Resolved Hot-swap a group of four SATA hdds?

Hi folks.
Just rebuilding a workshop machine (Win7 Ultimate, 2GB ram, 1 x 80G IDE HDD and 1 x optical drive) and I'm considering mounting another four SATA hard drives into the tower.

These archive drives were previously 'plugged into' the system on demand, via a type of 'rack' arrangement, which enabled me to insert any one of the four, one at a time, into several different computers that had a 'host cradle'. However, due to the elderly motherboards in those computers, it was always a major exercise to plug in a drive; usually requiring a power-down because of AHCI limitations.

However, because of the power drain of these four drives (10w each?) and their heat output, I'm thinking of mounting them into a separate case that could stand alongside the Win7 tower. They'd be powered by that case's PSU, so no heat or power problems. Only other issue is the data output, and this brings me (finally ) to my question.

Assuming the main Win7 machine is always on, but the 'server box' is only switched on when needed, is it likely that the four drives would be recognized, without my having to power-down the Win7 computer? The motherboard in the rebuilt machine is a new Asrock G41C-GS and I'm assuming that its BIOS will handle the AHCI requirements.

Comments would be appreciated

 

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Thanks for your comments, TonyT and Ski52.

TonyT - I think you were assuming that the 'headless' server box would have an OS of some kind. Which then assumes a motherboard, CPU and ram.

That wasn't my intention - all the box will do is provide mounting points and a power supply to drive the four SATAs. Their four SATA cables will go into the side of the main Win7 box and connect to its motherboard.

The Win7 box will be running all day (and possibly all night) but I only intended to switch the server box on when I need to access the files - perhaps once or twice a day.

My concern was whether I could get Win7 to see the drives 'come to life' and also wave goodbye when I turned off the server box.

However, I guess that's not crucial. If Win7 can't accept the 'hot swap' situation, then I'll just have to power it down, then switch on the server box then Win7.

Re 'mapping the drives', I was assuming they'd just be seen as 'attached' to the Win7 C: drive. However, I guess I could map them, except wouldn't the drive letters change from time to time?

 

Both SATA and AHCI do support hotplugging. However, it requires proper support at the host, device, and OS levels.

 

Thanks for your comments, SpywareDr and TonyT.

TonyT: HotSwap is interesting software, it could be just what I need.

Re the PCI interface, it might be useful inasmuch as it would 'round up' the four drives into a grouping and also allows for an interface on the PC's back panel. However, all of my workshop machines operate 'in the nude'; no front or back case covers - so cable access is no problem. I think I might as well use the 4 SATA ports on the Asrock motherboard.

This is a good transitional board, BTW. Most of my machines are running older but still serviceable and reasonably quick Intel 775 processors, plus older DDR2 ram. What seems to be happening now is that my old Asus boards are starting to fail while the CPUs and ram are fine.

The inexpensive Asrock G41C-GS accommodates a range of CPUs and has slots for both DDR2 and DDR3 - you can use either type (but not both of course). It also has a floppy connector and a single IDE port. So - an excellent board for anyone wanting to get the most out of older hardware.

Back to Hotswap - it seems to have a lot in common with USB Safely Remove. This handy little app is aimed mostly at USB devices but has some relevance for SATA. I'll report back when I get further along with the project.

Cheers

 

OK, mission accomplished

Ended up not bothering with hot-swap arrangements and mounted the four SATA drives in the main case.

But to minimize the power demands on the box's 400w PSU, I've connected the four SATA archive drives to an old Compaq 120w power supply, mounted on top of the main tower. It's totally silent and easily copes with the four drives, which I estimate as requiring about 10w each.

So, I can power up the Win7 'server' in two ways:
a) Compaq PSU OFF: Win7 runs with Windows C drive and optical drive only.
b) Compaq PSU ON: Win7 runs with all five hard drives visible and accessible from the LAN. (I'm running Homegroups on all machines)

This works pretty well - I don't need to access the archives 24\7 or even 12\7.

I haven't delved into AHCI BIOS settings or the Hotswap software yet - I'll keep that for a Winter job

Thanks again to all who provided helpful input