I'm trying to figure out a way to connect a USB flash drive using an eSATA port. I know it's not a common setup and I haven't come across any straightforward solutions. The only thing I've found is a converter for the other way around, which isn't what I need. The reason I'm looking into this is that I have an older system with USB 2.0 but only eSATA available. I'm using it as a Proxmox Backup Server, and while it has SATA bays, they're already being used for a ZFS mirror and data storage. I've tried booting from a USB drive using USB 2.0, but it's super slow. Copying the system to one of the SATA drives allows for faster access, but I prefer using eSATA since I don't need much storage—just something like a 10GB USB drive or similar. Any ideas?
1 Answer
You're hitting a common snag here! eSATA ports don’t provide power like USB does, which makes this tricky. Originally, people used eSATA/USB combo ports for this, but those setups aren't very common anymore. If you're set on this route, I’d suggest looking for small 2.5” eSATA SSDs that might run off a micro USB or USB-C for power. Just a thought!
That's a good point! If that exists, it could be a practical solution. I'd be curious to know if anyone's found a specific product like that.