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I. Introduction
Welcome
Congratulations and thank you for purchasing the miniSwap/U3 Trayless, Hot-Swap, 2.5” External
USB 3.0 Enclosure. This product is yet another innovative solution from FirmTek.
About This User Manual
The user manual will introduce you to the miniSwap/U3 enclosure. Please read it carefully, so that
you may become familiar with the proper operation of the miniSwap/U3.
About USB 3.0 Technology
An evolutionary replacement for the USB 2.0 interface, the USB 3.0 (Universal Serial Bus)
standard provides enhanced performance, simple upgrades and easy configuration. USB 3.0 is
fully compliant with the USB 2.0 protocol while offering up to 5 Gbit/s performances compared to a
maximum of 480Mbit/sec for USB 2.0. USB 3.0 devices can be hot-swapped (with most operating
systems), support cable lengths up to 9.8 feet and its electrical design is closer to PCIe Gen2 than
USB 2.0. USB 3.0 utilizes single unidirectional data paths for increased bandwidth up to 10x faster
than USB 2.0. For faster data performance, the miniSwap/U3 implements USB Attached SCSI
Protocol (UASP) which enables command queuing for USB storage devices while eliminating
software overhead for SCSI command phases.
About the miniSwap/U3
The miniSwap/U3 is a Trayless, high quality, Aluminum, External, Hot-Swap, USB 3.0 enclosure. It
supports 2.5” Solid State Drives (SSD) and 2.5” SATA hard disks (HDD). The silver aluminum
case is crafted for maximum durability and heat dissipation. For maximum performance the disk is
provided its own “direct connect” USB 3.0 connector.
The unique Trayless design, allows
customers to easily hot-swap bare drives in and out of the enclosure within seconds. This feature
provides virtually unlimited storage possibilities in an ultra-small form-factor. Built from the ground-
up as a true 6G Serial ATA solution with a USB 3.0 interface, the miniSwap/U3 is designed to
provide the ultimate in performance with external SSD and 2.5” SATA hard disks.
