Overview:
SATA-IO has added an Interoperability Program as another key segment to the development, management and standardization of SATA. The Program will help ensure interoperability across SATA products, build confidence in SATA technology, and promote SATA as the first choice for storage devices with greater speed, simpler upgrades and easier configuration.
The Interoperability Program is a test program created to preserve the integrity of the Serial ATA specification and ensure interoperability across SATA products. Companies who participate in the Program demonstrate the desire to support SATA as an industry standard and will be included on an Integrators List. The Integrators List benefits members and the industry alike by serving as a reference for the advancement of the SATA standard.
Getting Interop Tested:
Interop testing participation can be accomplished in the two following ways:
1) Interoperability Workshops at scheduled plugfest events
The SATA-IO holds multiple events every year to support and promote testing of industry products for compatibility, interoperability, and definition of new capabilities. Currently, there are two main testing events which are driven by the SATA-IO
Plugfest:
The purpose of a Serial ATA Plugfest is to validate new designs implementing Serial ATA protocol/features and demonstrate interoperability. Target products for these events are prototypes, products still under development and those interested in general debug with other compatible products. Benefits of the Plugfest are being able to test with many equipment vendors in a small time, to facilitate match-making and finding areas of the spec that are unclear. For a more detailed description of how a Plugfest event works, download the Plugfest Overview presentation (from Plugfest #11, October 2008).
Interop Workshop (IW):
The purpose of a Serial ATA Interop Workshop (IW) is to specifically verify product interoperability and adherence to a pre-defined subset of specification requirements per the definition of SATA-IO Interoperability Testing. Target products for an IW are "market ready" products which are intended to ship "as is" into the market or are already widely available on the market. Benefits of the IW to product vendors are to provide initial opportunities for products to be tested in any newly defined areas, as well as providing a short term solution for Interop Testing with the opportunity for on-site discussion with the SATA technology experts. For a more detailed description of how an Interop Workshop event works, download the Interoperability Workshop Overview presentation (from IW #6, October 2008).
Both types of week-long events are held approximately every six months, and are typically co-located while running in parallel during the same week. For information on when and where the next set of events are to be held, visit the SATA-IO Events web page.
For more information on the upcoming Interop Workshops and Registration information please visit the SATA-IO Events web page.
For additional information on Interoperability Testing, please visit the FAQ page.