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OptiPlex 5050 SFF Motherboard
I am planning to purchase an OptiPlex 5050 Small Form Factor. I am getting it with an optical drive and a SATA SSD, and I'm going to install a SATA HDD. I have been told that the OptiPlex can handle 3 SATA devices, but I am wondering about the connections. The PDF for the owner's manual is broken, so I have been looking at the motherboard diagram for the 7050 SFF (which may be incorrect, and that's partly why I'm asking.)
What type of power connector for the SATA HDD will I need to connect to the motherboard? I know the hard disk (WD Black 1 TB) takes a SATA power connector, but how would I connect that to the motherboard? I saw on the motherboard that there was a port labeled as "HDD and ODD power cable connector" which I assume powers the ODD and the preinstalled storage drive (which I assume is not limited to just a HDD). There is also another port called "ATX power connector" and I'm unsure to what that does. What do I need to connect to and how?
On a side note, I've noticed in my configuration settings that the media card reader option is set at "No media card reader option selected." I can't change this, but I was wondering if it still came with an SD card reader on the front panel.
RoHe
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November 29th, 2017 16:00
The 5050 SFF supports one 3.5–inch hard drive or two 2.5–inch hard drives
Blue SATA connector for boot HDD, black SATA connector for 2nd HDD, and white SATA connector for optical drive (though it might be possible to use white for a 3rd HDD). They are all standard SATA data connectors.
As for the motherboard power connection, you probably should contact Dell Spare Parts for info on the "HDD and ODD Power Cable Connector (SATA_PWR:) at 1-800-372-3355. Have your Service Tag handy, if you've already gotten the system.
Hard to tell from that jpg if there are 2 power connectors side-by-side. It's possible you'll need a splitter cable from that motherboard power connector to connect to 2nd HDD, and Spare Parts should be able to help you with that.
The orange connector isn't identified and it looks different from the one labeled as SATA_PWR. And I don't know if the power supply in the 5050 has its own SATA power connector available.
RoHe
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November 30th, 2017 10:00
You can still call Dell Spare Parts now. They may be able to give you the answer before you order.
But consider this.. Regardless of whatever connector the SATA_PWR port has on the motherboard, there must be a cable included that goes from that connector to the standard SATA power connector on the factory-installed HDD and ODD.
In that case, you can probably get a standard SATA power Y-cable to split the power from the installed cable to 2 drives. If you have the choice, you probably want to split the power cable for the ODD and the new HDD since you'll probably use the ODD less than the 2nd HDD.
And keep in mind that you can only install a 2nd HDD if both are 2.5-inch drives. So if you have the option when ordering this system make sure the factory-installed drive is 2.5- and not 3.5-inches. If the factory drive is 3.5-inches you're going to have to replace that drive too in order to install a 2nd HDD. And you may need an extra caddy/tray from Dell to hold two 2.5-inch drives.
Hope this helps...
RoHe
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December 1st, 2017 09:00
It all depends on whether there's only one SATA_PWR Port header (connector) on the motherboard or two, side-by-side. Very hard for me to tell anything from that motherboard jpg.
If there's only one header, then it probably has a Y-splitter because it would have to power the factory HDD and the ODD from one header. In this case, use your Y-splitter to split the branch that goes to the optical drive.
If there are two SATA_PWR Port headers on the motherboard, use your splitter to split the factory-connected ODD.
CAVEAT: I don't own a 5050 and never looked inside one, so these are only my guesses. And there is the third possibility that the power supply has an unused SATA power connector which could go directly to your 2nd HDD without any splitters. So wait until the system arrives before buying anything.
And if all else fails, use a USB3 HDD as the 2nd HDD and not mess around inside the case.
TheSacredRatty
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November 25th, 2017 14:00
UPDATE: I did find a diagram on Dell's website for the OptiPlex 5050 SFF motherboard. It's very similar, and has all the same ports I mentioned. There is a 4-pin connector (orange, bottom right-hand corner) on the motherboard that could be of use, but I assume that is for a fan.
Manual: www.dell.com/.../system-board-layout
TheSacredRatty
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November 28th, 2017 19:00
UPDATE: I contacted Dell, and they didn't give any help. If anyone has an OptiPlex 5050 (or 3050 or 7050; similar enough), please feel free to tell me.
TheSacredRatty
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November 29th, 2017 18:00
Ok, thank you for the information. I guess I can't get any farther without purchasing the system, so I will go ahead and do that and keep that number handy. Thank you for your support.
TheSacredRatty
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November 30th, 2017 19:00
Yes, thank you for your advice, it helps a lot. I was mainly looking for how to connect all three devices, so I will go ahead and find a SATA Power to SATA Power Y-Connector. So, just to be clear, is the following diagram correct?
SSD
/
/
SATA_PWR Port ODD
\ /
\
HDD
rdunnill
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December 2nd, 2017 11:00
I used a Dell power splitter purchased from eBay to configure my 7040 SFF (similar motherboard) with two 2.5 SSDs. Works well! The hardest part was finding the special tool-less pins for the second 2.5 bay; the solution was to buy a caddy with similar pins on eBay and cannibalize. them.
TheSacredRatty
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December 3rd, 2017 10:00
Thanks to both of you for your help. I'll go ahead and get the system before getting anything.
RoHe
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December 3rd, 2017 11:00
You're welcome.
Good luck with the 5050 SFF and post back to let us know how your upgrades go...