NORCO 2U Rack Mount Server Chassis - Black RPC-231

Where shall I begin?First, I did not get the product I ordered, or rather, what was pictured. Its the same model number, looks identical, but the USB slots. There are 2 like in the photo, but one is USB 3. I did not expect that. I cannot begin to tell you how much I love this server case. I intend on ordering 2 more.The front of the case keeps things very simple and only has a few controls, lights and 2 USB ports, one being USB3. The controls that are on the front are the power and reset buttons - they are actual buttons, not the sticker buttons thats pictured. The lights are for power, hard drive activity, and two network activity lights which great because I have 2 gigabit cards going in this.Even though the RPC-231 is small by server standards, it has space for quite a few things. The system specs mention that it is possible to fit 5 drives, but that means you must give up the 5.25" bay and use a 5.25" to 3.5" adaptor. Losing a slot for a DVD drive is no issue with me as I can simply add my external DVD drive through USB.The size of the case also has its limitations; for example, it only supports a Micro-ATX motherboard. A small motherboard isn't a big deal unless you need features like SLI or Crossfire. These are definitely not needed with a file server of pfSense box, especially since it will be kept in my rack.The RPC-231 comes with a 1 year warranty which covers parts and labor. This really bothered me at first, but then I thought what could possibly go wrong with a case? Either it is in good condition when you get it, or it's not. I really don't think anyone is going to have problems with this case.This is a great budget server case and even though the warranty is only 1 year, I think the low price of $59.99 easily makes up for it. If this were any other part, like a CPU, power supply, or hard drive, I would say run away as fast as you can. Since this is a case, with almost no moving parts, and a very solid build I am not as concerned. I really like the rolled edges and available hard drive bays. Norco has really done its best to make a small case easy to work with.I highly recommend this case!

This feels like a bit of a miss for Norco, they typically provide pretty good value for your hard-earned dollar. I've been buying their cases for years and have usually been pretty happy with them.I bought this case specifically to mount a card reader and a hot-swap hard drive adapter in the 5.25" bays, replacing most of the tangle of USB devices on my desk and fitting a matx system into the rack under my desk in one fell swoop.Unfortunately, as I have pictured, this case relies on a mechanism that applies pressure to one side of the bay to retain the devices. I didn't dig around on the parts bin to find a standard 5.25" drive to test it with but, for the card reader and hot swap adapters I wanted to install, this was woefully inadequate to retain either of them. And, to add insult to injury, there are no mounting holes to properly secure devices even if you are willing to remove the ~20 screws required to free the bay assembly from the rest of the case.In the interest of making things work I ended up having to resort to copious amounts of double-sided tape, which is hardly something I think I should have to do for a $70 case.If it wasn't for the poor design of the drive bays in this case it otherwise would have fit my needs perfectly. =\

The build quality is undeniably there. Very hefty, very solid feeling. It takes a standard sized ATX power supply so that's a huge bonus there as well. What sort of sucks is the cable management in the case, and the fans themselves. The fans do a good job of purging air, but because of their size, they make a ton of noise. The power supply cabling sort of gets in the way of things, even when using a smaller ATX power supply. It's up to you to find the ideal route to get those cables to not bump the fans or get tangled or even reach your HDD bays. Another issue, which is my fault, is that the clearance for coolers sort of sucks too. If they had vented the top a bit the hot air off the processor would've been easier to manage with non-SFF coolers.

Solid metal outer case, but poor craftsmanship!Details:* Poor 5.25" external bay design. The design doesn't allow you to install screws to secure the 5.25" devices. Instead there is a latch that is supposed to press against the 5.25" optical drive, but it doesn't secure it properly.* The product states "Supports Standard ATX Power Supply", but that is misleading. A standard ATX power supply fits, However there in't any vent holes to properly flow air through the power supply. This design renders it useless since you have to purchase a special ATX power supply having the fans only on the sides apposed to the the bottom and side.* The case doesn't include any hardware to mount the motherboard or hard drives.

Case is fine better buy some replacement fans for it with your order though bearings went out in mine a few months after i purchased it (it runs 24/7) other than that its a great cheap case