SCSI2SD Archived News

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[27 Oct 2020]v6.3.2 Bugfix release

  • Increase limit of READ/WRITE BUFFER command for improved compatibility on SGI Irix hosts
  • Add new config option to enable blind writes to improve SD card write performance. This was option was previously enabled default but causes problems with some SCSI hosts. This option must be disabled on 68K Macs if there are errors when writing data.

[22 Apr 2020]v6.3.1 New hardware support

  • New V6 boards have started to ship which require a different firmware file. These boards are silkscreened with "SCSI2SD V6 / 2020c". These boards MUST use v6.3.1 or newer firmware.
  • Older boards ("Rev F", "Rev C", or "6.02") should use the "revF" v6.3.1 firmware

[20 Feb 2020]v6.3.0 Driver update

  • Firmware updates on Windows now require the UsbDk driver instead of the WinUSB driver. The version of dfu-util that is distributed with scsi2sd-util6 has been modified to work with UsbDk. This should provide a better experience and will resolve issues around driver signing. There is no need to uninstall the previous driver.
  • Bugfix to firmware that prevented some machines from booting

[1 Feb 2020]v6.2.15 Bugfix update

  • Resolved a data corruption issue that affects hosts that transfer more than 512k per write command.

[1 Jan 2020]v6.2.14 Bugfix update

  • Resolved a data corruption issue that affects hosts that transfer more than 64k per write command.
  • Fix invalid CDROM TOC responses (thanks Simon Gander)

[19 Dec 2019]v4.8.4 Bugfix update

  • Fix to prevent sending floppy geometry mode page when not configured as a floppy (Thanks Landon Rodgers)

[12 Dec 2019]scsi2sd-util BETA

  • Testing release of a completely new configuration utility. Please provide any feedback via email
  • Firmware updates not yet implemented in this version
  • The stable version of scsi2sd-util, provided alongside the firmware downloads, will remain available for the foreseeable future

[8 Dec 2019]v6.2.9 Bugfix update

  • Fix to prevent sending floppy geometry mode page when not configured as a floppy (Thanks Landon Rodgers)

[30 Oct 2019]v6.2.8 Bugfix update

  • Fix regression that caused the firmware to fail all self-test checks.

[9 Oct 2019]v6.2.7 Performance Update

  • Improvements to data throughput, which may assist SCSI hosts with short timeouts.

[10 June 2019]v4.8.3 Bug fix update

  • Improve XEBEC support
  • Add Flexible Disk Drive Geometry SCSI MODE page
  • Fix regression for Kurzweil K2000
  • Add scsi mode page 0 support
  • Fix SD card hotswap bug when the SCSI host is constantly polling

[29 May 2019]v6.2.5 Bug fix update

  • Port XEBEC support from v5 firmware
  • Add Flexible Disk Drive Geometry SCSI MODE page
  • Stability improvements
  • Fix regression from 6.1.3 firmware for Kurzweil K2000
  • Add scsi mode page 0 support
  • Fix SD card hotswap bug when the SCSI host is constantly polling

[11 Oct 2018]v6.2.1 Bugfix

  • Fix bug with drives > 4GB when connecting over USB

[26 Sep 2018]v4.8.1 v6.2.0 New Firmware

  • Fix bug when writing with multiple SCSI devices on the chain (4.8.1, 6.2.0).
  • Fix bug with non-512 byte sectors (6.2.0)
  • Performance improvements to write speeds (6.2.0)

[16 April 2018]v4.8 New Firmware

  • Support for v5.1 hardware boards, including faster bootloader for better Staubli and Amiga support.
  • Added a speed selection to scsi2sd-util. Users with older SASI or SCSI1 controllers should select the lower speed for stability.
  • Added specific support for emulating XEBEC controllers
  • Added SCSI host-types selection to scsi2sd-util. Apple Macintosh users should manually fix their settings to use the Apple mode.
  • Apple mode pages now only sent when in Apple mode.
  • Fix Unit Serial Number inquiry page to use return configured serial number

[31 Jan 2018]v6.1.3 Bugfix release

  • Fixes several synchronous transfer bugs, especially write issues at 10MB/s

[28 Nov 2017]v6.1.2 Bugfix release

  • Fix several synchronous negotiation bugs

[21 May 2017]v6.1.1 Bugfix release

  • Fix scsi2sd-util size and sector-size inputs
  • Fix crash when configured scsi disk starting sector is less than SD card size
  • Add new "turbo" speed option to boost speeds.
    • May not be reliable, and use is not supported
    • Async timings trimmed
    • Sync speeds boosted to theoretical 15.625MB/s, with 12.0MB/s measured read throughput
    • SD card put in "high speed" mode.
    • USB for configuration/firmware updates is disabled in turbo mode when processing SCSI commands. A power cycle may be required to connect again via USB

[1 May 2017]v4.7.1 Bugfix release

  • Fix scsi2sd-util size and sector-size inputs
  • Fix crash when configured scsi disk starting sector is less than SD card size

[2 April 2017]v6.1.0 Bugfix release

  • Enable sync transfers on SCSI1 hosts
  • Support 4MB/s sync transfers for Amiga A590 (WD33C93)
  • Merge v4.7 release changes

[12 March 2017]v4.7 New firmware

  • Fix bug in SCSI Inquiry command for SCSI2 hosts
  • Added OMTI host quirks mode
  • Fix for booting from early Mac Plus ROMS
  • Performance fix when SCSI2 mode is enabled. Some users may need to disable SCSI2 mode if it was incorrectly enabled previously.
  • Added support for configurable mode pages
  • Fix for exporting selectionDelay/startupDelay parameters to XML via scsi2sd-util
  • scsi2sd-util is now built with libudev1 on Linux, as all distros have moved to this version. Users on older Linux distributions will need to compile from source.

[7 October 2016]v6.0.13 Bugfix release

  • Added glitch filter to SCSI signals
  • Restored parity-checking option (defaults to disabled)


[12 January 2016]v4.6 New firmware

  • Fixed bug when using sector size that isn't a multiple of 4 (eg. 522 bytes)
  • Fixed a bug that caused hanging or scsi phase errors on high speed scsi hosts.
  • Fixed a hang when processing a SCSI RESET in a data phase.
  • scsi2sd-util: Fixed USB connection problems under Windows 10.
  • Added option to treat luns as separate devices
  • Improved boot up time. It is now possible to replace the bootloader with a version that doesn't pause for 2 seconds (bootloader). This is required on some Amigas and the Staubli JC5. Replacing the bootloader CAN BRICK YOUR DEVICE if it fails half-way, so do not attempt this unless necessary.

[12 September 2016]v6.0.10 Bugfix release

  • Fixed issue with some UHS-1 SD cards.
  • Fixed SCSI corruption issues

[27 August 2016]v6.0.8 Synchronous transfers

  • Fixed "SCSI2SD config protocol error" when saving config settings to the SD card.
  • Fixed USB storage with 3 or more devices configured
  • Added support for synchronous transfers up to 10MB/s

[14 August 2016]v6.0.6 Performance improvements

  • Fixed performance bugs, especially for write performance. Sync transfers coming soon...


[14 August 2016]v6.0.5 First non-BETA V6 firmware

  • Fixed more SCSI bugs. The firmware should work on most systems now, excluding an issue on some Amiga machines.
  • Added firmware update support to scsi2sd-util6. See the updated Quickstart guide for instructions.

[16 July 2016]v6.0-BETA3 Fixed V6 firmware

  • Fixed critical SCSI bug. There was a silly bug that prevented the previous v6 firmwares from working on most systems.

Apologies for the delay in finally fixing this bug and getting the firmware stable. The v6 boards will leave BETA status now as soon as the scsi2sd-util6 utility supports firmware updates on all platforms. Performance improvements (ie. 10MB/s synchronous support) will be done after firmware upgrade is fixed.
Early adopters should update the firmware using dfu-util on Linux or STM DfuSe on Windows. Remember to put a shunt on the pins labelled "BOOTLDR" and reconnect the USB cable to enter bootloader mode.

[16 June 2016]v6.0-BETA2 New V6 firmware

  • Fixed SD card compatibility issues
  • Fixed SCSI compatibility issues
  • Added SD card hotswap support
  • Performance improvements

[17 May 2016] Sneak-peak at the new V6 boards
SCSI2SD V6 will go on sale from 28th May with BETA quality firmware. This is a completely new hardware design which adds commonly requested features.
The V5 boards will remain available for the foreseeable future. Most people should continue to buy the older V5 board ! The V6 boards are more expensive to produce, and most people don't require the additional functionality.

  • Full-Size SD slot. This makes it much easier to develop faceplates for external access. I am currently prototyping a matching 3.5" bracket with faceplate.
  • A floppy-style berg power connector is used instead of the traditional Molex plug. This reduces the width of the device, simplifying 3.5" bracket production. Most systems can self-power the board and don't need a separate power cable anyway.
  • Better performance. The hardware supports synchronous transfers at 10MB/s.
  • Access to the data via USB. The SCSI2SD drives will appear when connected to a PC via USB. This is limited to around 1.2MB/s (USB FS speeds).
  • Superior noise resistance to deal with poor termination and poor cabling.
  • Integrated terminator, now enabled via software configuration


Initial BETA firmware limitations:

  • No hot-swap support
  • Inconsistent performance due to immature firmware. The boards may not perform any better than the V5 boards until the software is improved to make use of the faster hardware.
  • Cost and supply limitations. I only have a small number (50) of V6 boards available in the first batch, and priced at $125 AUD.

[07 December 2015]scsi2sd-util fix for Windows 10.

  • Windows 10 users should use this version of scsi2sd-util with the latest v4.5 firmware. A proper release with this fix will be made shortly.

[05 November 2015]v4.5 New firmware

  • Fixed bug returning the wrong device type (fixes CDROM and removable drive types)
  • Added experimental caching option to speed up sequential single-sector reads/writes
  • Several small bug fixes

[13 August 2015]v4.4 New firmware

  • Added configuration options to force SCSI1 mode. The default is to be in SCSI1 mode, and the configuration option should be changed to SCSI2 for users with faster equipment.
  • Fixed hot-swap card detection to work with longer (60cm) microSD to SD cables
  • Fixed more scsi2sd-util crashes and stalls.

[14 June 2015]v4.3 New firmware features

  • Added configurable disk geometry.
  • Added configuration file import/export feature to scsi2sd-util
  • scsi2sd-util stability fixes
  • Fixes to support EMU EMAX1 & EMAX2

[20 May 2015]http://imall.iteadstudio.com V5.0 boards back in stock!

  • The 3.5" SCSI2SD V5.0 boards are now available for purchase from iteadstudio.com. This arrangement should solve the recent stock availability problems, and provide more flexible shipping options.

[4 May 2015]v4.2.4 bugfix firmware

  • Fixes the vesion number. v4.2.3 would incorrectly identify itself as v4.2.2.
  • Improvement to the SCSI RESET behaviour, which should allow better recovery from errors.
  • Better SCSI1 mode page support.

[26 April 2015]v4.2.3 critical bugfix firmware

  • Users who recently received their boards with v4.2.2 firmware must immediately upgrade to v4.2.3, or nothing will work when the default configuration is changed.

[20 April 2015]Sold out, again.
I've partnered with a new manufacturer to build the SCSI2SD in higher volumes, and to sell them direct from China. This will ensure availability and will also improve shipping options. New boards should be available in a few weeks time.

[31 Mar 2015]v5.0 boards have arrived!

  • The new v5.0 boards have arrived, and will start shipping from tonight. Pictures coming soon...

[23 Feb 2015]v4.1.1 bugfix firmware released.

  • Fix for extremely slow performance in some cases. If the SD card requires 2 attempts at initialisation it would be left running at 400kHz instead of 25MHz.

Many users have noticed that I'm currently out-of-stock. I didn't order new boards quick enough to beat the Chinese New Year Holiday rush, and now I need to wait until the PCB manufacturers resume trade. I expect new stock by the end of March.

Here's a sneak-peak at a new design I've been working on:
scsi2sd-5.0-prototype.jpg
You'll notice this board is half the size, which makes it cheaper to produce in volume. The power supply has been reworked to be much more efficient, and will allow the new SCSI2SD to run on the terminator power alone. In many cases there will be no need for the power cable. This new version uses the same firmware as the older boards and does not offer any performance advantages. I'm also working on a small 50-pin to DB25 adapter board to replace the current external SCSI2SD.


[1 Feb 2015]v4.1 stable firmware and GUI configuration tool released.

  • Fix for SD card compatibility problems. The SCSI2SD can now write to SD cards with Samsung controllers.
  • VMS 5.5_2 support

[8 Jan 2015]v4.0 stable firmware and GUI configuration tool released.

  • You must update to the new firmware before loading/saving the configuration options in scsi2sd-util. The Save/Load buttons will be disabled until the firmware is up-to-date.

[23 Dec 2014]BETA firmware and scsi2sd-util update

  • Fixed many bugs in scsi2sd-util
  • Experimental hot-swap support. You may now remove (and reinsert) the SD card so long as the LED is off.
    Original V3.0 boards require a small modification for Hot Swap support

[05 Dec 2014]

  • Prices back to normal
    Prices have returned to normal (with a small adjustment due to AUD currency movement), so please stop sending hate mail.
  • Bulk order placed
    I've outsourced production to a PCB assembly house to satisfy demand. I expect these boards to be ready in early January, but it's possible they'll arrive before Christmas. In the meantime I'll continue building as many boards as I can and listing these for sale once tested. I'm no longer accepting orders for out-of-stock items, so most people will need to wait for the bulk order in early January.
  • BETA firmware update available
    Testers needed! Available here.
    Brief summary of changes:
    1. scsi2sd-config and bootloaderhost utilities are gone. They are replaced with a new gui tool "scsi2sd-util". The new tool has many bugs still!
    2. A firmware fix for Samsung-branded SD cards
    3. Support for up to 4 different SCSI ID's, each using a different section of the SD card.
    4. Preliminary CDROM device support. This is still quite buggy, but works on some systems.


[23 Nov 2014] Price Increase :-(
For those of you upset over the increase, please keep in mind that SCSI2SD is open source, and you have rights to build, modify, and sell the boards yourself. Everyone else has the right to build the boards and sell them for the original price.
I've had to increase the price of SCSI2SD boards to $125 AUD in order to reduce demand. The price may increase further if strong demand continues.

Continued high demand for the boards is leaving me with no time left to work on firmware development. Also, I can no longer rely on "catching up" on orders over the weekend due to high summer temperates in Australia - soldering during 40°C daytime temperatures (104 farenheit) is not pleasant. Soldering during the evening is the only viable solution.

[09 Oct 2014] v3.6-RC2 firmware available for testing

  • Fix to ensure parity checks are not done when configured with --no-parity
  • FAutomatically disable parity checks for SASI/SCSI1 hosts, as many such hosts don't support it
  • Added SCSI disconnect/reconnect support during long SD card writes. This should prevent timeouts on some systems.

The new GUI configuration tool, multiple-device support, and USB mass-storage support is still outstanding.

[03 Sep 2014] v3.6-RC1 firmware available for testing

  • Fix additional LUNS showing up on some systems
  • Improved tolerance of noise and glitches on the SCSI signal lines

I haven't completed any of the promised new features yet. As always, I'm behind schedule. I'm still working on a new GUI configuration tool, multiple-device support (ie. emulating more than one SCSI device), and USB mass-storage support. I'm away on vaction this month, so these features won't be ready until October.

[21 July 2014] v3.5.2 firmware released

  • Fix blank SCSI ID output in scsi2sd-config

[17 July 2014] v3.5.1 firmware released

  • Allow building utilities on older Linux distros
  • Resolve missing DLL issues for the Windows utilities
  • Fix scsi2sd-config crash on Mac.

[14 July 2014] v3.5 firmware released.

  • DMA support for significant performance improvements.
  • Support for the new SCSI2SD hardware revision 4.2

[18 May 2014] v3.4 firmware released.

  • Bug fix for non-512 byte sectors.
  • New scsi2sd-debug log capture utility
  • Increased max sector size to 8192 bytes
  • Windows users upgrading from previous releases MUST delete old USB device information before scsi2sd-config will work again. The USBDeview utility may be used to remove Vendor 04B4, Product 1337.

[16 April 2014] v3.3 firmware released.

  • Many critical bugs are fixed. All SCSI2SD users are urged to upgrade to this version.
  • Better compatibility with older SCSI-1 controllers.
  • Non-standard sector sizes between 64 and 2048 bytes are now supported.

[16 Feb 2014] v3.2 firmware released. This is an important bugfix release. All SCSI2SD users are urged to upgrade to this version.

[02 Feb 2014] I've created the SCSI2SD FAQ to answer some common questions. I am currently working on resolving compatibility issues with some samplers, adding configurable sector-sizes, and creating a smaller 2.5" version to suit old Powerbooks.

[17 Jan 2014] Sign up for the SCSI2SD mailing lists for firmware update notifications.

[27 Dec 2013] v3.1 firmware released.

  • Fix for reading the last sector of the SD card.
  • Performance improvements. 2.5x read, 2x write performance.

[9 Dec 2013] v3.0.1 firmware released.