iStarUSA BPU-230HD Drive Enclosure for 5.25" Bays – Internal SATA/600 Host Interface, Black with Blue Accents

Experience expandable, enterprise-ready storage within a compact, stylish chassis. The iStarUSA BPU-230HD is a high-performance drive enclosure designed to convert dual 5.25" bays into a versatile hot-swap rack that can host up to three drives in 3.5" or 2.5" form factors. Built with an anodized aluminum body and conductive heat-dissipation grooves, this enclosure balances rugged reliability with sleek aesthetics. It targets enthusiasts, professionals, and small business environments that demand easy drive swapping, robust cooling, and scalable storage without sacrificing valuable space in a workstation or server chassis. With an internal Serial ATA/600 host interface and support for hot-swap and RAID configurations (RAID controller required), the BPU-230HD is a practical backbone for media libraries, data backups, surveillance storage, or high-availability test rigs.

• Versatile 2x 5.25" to 3-drive conversion: The BPU-230HD is engineered to maximize your storage footprint by converting two 5.25" bays into a compact hot-swap rack capable of housing up to three drives. It supports a mix of drive sizes and interfaces, including standard 3.5" HDDs and 2.5" SSDs, all aligned behind a heavy-duty aluminum chassis. This design is ideal for users who want to add multiple drives to a single space without rearranging the entire system. The enclosure is compatible with SATA-based drives, enabling high-capacity storage pools within a familiar, accessible format. With hot-swap capability, you can swap drives without powering down, which is invaluable for media editing suites, server labs, or backup workflows where uptime matters.
• High-speed internal SATA/600 host interface: The BPU-230HD integrates an internal Serial ATA/600 (SATA III) host interface that maximizes data transfer performance across supported drives. This interface is optimized for reliable, sustained throughput, enabling smoother media rendering, faster backups, and quicker access to large datasets. While the RAID configuration is dependent on an external controller, the enclosure itself provides a robust, standardized connection path to your motherboard or RAID card, ensuring compatibility with current SATA storage ecosystems and future upgrades.
• Aluminum construction with conductive heat-dissipation grooves: Engineered for durability and thermal efficiency, the enclosure features a rugged aluminum body with strategically placed conduction grooves. This design dissipates heat effectively, helping to maintain drive performance and longevity under heavy workloads. The sturdy enclosure also contributes to quiet operation by reducing thermal throttling in high-demand scenarios, making it suitable for home studios, production workstations, and professional environments where long-running storage tasks are common.
• Hot-swap ready with LED indicators and a clean aesthetic: The BPU-230HD is built to simplify drive maintenance. It includes hot-swap bays, a power indicator, a fan indicator, and a high-temperature LED to alert you to thermal conditions. The black finish with blue accents gives the enclosure a contemporary look that complements modern PC builds and server racks. The ergonomic design, including a convenient handle and robust mounting points, makes it easy to slide in or remove trays, facilitating rapid drive replacement during firmware updates, data migrations, or fault isolation.
• RAID-ready capability with independent controller requirement: The enclosure supports RAID configurations, enhancing data protection and performance by enabling various stripe and parity schemes. However, it is important to note that the RAID configuration itself requires an additional RAID controller (not included with the enclosure). This separation allows you to tailor your storage to your specific needs, whether it’s RAID 0 for performance, RAID 1 for redundancy, or other RAID levels supported by your chosen controller. This flexibility makes the BPU-230HD an adaptable backbone for small business servers, media archives, or high-availability test rigs where data integrity and uptime are priorities.

Technical Details of iStarUSA BPU-230HD

• Form factor: 2 x 5.25" external bays converted to 3-drive internal capacity (supports up to three drives in 3.5" or 2.5" form factors)
• Drive interfaces: Serial ATA (SATA) compatible, backplane supports high-speed HDD/SSD connections
• Host interface: Internal SATA/600 (SATA III) for data transfer to the motherboard or RAID controller
• Drive compatibility: Supports 3.5" and 2.5" SATA HDDs and SSDs, using standard drive trays
• Data transfer speed: Rated for up to 12Gb/s per drive in the backplane environment (subject to drive and controller capabilities)
• Construction: Anodized aluminum chassis with conductive heat-dissipation grooves for effective cooling
• Indicators: Power, fan, and high-temperature LED indicators to monitor status at a glance
• Color and design: Black enclosure with blue accents; ergonomic front handle and heat-sink style body for style and airflow
• Cooling and ventilation: Conduction grooves plus integrated cooling paths to maintain drive temperatures under load
• Hot-swap support: Fully hot-swappable drive bays for rapid drive replacement without powering down the system
• RAID support: RAID configuration is possible with a separate RAID controller (not included)
• Mounting compatibility: Fits standard 5.25" bays in PC cases and compatible chassis environments

How to install iStarUSA BPU-230HD

• Prepare your system: Power down the computer or server, unplug from power, and ensure you have an available 5.25" bay and a compatible RAID controller if you plan to use RAID. Gather SATA data cables and power connections appropriate for your drive configuration.
• Install the enclosure: Remove the appropriate 5.25" drive bay cover from your chassis and slide the BPU-230HD assembly into place, securing it with the case's mounting hardware or screws provided by your chassis. Ensure the enclosure sits firmly and aligns with nearby airflow paths to maximize cooling.
• Install drives: For each drive you intend to use, attach the drive to the appropriate mounting tray and insert the tray into the hot-swap bay until it seats with a click. Repeat for all drives in the enclosure. If you’re using 2.5" drives, ensure trays are compatible with the drive size and connectors.
• Connect data and power: Attach SATA data cables from your motherboard or RAID controller to the enclosure’s backplane, and connect each drive’s power through the enclosure’s drive trays or an external power source as required by your system design. Cable management is important to maintain airflow and ease future maintenance.
• Configure RAID (if applicable): If you intend to use RAID, install a separate RAID controller inside your system and configure the desired RAID array according to the controller’s manual. Remember that RAID performance and redundancy depend on the controller and drive quality; update firmware as needed and verify drive health before critical workloads.
• Power up and verify: Reconnect power, boot the system, and check the BIOS/UEFI or operating system for the new drives. Observe the LED indicators on the enclosure to confirm power, fan operation, and thermal status. Install any necessary drivers or management software if your controller requires it, and initialize, format, and assign drives in the OS as needed.

Frequently asked questions

• Q: What drives can I install in the iStarUSA BPU-230HD? A: The enclosure supports up to three drives in 3.5" or 2.5" SATA HDDs or SSDs using standard drive trays. It is designed for SATA-based storage and assumes compatible 2.5" or 3.5" form factors compatible with the trays used in the enclosure.
• Q: Does this enclosure come with a RAID controller? A: No. The BPU-230HD supports RAID configurations, but a separate RAID controller is required to configure and manage RAID arrays. This design lets you choose a controller that matches your performance and redundancy needs.
• Q: Is hot-swap supported? A: Yes. The drive bays are hot-swappable, enabling drive insertion and removal without powering down the system, which is a major advantage for maintenance, testing, and live data operations.
• Q: What is the material and thermal design? A: The enclosure uses a durable aluminum chassis with conductive dissipation grooves to help spread heat efficiently. This cooling approach helps maintain drive performance and longevity during extended workloads.
• Q: Can this enclosure fit into any standard 5.25" bay? A: The BPU-230HD is designed to fit standard 5.25" bays found in most PC cases and compact server chassis, making it a versatile upgrade for workstation and home lab builds that require additional storage without compromising space.