[sra]

I have one of the very first XServe machines, which has run absolutely reliably for several years now. But it's getting time to think about a new one.

My old one has a full complement of 4 drive modules. I realize that the drives offered with the current models are much bigger, but I would really like to get one with only one bay populated and re-use some of the others from my current machine.

I can't find any specs on the new XServes' drive modules that would allow me to determine whether this is possible. Can anyone tell me if I would be able to use first generation drive modules with a current model?

Thanks,

--
Steve Anderson

[jfobart]

The new models have serial ATA drives, whereas your current drives are ATA drives, so they aren't compatible out of the box.

I'm not sure if you can buy any sort of backplate adaptor that will fit in the XServe (new) to allow the use of ATA drives. Your best bet might be to run both XServes side-by-side for a few days and use Firewire or ethernet to duplicate your old drives in to the new one. That still leaves you holding 4 old ATA drives & modules, but there is a bit of a market for them on eBay. You might be able to get some of your money back that way.