[ The PC Guide | Systems and Components Reference Guide | Hard Disk Drives | Hard Disk Interfaces and Configuration | IDE/ATA vs. SCSI: Interface Comparison ]
Summary of IDE/ATA and SCSI Comparisons
The following table summarizes the comparison of SCSI and IDE/ATA. See the individual sections for a more thorough explanation of the summary conclusions below:
Interface Factor |
IDE/ATA |
SCSI |
Cost |
Low |
Moderate to high |
Performance |
High for single devices or single tasking, moderate to low for multiple devices or multitasking |
High in most situations |
Ease of Configuration and Use |
High for small number of devices, moderate for large number of devices |
Low to moderate for both small and large numbers of devices |
Expansion and Number of Devices |
Moderate |
High |
Device Type Support |
Moderate |
High |
Device Availability and Selection |
High |
Moderate |
Software / Operating System Compatibility |
High |
Moderate to high |
System Resource Usage |
Moderate to poor |
Good |
Support for non-PC Platforms |
Moderate |
Good |
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Disk Logical Structures and File Systems
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