Does this MB support hot swap when plugging eSATA ports into standard SATA MB ports? I am planning to purchase an extra 3.5" front panel with an eSATA port and I need to know if I will be able to plug and play by only hooking the eSATA port to one of the MB's SATA connectors, as it don't have an dedicated eSATA controller/connector.

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I happen to have an hd connected by eSata to a Sata port on my Foxconn mb and I'd have to say that the answer is no. The hd doesn't appear in the safely remove hardware list so there's no way of stopping it and unplugging it without doing so might result in data loss or corruption. It's the same as connecting an internal hd directly to a Sata port and you wouldn't disconnect one of those while the computer is running. You might look into an eSata controller card but I couldn't say if those support hot swapping or not.

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