Sonnet Technologies eSATA User Manual

Sonnet eSATA Extender

SATA-to-eSATA Extension Cable for Mac

Installation Instructions for eSATA Extender

®

Pro

You Should Have

The following items should be included in your product package:

• One Sonnet eSATA SATA-to-eSATA extension cable

The following items may be required for installation:

• Medium Phillips screwdriver (magnetic tip suggested)

• Flexible metal putty knife (for use in pre-2008 Mac Pro
installations)

System Requirements

The Sonnet eSATA Extender requires the following in order to
install into your system:

• One available PCI Express (PCIe) slot back panel opening

Usage Information

Connecting drives:

•

You must power on and connect drive enclosures to the Sonnet eSATA
Extender before you turn on your computer. Your computer will

not recognize the drives if you connect them or power on the
enclosures after startup.

How to Identify Which Mac Pro You Have

The Sonnet eSATA Extender works in all Mac Pro computers,
but the installation procedure differs based on the design. The
installation instructions section of this document is broken into
two sections; instructions for the original Mac Pro design (pre-

2008) and the current model (Early 2008).

The simplest way to identify which model you have is to look
at the memory riser cards (where the RAM is installed). In pre­2008 Mac Pro computers, the memory riser card components are
oriented the same direction (see Figure 6 on page 3), while in
Early 2008 Mac Pro computers, the components are oriented in
opposite directions (see Figure 30 on page 11).

Instructions for pre-2008 Mac Pro start on the next page;
instructions for Early 2008 Mac Pro start on page 10.

Disconnecting drives:

•

You must shut down your computer before you power off or disconnect
drive enclosures from the Sonnet eSATA Extender. Your computer will

not recognize the drives if you connect them or power on the
enclosures after startup.

This product does not support drive enclosures with port multipliers.

•
The Sonnet eSATA Extender merely enables you to connect
additional hard disk drives to the Mac Pro’s logic board, which
does not support multipliers. Use only enclosures with direct
connections (one eSATA cable per drive).

Swapping drives:

•

This product does not support drive hot-swapping or hot-plugging.
The Mac Pro’s logic board does not support drive swapping; you
must shut down the computer before changing drives.

Remember to register your product online at http://registration.sonnettech.com to be informed of future upgrades and product releases.
Software updates and links are available from the Sonnet web site at www.sonnettech.com. • Online support form available at http://supportform.sonnettech.com.
Sonnet Technologies Customer Service hours are Mon.-Fri., 7 a.m.–4 p.m. Pacific Time • Customer Service Phone: [phone] • E-mail: [e-mail]
Sonnet Technologies, Inc., 8 Autry, Irvine, California 92618 USA • Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]

©2008 Sonnet Technologies, All rights reserved. Sonnet, the Sonnet logotype, Simply Fast, and the Simply Fast logotype are trademarks of Sonnet Technologies, Inc. Macintosh and Mac are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in
the United States and other countries. Other product names are trademarks of their respective owners. Product specifications subject to change without notice. Printed in the USA. QS-TCB-SATA-MP-E-A-061208

Powering Off drives:

•

DO NOT power off a drive connected to the Sonnet eSATA Extender
while the computer is on, even if you have “ejected” it (selected Eject
from a menu or dragged the drive to the eject icon in the dock). Your

computer may experience a kernel panic.

Identifying drives connected to the Sonnet eSATA Extender:

•

System Profiler and Disk Utility identify drives connected to the
eSATA Extender as internal drives, but do not assign them bay
numbers. However, Disk Utility will identify the drives as “Drive

4” and “Drive 5”; drives mounted in the computer are assigned
numbers 0–3.

PRE-2008 MAC PRO INSTALLATION

Shut Down and Open Computer

1. Shut down your Mac Pro. If the computer has been

on for a while, allow a five to ten minutes for it to
completely cool before beginning the installation.

2. If you need to move the computer to a different area

where you can work freely, disconnect any connected
cables, move the computer, then reconnect the power
cord to the computer and an electrical outlet.

3. Touch the top of the computer to discharge any

potentially damaging static electricity.

Support Note: To avoid generating a static charge in

your body, do not walk around the room until after

you finish installing the eSATA extender and close the computer.

4. Disconnect the power cord, and if necessary, any

remaining cables, from the computer.

5. While supporting the side panel, lift up the locking

latch on the back of the computer (Figure 1).

Pull out the top of the side panel, and lift it up and

6.

away from the computer (Figure 2). Set aside the side
panel.

locking latch

locking latch

side panel

Figure 1

side panel

7. With the front of the computer facing left, lay the Mac

Pro down on a soft, clean towel or blanket on top of
your work surface.

WARNING: When handling computer products, take

care to prevent components from being damaged
by static electricity; avoid working in carpeted areas. Handle
processor upgrade cards only by their edges and avoid
touching connector traces and component pins. Also, avoid
touching the logic board and any of its components.

Remove Parts to Access Logic Board’s SATA
Connectors

1. Remove the left two hard drive carriers (1 and 2) from
the computer’s drive bays (Figure 3). Note: Make sure
the locking latch on the back of the computer is in the
open position before attempting to remove the carriers.

hard drive carrier

Figure 2

hard drive carrier

Figure 3

2

PRE-2008 MAC PRO INSTALLATION

2. Unscrew the PCI bracket retainer’s captive screws, and
then remove the retainer and set it aside (Figure 4).

PCI bracket retainer

Support Note: If your computer’s graphics card has a

separate power cable, disconnect it before proceeding to

the next step.

3. While pulling the PCIe slot release tab, carefully
remove the graphics card from the computer, handling
it only by its edges (Figure 5). Set aside the graphics card
with the heat sink (or fan) face down. Please note that if

your computer has any full length PCIe cards installed (long
enough to extend all the way to the fan assembly), you must
also remove them before proceeding to the next step.

4. Grasping it by its finger holes, gently but firmly pull
on the top memory riser card to remove it from the
computer (Figure 6), and then set it aside on a soft,
clean cloth with the DIMMs facing up. Repeat the
process with the bottom memory riser card.

PRE-2008 MAC PRO INSTALLATION

Figure 4

release tab

graphics card

Figure 5

memory

riser card

memory

riser card

Figure 6

3

PRE-2008 MAC PRO INSTALLATION

WARNING: Some early-production, pre-2008 Mac

Pro computers were assembled with threadlocker (e.g.
LocTite®) applied incorrectly to the two screws that secure
the memory riser card compartment to standoffs attached to
the bottom of the computer. If the bottom screws continue
to turn without loosening when you attempt to remove
them, stop! Contact Sonnet Customer Support for further
assistance.

5. Locate and remove the four screws securing the memory
riser card compartment to the rest of the computer
(Figure 7).

memory

riser card

compartment

screwscrew

6. Slide the memory riser card compartment about 1/8 inch
(3mm) to the right to disengage it from the heat sink
cover (Figure 8).

screw

Figure 7

heat sink cover

Figure 8

memory

riser card

compartment

screw

7. Carefully lift up the right edge of the heat sink cover
and rotate it slightly as shown to disengage it from the
fan assembly (Figure 9). Pull the cover away from the
fan assembly, remove it, and then set it aside.

fan

assembly

heat sink cover

Figure 9

4

PRE-2008 MAC PRO INSTALLATION

8. Locate and remove the screw securing the top of the fan
assembly to the logic board (Figure 10).

Support Note: The fan assembly is plugged in

directly to the logic board, and secured to the bottom
of the computer by guide rails. When removing the assembly,
it is important to pull it straight up.

9. To disconnect its connector from the logic board,
gently, but firmly pull the top of the fan assembly
toward you until you feel the connectors separate
(Figure 11).

Figure 10

screw

fan

assembly

PRE-2008 MAC PRO INSTALLATION

10. Using a putty knife to assist, pull the fan assembly
straight up out of the computer (Figure 12). Please note
that you may need to rock the fan assembly a bit in
order to loosen it from the guide rails.

Figure 11

fan

assembly

fan

assembly

Figure 12

5