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    SG-5100 Memory Upgrade

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved Official Netgate® Hardware
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    • DyspareuniaD
      Dyspareunia
      last edited by

      Hello all you pfSense gurus!

       

      I have been recently rebuilding my network, the right way... While setting up things like pfBlocker, it became very evident that the 4G of memory that the 5100 came with is woefully inadequate for maintaining large lists of IP's & Domains in memory. Either I upgrade the memory, pull load off the pfSense box and onto a pihole, or a reduce the number of feeds I'm using. The upgrade seems to be the most ideal for me.

       

      So I began some research into what kinds of memory I can use to upgrade the device. While it does come with ECC, I opted to not buy more ECC memory for reasons that are not really important to this issue.

       

      So first of all, on the pfSense page, under the specs it lists the memory as:

      4GB DDR4 2400 MHz DIMM (max 16 GB, 1x 260-pin SODIMM)
      

       

      Great, not a ton of info, but a good start. I then looked at the system itself for some more info:

       

      First the board itself:

      Base Board Information
      Manufacturer: Netgate
      Product Name: SG-5100
      Version: 1
      Serial Number: NG201808000737
      Asset Tag: Default string
      Features:
      	Board is a hosting board
      	Board is replaceable
      Location In Chassis: Default string
      Chassis Handle: 0x0003
      Type: Motherboard
      Contained Object Handles: 0
      

       

      Then the memory:

      Handle 0x002B, DMI type 17, 40 bytes
      Memory Device
      Array Handle: 0x0029
      Error Information Handle: Not Provided
      Total Width: 8 bits
      Data Width: 8 bits
      Size: 4096 MB
      Form Factor: DIMM
      Set: None
      Locator: DIMM0
      Bank Locator: BANK 0
      Type: DDR4
      Type Detail: Synchronous Unbuffered (Unregistered)
      Speed: 2400 MT/s
      Manufacturer: Transcend
      Serial Number: 00000273
      Asset Tag: BANK 0 DIMM0 AssetTag
      Part Number: TS512MSH64V4H
      Rank: 1
      Configured Memory Speed: 2133 MT/s
      Minimum Voltage: 1.2 V
      Maximum Voltage: 1.2 V
      Configured Voltage: 1.2 V
      

       

      So, what I'm after is...

      16GB DDR4 2400 MHz, 1.2v, 260-pin SODIMM
      

       

      The board is manufactured by Netgate themselves, the serial number comes up with NOTHING in Google. I found at least one helpful post on the Netgate forums around memory upgrades to this device. The consensus seemed to be that ECC wasn't required, and a few links to memory modules others have used.

       

      Armed with this information, I made my choice...

       

      Crucial 16GB Single DDR4 2400 MT/s (PC4-19200) DR x8 SODIMM 260-Pin Memory - CT16G4SFD824A

       

      Well, now here I am, having tried to install this memory module last night. The pfSense box will not even boot, no errors when connected to the serial port, nothing. Just sits there for a few mins, then the alarm on the mobo starts to sound.

       

      Just to verify, I checked and found this memory is compatible with my laptop as well, so I tried it to see if the memory was faulty, it's not. So in short, what have I missed here? What is incompatible about this memory? It can't be because it's non-ECC could it? Others have reported using non-ECC in this device without issue... Any feedback would be awesome! I tried to provide as much info as I could, if there is anything else I can pull please let me know!

       

      Thanks!

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • sherpagoodnessS
        sherpagoodness
        last edited by

        that module should work fine....the RAM training takes quite a bit of time on these. Make sure it's seated correctly and potentially test it in another device to ensure it's not a bad stick

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        • sherpagoodnessS
          sherpagoodness
          last edited by

          the only other thing to try if it's a known working stick would be boot without the new RAM and go into the bios and load defaults save and reboot, shut the system down and try reinstalling the memory. I would make sure you have the system completely unplugged when installing the new module, press the power button a few times to discharge anything left in the caps, then when you go to start it up for the first time with the new module, let it sit and don't interrupt it so it can do the RAM training. I haven't experienced this first hand but I'm told it can take 15 minutes OR MORE to finish.

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          • stephenw10S
            stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
            last edited by

            I will add that we have acrually tested that Crucial part in the SG-5100 ourselves so I would suggest resetting the nvram and retesting if you are still seeing issues.
            It is possible Crucial changed the actual chips in use there. They usually have a sub-part number that can vary.

            Handle 0x002B, DMI type 17, 40 bytes
            Memory Device
                    Array Handle: 0x0029
                    Error Information Handle: Not Provided
                    Total Width: 8 bits
                    Data Width: 8 bits
                    Size: 16384 MB
                    Form Factor: DIMM
                    Set: None
                    Locator: DIMM0
                    Bank Locator: BANK 0
                    Type: DDR4
                    Type Detail: Synchronous Unbuffered (Unregistered)
                    Speed: 2400 MT/s
                    Manufacturer: Crucial
                    Serial Number: E0A9DF28
                    Asset Tag: BANK 0 DIMM0 AssetTag
                    Part Number: CT16G4SFD824A.M16FB 
                    Rank: 2
                    Configured Clock Speed: 2133 MT/s
                    Minimum Voltage: 1.2 V
                    Maximum Voltage: 1.2 V
                    Configured Voltage: 1.2 V
            

            Steve

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • S
              smolka_J
              last edited by

              Samsung 32GB ECC 2666mhz DDR4 CL19 M474A4G43MB1-CTDQ working here with 1.3TB raidz

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
              • stephenw10S
                stephenw10 Netgate Administrator
                last edited by

                Nice. Though I can't imagine what you're using 32GB for. 😉

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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