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Baudlink

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 25, 2019
5
1
Hey all,

I have taken on the challenge to connect a Seagate Nytro 2.5" SAS Enterprise SSD to my MacBook Pro 15" 2015.
I know that 99% of you will tell me to sell it and forget about even trying. I specifically knew of the perils to making this successful, so please save me that advice.
Based on the hardware that I acquired, this setup should be fully functional. Please help me troubleshoot everything, for at this point, I am at a loss...

Here is the setup:

MBP 15" 2015

RocketStor 6324L Thunderbolt™ 2 to 4-Channel 6Gb/s SATA JBOD Adapter - Link

Seagate Nytro 3131 SSD 3.8TB 12Gbps P/N X357A Link (I can't find any other link for it)

Mini-SAS SFF-8088 26P to 4 X SAS SFF-8482 29 Pin with Power Cable 1 Meter 3.3FT Link


SO... The Rocketstor Adapter is absolutley Mac compatible. In System Information under PCI-e cards, both Thuderbolt lanes register just fine. To test it, I got a Mini-SAS to SATA adapter and successfully connected both 2.5" and 3.5" SATA hard drives. They mounted on the desktop perfectly fine.

Next, I received the Mini-SAS cable listed above in order to connect the Seagate SAS SSD. I connected the SSD to the Adapter, and the TB cable to the MBP. Then I powered the individual drive lane from the MOLEX connector that protrudes from it with a 12vDC line, and the SSD gets power.

All connections look legit. The adapter shows in System Information, but no extra drive registers on the computer at all.

So I ask you, for the benefit of me and anyone else who wants to try to make this storage solution work with your everyday Mac, I ask you to help me figure out what I'm doing wrong.

There is a second tiny connection in the front of the SSD.
Do I need to plug that into something too?
IMG_7418.jpeg
IMG_7419.jpeg
IMG_7420.jpeg



What should I try next?
 

Baudlink

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 25, 2019
5
1
UPDATE:

My Rocketstor model the 6324L does not support SAS models.
Those who want this setup to work must get the Rocketstor 6324 with no letter at the end.
I could not find these for less that $600, so I am giving up on this for now.
Next I will try a different setup:

MBP
PCIe external enclosure via USB
SAS controller board 6Gpbs

I will update this when I have all of the components.
 
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