Help Finding mini-ITX Motherboard/

[abd4897]

I'm struggling to find a motherboard to use in the file server build I have been planning. Going in, I had the following specs in mind for what I was looking for, and I didn't think they would be too tough to find:

- mini-ITX form factor
- At least 5 SATA ports (3 or 6 Gb/s doesn't matter)
- Intel LAN

After a fair amount of searching, the only boards I could find matching these criteria were:

JetWay JNC9BU-HM67 LGA 1155 Intel HM67 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX Intel Motherboard
JetWay JNF9A-Q67 LGA 1155 Intel Q67 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s Mini ITX Intel Motherboard

These are a bit more expensive than I would have hoped, I haven't heard of Jetway before, and I have no need for dual ethernet. Does anyone have any experience with these boards, and will they even be supported by FreeNAS? And are there any others MBs fitting my criteria that I may have missed?

And if all else fails, should I:
- Drop the requirement for a board to use onboard Intel LAN and buy a LAN card? I feel like I shouldn't have to do this in 2012.
- Drop the requirement on the number of SATA ports and get a PCI SATA card? Probably the best alternative, but I wanted to avoid buying this extra piece of hardware.
- Drop the mini-ITX form factor all together, since it seems like there are just too many compromises you have to make when buying a motherboard?

 

[Stephens]

How much RAM? Look into SuperMicro (MBD-X7SPA-HF-O, MBD-X9SCV-Q-O, etc.).

Alternatively, you can look into the Asus boards and just buy an add-on Intel NIC. Google "Asus ITX".

Google "FreeNAS ITX" for other options.

 

[#mufi]

This guy has a working FreeNAS mini-itx config:
http://fortysomethinggeek.blogspot.ro/2012/08/freenas-low-power-amd-e-350-lian-li-pc.html

 

[abd4897]

Yeah, but he's using a board with a Realtek LAN controller, which is exactly what I was trying to avoid. He mentions in his post that he was seeing network speeds less than half of the theoretical gigabit maximum.

 

[jgreco]

Basically, the manufacturers see mini-ITX as a "value" platform, where the word "value" means "customer is a bit of a cheapskate."

There are other reasons to buy mini-ITX of course, but in PC-land, you kind of have to go with the flow. Buying for specific server-like characteristics means you are paddling against the current. Certain manufacturers like Supermicro have made a business of providing server-class mainboards, but you are going to have to buy in to their other assumptions, such as a server should have dual ethernets.

 

[FireWire2]

6x SATA and Dual Intel GbE + USB port for USB pen

I think this is what you need:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008Z2DCO6/?tag=ozlp-20

It has

- Six SATAII ports
- 2x Gb Ethernet from Intel
- 1x USB port for the USB pen/flash, where you can have the FreeNAS installed

I use this board with hardware raid controller SMP394

 

[abd4897]

$200 for a last gen Atom board with 4GB max RAM? I'll pass. Looks like the only good option in this space is to get one of the Asus boards, i.e.:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131841
and add an Intel PCI LAN card. Oh well, it's certainly not ideal, but I don't see a better option.