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Re: Pi.BerkeleyLUG: USB drives on Raspberry Pi



Quoting tom r lopes (tomrlopes@gmail.com):

> So people have been hanging USB 3 drives off the Pi 4 and making
> file servers that way.

Long story short:  In my considered view, and that of many longtime
server admins, USB is simply too flaky and too slow to be desirable for
main server storage[1].  And that thus also applies to things like Anker
USB 3.0-to-SATA converter widgets[2], with or without a USB Attached
SCSI Protocol (UASP) software overlay.

If you've not worked with anything better than USB-attached devices for 
connections to main storage, it seems great.  Once you've done systems
using reliable, fast attachment hardware protocols, you tend to think
'Eh, let's try to avoid doing that other thing again.'


[1] As I've also clarified elsewhere, my term '_main_ storage' is in
contradistinction to detachable occasional storage such as ancillary 
external storage or backup-target drives.  Or optical drives, or similar
things.  USB's IMO easily good enough for that; better hotpluggable
attachments exist but are rather more expensive and exotic.

By contrast, SATA/eSATA/M.2/SAS attachments inherit the general
characteristics of ATA & parallel SCSI, being based on them and (like
them) designed for main storage.


[2] Bridging USB to SATA leaves it _still_ flaky and slow, because it's 
still USB.  Ditto using an external drive reached over USB that has a
SATA connection between the storage device and the case.  That's still
USB, too.  Seriously.

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