[Pc_Support] External SATA bracket ($9), external SATA enclosure/power ($35)

[Derek Konigsberg]

I'm definitely finding external-SATA interesting now that I'm starting to hear 
about it.  I even did some quick googling, and it looks like it may actually 
support cable lengths up to 2m.

What really makes this attractive is that it finally gives us the ability to 
support external storage using a "real" drive interface without using 
uber-expensive drives and/or enclosures.  Until now, you basically just had 
various forms of SCSI and Fibre Channel as options in this role.  (and no, I 
don't consider USB or FW as "real drive interfaces", even if I must admit 
that FW probably does have decent performance)

Of course we still probably have the classic 1-drive-per-connection problem of 
SATA (and IDE in general, if you want decent performance), but it is 
definitely a step in the right direction.  (though this problem likely 
becomes bigger for external storage than internal storage)

-Derek

On Wednesday 25 January 2006 3:26 pm, Bryan J. Smith wrote:
> For a lot of you considering USB 2.0 or FireWire enclosures, which
> are fine for occassional use, you've probably heard me state they are
> not ideal for connecting to production servers -- especially if you
> leave the devices on the systems for a period.
>
> As such, I wanted to point out that External SATA brackets are only
> $9, and external SATA enclosures/power are only $35 (aluminum for
> $45).  You'll get much better performance and better reliability by
> going with an external SATA than a USB/FireWire converter/enclosure.
>
> The only other issue is hot-plugging, which can be solved by taking
> the device off-line (e.g., rmmod the SATA's driver in Linux, or
> setting up the device under hot-plug in Linux 2.6).
>
> In any case, if you're plugging the drives around a lot, then maybe
> USB or FireWire is better.  But if you're leaving the drives on the
> system for awhile, or over the weekend, you might want to consider
> these devices.
>
> http://www.addonics.com/products/external_hdd/aeehdsa35.asp
>
> Another option is some of the new solutions that are universal --
> external SATA, USB, FireWire, even CardBus/CompactFlash -- although
> they are more costly.
>
> http://www.addonics.com/products/Saturn/aesed.asp