Controllers / RAID Cards

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Redundant array of independent disks (RAID) controller cards allow your computer to communicate with HDDs and SSDs. There are several types of RAID controllers to fit the needs of both large companies with mission-critical systems and small start-ups with limited budgets. You can find SATA and SAS controller cards to meet your connectivity requirements.

HBA Controller Cards Are Reliable and Fast

A controller card lets the host system and the storage system communicate with each other. Host Bus Adapters (HBA) expansion cards plug into a slot on the motherboard, usually PCIe®. They physically connect the server to HDDs and SSDs. These add-on cards are a fast and reliable way for storage devices to communicate with the host system. They can connect many HDDs and SSDs to the computer, and they allow the OS to read and write on the hard drives. These controller cards can support SATA, SAS and Fiber Channel. They’re very common in servers and workstations.

RAID Controller Cards and Software Enhance Performance and Reliability

RAID controllers can improve the computer’s performance and reliability by storing data across multiple drives. They can also decide to write data on a SSD or HDD based on several factors. RAID cards can be hardware-based or software-based. Hardware RAID controller cards connect to the motherboard via PCI-X, PCIe or RAID-on-chip (ROC). RAID software, instead, runs on the CPU. The latter is typically a cheaper solution, as it doesn’t require dedicated hardware or impact server memory.

RAID 0 Boosts Write and Read Speeds

RAID 0, also called disk striping, improves write and read speeds by splitting data across different disks. The disks work as a single partition, and there’s no data redundancy with the RAID controller cards. RAID 0 requires a minimum of two drives.

RAID 1 Prevents Data Losses

RAID 1 provides redundancy by writing identical data to two drives. If one of the drives fails, the computer can still access data on the other, ensuring that your data remains intact. When you replace the faulty drive with a new one, the RAID card copies data on it from the remaining drive. Many technicians call this procedure “disk mirroring”. The system can read both of the identical disks at the same time, and RAID 1 can improve read speed.

RAID 10 Combines the Features of RAID 1 and RAID 0

RAID 10 uses both disk striping and mirroring to offer data redundancy and a performance boost. RAID 10 splits data across pairs of identical disks, just like RAID 1. It also uses a similar system as RAID 0 to provide better write and read speeds. This configuration requires a minimum of four storage drives. Since the data runs across different disks, these RAID cards typically use more storage space than other controller types. RAID 10 cards offer superior performance, and they are common in web servers and large databases.

Bestselling Controllers / RAID Cards Reviews:

David H.

7/16/2025 1:34:00 AM

This card is strictly for SFF, and doesn't include a standard bracket. But other than that, it works great.

“ The same transfers between SAS drives using this card are rock solid stable, and transfer in a quarter to a third of the time. ”

Supermicro AOC-S3008L-L8I 12Gb/s Eight-Port SAS Internal RAID Adapter

Aaron G.

6/27/2025 3:54:43 PM

Don't forget the cooling!

“ Aside from that, it's a good controller, passes a battery of stress tests and generally does what it advertises. ”

LSI LSI00301 (9207-8i) PCI-Express 3.0 x8 Low Profile SATA / SAS Host Controller Card--Avago Technologies

Anonymous

5/8/2024 7:41:00 AM

Worked out of the box with Linux (Debian 12)

“ It comes with everything of a full-blown RAID controller (cache battery and battery cable - not used for my use-case). ”

Intel RS25SB008 PCI-Express 3.0 x8 Low Profile Ready SATA / SAS RAID Controller Card

Dantron

5/20/2023 3:29:08 PM

Great for TrueNAS / FreeNAS

“ RAID10 -> RAIDZ @ [~700-980 MB/s] I am liking the card, even though it appears to be an open-box item and not new. ”

LSI 9305-16i PCI-Express 3.0 x8 Low Profile SAS Host Bus Adapter

Anonymous

5/15/2023 3:46:24 PM

Good for the price but may require some work to flash to proper firmware!

“ From what I understand this is an OEM card, IBM Megaraid M1015 and you will not be able to find it on the Broadcom site when searching for 9220-8i. ”

LSI 6Gbps SAS HBA 9220-8i P20 IT Mode ZFS FreeNAS unRAID + 2* SATA Cable

James B.

3/8/2023 4:32:30 AM

Works as it should

“ Bought this to replace failed MegaRAID card on an old server. ”

LSI MegaRAID Internal Low-Power SATA/SAS 9260-8i 6Gb/s PCI-Express 2.0 w/ 512MB onboard memory RAID Controller Card, Single--Avago Technologies