Adaptec CDP-00277-01-A - Connecting Drives Directly to the Controller; Connecting Drives to a System Backplane; Connecting Solid State Drives (Ssds)

Note: Although you can connect both SAS and SATA disk drives to your SAS controller,
we recommend that you do not combine SAS and SATA disk drives within the same
array. See What is SAS? on page 59 for more information.
You have two connection options:
• To connect directly to the controller, see the following section.
• To connect to a backplane, see Connecting Drives to a System Backplane on page 32.
To connect Solid State Drives to your controller, see Connecting Solid State Drives (SSDs) on page 32.
Connecting Drives Directly to the Controller
In a direct-attach connection, SAS or SATA disk drives are connected directly to a SAS card with SAS
cables. The number of direct-attached disk drives is limited to four per internal SAS connector. (For
more information about direct-attach connections, see How are Disk Drives Identied in SAS? on page
61.)
1. Install your internal SAS or SATA disk drives, following the instructions in your system’s documentation.
2. Use internal mini-SAS HD cables to attach the disk drives to the controller.
3. When all internal disk drives have been installed and attached to the controller, close your computer
cabinet, reattach the power cord, then continue with Connecting External Devices on page 33.
Connecting Drives to a System Backplane
In a backplane connection, disk drives and SAS cards are attached to and communicate with each other
through a system backplane.
The number of disk drives is limited to the number of slots available on the backplane. Some backplanes
have embedded SAS expanders and can support up to 128 end devices. (For more information about
backplane and expander connections, see How are Disk Drives Identied in SAS? on page 61.)
1. Connect one or more internal SAS or SATA disk drives to the backplane. (Refer to your system's
documentation for more information.)
2. Use an internal mini-SAS HD cable to connect the controller to the backplane.
3. When all internal disk drives have been installed and connected, close your computer cabinet,
reattach the power cord, then continue with Connecting External Devices on page 33.
Connecting Solid State Drives (SSDs)
To connect a Solid State Drive to your controller, you can use a direct-attached connection or a backplane
connection, as required. If your server does not have a standard 2.5-inch drive tray, you must use a
bracket/SLED which enables the SSD to t properly.
Note: For Adaptec maxCache applications or hybrid RAID arrays (comprised of hard
drives and SSDs) you can use any Solid State Drive on the compatibility list. See
www.adaptec.com/compatibility for a list of compatible SSDs. Adaptec maxCache is
supported on Adaptec Series Q controllers only.
In a direct-attach connection (described in the steps below), you connect SSDs directly to the controller
with SAS cables (mini-SAS to SATA). In a backplane connection, use the appropriate cable for your
backplane type (see Connecting Drives to a System Backplane on page 32 for more about backplane
connections). For maxCache caching applications, you can connect a maximum of 16
maxCache-compatible SSDs to a controller. For RAID arrays, Adaptec controllers support a maximum
of 256 drives, including SSDs (for details, see About Your RAID Controller on page 16).
1. Install the SSDs in your server. For servers with a standard 2.5-inch drive tray, install the SSD directly
into the tray. If your server does not have a standard 2.5-inch drive tray, use a bracket or adapter
which enables it to t properly.
32Proprietary and Condential to PMC-Sierra, Inc.
Document No.: CDP-00277-01-A Rev. A, Issue:
Serial Attached SCSI RAID Controllers Installation and User's Guide