Can I connect any combination of onboard SATA and SAS to a SATA connector backplane?

[scurrier]

Hello,

I am considering the Supermicro X10SL7-F with some type of 3U case with >12 hot swap trays. Maybe something like this:
http://www.supermicro.com/products/chassis/3U/933/SC933T-R760.cfm

The Supermicro board has onboard 6x SATA and 8X SAS ports, all of which use the typical SATA connector.

Three questions:
1. Can any combination of the mobo's onboard SATA and SAS ports be used on the backplane for a chassis like this?
2. Is this true for any backplane that has typical SATA connectors?

Thanks in advance.

 

[cyberjock]

You should be able to. You will have to consult your hardware documentation to be sure.

 

[scurrier]

I spent a few hours digging through any information or documentation I could find on the internet and was not having much luck. I even had trouble verifying that the 933 backplane in this case had the correct connectors, since the pictures in the Supermicro documentation do not show the actual connector shape, just a bogus generic connector shape. I didn't trust the labeling in the tables. I did eventually verify it though, via Google image search. Besides that, supermicro's docuemntation seems to be much better than consumer motherboards. That's a nice change.

This stuff is probably obvious to people experienced in this, but it isn't to me. Thanks again!

 

[HoneyBadger]

There may be some exceptions, but direct-attach backplanes like the ones in the 933 you linked generally don't care what you plug into them. As long as you feed any SAS drives you slide into the front with a cable from the SAS ports on the motherboard you're good to go. Even if the backplane itself has SFF-8087 connectors, you should be able to use a 1:4 reverse breakout cable to attach them to individual SATA ports.

But as cyberjock mentions, verify with your manufacturer. Which you did!

 

[caliskan]

@scurrier, to be able to connect all these connectors to a single backplane is what this backplane is made for and ideally it should be able to support all types of connectors. The more easily various connectors get connected to this board, the better backplane it is. Now I’m not sure why you’re getting these small issues regarding the fitting of connectors. Have you checked to see if your connectors are electrically similar and there’re just some mechanical fitting issues?

printed board assembly