Table of Contents 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 1.1.1 1.1.2 1.1.3 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.5.1 1.5.2 1.6 1.6.1 1.6.2 1.6.3 1.6.4 1.6.5 1.6.6 1.7 2 Package Contents............................................................................................................. 1 About this Manual ........................................................................................................
TowerSTOR TS4CT Introduction 1 Introduction 1.1 System Requirements 1.1.1 PC Requirements x Minimum Intel Pentium III CPU 500MHz, 128MB RAM x eSATA equipped PC; Windows XP/Vista x FireWire equipped PC; Windows XP/Vista x USB 2.0 (USB 1.1) equipped PC; Windows XP/Vista x Your hardware device must have the correct corresponding port (e.g. USB 2.0 host controller) x Plug & Play support for eSATA host controller 1.1.2 Mac Requirements x Minimum Apple G4 processor, 128MB RAM x eSATA equipped Mac; Mac OS 10.
TowerSTOR TS4CT Introduction 1.5 Detailed View 1.5.1 Front View LED/Button Status x Blue = Power on x Flashing green = Accessing data x Flashing red = System starting up x Steady red = Error or drive is not installed When only 2 or 3 hard drives are installed, the red LED indication for the missing hard drives can be safely ignored.
TowerSTOR TS4CT Introduction 1.6 RAID Mode Hard drives of identical capacities are recommended. If the capacities are different, the total amount of the space that can be used will depend on the drive with the smallest capacity. The difference in performance is only visible for fast interfaces like eSATA. Note Changing the RAID mode requires you to re-format the drives. This will erase all data on the hard drives that are being formatted. Make sure to backup all existing data first! 1.6.
TowerSTOR TS4CT Introduction 1.6.5 Disk Striping with dedicated parity (RAID 3) The drives show up as one volume but the total capacity, depending on the drive with the smallest capacity, is the combined size minus the size of one drive. RAID 3 uses byte-level striping with parity data stored on a dedicated disk. The single parity disk is a bottle-neck for writing since every write requires updating the parity data.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 2 System Setup 2.1 Hard Drive Assembly The drives can be installed at any position, there is no specific order required. Be careful not to damage any components, and do not force the drives into place. If they don’t slide in properly, make sure the drives have been installed correctly. 1. Unlock the switch at the bottom of the case, push the inner chassis from the back until the front panel is out of the housing, pull the front panel out and then lift it up to remove it.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 2.2 Replacing Hard Drives When one of the drives fails, the Rebuild LED will light up yellow and the corresponding HDD LED will light up red. If only one drive is defective and the RAID mode is set to RAID 1, RAID 3, RAID 5 or RAID 10, the data can still be accessed but we strongly recommend replacing the faulty drive immediately to assure continued backup and data safety.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 3 LCM Display The LCM display shows the system status, detailed information about the hard drives as well as the system configuration and provides the option to modify certain device settings. To select a menu or change an option, use the [Select] button. To enter a menu and confirm a change, use the [OK] button. For further details, follow the on-screen wizard or refer to the following step by step descriptions. 3.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 3.3 HDD Information Press the [Select] button until the HDD information menu is selected and then press the [OK] button to start displaying further details about the installed hard drives. It will automatically cycle through the different information displaying each screen for about 8 seconds and then return to the main screen. To fast forward, press the [Select] button. 1. The main screen of the HDD information menu. 2.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 3.4 Settings Press the [Select] button until the settings menu is selected and then press the [OK] button to enter the configuration menu. You can now use the [Select] button to cycle through the different settings and the [OK] button to further configure the device settings. 1. Option to enable or disable the support for large volumes in excess of 2TB. 2. Setup menu for the RAID settings. 3. Option to enable or disable the general alarm sound. 4.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 3.4.2 RAID Mode Setup In order to set the RAID mode via LCM display, make sure the RAID SET switch behind the front panel is not in the locked position. x [SPAN] Disk spanning. x [RAID 0] Disk striping. x [RAID 1/10] Disk mirroring (2xHDD Æ RAID 1, 4xHDD RAID 10). x [RAID 3] Disk striping with dedicated parity. To use a spare drive, install 3 drives, turn on the device, set it to RAID 3, let it restart and then install the fourth drive.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 3.4.3 Alarm Setup The general alarm sound is the short beep you hear when starting up the system and it will sound when something is wrong. To enable or disable the alarm, do one of the following. x [Enabled] Beeper and alarm is turned on. x [Disabled] Beeper and alarm is turned off. Press the [OK] button to enter the setup menu and press the [Select] button to cycle through the different options.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 3.4.5 Fan Speed Setup For the smart-fan to automatically regulate the fan speed according to the internal temperature, the thermal probe has to be installed. x [Automatic] Regulates the fan speed according to the HDD temperature (below 45˚C = low speed, 45-60˚C = speed increases in 5 steps, above 61˚C = high speed). x [HighSpeed] Fan speed is set to high speed. x [LowSpeed] Fan speed is set to low speed. x [OFF] The fan is turned off.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 3.4.6 Backlight Setup The backlight for the LCM display can be enabled, disabled or set so that it turns off automatically, when the screen has been idle for a certain amount of time. x [ON] Always ON. x [OFF] Always OFF. x [1min] Backlight turns off when the screen has been idle for more than one minute. x [3min] Backlight turns off when the screen has been idle for more than three minutes. x [5min] Backlight turns off when the screen has been idle for more than five minutes.
TowerSTOR TS4CT System Setup 3.5 Event Information In addition to the details about the hardware and device configuration, the LCM display will also show certain event information. Following is a list of possible messages and their meanings. x [HDD Error / Remaining 3xHDD] When using RAID 0 or SPAN and one of the drives fails, the alarm will go off and the display indicates the amount of the remaining drives that are still working OK. Refer to the HDD LED’s in order to locate the defective drive.
TowerSTOR TS4CT Appendix 4 Appendix 4.1 Safety Information 4.1.1 6-pin FireWire cable When using a 6-pin FireWire cable, make sure NOT to insert the connector the wrong way (upside down), or you will damage the device! 4.1.2 Location and placing precautions Do not cover the device and do not place the unit on other heat-sensitive equipment.
