4 Port PCI Express 2.0 SATA III 6Gbps RAID Controller Card with HyperDuo SSD Tiering

Although you can adapt a Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) drive to connect to a standard SATA controller card, the card must support SAS commands in order to communicate with SAS drives. SAS drives have a different command set that is not present on SATA controllers.

This SATA controller card only supports standard SATA drives.

This device supports the ATA Packet Interface (ATAPI) protocol. ATAPI is required for optical drives, including CD-ROM drives, DVD-ROM drives, and Blu-ray players. Because this device supports ATAPI, optical drives are also supported.

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:

• Striping: data is split between multiple disks.
• Mirroring: data is mirrored between multiple disks.
• Parity: also referred to as a checksum. Parity is a calculated value used to mathematically rebuild data.

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:

Before you install the device, make sure that your operating system is current (for example, the most recent service pack is installed).

1. Download the latest drivers from the StarTech.com website at http://www.startech.com/Support. The part number and product ID are on the product packaging.

Note: Windows usually saves the files to the Downloads folder that is associated with your user account (for example, C:\Users\your_name\Downloads).

2. After the download is complete, right-click the zip folder that you downloaded, click Extract All, and complete the instructions.
3. In the list of extracted files, right-click the Setup.exe file and click Run as Administrator.

Note: If the Run as Administrator option is not available, you might be attempting to run the installer from within the zipped file. Extract the files using the instructions in step 2.

4. Complete the instructions to install the device drivers, and restart your computer when prompted to.

Your computer will automatically complete the driver installation and your device should be ready to use.

Before you install the device, make sure that your operating system is current (for example, the most recent service pack is installed).

1. Download the latest drivers from the StarTech.com website at http://www.startech.com/Support. The part number and product ID are on the product packaging.

Note: Windows usually saves the files to the Downloads folder that is associated with your user account (for example, C:\Documents and Settings\your_name\My Documents\Downloads).

2. After the download is complete, right-click the zip folder that you downloaded, click Extract All, and complete the instructions.
3. In the list of extracted files, double-click the Setup.exe file.
4. Complete the instructions to install the device drivers, and restart your computer when prompted to.

Your computer will automatically complete the driver installation and your device should be ready to use.

To confirm that Windows detects your expansion card, complete the following:

1. Press the Windows key+R, type devmgmt.msc, and press Enter.
2. In Device Manager, under the appropriate heading, confirm that your expansion card is listed and that there isn't an exclamation mark next to it.  For example, a USB controller card would be under Universal Serial Bus controllers.

Your expansion card is listed according to the name of the chipset. To determine the name of the chipset of your expansion card, navigate to www.StarTech.com and look on the Technical Specifications tab for your product.

To confirm that the Mac OS detects your expansion card, complete the following:

1. Click the Apple icon.
2. Click About This Mac.
3. Click More Info or System Report.
4. Under the appropriate heading, confirm that your expansion card is listed and that there isn't an error. For example, a network card would be under Ethernet Cards.

Your expansion card is listed according to the name of the chipset. To determine the name of the chipset of your expansion card, navigate to www.StarTech.com and look on the Technical Specifications tab for your product.

In order to use a hard drive plugged into a hard drive controller card as your operating system, you need to install the operating system onto the hard drive while it is plugged into the expansion card. To do this, complete the following:

Note: Not all hard drive controller cards have drivers that allow you to install the operating system onto the hard drive. All of the hard drive controllers that display this FAQ include this capability.

Before you begin, consult the documentation that came with the motherboard to make sure that the motherboard or BIOS supports booting from an expansion card.

1. Back up any data on the hard drive.
2. Make a copy of the drivers from the website onto a floppy disc, CD, DVD, or USB flash drive. The drivers that you download depends on the operating system that you want to install.
3. Install the hard drive controller card onto your motherboard.
4. Plug the hard drive into the controller card.
5. Turn on your computer and open the operating system install wizard.
6. Before you select the hard drive that you want to install the operating system onto, select the option to install third-party drivers.
7. Point the driver installer to the floppy disc, CD, DVD, or USB flash drive.
8. Install the drivers.
9. Select the hard drive on the hard drive controller card as the location where you want to install the operating system.
10. Complete the on-screen instructions to finish installing the operating system.

When you troubleshoot issues with a hard drive controller card, 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:

• IDE, SATA, and eSATA cables

• Hard drives

• Hard drive controller card

To test your setup components, try the following:

• Use the IDE, SATA, or eSATA cable, hard drive, and hard drive controller card in another setup to see if the problem is with the components or the setup.

• Use a different IDE, SATA, or eSATA cable, hard drive, and hard drive controller card in your setup to see if the problem persists. Ideally, you should test a component that you know works in another setup.

When you test your cables, it is recommended that you do the following:

• Test each cable individually.

• Use short cables when you are testing.

When you test the hard drive and hard drive controller card, it is recommended that you do the following:

1. To open the Device Manager, press the Windows key + R, type devmgmt.msc, and press Enter. Check the IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers (for IDE) section, or the Storage controllers (for SATA) section.

2. Do one of the following:

• If you do not see the hard drive controller card in Device Manager, refer to the following FAQ: https://www.startech.com/support/faqs/technical-support?topic=expansion-cards#pci-pcie-cannot-boot-os-or-detect-windows.

• If the device is listed with an error, reinstall the drivers by completing the instructions on the website.

• If the hard drive is listed with unallocated space, the hard drive needs to be formatted. Right-click unallocated and click New Simple Volume. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the reformatting.

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.

3. To check Disk Management, press the Windows key + R, type diskmgmt.msc, and press Enter. Check to see if your hard drive is listed.

4. If the hard drive is listed as healthy but does not have a drive letter, for example, C:, right-click healthy and click Change Drive Letter and Paths. Click Add, assign a drive letter, and click OK.

Note: A formatted hard drive does not show up in Computer or My Computer until it has a drive letter assigned to it.

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.

Rebuild a RAID array

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.

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.