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Introducing Serial ATA Cables
Serial ATA (SATA) was developed as an evolutionary replacement for the
Parallel ATA (PATA) physical storage interface, offering improved performance
and scalability and software compatibility with PATA. Current standards support
both the 1.5 Gb/s and 3.0 Gb/s transfer rates on the interface bus. The standard
device connection for SATA is a 7-pin signal connector with a separate power
connection.
With the development of SATA drives, the hard disk drive industry has introduced two new cables: a 15-pin power
cable and a 7-pin SATA signal cable.
| 15-Pin Power Cable Summary |
7-Pin SATA Signal Cable Summary |
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Cable type:
15-pin SATA power cable
Benefits:
Hot-swappable, for RAID environments.
Summary:
Deskstar models allow use of new 15-pin DC power cable or the traditional
four-pin DC power cable.
You may safely use one power cable or the other, but not both.
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Cable type:
7-pin SATA signal cable
Benefits:
Thinner for improved airflow, reduced crosstalk and longer maximum lengths.
Maximum cable length:
One meter (approximately 3.1 feet) for SATA 1.0 standard.
Summary:
Instead of an ATA/IDE interface cable (80-conductor "ribbon cable"), the SATA drive uses
7-pin SATA signal connectors.
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15-Pin DC Serial ATA Power Cable
The most common power cable available for SATA drives splits the four-pin DC into two 15-pin connectors:
The four-pin connector plugs into the power supply and can connect up to two SATA drives.
Four-Pin DC Power Connector
The four-pin DC power connector is designed to mate with AMP part 1-480424 (using AMP pins part number 350078-4). Equivalent connectors may
be used. Pin assignments are shown below (viewed from the end of the drive).
Attaching Cables to a SATA Drive
Cables connect to drive as indicated above.
Attaching the SATA Signal Connector
Before handling the hard disk drive, discharge any static electricity from yourself and your clothing. With one hand, touch
an unpainted metal surface on your computer chassis, and then touch the ESD bag with the other hand.
Remain in contact with the chassis and the bag for a minimum of two seconds. Follow all basic drive handling requirements
(see our simple installation guide for details).
SATA allows one drive per port, eliminating the need for jumpers or master/slave/cable select settings. Assuming your
motherboard/controller card has two SATA ports, you can attach two drives.
SATA drives are compatible with some serial attached SCSI (SAS) configurations, although SAS will not work on a SATA controller.
(Please review SAS manual for connection details.)
Attaching SATA Power Connectors
You may use the traditional four-pin power connector or the newer 15-pin power connector. As shown below, you may safely use one power cable or the other, but not both.
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