Looking for RAID controller

Pushrod

Pushrod

I need a SATA raid card that meets these requirements:

  • It works under FreeBSD 8
  • Does RAID5 in hardware
  • Is cheap
  • Has 4+ ports

I have a Highpoint 2680 on order, but I am doing my best to cancel it after just having wasted the last 4 hours helping someone to get the same card to work in FreeBSD. I also found all of the issues that other forum members have had with this piece of junk.

Your suggestions are appreciated.
 
Pushrod said:
I need a SATA raid card that meets these requirements:

  • It works under FreeBSD 8
  • Does RAID5 in hardware
  • Is cheap
  • Has 4+ ports

Your suggestions are appreciated.
Click to expand...
Define "cheap"... The 4-port 3Ware 9650SE-4LPML is around $270. The 8-port version is around $430. It is well-supported in FreeBSD (both driver and full CLI/web management support).

LSI 1068-based cards (mpt driver) are also supported, though the available management utilities are more primitive than the Windows / Linux flavors. In particular, the errors are opaque, logging things like:
Code: 
mpt0: mpt_cam_event: 0x16

Depending on the CPU/memory/workload situation, you might also consider a "dumb" SATA controller combined with ZFS.
 
If you can, use ZFS instead of hardware raid. I really wonder, what do you need hardware raid for?
 
3Ware, Areca, and LSI make the best supported RAID controllers for FreeBSD. They all make 4-, 8-, 12-, 16- port versions, and come in a range of prices.
 
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