Supermicro X7SPA-H

XeCutor

XeCutor,

If I succeed in getting pfSense running on the two units I build, I will try post some sort of benchmarks.

It's been a few weeks since I read the hardware sizing guide and hundreds of forum posts in an attempt to get some idea of what kind of power I need to do all this. I've slept a few times since then. What I do remember is that I came to a conclusion that the D510 board I ordered would be sufficient to handle my requirements.

I have a bit less bandwidth than you, but we share some goals in traffic shaping and occasional VPN. Ultimately, I intend to have the units double as a NAS/backup solution, using ssh, rsync, and samba. We'll see how it goes.

Benchmarks would be absolutely wonderful, I'm sure I'm not the only one who's curious for some hard data on these atom boards.

SecretAsianMan

My pair of X7SPA-H boards finally shipped from WiredZone. Expected delivery is Feb 10.

This weekend, I'll order the other necessary components.

bendsley

If you go to Newegg.com, they are running specials right now on SuperMicro barebones 1u appliances.

I got:
SUPERMICRO SYS-5015A-H 1U Barebone Server - Retail
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit
Western Digital Caviar Green WD10EADS 1TB SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive

for $350 including shipping. I can assure you, pfSense is running on it currently. It runs like a champ.

Newegg.com link
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816101262

rugby

@bendsley:

If you go to Newegg.com, they are running specials right now on SuperMicro barebones 1u appliances.

FYI, newegg changes their pricing on these deals. I had that kit in my cart for $299 at one time, waited about 30 minutes and then the Atom 1U box went out of stock on me. Every time after that it's been $330-$360 for that kit since then. Their pricing is annoying to say the least.

Davec

I got my X7SPA-H through SuperBiz. Do watch out buying this box set MIGHT not include the 3.5' HD bracket / 2.5' bracket. So need to double check when your ordered. I wait for the HD bracket over a month from Taiwan as it was not included.

sosdk

What kind of internet speed can this board handle ?

evildave

@sosdk:

What kind of internet speed can this board handle ?

With the same CPU and lesser ethernet interfaces (1 're' and 1 'vge') on an Intel D510MO board I am pushing 80mbps on my 100/100 fibre at home and that seems to be a bottleneck of the upstream rather than the hardware.

I think I'd be safe saying that you could run 100mbps ethernet at wirespeed.

Davc

Mine is around 70/50 most of the time as it is now situated in the Datacentre looking after a number of clients

sosdk

Ok thx for the answers. The area that I live in has a shared 500/500 mbit line that isnt overused.

I'm still thinking about switching my router to a PfSense and this could be the board I chose if I build one. I'll get back with some benchmarks if/when I get it.

FBI01

What about the "(Supermicro) SuperServer 5015A-PHF" with the "X7SPA-HF" Board; it has 2 Intel 1Gbit Interfaces and looks very nice for pfSense …
Did someone test pfSense 1.2.3 on this new version with the "Intel Atom D510" ??

FBI01

tractng

Do you know if the pci-e x4 allows a card other then a video card. I am interested in getting the board and put a 3ware 9650 in it.

Looking to run openfiler.

thanks,
tony

scoop

AFAIK there is no reason to believe only a graphics card would work in that PCI-e slot. Just make sure the expansion card you're going to use is compatible with PCI-e x4 or lower.

I'm also looking into buying one of these new pineview mobo's from SuperMicro and running pfSense on it. I haven't dug into all the chipset specs yet but I would also be interested to know if a stock pfSense 1.2.3 install would run on it.

sosdk

Here is a discusion of the board for UnRaid - a NAS OS

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=5133.0

The PCI-e slot supports other cards than a graphics card.

Mookatroid

Has anyone found any stock available for immediate purchase ?

If so, please post.

North American source preferred, but anything will be helpful :)

Thanks!

rkelleyrtp

Wow - you just missed it! Provantage had 4 in stock this morning. http://www.provantage.com/supermicro-x7spa-h~7SUPM362.htm

If it were me, I would wait until the "X7SPA-HF" model is available. That one has embedded IPMI (built-in KVM over IP) which is essential for a headless box stuck in a closet or datacenter.

Mookatroid

Yes … it is the X7SPA-HF model that I am actually after.
Should have said that.

Either way, can anyone clarify what size of pico psu should be used for this board? Intel forums are all over the map.

Wondering if I should get a PicoPSU-150-XT w/102Watt adapter or if the PicoPSU-90 w/60Watt adapter is sufficient??

Other than RAM, the only other thing I will be running is an SSD .. and maybe a few extra case fans if the little bugger runs too hot.

Anyone have any solid info re: minimum / recommended power supplies ?

re: your comment about IPMI ... I noticed that fro the HF model as well but could not determine if there was an extra module to buy to use it. It also says "shared with LAN1" so I hope that means that LAN1 is used to communicate with it and than LAN1 can also be used for the pfSense LAN/WAN config, etc.

SecretAsianMan

Update time.

My pair of X7SPA-H boards arrived, as did the other necessary parts. On Saturday, I built my two mini-servers and confirmed that the parts work. I used very nice Silverstone black cube cases that have lots of room for future expansion. I'll post part descriptions and pictures in several days, when I am finished with the project.

pfSense is not installed yet. My plan to boot from a 4GB thumb drive hit a snag: the pfSense embedded image wants to use serial console instead of VGA. I can't be bothered with that, as I got rid of my last RS-232 junk many years ago. It seems a few others have been through this before, so I will look at those threads in depth and figure out the best way around the problem.

tractng

The manual says it needs 2-amp from the 5v standby rail.

I got the chenbro case, a little pricey :) that has 180 watts psu.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811123128&cm_re=chenbro--11-123-128--Product

tnt

@Mookatroid:

Yes … it is the X7SPA-HF model that I am actually after.

Should have said that.

Either way, can anyone clarify what size of pico psu should be used for this board? Intel forums are all over the map.

Wondering if I should get a PicoPSU-150-XT w/102Watt adapter or if the PicoPSU-90 w/60Watt adapter is sufficient??

Other than RAM, the only other thing I will be running is an SSD .. and maybe a few extra case fans if the little bugger runs too hot.

Anyone have any solid info re: minimum / recommended power supplies ?

re: your comment about IPMI ... I noticed that fro the HF model as well but could not determine if there was an extra module to buy to use it. It also says "shared with LAN1" so I hope that means that LAN1 is used to communicate with it and than LAN1 can also be used for the pfSense LAN/WAN config, etc.

evildave

@Mookatroid:

Yes … it is the X7SPA-HF model that I am actually after.
Should have said that.

Either way, can anyone clarify what size of pico psu should be used for this board? Intel forums are all over the map.

Wondering if I should get a PicoPSU-150-XT w/102Watt adapter or if the PicoPSU-90 w/60Watt adapter is sufficient??

Other than RAM, the only other thing I will be running is an SSD .. and maybe a few extra case fans if the little bugger runs too hot.

Anyone have any solid info re: minimum / recommended power supplies ?

re: your comment about IPMI ... I noticed that fro the HF model as well but could not determine if there was an extra module to buy to use it. It also says "shared with LAN1" so I hope that means that LAN1 is used to communicate with it and than LAN1 can also be used for the pfSense LAN/WAN config, etc.

We've just gotten in a (Supermicro Xeon) board with what's probably the same module. The documentation is pretty slim but it seems like you can put the IMPI directly onto a seperate 802.1q tagged VLAN and use the rest of the VLANs and untagged as usual.

Mookatroid

@tractng:

The manual says it needs 2-amp from the 5v standby rail.

I got the chenbro case, a little pricey :) that has 180 watts psu.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811123128&cm_re=chenbro--11-123-128--Product

tnt

That is helpful to know if I go with a bigger case, but I am still motivated to use a case with a PicoPSU.
Can anyone tell me if the PicoPSU-150-XT will drive this board OK ?
Intel's D510MO board is recommended to be used with a PicoPSU-80, so one might assume the 150Watt would be more than plenty.
But I'd like to know this before ordering parts.

I emailed SuperMicro support, but so far all they have confirmed is that the X7SPA-HF works in their 1U chassis w/200Watt P/S