SATA Bus Interface and ATA Commands

Chapter 5

SATA BUS INTERFACE AND ATA COMMANDS

This chapter describes the interface between the QuickView Serial ATA 400/500GB hard disk drive and the ATA bus. The commands that are issued from the host to control the drive are listed, as well as the electrical and mechanical characteristics of the interface.

5.1INTRODUCTION

The Maxtor QuickView Serial ATA 400/500GB hard disk drive uses the standard ATA/ATAPI-7 interface. Support of various options in the standard are explained in the following sections.

5.2MECHANICAL INTERFACE

5.2.1Signal Cable and Connector

The Maxtor QuickView Serial ATA 400/500GB hard disk drive contains unitized connector for both signal and power connections. The dimensions and specifications of the unitized connector comply with clause 14 in the ATA/ ATAPI-7 standard.

5.3ELECTRICAL INTERFACE

5.3.1ATA Bus Interface

5.3.1.1Electrical Characteristics

Signals on the SATA interface are assigned to connector pins according to clause 14 in the ATA/ATAPI-7 standard. The signaling protocol complies with clause 15-17 of the standard.

5.4REGISTER ADDRESS DECODING

The Maxtor QuickView Serial ATA 400/500GB hard disk drive allow their host systems to address the full set of command and control registers as specified in clause 5 of the ATA/ATAPI-7 standard.

5.5COMMAND INTERFACE

5.5.1General Feature Set

The µProcessor, Disk Controller, and ATA Interface electronics are contained in a

Maxtor QuickView 400/500GB Serial ATA Hard Disk Drive 5-1