iStarUSAD Value D-118V2-ITX 1U Rackmount Mini-ITX Server Chassis (Black)

I bought this case to build a custom linux based router. I used an Intel atom board(Intel D2500CCE) that had two onboard nics two on board serial ports and used a passive heatsink and 2GB of ram. Pfsense is the chosen OS and has ran amazingly. It ran solid for the first month without shutting down until the flash storage filled up and was no longer writable, this was a logs thing that killed flash storage because of constance writes, A known issue with pfsense and flash storage. So after switching to a normal hard drive it has ran for the past year with only 2-3 shutdowns because of bad storms. I have has no issues with heat and the only fan I am using is in the power supply.You must keep in mind that this is a 1U case! The problem with the i/o shield that has given this case a bad rap is not the manufacturer's doing. They have done a nice job making a good quality case that is designed to allow for standard components(mini itx board). But the i/o shield will have to be modded or do without because of the height limits. Also, when picking a board keep in mind that a normal heatsink does Not work with a 2U case and you have even less room in a 1U case. Most 1U servers are custom designed boards that flatten everything out with a custom case. This case fills a need of being able to build a 1U server/router with standard parts but you must keep in mind what you are stuffing into the case when designing your build and your space constraints and you will love this product.

This case tries to make the difficult possible: putting a Mini-ITX board into a 1U case. And it's cheap.The obvious and expected:- You will need tin snips to cut the top off whatever IO shield you get with your mainboard.- Not all Mini-ITX motherboards will work. For my ASRock FATAL1TY Z270 GAMING-ITX/AC I had to take off the WiFi module. Some boards have chipset coolers which are much taller than that.- If your Mini-ITX board has a M.2 slot on the underside it will not fit on the built-in standoffs, period. You will need to raise the standoffs with some washers which are difficult to install. I ended up machining some custom bushings on a lathe (to total height of 4.5mm, up from 2.8mm).- Noctua 40mm fans I bought are difficult to fit with the included rubber mounts. I recommend standard 40mm fans.Annoying:- The mounting holes for the Flex ATX power supply are not stamped correctly. Spent some time filing those holes so they open more to the right side.- The USB and front panel cables are twice as long as they should be. They literally span twice the length of the case. That makes cable management more difficult than it should be. They could really save a few pennies by making these much shorter.

I purchased this for use as a 1U serial device server and am very happy with the build quality. Because I had to pull the fan from my AMD AM1 processor heatsink to make it fit in the case, I added 3x 40mm fans in the front to keep everything cool, which has worked perfectly. No temp issues. I mounted an intel 530 SSD, which was very easy- note that you cannot mount a 3.5" HDD and use the card slot. I chose this case because I needed to have a card slot for my serial devices, which this does have, and there was enough clearance to not run into issues when using a flexible PCI extension cable. For mobo, I used a MSI AM1l, which has been rock solid with a PicoPSU, which works, but with too short of a power cable. If you are looking to mount a 1U power supply, there is definitely space, but I can't really say what fits as I used the PicoPSU instead. This only has LEDs for power (green) and HDD activity (red) on the front, so if you like to know CPU and network status, you either need to add those yourself or get a different case.

Not strong enough for free standing, MUST be supported underneath (sort of defeats the purpose of rack mounting). Light loading of just ITX mainboard and PSU is enough to cause a 1.5" sag at the back, physically bending the front of the case.For the price I expected much more, I have 3 of the 3U model rack mount cases by the same manufacturer and they are 100% solid with very heavy loads.Overall, disappointed.

My unit arrived without a power button.I love the size and over feel of the unit otherwise.A power button could be considered essential though.