Jump to content

     I have acquired an HP DL160 g6 server, used, at an extremely good price. I purchased without any drive included. Im looking for anyone who has knowledge specifically of using this hardware in FreeNAS. The machine has one 2.13 GHz Xeon processor and 12 gigs of memory included. will be doubling that to 24. No issues there, just good old registered DDR3 menory.

I"m    The machine has come with an HP smart Array P410 controller with Battery backup and the 255 mb write cache. Do I need to cross flash this into an IT mode similar to what is being done with IBM M1015  LSI based RAID cards so that it eliminates the RAID function and acts SOLELY as an HBA? I know the P410 is compatible and the drivers are included in FreeNAS, but, I also know tha data integrity is compromised when using ZFS  on hardware RAID.

     Does anyone have any experience loading and running an OS on one of these machines from either a usb key or an sd card internally? Where are the headers located to allow me to do either one of the or both? assuming the machine is capable of doing this like it says it can in the on-line documentation that I could find.. You are supposed to be able to install the two inside the machine and run them internally. the best way to do that in my opinion, I wont lose any of my hard drive hot swap bays using it for the OS.

     I am also already awate that the Dual Gb ethernet ports that are on board are noy recognized by the OS, No issues there as I will be installing an Intel dual GbE card. That issue is already known and solved. 

Other than those things there arent any other questions and thoughts I have so far from my current research so far as to using this piece of hardware. Anything that I have missed or neglected to ask, or known issues, PLEASE, feel free to enlighten me with knowledge, It would be nice if this project went of without too many major issues.

 

Thanks to everyone in the community.

Edited by Chris_Hercules
wrong info listed accidently. corrected
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, JoeyDM said:

wow, Im a complete idiot and must go back and edit my post... I bought a 160 model not a 360. My apologies, I will fix tha. this should be the link that i got it from. I also think i misquoted the processor speed. I was so worried about making it nice and easy and pretty to read that I screwed up some of the facts. 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/172014994243?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

My apologies to Joey DM... I need to go back and edit my post. I put the wrong part in. I have the single rack unit the 160

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

13 minutes ago, Chris_Hercules said:

wow, Im a complete idiot and must go back and edit my post... I bought a 160 model not a 360. My apologies, I will fix tha. this should be the link that i got it from. I also think i misquoted the processor speed. I was so worried about making it nice and easy and pretty to read that I screwed up some of the facts. 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/172014994243?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

Hah it happens :P still a great price.

I haven't started up FreeNAS on mine yet, it should be a similar process. Sorry I can't really help. I'm not sure that FreeNAS will actually work, I'm not sure if the servers support FreeBSD. 

https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?threads/hp-proliant-dl160-g6-for-freenas.16134/

You've put a lot more thought into making a G6 Proliant server into a FreeNAS box than I did. The USB port should be on the back of it near the PSU, I believe. Is that what you were asking when you said, "Where are the headers located to allow me to do either one of the or both?" If you go for freenas from a flash drive thats permanently in there I'd just grab a super-tiny one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Super tiny would be an under statement. lol and no not external usb. there are two of those on the front and two of them in the rear, of course. The reading and searching I have done has suggested that either/ or can be mounted on the inside, more secure, less likely to get pulled out. I would prefer the micro SD option. Early indications are telling me this box should work fine for FreeNAS but the biggest issue I see is the network interface not being supported, easy enough to fix since the are two x8 pci express connector in x16 mechanical connectors.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Open Fil

Quote
55 minutes ago, JoeyDM said:

I haven't started up FreeNAS on mine yet, it should be a similar process. Sorry I can't really help. I'm not sure that FreeNAS will actually work, I'm not sure if the servers support FreeBSD

 

Openfiler looks like an option, it's Linux based if FreeNAS doesnt work but, JoeyDM, your right it should be a similar process for both of these machines. they are in the same family so to speak.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

If going with ZFS (only option in freenas 9.x) then you would want your raid card in HBA mode, I found an article on how to go from HBA to RAID - should be able to use this guide to go from RAID to HBA if needed.. http://viktorbalogh.net/blog/hardware/servers/changing-a-p410i-from-hba-mode-to-raid-mode

 

The PDF doesn't show you where the header is, just:  NOTE: In order to connect a USB device internally, the internal USB Cable G6 Kit (536769-B21) must be used. The 1-2 pictures I could find looks like it just goes from your typical USB header to a USB port, and it would just... dangle inside the system. To use an SD/MicroSD card, you'd need a PCIe card.

 

Do you know the chipset of the two port NIC that's included?

 

Ebay links and the like don't work where I am so I haven't checked - but my only concern is if it has 3.5" bays then it is only 4 hot swap drives - you very possibly will want more drives in the future, but if it's 2.5" then it has 8, but the cost is higher per GB for 2.5" drives :-(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

59 minutes ago, Chris_Hercules said:

Thanks for the link. I will more than happily read the whole document but, did you happen to nitice what page that info was on?

Page 3 under "ports."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Mikensan said:

If going with ZFS (only option in freenas 9.x) then you would want your raid card in HBA mode, I found an article on how to go from HBA to RAID - should be able to use this guide to go from RAID to HBA if needed.. http://viktorbalogh.net/blog/hardware/servers/changing-a-p410i-from-hba-mode-to-raid-mode

 

The PDF doesn't show you where the header is, just:  NOTE: In order to connect a USB device internally, the internal USB Cable G6 Kit (536769-B21) must be used. The 1-2 pictures I could find looks like it just goes from your typical USB header to a USB port, and it would just... dangle inside the system. To use an SD/MicroSD card, you'd need a PCIe card.

 

Do you know the chipset of the two port NIC that's included?

 

Ebay links and the like don't work where I am so I haven't checked - but my only concern is if it has 3.5" bays then it is only 4 hot swap drives - you very possibly will want more drives in the future, but if it's 2.5" then it has 8, but the cost is higher per GB for 2.5" drives :-(

     Thank you for all the info. I have the model with the 8 2.5 drives. My specific plans, though they may change, was to set it up with 6 drives raid 1+0 and two mirrored ssds for the boot device, I have a cple of 60gb ssds lying around. I purchased this particular machine because I got it dirt cheap and the fact that it was a 1u case. It is in a mahging wall rack behind a door hangiing there with my custom built pfSense router

     Off the top of my head, the network ports are NOT listed in the FreeBSD hardware list which means they arent supported at all. Also a non issue because I have a cpl 2 port Intel gigabit NICs and the machine has two PCI Express slots.

     Lots of really useful information here thanks for the links and everything. I will find that header and since I now have a part number for the USB adapter kit I will find the parts I need. Thanks

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

     Stroke of genus here... All I have to do is find the header and I should be able to test the it to see what is what and if the spacing on the pins is correct then all I probably need to do is use a regular USB header cable. My xw6600 workstation was the same way, HP wants you to buy a card reader kit and what not and its just a standard header. May end up being much easier than I originally thought!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

I have a HP ProLiant DL380 G5 5 with 8 x 146GB lying around. Already have a NAS and dont know what I should use the DL380 for right know.. Any tips for something cool I can use it for?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

26 minutes ago, ChristofferRudi said:

I have a HP ProLiant DL380 G5 5 with 8 x 146GB lying around. Already have a NAS and dont know what I should use the DL380 for right know.. Any tips for something cool I can use it for?

The only thing I can think of is a folding @home machine.... That being said, I know NOTHING about folding @home and I have no clue if the machine would be appropriate for that purpose, Power draw and everything else Im willing to bet it wouldnt be economical for that purpose but, curing cancer and human genome sequencing and finding little green men are all realy cool things to do with a spare computer.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

36 minutes ago, Chris_Hercules said:

The only thing I can think of is a folding @home machine.... That being said, I know NOTHING about folding @home and I have no clue if the machine would be appropriate for that purpose, Power draw and everything else Im willing to bet it wouldnt be economical for that purpose but, curing cancer and human genome sequencing and finding little green men are all realy cool things to do with a spare computer.

 

 

Not a bad idea, but graphics card is probably best for F@H I guess. Will absolutely test to se how much PPD i get with the server compared to my gaming machine! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

22 hours ago, Chris_Hercules said:

     Thank you for all the info. I have the model with the 8 2.5 drives. My specific plans, though they may change, was to set it up with 6 drives raid 1+0 and two mirrored ssds for the boot device, I have a cple of 60gb ssds lying around. I purchased this particular machine because I got it dirt cheap and the fact that it was a 1u case. It is in a mahging wall rack behind a door hangiing there with my custom built pfSense router

     Off the top of my head, the network ports are NOT listed in the FreeBSD hardware list which means they arent supported at all. Also a non issue because I have a cpl 2 port Intel gigabit NICs and the machine has two PCI Express slots.

     Lots of really useful information here thanks for the links and everything. I will find that header and since I now have a part number for the USB adapter kit I will find the parts I need. Thanks

 

 

You may be better off using the mirror SSDs for cache (L2ARC etc..) and keeping the boot device as a USB drive. From experience, I can tell you restoring your config after a USB dies is extremely easy and it imports your volumes magically without any hassle. Next Next Next sort of deal. Recovering FreeNAS is easy peasy. Unless you mean using the mirror SSDs for virtual machine boot drives ^_^. Something I really want to do.

 

My supermicro board for freenas has a USB port on the motherboard, but my pfsense box didn't, so I have a wonderful USB drive just sticking out the back of the box lol.

 

When you get this all done and going let us know the results and maybe some pictures :-D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Quote
2 hours ago, Mikensan said:

You may be better off using the mirror SSDs for cache (L2ARC etc..) and keeping the boot device as a USB drive.

 

I am agreeing. My only issue is I just havent decided EXACTLY what Im going to do but..... That being said, I BELIEVE my best answer will be, IF I can make it work is booting from an internally mounted USB drive, its safe and secure inside the machine, no chance of getting it pulled out. A raided pair of SSDs would be greasat for a cache or whatever. Then that will leave me 6 open 2.5 bays for whatever ZFS RAID setup I decide on. ALL THIS assuming that FreeNAS will work properly on this particular machine. The ONLY real issue I see with this is that this machine is not listed as supporting Free BSD. so if it doesn't work then I guess Ill have to fool around with OpenFiler. The SSDs as A cache are great idea though and that would be a much better use of them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Beautiful news, I have found the actual Service manual for this machine and as such, will now be able to locate that internal header... Looks like Im pullin it if the wall to begin the hunt this weekend. One MORE step closer to getting this to do what I want it to.

 

Here's the link if anyone wants to look at it:

http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c01728029.pdf

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, ChristofferRudi said:

I have a HP ProLiant DL380 G5 5 with 8 x 146GB lying around. Already have a NAS and dont know what I should use the DL380 for right know.. Any tips for something cool I can use it for?

You can play with Server 2016 technology preview 4, and TP5 should be coming out soon. Set up some VMs, als 2016TP4, and learn about AD domains

Looking to buy GTX690, other multi-GPU cards, or single-slot graphics cards: 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, brwainer said:

You can play with Server 2016 technology preview 4, and TP5 should be coming out soon. Set up some VMs, als 2016TP4, and learn about AD domains

Thanks! Will download Windows Server 2016 and look around, great tips!

Know alot about AD already, have a certification in Windows Server Administration.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Quote
On 2/4/2016 at 1:09 PM, Mikensan said:

My supermicro board for freenas has a USB port on the motherboard, but my pfsense box didn't, so I have a wonderful USB drive just sticking out the back of the box lol.

 

You do know that, if you shop there and have access, that you can buyusb direct connect header adaters moth verticle and horitontal and Im willing to bet that if you do some searching you can find them on Amazon too. If you have the internal space that would allow you to move your deive more securely into the machine.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
On 2/3/2016 at 8:22 PM, JoeyDM said:

haven't started up FreeNAS on mine yet, it should be a similar process. Sorry I can't really help. I'm not sure that FreeNAS will actually work, I'm not sure if the servers support FreeBSD

So here's an update since you have a similar machine...It works.

 

There are few little things but it actually came out quite well. One it did not like or support the internal HP NICs on the board, no issue I threw in a low profile Intel based dual gigabit HP server NIC (360T if I remember correctly). And the big kicker, it did not want to play nice with P410/256 RAID controller. No issue I threw a n LSI IT mode HBA into it plus it supports two TB per drive instead of the 1TB of the 410. so here's the final hardware count minus the rest of the drives: An HP dl160 g6 server, with a single 2.13 GHz LGA 1366 Xeon, 24 GB of ram, 16 GB kingston Traveler external USB for boot, Two 120GB HyperX Fury Cloud 9 edition SSD for the cache and I'm waiting on my 6 new@TB hard drives to show up. Running in ZFS2 that will give me around 8 TB of storage with two parity drives. This is more than enough storage.

 

Just wanted to pass along in case you haven't had the chance to start on yours, there should not be any insurmountable issues in using that hardware

 

Total cost, under 1000 dollars1

Edited by Chris_Hercules
correct info
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

45 minutes ago, Chris_Hercules said:

So here's an update since you have a similar machine...It works.

 

There are few little things but it actually came out quite well. One it did not like or support the internal HP NICs on the board, no issue I threw in a low profile Intel based dual gigabit HP server NIC (360T if I remember correctly). And the big kicker, it did not want to play nice with P410/256 RAID controller. No issue I threw a n LSI IT mode HBA into it plus it supports two TB per drive instead of the 1TB of the 410. so here's the final hardware count minus the rest of the drives: An HP dl160 g6 server, with a single 2.13 GHz LGA 1366 Xeon, 24 GB of ram, 16 GB kingston Traveler external USB for boot, Two 120GB HyperX Fury Cloud 9 edition SSD for the cache and I'm waiting on my 6 new@TB hard drives to show up. Running in ZFS2 that will give me around 8 TB of storage with two parity drives. This is more than enough storage.

 

Just wanted to pass along in case you haven't had the chance to start on yours, there should not be any insurmountable issues in using that hardware

 

Total cost, under 1000 dollars1

Thanks for the info! Glad everything worked! Once I have some time I'll be starting playing with mine.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×