Serial ATA (SATA) is a newer drive interface that replaces the traditional Parallel ATA (PATA). SATA has advantages such as thinner cables, longer cable length, lower power requirement, simplified installation, and higher transfer rates. SATA is a good choice for RAID and is intended to replace PATA. Third-party SATA controllers can be used for older systems, and upgrading to SATA enablement allows for ease of use for future SATA drives. Hot-swapping may not be supported with some third-party devices or adapters.
SATA or Serial ATA (Advanced Technology Attachment) is the next generation drive interface, following the traditional Parallel ATA (PATA).
Anyone who has peeked into a computer is familiar with the 40-wire flat parallel cables that connect the hard drive, CDROM, and other devices to their controllers. PATA has been the standard and worked well, but it has also had drawbacks. Cables limited to 18 inches (46cm) in length often made connections difficult and also clogged the cases blocking airflow, while cooling became crucial. Although rounded cables were available, the most advanced PATA drives (Ultra ATA/133) achieved the maximum parallel transfer rate of 133 MB/ps. As CPU, RAM, and system bus speeds improved, designers saw that PATA would soon hamper the efficiency of advanced drives in system architecture.
Insert SATA.
Serial ATA has distinct key advantages over its predecessor. The cables are very thin with small 7 pin connectors. They can be up to 3 feet (1 meter) long and can be easily routed out of the way allowing for maximum airflow within the case. SATA also has a much lower power requirement of just 250mV compared to PATA’s 5 volt requirement, and with chip core voltages declining, this speaks well of SATA’s future. Serial ATA eliminates Master/Slave configurations and drive jumpers. Installation is greatly simplified, and the technology also enables hot swapping, which means drives can be removed or added while the computer is running.
However, the most promising feature of Serial ATA is that it eliminates the transfer limit hit by PATA. The first generation has a maximum transfer rate of 150 MBps and the second generation SATA offers around 300 MBps. A 3rd generation SATA set for 2009, “SATA 6Gb/s” will provide approximately double the speed of the previous SATA iteration.
With the introductory transfer rate so close to existing Ultra ATA/133 speeds, the real-world performance increase is negligible for first generation SATA, although drive prices are comparable to PATA drives, making the switch to the new technology a good choice when to upgrade, build or purchase a new system. Motherboards with integrated SATA and PATA interfaces are widely available to accommodate both types of drives, and there are no restrictions on using both types in the same system. Serial ATA is also a good choice for RAID and is intended to eventually replace PATA.
For older systems, third-party SATA controllers can be inserted into any PCI slot, if you purchase a SATA drive. (A parallel Ultra ATA drive can also be used through a PATA to SATA adapter, although the performance of the drive will suffer, as the adapter must translate the data stream from parallel to serial.)
If you upgrade your motherboard, purchasing SATA enablement will allow ease of use for future SATA drives even if your current drives are standard ATA.
Note: When using some third-party devices or adapters, hot-swap support may be missing or “strange”. It is always advisable to back up important data before risking loss.
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