SFF-8448 sideband signals - what is it for?

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Win_a_2

New Member
Dec 19, 2011
2
0
0
Hi everyone!

I got a chenbro SR107 case[1], with two hdd cages (4x 3.5" SATA/SAS, Backplane 80H102209-010)

Now i bought a simple sas/sata raid card with 2x SFF-8087 connectors [2]. Two cables are included [3]. The cables have a SFF-8087 plug on one side, to connect to the controller. On the other side there are 4 SATA-Plugs and a 2x4 connector - what is this thing for?

As far as google brought me, it is called "SFF-8448 sideband signals". This will lead you to a big PDF on seagate FTP, which did not help me to understand it.

final questions:
Does this cable deliver info about faulty harddrives or what does it do?
Is the connector CN3 the right place to connect it to my backplane?

I know, the cable does not need to be connect, but I am curious what is for :)

[1] http://www.chenbro.eu/corporatesite/products_detail.php?sku=104
[2] http://www.supermicro.com/products/accessories/addon/AOC-USASLP-L8i.cfm
[3] http://rombus.de/pm/bilder/bild_gross/3759038.jpg
 

Tun

New Member
Nov 20, 2011
23
0
0
The sideband cables are used to connect the controller to a managed backplane or disk enclosure, so that it can monitor the controller as well as the disks.
 

Win_a_2

New Member
Dec 19, 2011
2
0
0
Does my backplane support this?

If a backplane supports it, what is the lable on the connector on the backplane?
 

Tun

New Member
Nov 20, 2011
23
0
0
Not sure...
But take a look here (search for your backplane part number and read the pdf).
http://www.chenbro.com/corporatesite/service_download_result.php?mk=14&sk=&type=pro
You'll see two 4pin connectors, marked CN3 and CN4.
Check your raid card to see if this is what the 2x4pin connectors are used for.

The label on the backplane would be something cryptic like the CN3 (connector 3) above.
You'll have to chech both the raid controller and the backplane documentation to see if they'll work together.