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SATA Multilane

Multilane SATA = four lanes of SATA traffic transmiteed a single cable. The benefits over discrete SATA include cleaner cabling and better connectors. Over the years, controller manufacturers have shifted from discrete SATA connectors in favor of multilane SATA connectors, especially on cards with many ports. Within the multilane movement, there has also been a move away from SFF-8470 (Infinband) and SFF-8484 external connectors to SFF-8088 (external MiniSAS).

Internal SATA Multilane Controllers

Internal multilane controllers use SFF-8087 (internal MiniSAS) connectors. These connect to either a backplane (directly via another SFF-8087 connector) or the hard disk drives (via breakout cable). They are commonly found in 4, 8, 12, 16 or 24 port varieties.

	Areca	Highpoint	3ware	Areca	Highpoint
4 ports		RR3510	9650SE-4ML
8 ports		RR3520	9650SE-8ML
12 ports	Arc-1231ML	RR3530	9650SE-12ML
16 ports	Arc-1261ML	RR3540	9650SE-16ML	1160ML2	RR2340
24 ports	Arc-1280ML	RR3560	9650SE-24M8
Summary	PCIe, "Hardware"	PCIe, "Hardware"	PCIe, "Hardware"	PCI-X, "Hardware"	PCIe, Budget, "Software"

External SATA Multilane Controllers

External multilane controllers connect directly to external enclosures, no adapter needed. However, they are limited to 8 ports (2 connectors x 4 ports). People have worked around this limitation by using internal controllers with more ports and internal-to-external adapters.

For other expandable storage alternatives, see: SATA Port Multipliers and SAS Expanders.

	Areca	Highpoint	Highpoint	Areca	Silicon Image
4 ports	1211X			1110ML	MSATA PCI-X
8 ports	1221X	RR3522	RR2322	1120ML
Summary	PCIe, SFF-8088	PCIe, SFF-8088	PCIe, SFF-8088	PCI-X, SFF-8470	PCI-X, SFF-8470

External SATA Multilane Enclosures

SATA multibay enclosures are available in a variety of sizes and connect to your your RAID controller via SFF-8088 or SFF-8470 connectors. SAS Enclosures will also use SATA drives.

	4-Bay	8-Bay	12-Bay	16-Bay
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