HOTTER than a SCSI drive --- Adaptec 29160LP Ultra/160 SCSI controller for $92 @Dell [update: now Dell Home 20% off]

[khayyam]

I'm hoping my grasp of newer scsi technology is just poor. I found the dell doc for this card, and I was a bit disturbed to find this:

from http://docs.us.dell.com/docs/stor-sys/spv715n/en/adaptec/7J951a0.pdf :

In section 1-6, Hardware and Software Support:
- The 29160LP card does not support hard drives
- The 29160LP card supports the external connector but no the internal connector
....

?

anyone?

 

[b0red]

eh!? what's the point of making a Ultra160 scsi card if it doesn't support harddrives?!?

probably a misprint or something.

 

[XeonTux]

I think on that specific Dell server that the manual you referenced is written for, Dell does not support the internal connector. On page 3 of the PDF it says the whole internal connector is not supported. There may not even be enough room to attach a cable to it if you look at how it is mounted horizontally with the connector side facing down, and how close to the system board it is.

The 29160LP card has one internal 68-pin LVD connector and one external VHDCI (Very High Density) LVD connector.

I am trying to download the install guide from adaptec's site right now. It is 8MB and I am having troubles though.


edit: Ok, finally got Adaptec's 29160LP Installation Guide PDF downloaded. (My fscking ISP keeps dropping me tonight.) I read it, and nowhere can I find that it won't work with hard drives. It even makes reference to hard drives. This has to be a Dell thing for that particular PowerVault server. The only thing they said they support is Dell tape drives...must be hella tape drives if they make use of ultra/160!

 

[docinthebox]

Dell is selling the 29160LP for a very particular use - to be installed in their PowerVault 715N storage server, which is an NAS (network attached storage, kinda like a file server except the CPU and the storage are all in one unit - it's kind of like an intelligent hard drive that you can connect to your LAN). The PowerVault 715N uses IDE hard drives, and the optional 29160N is used for connecting to a SCSI tape drive for tape backup. Basically, what Dell is saying is: please don't use the 29160LP for anything other than a tape drive, eg. if you use it to connect to SCSI hard drives, and you run into problems, don't call us - we're not going to help you. That's what it means by the card "does not support hard drives". Ditto with the internal connector.

The 29160LP itself supports any SCSI device that can connect to a 68-pin connector, as per Adaptec's documentation.

Edit: If you're wondering why Dell would do that, have a look at this page which is a side-by-side comparison of their different NAS offerings. Basically, the 715N (which uses IDE hard drives) is the low-end model of their PowerVault series of NAS. If you use the 29160LP to install SCSI hard drives instead of using it for tape backup, you can easily upgrade a 715N to the capability of a 750N (which uses SCSI hard drives), which of course Dell doesn't want you to do because they charge much more for the 750N than the 715N. It's the same reason why the IT manager in the company where I work insists on buying Compaq brand-name PC100 SDRAM to install into our servers even though it costs much much more than Kingston SDRAM which is just as good. It's because we have a service contract with Compaq and if they find out you're using unsupported components in your system, they can void your warranty / service contract.

 

[Rickten]

how is the performance on the dell harddrives. Anybody know.

 

[khayyam]

that's kinda what i figured. thanks for the info, guys.

 

[oRdchaos]

I'd watch out guys. I had a co-worker pick up this card before Christmas since he was looking for a cheap U160 SCSI card. The documentation that came with it said the internal connector was DISABLED. He couldn't get his system to boot with anything connected to the internal connector. Apparently this card is provided by Adaptec for connecting external tape drives and doesn't function normally for internal drives. He was pretty upset by this, but never got the time to look into whether the card could be flashed with different firmware to support the internal connector, or if the fix was as simple as soldering on a resistor or something like modifying Promise ATA controllers to the RAID version. Just be warned before you get in on this... If you don't have a problem running a cable from your drives, out and empty PC slot, and attaching to the external connector, then this could still be hot.

 

[XeonTux]

Hmm. I don't know what to say... I guess I'll be finding out. I'll have the firmware update handy. Hopefully I won't have to modify any strings with a debugger like an OEM Intel motherboard. If worse comes to worse, it will always turn a profit on eGay.

What has your buddy done with the card since then?

Damn, just destroy my dreams why don't you. j/k - Feedback is always appreciated.


edit: In this document for another Dell system it states * An Adaptec AIC-29160LP Ultra3 SCSI card supports two 1-inch SCSI hard-disk drives installed in the hard-disk drive bays, which doesn't really prove anything, but does show Dell uses this controller for hard drives as well. Like I said before, about all I can do is wait with my fingers crossed

 

[xylem]

My order confirmation states an estimated arrival date of 1/24. I'll post my findings when it arrives (hopefully soon)

 

[Servanya]

sorry it took me so long to reply:

actually the overnight shipping was a free upgrade

 

[Servanya]

update: didn't come with cable or the bracket

 

[rcracerx]

Well I got mine in tonight and I threw it in a Intel board I had laying around. I was dissapointed that it did not come with either a cable or the optional full height bracket, and without driver disks but for $92.00 shipped I can live with it. I was able to easily make a bracket using an old bracket from a com port card, it was a pretty close match.

When it booted I was not presented with the familiar CTRL+A to get into the bios of the card, so I let it boot and windows foud it and I gave it some drivers I had downloaded and it installed fine. I was also able to add a 9.1 gig drive to the internal connector and have it detected and running fine in windows.

I have not found out yet how to enter the bios, I think the BIOS will prolly have to be flashed with the standard adaptec version found on their website. I dont think I want to take that chance since I do not need the card to boot a drive...well at least not right now. So if anyone has any luck enetring the BIOS or updating the BIOS please let us know. Overall for $92.00 I am happy if It runs my 2 18g drives at top speed. thats all I need it for.

RcracerX

 

[GoSharks]

try pressing control-a anyways, the prompt could (and probably is) just disabled.

 

[brinstar117]

Man, I really want to jump on this deal! The only thing holding me back is the fact that you can't get into the SCSI card's BIOS.

I found the BIOS for the retail version of the card here:

Adaptec 29160 Retail BIOS

They don't recommend flashing OEM versions, but I know that there are people gutsy enough to try and be successful. I just want to hear some confirmation that I can get a retail BIOS working in this card... then I can finally immerse myself in the world of SCSI

 

[XeonTux]

Well I'm glad we won't have to break out the soldering iron to enable the internal connector

And I am glad my drive should be coming with a cable!

I *would* like to boot off this drive, and would like to get the menu if at all possible. If anyone figures it out before I get mine, please let me know. I hope the flash utility is DOS based and does not require winblows...

Still haven't gotten mine yet...web site says it was ready to ship on the 17th, but has said it is "In Transit To Local Carrier" every day since then. It also says "Your order has completed shipping preparation and should be picked up by the carrier on the ship date, 01/17/02" I hope it has shipped and is not just sitting somewhere waiting to be picked up.


Oh, Anyone figure out if the other card is really a 29160N?

 

[xylem]

I got my controller today, and good news. The message to press CTRL+A *is* enabled, came up when my machine was booting, and also works. I used a rotary tool on a network card bracket for mounting. The option to display CTRL+A on bootup is an option in the card bios, so it may be that they merely disabled that in the card bios, for those who are not seeing it on bootup (they probably did not flash a modified bios, at least in the card I received). So, if you research how to clear the bios to factory defaults, that will probably reenable the CTRL+A option. The bios appears to be the Adaptec bios... I didn't do a side-by-side comparison but it has the same appearance that I remember from the 29160. That suggests that for those who want to update the bios with the latest Adaptec version, it will most likely work. I read through the manual, and as mentioned before, it specifically says that the controller does not support hard drives and that the internal connector does not function. It also lists 5 specific external tape drives that it does support. However, I have a hard drive connected to the internal connector, and within 20 seconds of booting into XP that drive was working perfectly.

 

[XeonTux]

Just got mine. [ctrl]+[a] works to get to the menu. There is an option there to turn on the prompt if yours is disabled.

No bracket for mine either ;( My SCSI drive did come with a cable thankfully. Also, my 80GB IDE is a Seagate Barracuda Very happy, I thought I was going to have to settle for a Maxtor.

I have not booted from the drive yet (empty) but I did set it so it should in both my BIOS and the SCSI BIOS, and it tried to boot from it. I will be updating my linux distro...now is a good time with a fresh drive and everything.

 

[daMachine]

Xeon, let us know if you get your scsi setup to boot up ok with this card.

 

[XeonTux]

It boots! Internal connector works! [ctrl]+[a] Boot Menu works!

What more could you want for $92 (or $74 in my case)? .....uh, on second thought, maybe a bracket


NOTE: if for some reason you want to update the BIOS, I would not recommend the link brimstar gave... that is for the 29160 (NOT 29160LP). You can follow his link to get to the general area, just make sure you download the 29160LP BIOS. Again, you should NOT need to do this to get the menu, utilize the internal connector, or boot off the controller. I did not flash mine. If you want to it is up to you. But please let us know how it goes. My card is something like 2.57 and current is 3.x so it may be worthwhile to try?

 

[SSGTi]

Wow sounds good guys. So basically the only thing one would have to do is make a bracket for this board ?.

Can I use the seagate x15 drive with this controller ?. Would this be the idle controller for that drive ?

Also want brand is the dell 10,000 scsi drive ?

 

[tphong]

I got two cards today. No bracket, no manual, etc. ... just like an oem card

 

[Punisher007]

Hey guys, I'm not too clear on what I would have to do to get this card to fit in my current pci slot (not LP).

 

[GoSharks]

well you could just take the bracket off and put it in without the bracket...

 

[kolby]

I just received my controller and drive. The drive is a Fujitsu MAN3184MP, which is supposed to have 8 Mb of cache. Has anyone verified this?

 

[ashneel]

are these thing faster then firewire or USB 2?