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I kinda want something with a lot of microSD slots and it exposes each one as a separate disk. Then I could run a zfs pool on spare/discarded SD cards around th

I kinda want something with a lot of microSD slots and it exposes each one as a separate disk. Then I could run a zfs pool on spare/discarded SD cards around the house. The closest thing I found was something claiming to do something like SD slot raid-0. But the board does all the work, and raid-0 is terrible. And the whole point for me is that SD cards have terrible failure rates, so I figure zfs adds redundancy.

deleted 7y ago
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orev 7y ago
A company made one of these a while ago, and it was awful. Linus Tech Tips has a video on it. The market is just too small and there are so many better options that it’s not worthwhile to make.
- bradknowles 7y ago
  But you could make a Beowulf cluster out of those! Will no one ever think of all the wolves? ;)
- floatboth 7y ago
  No, that one doesn't expose them as separate disks, that one is hardware raid 0
  - orev 7y ago
    The overarching point is the same. The utility of such a device is so small and has such a small potential audience that no one would make one (at least with any reasonable quality). If you really want it, get a USB hub and full each port with an SD card reader.
    - asveikau 7y ago
      I think you described the raid-0 device I was describing. Whoever came up with the idea for that device, I can say with confidence, does not understand the failure rate of SD cards and the mathematics of why raid-0 is a bad idea. You are right though in this "overarching" point that it is very niche and you can probably have a decent solution with USB. I would think that might get a little more clumsy and consume more power than a single board exposing all slots though.
robocat 7y ago
There are very cheap USB to microSD/SD adapters. Add that too a good USB hub and you have what you want.
- dfox 7y ago
  USB to microSD adapters are so cheap, that very often Kingston microSD card is more expensive than the same card in SKU that also includes the adapter.

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orev 7y ago

A company made one of these a while ago, and it was awful. Linus Tech Tips has a video on it. The market is just too small and there are so many better options that it’s not worthwhile to make.

bradknowles 7y ago
But you could make a Beowulf cluster out of those! Will no one ever think of all the wolves? ;)
floatboth 7y ago
No, that one doesn't expose them as separate disks, that one is hardware raid 0
- orev 7y ago
  The overarching point is the same. The utility of such a device is so small and has such a small potential audience that no one would make one (at least with any reasonable quality). If you really want it, get a USB hub and full each port with an SD card reader.
  - asveikau 7y ago
    I think you described the raid-0 device I was describing. Whoever came up with the idea for that device, I can say with confidence, does not understand the failure rate of SD cards and the mathematics of why raid-0 is a bad idea. You are right though in this "overarching" point that it is very niche and you can probably have a decent solution with USB. I would think that might get a little more clumsy and consume more power than a single board exposing all slots though.

robocat 7y ago

There are very cheap USB to microSD/SD adapters. Add that too a good USB hub and you have what you want.

dfox 7y ago
USB to microSD adapters are so cheap, that very often Kingston microSD card is more expensive than the same card in SKU that also includes the adapter.