wanted: bare internal sata hard drive in usb 2.0 dock without trays, possible?

[yardduck]

These drives are getting so cheap I would like to use them instead of
buying a DLT tape system.

Adding docking trays to each drive makes them cumbersome, however.
Thought someone might have an easy system to just plop them straight
down into a receptacle with power and usb 2.0 interface, maybe also
sata interface.

Make sense? Basically an external hard drive enclosure that I can
simply slide internal sata drives into quickly and be up and running.
It probably violates some electrical code, that's why I haven't seen it
yet.

 

[Peter]

These drives are getting so cheap I would like to use them instead of

buying a DLT tape system.

There are advantages (access time, data transfer speed) and disadvantages
(more fragile).

Adding docking trays to each drive makes them cumbersome, however.

True. But one had to add them to SCA SCSI drives too. Most important are
locking mechanism, guide rails and some protection for drive electronics.

Thought someone might have an easy system to just plop them straight
down into a receptacle with power and usb 2.0 interface, maybe also
sata interface.

It would be irresponsible to do so.

Make sense? Basically an external hard drive enclosure that I can
simply slide internal sata drives into quickly and be up and running.

No, slide is no good. Drop down is better.

It probably violates some electrical code, that's why I haven't seen it
yet.

I'm sure drive manufacturers will develop appropriate design soon. Power and
data connectors support hot plug already. Just add a simple lock, modify
disk chassis to have some guides and protect pcb components.

 

[Arno Wagner]

These drives are getting so cheap I would like to use them instead of
buying a DLT tape system.

Adding docking trays to each drive makes them cumbersome, however.
Thought someone might have an easy system to just plop them straight
down into a receptacle with power and usb 2.0 interface, maybe also
sata interface.

Make sense? Basically an external hard drive enclosure that I can
simply slide internal sata drives into quickly and be up and running.
It probably violates some electrical code, that's why I haven't seen it
yet.

From the connector and electrical side this is not a problem. However
SATA (or any) HDDs do not have the mechanical design to be used
loke this, they just have the traditional mounting holes. Also a
bare drive is pretty sensitive.

A thing that I used for some time at home was a 1m SATA cable and a
1m (self-soldered) SATA power connector. I had the bare drive then
sitting on an aluminium plate. Possible but risky and only works
for drives that do not generate a lot of heat, like Samsung.

Arno

 

[J. Clarke]

These drives are getting so cheap I would like to use them instead of
buying a DLT tape system.

Adding docking trays to each drive makes them cumbersome, however.
Thought someone might have an easy system to just plop them straight
down into a receptacle with power and usb 2.0 interface, maybe also
sata interface.

Make sense? Basically an external hard drive enclosure that I can
simply slide internal sata drives into quickly and be up and running.
It probably violates some electrical code, that's why I haven't seen it
yet.

Such enclosures exist, but they're rather expensive. If you've got three
adjacent 5-1/4" bays free then consider something like an Enlight 8721 or a
Supermicro CSE-M35T. You'll also be wanting a host adapter that supports
hotswap.

 

[Peter]

Such enclosures exist, but they're rather expensive. If you've got three

adjacent 5-1/4" bays free then consider something like an Enlight 8721 or a
Supermicro CSE-M35T. You'll also be wanting a host adapter that supports
hotswap.

You still need to mount hard drives on trays for those enclosures.

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

There are advantages (access time, data transfer speed) and disadvantages
(more fragile).


True. But one had to add them to SCA SCSI drives too. Most important are
locking mechanism, guide rails and some protection for drive electronics.


It would be irresponsible to do so.


No, slide is no good. Drop down is better.


I'm sure drive manufacturers will develop appropriate design soon.

Why? What have drive manufacturers have to do with backplane designers.
There are no SCSI drives of particular manufacturers that only fit in
backplanes of particular SCSI backplane manufacturers.

Are you saying that current SATA drives can't be fitted in combined
SATA/SAS backplanes?

Power and data connectors support hot plug already.

And mounting holes too.

Just add a simple lock, modify
disk chassis to have some guides and protect pcb components.

Nonsense.

"Serial ATA (SATA) disk drives are currently shipping and are typically
based on the same mechanical platforms that parallel ATA drives utilize.
These drives currently offer an interface speed of 1.5Gb/sec., a single
port and half duplex transfers. It is expected that the interface speed
of SATA disk drives will increase to 3Gb/sec. within the next year.

SATA disk drives have the same basic form factor dimensions as SAS
drives and the same SFF Committee specifications apply in both cases."

http://www.serialstoragewire.com/Articles/2004_0622/4_sas_dev_june04.html

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

From the connector and electrical side this is not a problem.

And that is all that is required.
(bare drive) Mounting specifications have been standardized a long long
time ago already.

However SATA (or any) HDDs do not have the mechanical design to be
used like this,

Neither has any SCSI drive, whether Parallel, Fiber Channel or SSA.
That obviously didn't make them incompatible for removable use.

they just have the traditional mounting holes.

As does any drive used for/in backplanes.

 

[Neill Massello]

These drives are getting so cheap I would like to use them instead of
buying a DLT tape system.

Adding docking trays to each drive makes them cumbersome, however.
Thought someone might have an easy system to just plop them straight
down into a receptacle with power and usb 2.0 interface, maybe also
sata interface.

Make sense? Basically an external hard drive enclosure that I can
simply slide internal sata drives into quickly and be up and running.
It probably violates some electrical code, that's why I haven't seen it
yet.

What it will do is put stress on connectors that aren't designed for
frequent plugging and unplugging, unlike the connectors on trays.

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

What it will do is put stress on connectors

that aren't designed for frequent plugging and unplugging,

Nonsense, they *are* designed for frequent plugging and unplugging,
just not for out of free hand.

 

[J. Clarke]

You still need to mount hard drives on trays for those enclosures.

The "trays" are just guide rails and add very little to the dimensions of
the drive.

 

[Peter]

You still need to mount hard drives on trays for those enclosures.

The "trays" are just guide rails and add very little to the dimensions of
the drive.

They are more then just guide rails. Trays usually have also a metal base
and a faceplate with simple locking mechanism. I think OP wanted to avoid
those trays and use a bare hard disk.

 

[Peter]

What it will do is put stress on connectors that aren't designed for

frequent plugging and unplugging, unlike the connectors on trays.

SATA 1 standard of 500 connection cycles has been extended to 2500 in SATA
II.
As for plugging and unplugging frequency, standard rates it up to 200 cycles
per hour.

I think this is in line with SCA-2 durability specs of 500 cycles.

But agree, it might be not enough to treat HD as a tape cartridge...

 

[J. Clarke]

They are more then just guide rails. Trays usually have also a metal base
and a faceplate with simple locking mechanism. I think OP wanted to avoid
those trays and use a bare hard disk.

"Usually" but not always and generally you can remove the locking mechanism.

My impression is that he was thinking of "trays" as being those big bulky
things that the single-drive mounts work, not the tiny ones that the 5-in-3
mounts use.