How to find SATA controller version on custom built PC. Do I have SATA 2, or 3 (II, or III)?

1

I've got a custom built PC sitting at home with the following specs:

  • AMD Phenom II X4 955 Processor (3.2 GHz Quad)
  • 8.00 GB RAM
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 (4GB Graphics Mem)
  • 64-bit Windows 7 SP1
  • 466 GB HDD (7200 RPM)

I was going to pick up an 512 GB SSD to replace the latter, and was asked if it was equipped with a SATA III controller. I couldn't remember so I tried to figure it out by remote connecting to my PC and looking at the Device Manager, but all I could see about it was:

  • AMD SATA Controller
  • Hardware ID: PCI\VEN_1002&DEV_4391&SUBSYS_43911002&REV_40

There doesn't seem to be anything else useful in there and Googling the Hardware ID doesn't glean anything. How can I figure out whether my controller is SATA III, or is the information provided enough to figure it out?

Alain

Posted 2012-07-31T15:54:30.547

Reputation: 803

1Check which motherboard you have and download its manual. That will tell you which ports (if any) are SATA3. – Hennes – 2012-07-31T15:56:50.630

1SATA controllers have backwards compatability. – Ramhound – 2012-07-31T15:59:18.463

1Yes, so it does not matter which SSD is bought. It will just work. But it might be worth spending more for a SATA 3 capable SSD if the motherboard already supports it. – Hennes – 2012-07-31T16:00:43.790

@Hennes how do I check what motherboard I have? Keep in mind I only have remote access to the PC. – Alain – 2012-07-31T16:08:06.270

@Hennes - Most new SSD being sold are already SATA 3 devices. – Ramhound – 2012-07-31T16:49:24.080

@Alain - Its not possible to check what motherboard you have without looking at the physical board. – Ramhound – 2012-07-31T16:50:04.330

The BIOS might have this information. I am not sure how to access that in Windows, but since other OS'es can read it there must be a way. (E.g. FreeBSD's kenv usually shows model, serial number etc). - Alternatively, are their bills documenting what was bought? (Kept for warranty if for nothing else). – Hennes – 2012-07-31T16:57:22.967

Another way is to determine what interface the current HDD uses. – Ramhound – 2012-07-31T18:02:08.310

Answers

1

The command dmidecode should give you all the info about your mother board you need. If you can't find your answer, at least you can get the brand and model of the motherboard to look up the mobo manual as suggested above.

Dmidecode must be run as root and is not installed by default on most distros.

Bruno9779

Posted 2012-07-31T15:54:30.547

Reputation: 1 225

Asked: 2012-07-31T15:54:30.547

Viewed: 2 806 times

Active: 2012-07-31T18:14:22.740