StarTech.com 8 Port SATA PCIe Card, PCI Express 6Gbps SATA Expansion Card with 4 Controllers, PCI-e x4 Gen 2 to SATA III Adapter Card

Elevate your storage capabilities with the StarTech.com 8 Port SATA PCIe Card, a robust expansion solution built for creators, professionals, and power users who demand dependable, scalable storage. This high-performance PCIe expansion card leverages PCIe 2.0 x4 bandwidth and four independent controllers to deliver seamless, parallel access to up to eight SATA drives. Whether you’re expanding a workstation, building a small server, or optimizing a production rig, this adapter card provides a streamlined path to higher capacity, improved data management, and faster data transfers without sacrificing system stability.

• Massive expansion for demanding workflows: Add up to eight SATA drives to dramatically increase your internal storage pool. Perfect for large video libraries, photo archives, software development environments, virtualization labs, or scratch space for creative projects where speed and capacity matter.
• High-throughput performance: Each of the eight ports operates at SATA III (6 Gbps) capacity backed by a PCIe 2.0 x4 host interface. This combination helps deliver fast, reliable transfers for large file workloads, backups, and data-intensive tasks, so you can move data quickly and get back to work.
• Four independent controllers for balanced bandwidth: The card uses four controllers to distribute traffic across drives, reducing bottlenecks and ensuring more predictable performance when multiple drives are active. This design helps prevent contention during simultaneous reads and writes, which is essential for media editing, backups, and virtualization tasks.
• Broad compatibility and simple installation: Designed to work with SATA I/II/III drives and a wide range of operating systems. The installation is straightforward for desktop builds, and the card is compatible with most standard chassis configurations, making it a practical upgrade for both new and existing systems.
• Efficient, plug-and-play operation with dependable reliability: Once installed in a PCIe slot, the card provides a stable storage expansion solution without complicated configuration. It’s built to integrate smoothly with your system’s storage workflows, enabling you to scale storage capacity while maintaining system reliability for long-running tasks and critical workloads.

Technical Details of StarTech.com 8 Port SATA PCIe Card

• Product type: PCIe SATA expansion card
• Host interface: PCIe 2.0 x4
• Ports: 8 x SATA III (6 Gbps)
• Controllers: 4 independent SATA controllers
• Supported drives: SATA I/II/III (AHCI compatible)
• Form factor: PCIe add-in card; standard desktop bracket (full-height)
• Operating system compatibility: Windows and Linux distributions with standard AHCI support

how to install StarTech.com 8 Port SATA PCIe Card

Installing the StarTech.com 8 Port SATA PCIe Card is a straightforward process designed to minimize downtime and maximize compatibility. Before you begin, ensure you have a spare PCIe x4 slot on your motherboard and a sufficient supply of SATA data cables and power connectors from your power supply for all drives you intend to attach.

• Power down your computer, unplug it from the wall, and open the case to access the motherboard.
• Ground yourself to prevent static discharge, then locate an available PCIe x4 (or larger) slot on the motherboard.
• Insert the StarTech.com 8 Port SATA PCIe Card firmly into the PCIe slot until it sits flush against the case. Secure the bracket with a screw to keep the card in place.
• Attach your SATA drives to the eight ports on the card using standard SATA data cables. Connect each drive to the motherboard's SATA power connectors or your power supply as required. Ensure cables are routed neatly to avoid obstruction to fans or other components.
• Power on the system. In most cases, the drives will be recognized by the operating system immediately as generic AHCI devices. If necessary, install any recommended drivers or confirm AHCI mode is enabled in BIOS/UEFI for optimal performance.
• Boot into your OS and initialize or format any new drives as needed. Configure drive letters, partitions, or storage pools to suit your workflow—whether you’re building a media library, a data archive, or a scratch disk for editing and rendering.
• For Windows: Check Device Manager and Disk Management to verify drive recognition. For Linux: Use appropriate commands (for example, lsblk or fdisk) to identify and format new volumes. No specialized RAID configuration is required unless you plan to implement software RAID in the OS.

Frequently asked questions

• Q: Does this card support hardware RAID? A: The StarTech.com 8 Port SATA PCIe Card is designed as eight independent SATA ports controlled by four controllers. It does not provide hardware RAID features; you can use software RAID or OS-level RAID configurations if needed.
• Q: Which operating systems are supported? A: The card is compatible with Windows and Linux distributions using standard AHCI drivers. In most cases, no additional drivers are required for basic functionality beyond what the OS provides.
• Q: Can I mix SATA drives of different capacities? A: Yes. The eight ports operate independently, so you can mix drives with different sizes and speeds based on your storage needs.
• Q: Do I need an external power connector? A: Drives receive power from the motherboard’s power supply connections via SATA power cables. The card itself does not require a separate power connector beyond what your drives and PSU provide.
• Q: Is it suitable for desktop and small form factor builds? A: The card is designed for desktop-class installations; some variants include a standard full-height bracket, and some configurations may offer a low-profile option to fit smaller cases, depending on the SKU.