A systems administrator is provisioning and replacing internal storage components for various server chassis and client workstations. Match each storage connector or form factor keying standard on the left with its corresponding physical architecture and protocol capability on the right.
- M.2 Key BFeatures a physical notch covering pins 12–19, natively accommodating up to two PCIe lanes (PCIe x2) or SATA protocol signals.
- M.2 Key MFeatures a physical notch covering pins 59–66, natively supporting up to four PCIe lanes (PCIe x4) for maximum NVMe throughput.
- U.2 (SFF-8639)Employs a 2.5-inch hot-swappable form factor connector supporting four PCIe lanes directly to NVMe drives in enterprise systems.
- SAS (Serial Attached SCSI)Includes a physical bridge keyed between data and power segment pins that prevents plugging its drives into standard SATA host backplanes.
Answer
M.2 Key B matches the pin 12–19 notch layout with PCIe x2/SATA support; M.2 Key M matches the pin 59–66 notch layout supporting four PCIe lanes (PCIe x4); U.2 (SFF-8639) matches the 2.5-inch form factor connector with four PCIe lanes for enterprise NVMe drives; SAS matches the connector with a physical keyed bridge between data and power segments.
Each keying and interface standard physically and electrically restricts drive installation: M.2 Key B uses pins 12–19 (PCIe x2 / SATA); M.2 Key M uses pins 59–66 (PCIe x4 for NVMe); U.2 brings PCIe x4 NVMe lanes to 2.5-inch server drive bays; and SAS uses a physical connector bridge between data and power contacts to prevent SAS drives from connecting directly to SATA controllers.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Storage drive physical interfaces, pin keying specifications, and protocol capabilities across client and enterprise hardware.