Genuine LSI 6Gbps SAS HBA LSI 9201-8i (=9211-8i) P20 IT Mode ZFS FreeNAS unRAID

Genuine LSI 6Gbps SAS HBA LSI 9201-8i (=9211-8i) P20 IT Mode ZFS FreeNAS unRAID

  • $65.00


Genuine LSI 6Gbps SAS HBA LSI 9201-8i (=9211-8i) P20 IT Mode ZFS FreeNAS unRAID

Listed for sale are Genuine LSI 9201-8i SAS HBA controller cards that I flashed for use with ZFS. They have been flashed to Avago / LSI 9211-8i IT (Initiator Target) firmware version P20 (specifically 20.00.07.00). I also flashed the LSI/Avago MPTSAS2 BIOS ROM version 07.39.02.00 and UEFI 07.27.01.01 so that it is easier to access the controller's ROM without booting an OS. This 9201-8i board is based on the LSI SAS2008 chipset, and is essentially the same design as the 9211-8i card except for the NVRAM chip (used for the IR mode RAID), therefor it runs the 9211-8i IT mode firmware perfectly. In addition, I changed the PCI bracket to a full profile PCI bracket with ventilation holes to improve airflow over the heatsink.

1. LSI Avago IT mode firmware version P20 (20.00.07.00)
2. MPTSAS2 BIOS ROM flashed version 07.39.02.00
3. MPTSAS2 UEFI ROM flashed version 07.27.01.01
4. Original SAS address preserved
5. Ventilated standard / full profile PCI bracket
6. 2x internal SFF-8087 ports.

These are based on the LSI SAS2008 SAS controller chipset and support PCI-E 2.0 specifications with x8 lanes. The controller has 2 SFF-8087 connectors, each carrying 4 SAS lanes. You will need a compatible cable to connect these to your hard drives or a backplane.

These cards are fully tested in my Supermicro server running ZFS on Linux (ZoL), but this setup is also ideal for other ZFS setups, FreeNAS, unRAID, Proxmox VE, etc. I have fully tested them using all 8 SAS lanes.

Not exactly the HBA / IT mode adapter you were looking for? Check out the HBA section at my ebay store