User's and BIOS Manual (1.0a)

Appendix B: Software Installation
B-1
Appendix B
Software Installation
After all the hardware has been installed, you must first configure the
Adaptec Embedded Serial ATA RAID Driver before you install the Windows
operating system. The necessary drivers are all included on the Supermicro
bootable CDs that came packaged with your motherboard. (*The following
section provides information on Adaptec's SATA RAID Driver based on the
Intel ICH5R Controller.)
B-1 Adaptec Embedded SATA RAID Controller Driver
Serial ATA (SATA)
Serial ATA(SATA) is a physical storage interface. It uses a single cable
with a minimum of four wires to create a point-to-point connection between
devices. It is a serial link which supports SATA Transfer rates from
150MBps. Because the serial cables used in SATA are thinner than the
traditional cables used in Parallel ATA(PATA), SATA systems have better
airflow and can be installed in smaller chassis than Parallel ATA. In addition,
the cables used in PATA can only extend to 40cm long, while Serial ATA
cables can extend up to one meter. Overall, Serial ATA provides better
functionality than Parallel ATA.
Introduction to the Intel ICH5R I/O Controller Hub
Located in the South Bridge of the Intel E7520 (Lindenhurst)Chipset, the
ICH5R I/O Controller Hub provides the I/O subsystem with access to the
rest of the system. It supports 2-channel Ultra ATA/100 Bus Master IDE
controller (PATA) and two Serial ATA (SATA) Host Controllers, which sup-
port up to two Serial ATA ports and up to two RAID drives. The ICH5R I/
O Controller Hub supports the following Parallel ATA (PATA) and Serial
(SATA) device configurations: