SATA uses simple cables that are keyed to fit on the drive and motherboard connector one way. Connect one end of the SATA cable to the drive, and the other end to an available SATA port on your motherboard, and you’re halfway there. Some SATA data cables come with L-shaped ends, which can help keep cables tidy.
In this post
What are the ports on a SATA hard drive?
Identifying the SATA Ports on Your Desktop Board
| Port | Location | Description |
|---|---|---|
| SATA1 | Onboard header | Intel SATA 6.0 Gb/s (blue) |
| SATA2 | Onboard header | Intel SATA 3.0 Gb/s (black) |
| SATA3 | Onboard header | Intel SATA 3.0 Gb/s (black) |
| eSATA4 | Onboard header | Intel eSATA 3.0 Gb/s (red) |
What are the 3 connections on a HDD?
There are three main types of hard drive data cables: IDE/PATA, SATA and SCSI.
What are the different SATA connectors?
There are three main types of SATA cable connections for computers: standard two-connection SATA cables, three-connection SATA cables, and eSATA cables.
How are SATA drives connected?
Connect the disks
First, connect the SATA data cable to a SATA port on the motherboard (as a rule such ports are labeled and grouped together). Secondly, find a free power cable and connect it to the larger connection port of the HDD. Thirdly, insert the SATA data cable into the smaller SATA port on the hard drive.
What do the different color SATA ports mean?
Usually, the color that has the most ports are the Primary SATA controller ports (usually black). The color that has even number of ports (usually 2) are RAID-capable (if your motherboard supports it, and I’ve seen yellow and red), and the secondary SATA controller ports are usually red in color.
How do you check which SATA ports are in use?
Physically Reading the Labels on the Motherboard. If you are on a desktop, then one of the easiest way to identify the SATA version of your ports is to physically check the labels on them. On most motherboards the SATA ports are clearly labelled with their version as well as their system identification number.
How many wires are in the SATA interface?
Data connector
The SATA standard defines a data cable with seven conductors (three grounds and four active data lines in two pairs) and 8 mm wide wafer connectors on each end.
Are there different SATA ports?
Although SATA connectors are described as a single port or connector, SATA encompasses two ports: The data connector and the power connector. The former is the short, L-shaped, seven-pin connector, while the latter is the more extended 15-pin connector — the taller “L” of the two.
Are all SATA ports the same?
Single Type and Device Use. A motherboard is manufactured with a specific maximum supported SATA standard. It doesn’t matter which ports you use with the devices. Each SATA port on the motherboard has its own individual bandwidth, so you won’t see a speed improvement by switching around the ports.
Do SATA cables have to be in order?
Asrock says to connect first the data cable to the mainboard, then to connect, in this order, the power cable, then the data cable, to the drive. Another hardware guide says to connect the data cable first. It’s surprising that a definitive answer on this is so hard to find.
Where do SATA cables go?
SATA Data Cable
It packs a connector with 7 pins and is mainly used to connect a hard disk to a PC’s motherboard. In short, one end should be connected to the port on your hard disk. The other end should be connected to the SATA connector port, which is found on the motherboard.
What are the two cables that connect to a hard drive?
Any desktop computer hard drive has two connectors, one for power cable and other for data cable. Power cable connects a hard drive PCB (Printed Circuit Board) with computer’s power supply. Data cable connects the hard drive with a computer’s motherboard. SATA connectors (Serial ATA or S-ATA interface).
What does a SATA connection look like?
SATA Data Cable
SATA Data cables are thin ribbon like cables with small identical 7 pin connectors on each end. The connectors measure no more than 1.5 x 0.4 cm and have distinguishable L-shaped notch for connection. Some SATA Data cables have a 90 degrees angled connectors.
Which SATA port should I use first?
SATA ports are numbered starting from 0. As far as the performance goes, it does not matter which port number you use (as long as they all belong to the same version as discussed earlier). However for the sake of consistency, generally, it is preferred that the first port i.e Port number 0, be used for the boot drive.
What is the black SATA port for?
Distinguished. Use the black. They are the chipset SATA ports and should not require extra drivers when installing Windows. The blue ones are extras, added on by the mobo mfg, and require drivers installed before they can be accessed by Windows.
Are SATA cables color coded?
SATA cables come in varied colors besides blue and red, including black, yellow and orange. Some SATA cables even glow in the dark. The differences among SATA cables depends on the types of connector they use and the way you set up your computer hardware.
Are SATA 2 and 3 cables the same?
SATA II vs. SATA III Cables – Is there a Speed Difference? (No!) The results are effectively identical. There is no measurable difference between differently-branded SATA cables as we tested.
How many SATA ports are there?
If you want to install a hard drive or an optical drive, then you basically need a SATA port. Motherboards have a limited amount of SATA ports on them, but in reality, most of the time, 2-3 SATA ports are more than enough for an average users.
How do I know if I have SATA 1 2 or 3?
Next to the SATA-connectors on the motherboard there should be information about their bandwidth. You can see whether each SATA connector is a SATA 2 or SATA 3 connector. 6G is SATA 3 and 3G is SATA 2.
Which are the pins in SATA data connector?
to supply a connection which is more rugged and reliable then the SATA-1 power connection. The PATA interface is not visible in the diagram.
SATA Data pinout.
| Pin # | Signal name | Signal Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | GND | Ground |
| 2 | A+ | Transmit + |
| 3 | A- | Transmit – |
| 4 | GND | Ground |