3Ware 9550SXU-8LP User Guide - Page 13

System Requirements System Requirements 3ware RAID controllers require the following • A workstation-class or server-class motherboard Notes: While the 3ware 9550SX RAID controller can be installed in both 64-bit PCI and PCI-X slots, not all slots give equal performance. The 3ware 9550SX Controller performs best when installed in a PCI-X 133MHz 64-bit slot. However, it can also operate at 66MHz or 100MHz. 9590SE RAID controllers must be installed in a PCI Express slot (x4, x8, or x16). • Drives Depending on the particular model, the 3ware RAID controller may be connected to up to four, eight, twelve, or sixteen SATA drives using the supplied interface cables. Drives must meet serial ATA 150 (SATA-1)or serial ATA 300 (SATA 2) Gb/s standards. Drives may be of any capacity or physical form factor. The length of shielded and unshielded interface cables may not exceed 1M (39") for Serial ATA controllers. • Operating System 3ware RAID controllers may be used with: • Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, both 32-bit and 64-bit x86 • Red Hat Linux, 32-bit and 64-bit x86 • SuSE Linux, 32-bit and 64-bit x86 • Fedora Core • Other versions of Linux using the open source Linux driver (see the Release Notes for the latest versions) • FreeBSD, 32-bit and 64-bit x86 • Other Requirements • Adequate air flow and cooling • Adequate power supply for drives 3DM 2 (3ware Disk Manager) displays information in a browser. It requires the following: • One of these browsers: www.3ware.com 3