoping a firmware flash might solve - because apart from that, the low price and bigger cache makes them very attractive.

I'm surprised that they aren't offering FastPath & CacheCade as they are now pushing Pliant SAS SSDs (very expensive) in new servers and external SAS arrays / JBODs).
 
EGOvoruhk said:
Anyone have any experience with the LSI SAS 2008 chipset? I just got an X8DTH-6F, which has it onboard. I'm gonna grab an expander and throw it in my 4224
Click to expand...

Did this work? Supermicro where quite emphatic that it wouldn't, but there's been a few firmware updates since I asked. How many drives have you got hanging off X8DTH-6F + expander?

There's a newer dual Xeon board from supermicro that has LSI SAS 2108 + cache + optional BBU on mobo, along with dual 10GbE - but it's a UIO board and only has a single IOH chip - so less expandable, but you get more built in. http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/QPI/5500/X8DTU_.cfm?TYP=SAS&LAN=10 - and I would expect it to support expanders, at least the Supermicro/LSI ones.
 
sweloop64 said:
The LSI 9211(which is an sas2008 controller) works with the HP SAS Expander atleast, though I haven't tested it with 24 drives attached, yet... only non-(hw)raid tested...
Click to expand...

It works, had both the 9211-4i and 9211-8i hooked up to 24 x Hitachi 2Tb's via HP expander. No problems. Nice surprise was Int13 support for 24 drives, configurable in BIOS and defaulted to 24. Most HBA's max out at 8.
 
odditory said:
It works, had both the 9211-4i and 9211-8i hooked up to 24 x Hitachi 2Tb's via HP expander. No problems. Nice surprise was Int13 support for 24 drives, configurable in BIOS and defaulted to 24. Most HBA's max out at 8.
Click to expand...

Hi odditory, did you try it in any RAID mode - 10 or 1 is what I would be interested in?
 
September said:
Compu, thanks for all your insight on this and other forums regarding SSD's and especially the 9280-8i. I've just built an eight C300 128GB drive server around the 9261-8i card in a supermicro SC213A chassis and X8DT6 and things look great so far. My software FastPath key (LSI00266 - MegaRAID FastPath software) just arrived by email today, so I'll try to post before and after benchmarks.
Click to expand...


I too ordered the LSi00266 license key, and it's been over a week and still have no email with the key #.

How long did you wait for to receive an email? And was the email from the reseller or from LSI directly?
 
Had a quick question about the 9211-8i functions both as a HBA and limited onboard RAID correct? Similar to the AOC-USAS2-L8i but also combined with a AOC-USAS2-L8e?

Guess one is paying premium for the LSI name?
 
Anyone know the difference between the 9260-8i and 9261-8i other than PCB layout? Specs look identical and I believe they're both SAS2108.

Fastpath looks interesting but seems like its really just going to help bump random R/W for magnetic disk arrays, and seek time will *appear* to improve. Example you have 8 x 2Tb drives with an aggregate 800MB/s sequential R/W and one SSD pushing 200-300MB/s sequential R/W so no help to sequential. Maybe I'm missing something.
 
Last edited:
autov said:
I too ordered the LSi00266 license key, and it's been over a week and still have no email with the key #.

How long did you wait for to receive an email? And was the email from the reseller or from LSI directly?
Click to expand...

I ordered it Monday morning from Provantage and got a tracking code from them on Wednesday, then the activation code email from LSI on Thursday. I've heard that I was the first electronic license order to come through, and they were disappointed it was for only 1 copy. :(
 
odditory said:
Anyone know the difference between the 9260-8i and 9261-8i other than PCB layout? Specs look identical and I believe they're both SAS2108.

Fastpath looks interesting but seems like its really just going to help bump random R/W for magnetic disk arrays, and seek time will *appear* to improve. Example you have 8 x 2Tb drives with an aggregate 800MB/s sequential R/W and one SSD pushing 200-300MB/s sequential R/W so no help to sequential. Maybe I'm missing something.
Click to expand...

It looks like the only other difference is how the advanced software is activated.

On the 9261 they have removed the physical key insertion (which the 9260 has), and replaced it with electronic key input through the bios.

And FastPath only applies to SSD raid, not regular HDD's.
 
September said:
I ordered it Monday morning from Provantage and got a tracking code from them on Wednesday, then the activation code email from LSI on Thursday. I've heard that I was the first electronic license order to come through, and they were disappointed it was for only 1 copy. :(
Click to expand...

Interesting.

If you search LSI00266 on LSI's website, that part # isn't even listed.
I called their tech support monkeys and they didn't even know which part # was required for the FastPath on the 9261 cards. I had to research it myself and show them what I found on Google, then they thanked me for it hahaah
 
I have run into a problem which is pretty serious on the LSI 9261 card which I would like for others to test and see if the same problem occurs.

I have created a RAID-5 array from 4x2TB drives. Everything works fine, but if I pull out a drive from that array, and then reinsert that same drive, the LSI card bios will not recognize it, and will claim the drive is bad.

Even if i format that HDD and then reinsert it, I wont be able to use it. If i insert a totally different drive, other than the ones which were used in the array it will detect it fine.

I opened a support ticket with their techs and even a week later they still haven't gotten back to me with any useful information why this is happening.

I have tried the same thing on a 3WARE 9650SE card, and that one didn't have any problems accepting the same drive I pulled out of a healthy RAID array.
 
with the fastpath key your highest sequential is not affected.
but yoiur random 4k performance is ungodly good.
up to a 160,000 IOPS of 4K RANDOM.
i am not kidding it is ridiculous the 4k scaling with ssd especially. here are some tests we did at another forum.
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4415804&postcount=185

the whole thread is a helluva read...long though :)
we have done extensive testing with a fastpath enabled controller, and there is nothing faster. period.
i mean it is it. and you FEEL it with ssd arrays it is ridiculous fast. blistering. cant say enough about it tbh. the fastest speed you will get outside of cache.
 
btw all of those results are with 4k random on the graphs! truly spectacular results :)
 
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