Addonics CRT235SMH User Manual

ADDONICS TECHNOLOGIES

Model: CRT235SMH

IMPORTANT

There is no back door for the Cipher tower encrypted hard
drives if the Cipher keys are lost or stolen.

Cipher key

Check to make sure you have the
correct version of the Cipher key. A
sample key is shown

Black label AES-256 stands for
Cipher 256-bit key.

To ensure there is a spare key, your Cipher tower comes with
2 pairs of Cipher keys. These cipher keys have all identical
encryption code unless you requested then to be coded
differently. One of these keys should be kept in a safe and
secure location and can be sent back to Addonics for duplicating
additional keys. If you are down to the last key, be sure to make
a back up of all the data stored inside your Cipher tower prior to
sending the last key to Addonics. Addonics is not responsible for
key lost in the mail or retrieval of the data inside the encrypted
hard drive.

Keeping track of the hard drive
If you are using the Cipher tower to encrypt multiple hard drives,

it is important to label your hard drive if you are taking the drive
out of the Cipher tower. The hard drive from the Cipher tower
that is encrypted will look like a brand new drive when attach
directly to the SATA controller of a computer. There will be no
partition or any hint to indicate that the drive contains encrypted
data. When the drive is partitioned, all the encrypted data will be
lost.

The same holds true if a hard drive already has data on it is
installed into the Cipher tower. The computer detects the hard
drive as a brand new drive or a drive that is unallocated. Once
you proceed to partition the drive, the data that was on the hard
drive will be erased and cannot be recovered.

I. Installing drives into the Cipher Tower

Step 1

3.5” SATA hard drive, slide the

Using
drive into the drive bay. Close the
front panel and using the key
provided, turn the key lock to the Lock
position. This will secure the drive and
turn on the power to the hard drive.

Note: It is recommended to fill up the Cipher tower with SATA
drives from top to bottom. This is to help in identifying which
drives connect to which ports for easier troubleshooting.

II. Connecting the power cable and Cipher Tower to the

mputer

co

a. Connect the power cord provided from the wall outlet to the

back of the Cipher Tower.

b. A power switch is located on the front of the tower. Make

sure the power is off on the switch (power LED light should
be off)

c.

Connect the provided eSATA or USB2.0 cable from the back
of the Cipher tower to the eSATA or USB2.0 on the
computer. We recommend connecting the eSATA port for
best performance if this port is available on your computer.

Power
Switch

er

Pow
LED

Drive 1
Activ

ity

LED

HDD LED

eSATA port

Cipher
key

hole

USB port

Cipher
Pow

RAID
Health

USB
Access

eSATA
Access

Drive 2
Activity
LED

LED Inf

ormation:

Power LED: When power switch is turned on, the green

LED lights up.

Drive 1 Activity LED: When there is drive activity, the LED

blinks.

Drive 2 Activity LED: When there is drive activity, the LED

blinks.

eSATA Access LE D : W hen eSATA port is used to connect to a

system, the LED lights up.

USB Access LED: When USB port is used to connect to a

system, the LED lights up.

RAID Health LED: When the RAID volume fails, the LED

blinks.

RAID config
rotary switch

Cipher
keyhole

RAID
setting
button

er LED

ADDONICS TECHNOLOGIES

Model: CRT235SMH

III. Initial RAID setup of the Cipher tower:

a. Insert the AES 256-bit cipher keys into the two cipher

keyholes located at the back of the Cipher tower.
b. Set the Rotary switch to the RAID configuration required.
c. Push the RAID Setting button whil e the Cipher tower is

turned off.
d. While holding the RAID setting button, turn on the Cipher

tower and continue to hold for at least 2 seconds to confirm

RAID mode setting.
e. Observed that the green Cipher power LEDs at the back of

the Cipher tower are on. If they did not, reinsert the cipher

keys and re-power the Cipher tower while holding the RAID

setting button.
f. Check in the 57xx SteelVine Manager if the RAID

configuration is correct.
g. Go to the operating system’s management utility to partition,

format and mount the encrypted drives.

IV. How to operate the Cipher tower after initial setup

1. Insert the AES 256-bit cipher keys into the two cipher

keyholes located at the back of the Cipher tower.

2. Push the power switch of the Cipher tower to turn it on.

Observed that the green Cipher power LEDs at the back of

the Cipher tower are on. If they did not, reinsert the cipher

keys and re-power the Cipher tower.

3. Use the system’s File Explorer to access the files on the

encrypted drive.

4. For security purposes, remove the cipher keys from the

Cipher tower after the drives are detected by the system. All

the files being transferred into the drives are still encrypted

even if the cipher key is removed.

5. When the Cipher tower is restarted, the two cipher keys

must be inserted again in order to gain access to the drives.

V. 57xx SteelVine Manager utility installation for Cipher

tower

Note: If you plan to monitor the status of your raid set, you

need to install the Sil5744 SteelVine Manager on your system.
Install the utility from the CD that came with your package.

1. Turn computer ON. Insert Addonics Driver Disk into

CDROM.

2. The Addonics Technologies Driver Disk window pops up.

3. Select Configuration Utilities. Sil5744 SteelVine Manager. To

extract the utility select your operating system from the list.

4. Extract the files into your system.

5. Install SiI5744 Manager by clicking the 5700Package.msi.

Follow the instructions.

6. After software installation, restart your system off.

The 57xx SteelVine Manager Utility manual can found in the
Driver Disk under User Guides or can be downloaded from
http://www.addonics.com/support/user_guides/host_controller/SiI
57XX_Users_Guide_Rev_1.0.pdf

Individual drive configuration:
When the Cipher tower is connected to a SATA Host controller
with SiI3124 or SiI3132 chip, the 2 SATA drives configured as
JBOD would be detected by the system otherwise only one drive
is detected.

Best Practice:

Create a label to identify the SATA hard drive and the associated
Cipher key used.

Technical Support
Contact Information

Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: http://www.addonics.com/sales/query/
Internet: http://www.addonics.com

TECHNICAL SUPPORT

Phone: [phone]
Hours: 8:30 am - 6:00 pm PST
Email: http://www.addonics.com/support/query/