Specifications

External 4 Port SAS I/O Module (AXXSASIOMOD) Intel

I/O Expansion Modules

Figure 9. LSI* SAS1064E Block Diagram

PCI Express* implements a switch-based technology to interconnect a large number of devices.

Communication over the serial interconnect is accomplished using packet-based

communication protocol. Quality of Service (QOS) features provide differentiated transmission

performance for different applications. Hot plug/hot swap support enables “always-on” systems.

Enhanced error handling features, such as end-to-end CRC (ECRC) and Advanced Error

Reporting, make PCI Express suitable for robust, high-end server applications. Hot plug, power

management, error handling, and interrupt signaling are accomplished using packet-based

messaging rather than sideband signals.

Each of the four SAS PHYs on the LSISAS1064E is capable of SAS/SATA link rates of 3.0

Gbit/s and 1.5 Gbit/s. The user can configure ports as wide or narrow. Narrow ports have one

PHY per port. Wide ports have two, three, or four PHYs per port. Each port supports the SSP,

SMP, STP, and SATA protocols.

The SAS interface uses the proven SCSI command set to ensure reliable data transfers, while

providing the connectivity and flexibility of point-to-point serial data transfers. The SAS interface

provides improved performance, simplified cabling, smaller connectors, lower pin count, and

lower power requirements when compared to parallel SCSI. SAS controllers leverage an

electrical and physical connection interface that is compatible with Serial ATA technology.

The LSISAS1064E uses the Fusion-MPT* (Message Passing Technology) architecture, which

features a performance-based message passing protocol that offloads the host CPU by

completely managing all I/Os and minimizes system bus overhead by coalescing interrupts. The

proven Fusion-MPT* architecture requires only thin, easy-to-develop device drivers independent

of the I/O bus. LSI* Logic provides these device drivers.

Revision 1.2

Intel order number: D44901-008