From owner-freebsd-stable@FreeBSD.ORG Wed Jul 27 16:58:08 2011 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-stable@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 47048106564A for ; Wed, 27 Jul 2011 16:58:08 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from janm@transactionware.com) Received: from midgard.transactionware.com (mail2.transactionware.com [203.14.245.36]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with SMTP id C07D28FC12 for ; Wed, 27 Jul 2011 16:58:07 +0000 (UTC) Received: (qmail 4831 invoked by uid 907); 27 Jul 2011 16:31:23 -0000 Received: from b13FC.static.pacific.net.au (HELO [192.168.1.153]) (202.7.88.252) (smtp-auth username janm, mechanism plain) by midgard.transactionware.com (qpsmtpd/0.84) with (AES128-SHA encrypted) ESMTPSA; Thu, 28 Jul 2011 02:31:23 +1000 Mime-Version: 1.0 (Apple Message framework v1244.3) Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii From: Jan Mikkelsen In-Reply-To: <20110727101234.GA7659@icarus.home.lan> Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 02:31:20 +1000 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Message-Id: References: <20110725093432.GI1202@home.opsec.eu> <20110726225557.GA97184@icarus.home.lan> <20110727101234.GA7659@icarus.home.lan> To: Jeremy Chadwick X-Mailer: Apple Mail (2.1244.3) Cc: Tom Evans , freebsd-stable@freebsd.org Subject: Re: SATA 6g 4-port non-RAID controller ? X-BeenThere: freebsd-stable@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: Production branch of FreeBSD source code List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Wed, 27 Jul 2011 16:58:08 -0000 On 27/07/2011, at 8:12 PM, Jeremy Chadwick wrote: > On Wed, Jul 27, 2011 at 10:38:36AM +0100, Tom Evans wrote: >> On Tue, Jul 26, 2011 at 11:55 PM, Jeremy Chadwick >> wrote: >>>=20 >>> And before someone asks: in most cases you *cannot* use this card in = a >>> PCIe x16 connector on a motherboard. ??Most generic motherboard >>> manufacturers at this point have special one-offs that assume their = PCIe >>> x16 slots are for video cards only. ??If you aren't sure, you'll = need to >>> ask your motherboard manufacturer/vendor if you can use a >>> non-VGA-adapter in their PCIe x16 slot. ??Some Supermicro boards do = have >>> PCIe x16 slots that can be used by non-VGA adapters, but I haven't = seen >>> this on, say, Asus/Gigabyte/Dell/Intel motherboards. >>=20 >> Jeremy may not have seen PCI express x16 HBAs working on consumer >> boards, but I have, plenty of times. >=20 > I'm glad -- people should probably start making a list, because the > number of boards I've seen it not work in easily exceeds that of the > times I HAVE seen it work. :-) Where did it fail? >> I don't know why the FUD, but I have had no problems with an Intel >> SASUC8I (LSI 1068 based) running on an Asus P5Q Pro, a simple = consumer >> P45 chipset. I'm not unique, many people have success doing this. >=20 > Once in a blue moon, an intelligent board manufacturer puts comments = in > their user manual to the effect of "the PCIe x16 slot is only to be = used > for VGA adapters and will not work with non-VGA cards", or vice-versa. > Here's some hard evidence of my claim: >=20 > Supermicro X7SBA server-class motherboard user manual has the = following > line in it: >=20 > "Note: The Intel 3210 chipset does not support add-in graphics cards = in > the PCI-E interface provided by the Memory Controller Hub (MCH)." >=20 > So in that boards' case, the PCIe x16 slot (which only has PCIe x8 = worth > of lanes wired) will work with controller cards but not VGA adapters. >=20 > And here's another, for the X7DVL series boards: > http://www.supermicro.com/support/faqs/faq.cfm?faq=3D10582 >=20 > "This is a server board, and you cannot place a x8 or x16 VGA card on > this board. Only onboard VGA is possible. If you need to place a VGA > card please use X7DA(x) board". Perhaps I'm being thick, but this says "a 16x slot on this board does = not support a display card" not "a 16x slot on this board only supports = a display card." The examples you cite only support the "vice-versa" part of your claim, = not the primary claim that 16x slots on some motherboards are only for = display cards. Do you have a reference for that? >=20 > And up until last week I owned and used an Asus P5Q SE (P45-based with > ICH10 SB) board, so I can refer you to the fact that the P5Q Pro user > manual "hints" that the PCIe x16 slot is for graphics only but doesn't > downright say that. Did you try a non-graphics card in the slot to see what happened? Saying = "The 16x slot is where you put the graphics card" is probably not = unreasonable for 99% of the users of that board. Regards, Jan Mikkelsen=