data transfer ESATA to USB3

[turtlebeard]

can data be transferred from PC ESATA to external hard drive USB3

 

[ThomasJ93]

Yes.

 

[turtlebeard]

My PC has an ESATA and my portable hard drive has the new keyed USB3 connector.......I cannot find any connection device/cable to connect the two together!! any suggestions?

 

[ThomasJ93]

Wait, you want to hook up your USB 3 portable hard drive to an e-SATA connector? That won't work.

 

[turtlebeard]

it can't work? is that because there are no connection devices available? because I just understood it to be a straight transfer of data

 

[ThomasJ93]

It's not possible because the two are different connections. You have to plug in the USB 3 drive to a USB port on your computer. If you want to use e-SATA, you will need a device that has e-SATA.

 

[Paperdoc]

USB and eSATA use very different protocols to exchange data between devices. So NO, there is no simple adapter to convert one to the other. Interconnection would require hardware to translate one system to the other and backwards. Normally that is done by a mobo in a computer that has the required port management chips and software to convey data between the two.

You say your new external drive "has the new keyed USB3 connector". I presume you mean the cable that came with it has that type of MALE connector on the end that plugs into your laptop. However, your laptop does not have a matching USB3 FEMALE socket. It does have an eSATA socket. I would bet that the laptop also has a USB2 socket. Now, look again at the cable with the external drive. I'm guessing it is also plugged into a USB3 socket on the drive unit, not something permanently connected. Those sockets are designed for backwards compatibility. Disconnect the cable at the drive, and I expect the socket will also accept a standard USB2 cable in the socket. You can use that cable to connect to your laptop's USB2 connector. The resulting communication will not be as fast as eSATA, but it will do the job.

 

[turtlebeard]

Thank you for your very detailed and articulate answer to my problem.
I now understand that there are different protocols between the esata and USB3 and its not "just a simple transfer of data" as I incorrectly believed.

 

[turtlebeard]

Thank you for your very detailed and articulate answer to my problem.
I now understand that there are different protocols between the esata and USB3 and its not "just a simple transfer of data" as I incorrectly believed.

 

[Paperdoc]

You're welcome, and thanks for the BA.