Freecom Technologies Hard Drive Dock User Manual

USER MANUAL  
HARD DRIVE DOCK  
EXTERNAL DOCKING STATION / 2.5" & 3.5" SATA / USB 2.0 / eSATA  
Rev. 902  
Table of Contents  
User manual  
EN  
General information ........................................................................................................... Page  
4
6
7
8
Chapter 1:  
Start Up the HD Dock ......................................................................................................... Page  
Chapter ꢀ:  
Ejecting the HD from the Dock....................................................................................... Page  
Chapter ꢁ:  
Partitioning your HD........................................................................................................... Page  
Chapter 4:  
Trouble shooting - FAQ...................................................................................................... Page 17  
© 2009 Freecom Technologies  
Freecom HD Dock  
General information  
EN  
The following hardware and software requirements must be fulfilled to ensure trouble-  
free operation.  
System requirements  
In order to use the Freecom HD Dock, following components are needed:  
PC:  
Intel Pentium III / AMD Duron 900 MHz or higher  
256 MB RAM (Vista: 512 MB RAM) or higher  
Available USB 2.0 or USB 1.1 port*  
or  
Available eSATA port  
Internet connection for online warranty registration  
Operating system: Windows XP, Windows Vista  
Mac:  
PowerPC G3/G4/G5, Mac Book Pro or Intel Mac  
256 MB RAM or higher  
Available USB 2.0 or USB 1.1 port*  
or  
Available eSATA port  
Internet connection for online warranty registration  
Operating system: Mac OS X v10.4 or higher  
Environment  
Operating temperatur: 5°C - 35°C.  
Operating humidity: 5-90%, non-condensing  
*
To achieve optimal performance from the Freecom HD Dock your PC should be equipped with an USB 2.0  
port.  
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General information  
Precautionary Measures and General Notes  
EN  
Make sure the label side of the hard drive is ahead, and the hard drive connector is  
downward before it is inserted. Otherwise, the hard drive can not be inserted.  
Do not eject the hard drive while it is working.  
Hold the hard drive with its front edge instead of the PCB at the bottom side.  
Hard drives are precise equipment. Read the user manual attached with the hard  
drive before using.  
Do not put anything inside the product except 2.5" or 3.5" SATA I/II hard drives.  
Freecom warranty this product against defects of materials and workmanship under  
normaluse,Freecomcannotbemaderesponsibleforanydamagecausedbyaccident,  
abuse, misuse etc, nor any hardware/software damage or data loss.  
The surface temperature of hard drive may reach ꢂ0°C, please mind and  
be careful, altough it is not hot enough to burn people.  
Features  
Works under open space, no dissipating device for hard drive is needed.  
Supports 2.5" & 3.5" SATA I/II hard drive  
Supports USB 2.0 up to 480 Mbps, compatible with USB 1.1 up to 12 Mbps.  
Supports 1.5 Gbit/s or 3.0 Gbit/s SATA HDD  
Supports hot swaps  
Unique hard drive ejection apparatus  
Specification  
Interface: USB 2.0/eSATA to SATA  
Speed: 480 Mbps (USB 2.0), 12 Mbps (USB 1.1)  
Material: Plastic/Metal  
Weight: 295 g  
Dimensions: 125 (L) x 80 (W) x 72 (H) mm  
Freecom HD Dock  
Chapter 1: Start Up the HD Dock  
EN  
1
1.1 HDD installation for ꢀ.ꢂ" or ꢁ.ꢂ"  
1. Connect the cable of the power supply to the Freecom  
HD Dock and the power supply itself to the socket.  
2a. USB: Connect the USB cable to the USB port on the HD  
Dock (for data transfer with USB).  
or  
2b. eSATA: Connect the eSATA cable to the eSATA port on  
the HD Dock (for data transfer with eSATA).  
3. Vertically insert the hard drive into the drive slot, make  
sure the hard drive matches firmly with the connector  
inside the dock.  
4. Switch on the HD Dock.  
6
Ejecting the HD from the Dock  
5. Partition and format your hard drive (if required). See  
chapter 3 for further details.  
EN  
PC: Your hard drive appears in "My Computer" and can  
be used now.  
Mac: Your hard drive appears on the desktop and can be  
used now.  
1.ꢀ LED  
LED on:  
HD Dock switched on  
LED flashes:  
Data transfer  
Chapter ꢀ: Ejecting the HD from the Dock  
1. Switch off the power.  
2. Press the button down.  
3. Gently remove the hard drive off in vertical direction.  
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Freecom HD Dock  
Chapter ꢁ: Partitioning your HD  
EN  
ꢁ.1 General information  
Your hard drive must be partitioned and formatted before it can be used.  
This chapter describes current limitations of most common file systems and instruc-  
tions to enable you to adapt your hard drive to your needs.  
ꢁ.ꢀ File System features  
Please refer to the tables below for an overview:  
File systems supported by different operating systems  
File system  
FAT  
FATꢁꢀ  
NTFS  
HFS+  
Operating system  
Windows XP / Vista  
Mac OS X  
yes  
yes  
yes  
yes  
yes  
no  
yes  
(only read)  
yes  
Maximum size of a partition  
File system  
FAT  
FATꢁꢀ  
NTFS  
HFS+  
Operating system  
Windows XP / Vista  
Mac OS X 10.1.x  
Mac OS X 10.2.x  
Mac OS X 10.3.x  
Mac OS X 10.4.x  
Mac OS X 10.5.x  
4 GB*  
32 GB  
128 GB  
16 TB  
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
2 TB  
8 TB  
16 TB  
16 TB  
16 TB  
128 GB  
( -> 128 GB)  
( -> 128 GB)  
( -> 128 GB)  
*
FAT partitions larger than 2 GB can only be administrated by Windows 2000 / XP / Vista.  
Partitioning your HD  
Example for different partitions with different file systems on one HD  
EN  
File system  
NTFS  
FAT32  
Total  
size of HD  
80 GB  
60 GB  
20 GB  
Note: On NTFS formatted hard disks data can only be written under Win-  
dows XP / Vista. Under Mac OS X data can only be read.  
The example above is a good solution for Windows XP / Vista users who sometimes  
exchange data with Macs.  
For storing the data under Windows XP / Vista both partitions can be used. As the NTFS  
file system can only be read by Mac data to be used on this operating system must be  
stored on the FAT32 partition.  
Please follow the steps below to adapt your hard drive for your needs.  
ꢁ.ꢁ Partitioning your hard drive under Windows XP / Vista  
ꢁ.ꢁ.1 Deleting a partition on the hard drive  
1. Click with the right mouse button on the "My Computer" icon on your desktop.  
2. Select the option "Manage".  
3. Select the option "Storage" -> "Disk Management".  
4. Choose your external hard drive and right-click on the partition.  
5. Select "Delete Partition" and confirm by clicking on "Yes". The partition will be  
deleted now.  
ꢁ.ꢁ.ꢀ Creating a partition on the hard drive  
The following steps will guide you through the process of creating partitions on your  
hard drive. After this procedure your hard drive will be ready for use and it will be al-  
located a drive letter.  
1. Click with the right mouse button on the "My Computer" icon on your desktop.  
2. Select the option "Manage".  
3. Select the option "Storage" -> "Disk Management".  
4. Choose the hard disk which is "unallocated". Ensure that the entire drive is "unal-  
located".  
Freecom HD Dock  
EN  
5. Click with the right mouse button on the "unallocated" area and select the option  
"New Partition". The "New Partition Wizard" opens. Click on "Next".  
10  
Partitioning your HD  
6. Select "Primary partition" and click on "Next".  
EN  
7. Now you can adjust the size of your partition. Click on "Next" if only one partition is  
to be created. See next chapter (Creating two or more partitions on the HD under  
Windows XP / Vista) how to create more than one partition.  
8. Assign a drive letter to your hard disk. Normally you can use the default options. Click  
on "Next".  
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