sff-8087 reverse or forward for norco 4220

[goolong]

Well, i pulled the trigger on the norco 4220 case per BubbaQ recommendation, and getting ready to order the supermicro PCI-X 8 sata card.  i saw phatalones post on the 4220 case  on newegg  about gettinga  reverse sff-8087 cable.  my question is does it matter if its is reverse or forward as i only see forward sff-8087 cables on newegg.  thanks for the help guys.

[nate1749]

Oh my, I had no idea this cable was directional and would seem to be very important and is probably why I'm having this issue

 

http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=3986.0

 

Perhaps the cable I bought from Fry's is a forward and the same thing with the one I pulled out of my 3ware raid controller...

[goolong]

Well, i ordered the reverse cables from a different site because they were not on newegg.  I'm still awaiting shipping for my norco 4220 case so when i they all arrive, i'll report back and let you know if the reverse cables are the ones to get get.

[goolong]

so reading up some more on the case, it looks like the reverse cables are necessary  quoted below from AVS forums

 

"nojstevens - you don't need a card to connect the motherboard SATA connectors to the SFF-8087 connectors you can use one of these cables:

 

Reverse (4 SATA controller ports to 1 SFF-8087) breakout cable

http://www.nowdirect.com/exec/partIn...5M&categoryid=[/url]

 

Keep in mind that each SATA port only connects to 1 drive so this cable only gives you 4 connections (one row of drives at the front of the case) for additional drives beyound what you motherboard can support you will need an add-in card of some kind. There are quite a few to chose from so you'll have to do some research to figure out which one is best for your situation. This thread is an excellent place to start:"

 

[nate1749]

I already have a few cards that unraid supports (on top of the 6 sata ports on my motherboard), but I'm a little confused about this cable.  After some more of my own research I realized the 3ware cable I have from my other server is already a 'reverse' cable (I ordered two more as well from nowdirect as well, which btw your link is broken), and I returned the other one back to Fry's, but it did not say "reverse" or "forward" on it.  None of the cables (mine was SAS -> SATA) did so that's why I'm confused.  If this is an important thing, why is it not even listed on the packaging (and I can't seem to find a 'forward' cable to buy even if I wanted one).  My guess is everything is "reverse" and you'd have to search high and low for a 'forward' cable that might have only one specific application.

 

In my case, I think my Norco 4220 is just bad (not a wrong cabling issue) so I'm doing an RMA - we'll see how the next one goes.

 

Nate

[goolong]

http://www.nowdirect.com/exec/partInfo/part_detail.tsb?prcpart=TWCCBL-SFF8087OCR-05M&categoryid=&D=sff-8087&Ntt=sff-8087&Dx=mode+matchallpartial&Ntk=Main&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&N=302&Nty=1

 

is the link to the Reverse SFF8087 cable. @ 12 dollars

[PhatalOne]

You definitely want the SFF-8087 Reverse cables, I had to research this issue before I purchased my case as well.

 

In my case, I think my Norco 4220 is just bad (not a wrong cabling issue) so I'm doing an RMA - we'll see how the next one goes.

 

One minor problem I have seen with the two 4220's I've put together is that the SATA backplanes can flex to the point that the connector no longer lines up with the HDD connector.  On my first 4220 this caused one of the backplane connectors to bend when trying to insert a drive.  Luckily it was only on one backplane and Norco shipped me a replacement very quickly.  On the second build I was aware of the flex issue and had to push the backplane up with my fingers so that the first hard drive could be inserted properly.  Once the first hard drive was put into the case, the other connectors on the back plane lined up perfectly with the remaining drives.

 

Also, I'm sure you've noticed this, but SFF-8087 cables with retention clips will not lock into place for SAS backplane connectors due to the metal support beams being too close to the top of the connector.

[goolong]

Well, server is built, and the reverse cables are definitly needed, when you order the 3ware cables, make sure the part number has an "R" at the end. ie SFF8087OCR.  my server is currently up and running..transferring files and expanding the raid as i go with no parity .. YET... hopefully all goes well with the transfer.