Product ID: S3520BU33ER
The S3520BU33ER 2-Bay RAID Enclosure offers a high-performance external storage solution, enabling you to build a secure RAID array with two 3.5” SATA hard drives, with the option to connect it to your computer through either an available USB 3.0 or eSATA port.
For fast data transfers and efficient performance from your SATA III drives, the RAID enclosure supports full SATA III transfer speeds (up to 6 Gbps), as well as full USB 3.0 transfer speeds (up to 5Gbps). When connected through USB, the enclosure supports UASP, which offers performance up to 70% faster than conventional USB 3.0 when paired with a UASP-enabled host controller (see our performance below).
With support for JBOD, Spanning, RAID 0, and RAID 1,the enclosure offers several options that enable you to customize your drive arrangement based on your storage requirements.
To maximize both durability and reliability, the external RAID enclosure features high-quality aluminum construction with a built-in fan that helps improve ventilation and maintain a better operating environment for your drives.
The HDD enclosure offers a versatile solution for increasing the storage/backup capabilities of your computer, with support for large capacity hard drives (tested up to 4TB).
To ensure compatibility with your computer system, the S3520BU33ER supports all of the leading operating systems, including: Microsoft Windows® (8/7/Vista/XP/Server 2008/Server 2003), Apple® OSX (10.9/10.8/10.7/10.6), Linux, and Google Chrome OS™.
It is backed by a StarTech.com 2-year warranty and free lifetime technical support.
UASP is supported in Windows 8, Mac OSX (10.8 or above), and Linux. In testing UASP performs with a 70% faster read speed and 40% faster write speed over traditional USB 3.0 at peak performance.
At the same peak in testing UASP also shows an 80% reduction in required processor resources.
Testing results were obtained using an Intel® Ivy Bridge system, a UASP enabled StarTech.com Enclosure, and a SATA III solid state drive.
Warranty Information | Warranty | 2 Years |
---|---|---|
Connector(s) | Drive Connectors | SATA Data & Power Combo (7+15 pin) |
Host Connectors | eSATA (7 pin, Data) | |
USB Type-B (9 pin) USB 3.0 | ||
Environmental | Operating Temperature | 5°C to 35°C (41°F to 95°F) |
Storage Temperature | -20°C to 50°C (-4°F to 122°F) | |
Humidity | 20%RH ~ 80%RH | |
Hardware | Interface | USB 3.0 |
eSATA | ||
Number of Drives | 2 | |
Drive Size | 3.5in | |
Compatible Drive Types | SATA | |
Drive Installation | Fixed | |
Number of internal 3.5 inch bays | 2 | |
Fan(s) | Yes | |
1 - Fans | 40 mm | |
Fan Bearing Type | Ball Bearing | |
Chipset ID | JMicron - JMS562 | |
Indicators | 1 - LED Indicators | Enclosure Power LED |
Drive 1 Activity LED | ||
Drive 2 Activity LED | ||
Packaging Information | Package Height | 14.0 cm [5.5 in] |
Package Length | 25.6 cm [10.1 in] | |
Package Width | 18.0 cm [7.1 in] | |
Shipping (Package) Weight | 1.4 kg [3.0 lb] | |
Performance | Type and Rate | USB 3.0 - 5 Gbit/s |
UASP Support | Yes | |
Type and Rate | SATA III (6 Gbps) | |
Port Multiplier | Yes | |
Hardware Raid Supported | Yes | |
Supported RAID Modes | RAID 1 (Mirrored Disks) | |
JBOD - (Just a Bunch of Disks) | ||
RAID 0 (Striped Disks) | ||
BIG (Spanning or Concatenation) | ||
Max Drive Capacity | Currently tested with up to 4TB 7200 RPM hard drive | |
Hot Swap Capability | Yes | |
MTBF | 30,000 hours | |
Physical Characteristics | Color | Black |
Material | Aluminum and Plastic | |
Product Length | 17.6 cm [6.9 in] | |
Product Width | 11.3 cm [4.4 in] | |
Product Height | 85.0 mm [3.3 in] | |
Weight of Product | 620.0 g [21.9 oz] | |
Power | Power Source | AC Adapter Included |
Input Voltage | 100 - 240 AC | |
Output Voltage | 12V DC | |
Output Current | 3 A | |
Center Tip Polarity | Positive | |
Plug Type | M | |
Power Consumption (In Watts) | 36 | |
Software | OS Compatibility | OS independent; No software or drivers required |
Microsoft WHQL Certified | Yes | |
What's in the Box | 1 - Included in Package | USB 3.0/eSATA HDD RAID enclosure |
eSATA cable | ||
USB 3.0 cable | ||
universal power adapter (NA,EU,UK) | ||
rubber foot set | ||
instruction manual |
Connect USB 3.0 devices, even in hard to reach areas and tight spaces
Connect USB 3.0 devices, even in hard to reach areas and tight spaces
Connect USB 3.0 devices, even in hard to reach areas and tight spaces
Connect your USB 3.0 devices, with this high-quality USB 3.0 certified cable
Connect to your external devices and transfer data at 10x the speed of USB 2.0
Connect to your external solutions and transfer data at 10x the speed of USB 2.0
Connect your USB 3.0 devices with this high-quality USB 3.0 certified cable
Add 4 external USB 3.0 ports to a low profile or standard computer, through PCI Express
Add external and internal 6 Gbps SATA 3.0 ports for high speed storage access
Add 2 USB 3.0 ports to your desktop computer through a PCI Express expansion slot
Add 4 SATA 6Gbps ports to a computer through a PCI Express x4 slot
Add 2 external or internal SATA 6 Gbps ports to a computer, through a PCI Express slot
Add 4 USB 3.0 ports to your desktop computer through a PCI Express expansion slot
Add 4 Independent SuperSpeed USB 3.0 ports to your PC through a PCI Express slot
Add Two eSATA 3.0 (6Gbps) Ports for High Speed Access to Large External Storage Solutions
Add two eSATA ports to your PC, extended from internal Serial ATA connection ports
Turn a standard SATA motherboard connection into an external eSATA port
Add Two External SATA 3.0 (6Gbps) Ports to a Laptop, for High Speed Access to Large External Storage Solutions
Connect your external SATA storage devices to your Laptop or desktop.
We are always ready to assist you with any questions you may have.
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Live Chat (opens in new window)SATA hard drive controllers require a feature called port multiplier to read more than one hard drive per SATA or eSATA port. The port multiplier feature is not standard on many SATA hard drive controllers.
If your computer is only recognizing one of your hard drives, you need to plug the eSATA cable into a SATA controller that includes the port multiplier feature. If none of your current hard drive controllers include this feature, you can add a hard drive controller that does support port multiplier in any available expansion slot (for example, PCI, PCI-Express, PCMCIA, CardBus, or ExpressCard). StarTech.com has hard drive controllers available that support the port multiplier feature. To view the hard drive controllers, click here: http://startech.com/Cards-Adapters/HDD-Controllers/SATA-Cards/?filter_PORTMULTIPLIER=Yes.
If you have a hard drive controller card that does support the port multiplier feature but it is only reading one hard drive at a time, update the drivers of the hard drive controller. To find the most current StarTech.com drivers, click here: http://www.startech.com/Support.
When you troubleshoot issues with a hard drive enclosure, there are some quick tests that you can complete to rule out potential problems. You can test to make sure that the following components are working correctly and are not the source of the issue:
To test your setup components, try the following:
When you test the hard drive and hard drive enclosure, it is recommended that you do the following:
Note: Formatting a hard drive erases all of the data on it. Make sure that you back up all of your data before you reformat the hard drive.
Note: A formatted hard drive will not show up in Computer or My Computer until it has a drive letter assigned to it.
Note: Any data currently on the drives will be lost during this process. You need to back up all of your data before you set a RAID mode.
To set a RAID mode, complete the following:
Note: Your computer needs to be turned on while completing these instructions.
Note: When you change the RAID mode again, complete the steps above to set the unit back to JBOD before you set a different RAID mode.
In order to rebuild a RAID array, you need to replace a physical drive with an identical drive on the same RAID controller. Although standard RAID levels are generally agreed upon throughout the industry, the implementation varies between manufacturers. RAID arrays are typically not accessible when they are moved to another controller, and data may be unrecoverable if the drives are out of order or have been formatted or accessed by another RAID controller.
If a RAID controller has failed, you should get the exact same model of RAID controller.
Note: If a drive or drives were damaged, it is possible that the RAID array may be permanently unrecoverable.
RAID should not be considered a replacement for backing up your data. If critical data is going onto a RAID array, you should back up the data on another physical drive or logical set of drives.
With the following RAID modes, recovery is possible using the same StarTech.com product. Refer to the following table for the appropriate method to use to recover your RAID array.
RAID mode | Max # of failed drives | Procedure |
RAID 1 | Only one drive is needed for recovery. |
The array will rebuild and is accessible during the rebuilding process. |
RAID 3 | Single drive failure will rebuild. |
Note: Do not change the order of the drives.
|
RAID 5 | Single drive failure will rebuild. |
Note: Do not change the order of the drives.
|
RAID 10 | Only one drive in a mirrored set can fail. |
Note: Do not change the order of the drives.
|
You should not upgrade your device's firmware if you do not have any issues with the functionality of your device. The only time you should consider an upgrade is if you are experiencing a problem with the device, and you have confirmed that the firmware addresses this problem. You can confirm this is the case by reviewing the documentation included with the firmware or by consulting with our Technical Support team. Incorrectly upgrading firmware can result in diminished performance so it is best to contact StarTech.com if you would like to perform this operation.
To confirm that the Mac OS detects your USB device, complete the following:
You may need to refresh the System Information page after you plug in your device. To do so, press Command + R with the System Information page open.
Your USB device is listed according to the name of the chipset. To determine the name of the chipset of your USB device, navigate to www.StarTech.com and look on the Technical Specifications tab for your product.
To determine if your hard drive will work in this enclosure, on the product page, click the Technical Specifications tab, and do the following:
Note: Not all StarTech.com devices support each of the RAID modes described below. For more information on the RAID modes that your device supports, refer to the manual or the StarTech.com product page.
Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) is a virtual disk technology that combines multiple physical drives into one unit. RAID can create redundancy, improve performance, or do both.
RAID should not be considered a replacement for backing up your data. If critical data is going onto a RAID array, it should be backed up to another physical drive or logical set of drives.
The following are terms that are normally used in connection with RAID:
Different RAID levels exist for different application requirements.
Refer to the following table for the list of RAID modes offered by some StarTech.com products:
RAID mode | Description | Operation | Advantages | Disadvantages | Recovery |
RAID 0 | Striped disks | Data is split evenly between two or more disks. | Large size and the fastest speed. | No redundancy. | If one or more drives fails, this results in array failure. |
RAID 1 | Mirrored disks | Two or more drives have identical data on them. | A single drive failure will not result in data loss. | Speed and size is limited by the slowest and smallest disk. | Only one drive is needed for recovery. |
RAID 3 | Striped set with dedicated parity | Data is split evenly between two or more disks, plus a dedicated drive for parity storage. | High speeds for sequential read/write operations. | Poor performance for multiple simultaneous instructions. | A single drive failure will rebuild. |
RAID 5 | Striped disks with distributed parity | Data is split evenly between three or more disks. Parity is split between disks. | Large size, fast speed, and redundancy. | The total array size is reduced by parity. | A single drive failure will rebuild. |
RAID 10 | 1+0; Striped set of Mirrored Subset | Four or more drives are made into two mirrors that are striped. | Larger size and higher speed than RAID-1, and more redundancy than RAID-0. | No parity. | Only one drive in a mirrored set can fail. |
JBOD | Just a Bunch Of Disks | Any number of drives are accessed independently by the operating system. | Software RAID modes can be used. | Hardware RAID may have better performance. | N/A |
Big | Spanning or Concatenation | Data is written on one drive until it is full, and then the next drive(s) until it or they are full. | Creates a very large and simple array. |
No redundancy. |
N/A |
Clone | RAID 1 + Spare |
Two drives have identical data, plus one drive is used for rebuilding in case of a primary array failure. |
Seamless operation when one drive fails in a RAID-1 array. | Spare drive is not accessible to the user. | Only one drive is needed for recovery. |
Before you can access a new or formatted drive in your operating system, you need to initialize it first and then create a partition on the drive. A partition defines an area of the drive to use for storing data. The partition uses a file system (for example, ex-FAT, NTFS, and so on).
Note: You typically only need to initialize a drive if the drive is new. If you cannot find an uninitialized drive in Disk Management, skip the following steps and try to partition your device.
Press the Windows key + R, type compmgmt.msc, and click Run to open Computer Management.
Navigate to Disk Management.
When prompted to, initialize your disk(s). If you are running Windows® 7 or later and are using a drive larger than 2TB, initialize the disk(s) with GPT. If you are running an earlier version of Windows, initialize the disk(s) with MBR. For more information, visit the following FAQ: https://www.startech.com/support/faqs/technical-support?topic=hard-drives#mbr-vs-gpt.
Click OK.
Note: The following steps create an NTFS partition that uses the entire drive space. To use a different file system, select a different option in step 6.
Right-click Unallocated or RAW volume, and select New Simple Volume.
In the New Partition Wizard, click Next.
Select Primary partition.
Leave the partition size set to default, and click Next.
Assign a drive letter or leave it set to the default, and click Next.
Enter the following settings to format the partition:
The new drive should appear in Windows Explorer.
Before you can access a new or formatted drive in your operating system, you need to initialize it first and then create a partition on the drive. A partition defines an area of the drive to use for storing data. The partition uses a file system (for example, HFS+, ex-FAT, NTFS, and so on).
Mac OSX detects a drive that needs to be initialized and automatically prompts you to initialize the drive. If you are prompted to initialize the drive, click Initialize. If you are not prompted to initialize the drive and you cannot find the drive in Finder, you will need to create a partition on the drive.
Note: The following steps create an HFS+ (Mac OS Extended (Journaled)) partition that uses the entire drive space.
To create a partition on a new drive, complete the following:
Open Finder.
Navigate to Applications and click Utilities.
Open Disk Utility.
Select the new drive and click the Partition tab.
Click Options and verify that it is set to GUID Partition Table.
Enter a name for the partition.
Click Partition.
The drive should now be accessible in Finder.
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