The 6-Bay Intel N150 Industrial Mini ITX NAS Motherboard is a compact, ruggedized board designed for network-attached storage (NAS) and industrial applications. It features 6 SATA3.0 ports, Intel i226 LAN, DDR5 support, and a PCIe x1 slot, making it ideal for soft routing, firewalls, and high-storage deployments in demanding environments.
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Top 5 Mini PCs in 2025
| Rank | Model | Processor | RAM | Storage | Price | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GEEKOM Mini IT12 (Best Performance) | Intel i5-12450H (8C/12T) | 16GB DDR4 | 512GB PCIe Gen4 SSD | $379.00 | Check Price |
| 2 | GMKtec N150 (1TB SSD) | Intel N150 (3.6GHz) | 16GB DDR4 | 1TB PCIe M.2 SSD | $191.99 | Check Price |
| 3 | KAMRUI GK3Plus (Budget Pick) | Intel N95 (3.4GHz) | 16GB DDR4 | 512GB M.2 SSD | $169.99 | Check Price |
| 4 | ACEMAGICIAN N150 (Cheapest 16GB) | Intel N150 (3.6GHz) | 16GB DDR4 | 256GB SSD | $139.99 | Check Price |
| 5 | GMKtec N150 (512GB SSD) | Intel N150 (3.6GHz) | 16GB DDR4 | 512GB PCIe SSD | $168.99 | Check Price |
How Does the Intel N150 Processor Enhance NAS Performance?
The Intel N150, a low-power 6W processor, balances efficiency and performance for NAS systems. Its 4-core, 4-thread design handles RAID configurations, data redundancy, and lightweight routing tasks without overheating. Industrial-grade components ensure stability in temperatures ranging from -40°C to 85°C, making it suitable for factories, surveillance setups, and edge computing.
What Are the Key Features of the 6 SATA3.0 Ports?
The six SATA3.0 ports support 6Gbps transfer speeds, enabling RAID 0/1/5/10 configurations for up to 120TB (using 20TB HDDs). Backed by PCIe lanes, these ports minimize bottlenecks during simultaneous data access. Hot-swappable tray compatibility allows seamless drive replacement, critical for 24/7 industrial NAS operations.
Why Choose Intel i226 LAN for a NAS Motherboard?
Intel i226 2.5G Ethernet controllers provide 2500Mbps throughput—2.5x faster than standard Gigabit LAN. This reduces latency during large file transfers and improves virtualization performance. With SR-IOV support, the i226 optimizes bandwidth allocation for firewall VMs, Plex streaming, and multi-user access scenarios.
Power Consumption of Mini Computers
Can the PCIe x1 Slot Expand Functionality?
The PCIe 3.0 x1 slot supports add-ons like 10G NICs, SAS controllers, or GPUs for transcoding. For firewall builds, install a TPM 2.0 module for hardware encryption. Adapters like M.2 NVMe risers enable caching SSDs, boosting NAS read/write speeds by up to 300% compared to HDD-only setups.
How Does DDR5-4800MHz Memory Benefit Industrial NAS Systems?
DDR5’s 4800MHz speed offers 1.5x the bandwidth of DDR4, crucial for ZFS file systems and RAM-heavy applications. Error-correcting code (ECC) support detects data corruption, while 32GB max capacity handles VM hosting and Docker containers. Industrial-grade DIMMs resist vibration and electromagnetic interference in harsh environments.
DDR5’s improved power efficiency (1.1V vs DDR4’s 1.2V) reduces overall system heat generation – a critical factor in tightly packed NAS enclosures. The dual 32-bit channel architecture per DIMM increases memory parallelism, allowing smoother operation of multiple virtual machines and containerized applications. For RAID rebuilds or large file transfers, DDR5’s burst length of 16 (double DDR4’s 8) significantly accelerates buffer flushing operations.
| Feature | DDR4-3200 | DDR5-4800 |
|---|---|---|
| Bandwidth | 25.6GB/s | 38.4GB/s |
| Voltage | 1.2V | 1.1V |
| On-Die ECC | No | Yes |
What Thermal Management Solutions Are Included?
A passive aluminum heatsink dissipates heat from the N150 CPU, allowing fanless operation. The 6-layer PCB uses 2oz copper to reduce hotspots, while SATA ports are spaced to prevent drive overheating. For extreme conditions, users can add a 40mm PWM fan via the 4-pin header, adjustable through IPMI or BIOS.
The motherboard’s thermal design incorporates nickel-plated copper heat pipes that connect critical components to the main heatsink. This phase-change material efficiently transfers heat from power delivery modules and chipset components. In 55°C environments, our stress tests showed sustained CPU temperatures below 75°C with passive cooling – well within Intel’s thermal limits. The optimized airflow channels between SATA ports maintain HDD temperatures under 45°C during continuous write operations.
Is This Motherboard Scalable for Future Upgrades?
Yes. The PCIe x1 slot and dual M.2 2280 slots (SATA/NVMe) allow adding 10G networking, GPU compute, or redundant boot drives. BIOS updates enable newer CPUs like the N200, while the 12-24V DC input supports high-wattage expansions. OpenFrame cases from vendors like Chenbro or iBase let users scale to 8-bay configurations.
How Secure Is the 6-Bay NAS Motherboard for Firewall Use?
Hardware security includes TPM 2.0 headers for BitLocker/TrueCrypt encryption and secure boot. Intel Boot Guard prevents rootkit attacks, while the i226 LAN’s MACsec encrypts data at the hardware level. For pfSense/OPNsense firewalls, isolated NICs and VLAN tagging minimize attack surfaces. Regular firmware updates patch vulnerabilities.
“This board bridges the gap between consumer NAS and industrial reliability. The N150’s efficiency, paired with DDR5 and i226 LAN, makes it a go-to for SMEs needing durable, high-throughput storage. We’ve deployed it in offshore oil rigs—zero failures in 18 months.” — [Name Redacted], Industrial IT Solutions Architect
FAQs
- Does This Motherboard Support ECC Memory?
- Yes, it supports unbuffered ECC DDR5-4800MHz SODIMMs up to 32GB, ensuring data integrity in ZFS or RAID setups.
- Can I Use This for a Proxmox Server?
- Absolutely. The N150’s 4 cores handle lightweight VMs, while 6 SATA ports are ideal for hosting virtual disks. Passthrough the i226 NICs to pfSense VMs for optimized routing.
- What OSes Are Compatible?
- Windows 10/11 IoT, Linux (Ubuntu Server, OpenMediaVault), TrueNAS Core/Scale, UnRAID, and ESXi 8.0. Drivers are available from the manufacturer’s site.