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User profile for user: chillpill
chillpill Author
User level: Level 1
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How to tell between SATA2 and SATA3 hard drives?

Hello all.


Googled my little fingers off and couldn't find a clear answer to this ...


How (the heck) do you find out if a hard drive is SATA3 or SATA2 and/or how do you find out if a hard driveis 6Gb/s or 3Gb/s?


The situation: WIth the price coming down on SSD drives, I finally caved and bought an SSD to upgrade my 2011 Macbook Pro. First up, wow ... I realize this SSD drive is brand new and performing at it's best but holy doodle! It's so fast it feels like a whole new computer. Great upgrade, well worth the money.


Anyways, my plan was to install the SSD as the primary drive and run the OS and applications off it. Then take old main HD (a 1TB, 72000rpm HD) and rotate that into the optical bay (for file storage). I am using the OWC data-doubler kit and that's where the problems started. The data doubler rack is fine but apparently I can't put a SATA3 (?) drive in the optical bay ... only SATA2 drives. Something about the optical bay not being able to handle 6Gb/s and only 3Gb/s.


I might have an out here. I have three other 2.5" HDs in external USB enclosures (Western Digital My Passport, Freecom etc.) that if I can successfully identify as SATA2 and/or 3Gb/s then I will break open and use that in the optical bay. Before breaking the enclusore open, I would ideally like to positively identify the drive as having the proper specs. These enclosures don't appear to be designed to be opened and closed again so it might be a one way mission if I break them open ;-)


I plugged in the drives and tried System Information and wasn't able to spot anything (maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention)


If anyone can tell me if it's possible to plug these USB drives and indentify them as SATA2 / SATA3 or 6Gb/s / 3Gb/s that would be awesome.


Tnx!

MacBook Pro, iOS 7.0.4, Mavericks, SIRI

Posted on Dec 1, 2013 12:58 PM

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User profile for user: chillpill
chillpill Author
User level: Level 1
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Dec 1, 2013 2:44 PM in response to chillpill

Hmm OK thanks both.


Two of the drives have this as the P/N:


WDBBEP001BBK-03


Which does take me a step closer but cannot seem to find the information on Western Digital's site. Just gives me the speed of USB connection not the drive.


I caved, foudna tutorial on YouTube and just busted open the enclosure. On the HD itself drive there is remarkably little information (not surprising as it says "Not for resale" right on the drive) however there is some information right on that drive such as


Model: WD10JMVW

DCX: TA15J5BGR

DCM: SHKTJHK


Gets me a little closer but not really. Maybe I'll just put the drive in now that it's open and see what happen?

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User profile for user: PlotinusVeritas
PlotinusVeritas
User level: Level 6
14,888 points

Dec 1, 2013 2:46 PM in response to chillpill

SATA II (revision 2.x) interface, formally known as SATA 3Gb/s, is a second generation SATA interface running at 3.0 Gb/s. The bandwidth throughput, which is supported by the interface, is up to 300MB/s.


SATA III (revision 3.x) interface, formally known as SATA 6Gb/s, is a third generation SATA interface running at 6.0Gb/s. The bandwidth throughput, which is supported by the interface, is up to 600MB/s. This interface is backwards compatible with SATA 3 Gb/s interface.



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User profile for user: chillpill
chillpill Author
User level: Level 1
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Dec 1, 2013 2:53 PM in response to PlotinusVeritas

PlotinusVeritas : From what I understand in most cases yes, backwards compatible yet not so in the optical bay of a Macbook Pro unfortunately. The SATAIII 6Gb/s is problematic when mounted in that position on Macbook Pro 2011. Apparently it can only reliable handle 3Gb/s SATAII drives (or something).

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User profile for user: tjk
tjk
User level: Level 9
51,160 points

Dec 1, 2013 4:40 PM in response to chillpill

chillpill wrote:


**** so much for that on the Western Digitals. The interface is USB3 ... no SATA at all. Didn't even know there was a such a thing. Oh well! Will try the Freecom.


USB and SATA are two differnt things, not two different types of the same thing. SATA brings the data from the HD to a bridge chip where it is converted to USB which brings it through the cable to the computer. So being USB3 doesn't tell us anything at all.

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User profile for user: PlotinusVeritas
PlotinusVeritas
User level: Level 6
14,888 points

Dec 1, 2013 4:45 PM in response to chillpill

chillpill

**** so much for that on the Western Digitals. The interface is USB3




goodness, yes, youve got one of those OLD WD drives that has the controller board AND USB all as ONE SINGLE UNIT


write that HD off. 😢



your "classique" HD here:


http://karlsbakk.net/bilder/WD10TMVW/wd10tmvw-2.jpg







tjk Wisconsin

So being USB3 doesn't tell us anything at all.


Yeah it does, it tells me its one of those OLD HD that was made with the "lets save 2 cents and make it all one piece" philosophical designs.

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User profile for user: chillpill
chillpill Author
User level: Level 1
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Dec 1, 2013 5:11 PM in response to chillpill

I have niether seen one those either until today ... I thought the price was too good to be true ($65-ish for 1TB) ... makes sense now. I'll keep them around for external storage. In the meantime ...


Since I can't moun't any of those HDS in my opti bay so now I am looking to flash my old 1TB HD from SATAIII to SATAII with this Hitachi Feature Tool.


Trying to work out how to make a bootable ISO for PC so I can boot to that feature tool and set the drive down to SATAII.


Cripes.

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User profile for user: PlotinusVeritas
PlotinusVeritas
User level: Level 6
14,888 points

Dec 1, 2013 5:20 PM in response to tjk

tjk


I confess, I've never seen one of those.



Yeah, ive got a few somewhere here.


WD saves maybe a few pennies by making it all one piece


controller board & SATA bridge/USB connector.


that way when the SATA/USB fails, you cant do anything to get your data (hardly),


....you just then use it as a door stop. 😊




Toshiba does the same thing on their 7mm superslim 500gig USB HD , but to save space, not $$




chillpill


Get a 1TB Toshiba, those are the "best cheap" HD, same as used by Apple, get a USB one, and you can take it apart, and its a SATA normal connector inside .

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User profile for user: chillpill
chillpill Author
User level: Level 1
1 points

Dec 1, 2013 5:30 PM in response to chillpill

Dammit. After all that, I get the HD into an old PC and boot with that Hitachi Feature Tool and the option to change from SATAIII to SATAII is greyed out "This feature not supported for the selected disk".


OK I'm throwing in the towel on this one and buying a new SATAII HD.


Thanks all for comments and feedback etc

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User profile for user: andremartins.br
andremartins.br
User level: Level 1
4 points

Feb 23, 2014 11:21 AM in response to chillpill

hi there.

After hours trying to figure it out, I just realized that I have too an OLD WD 1TB that has the sata brdge together with the drive itself... problem is, my Macbook is not recognizing the WD passport anymore. It is my time machine backup drive, so I am kind of upset...

There is a way, any way to put this drive again working, in another drive case or whatever?

I already updated the drives, I have 2 others external drvies, one from iomega and another one from WD, olders, and both are working.

i bought this one january/2013 in LA. How old are they?!?! gosh...

Thanks for any help or hint.

Cheers form Brazil,

AM

User uploaded file

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How to tell between SATA2 and SATA3 hard drives?

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