Taurus S2
Dual-Bay Storage Enclosure for
3.5” Serial ATA Hard Drives
User Manual
(English)
v1.1
April 23, 2008
EN
Taurus S2
User Guide
Chapter 1 - Introduction
Icon Key
Throughout this manual you will see icons on the left margin
that denote either notes or special remarks as outlined below:
General notes and tips.
Important information.
The Taurus S2
When it comes to raw power there is nothing to beat the new
dual-bay Taurus. Available in the classic Pleiades design, the
Taurus is built strong and rugged, offering more than enough
capacity to store all your digital media files. Not only that, the
Taurus can also back up and secure all of your data thanks to
RAID protection.
Features mentioned
in this manual may
vary between
different models.
Product Dimensions:
24.5cm x 13.3cm x 7.6cm
9.65in x 5.23in x 3in
Other Available Interfaces
• FireWire 400/800 & USB 2.0 (RAID 0&1)
• FireWire 400/800 & USB 2.0 & eSATA
• Gigabit Ethernet
• USB 2.0
• eSATA
MS-DOS, Microsoft, Windows 2000/XP/Vista are trademarks of Microsoft
Corporation. Apple Macintosh and Mac are trademarks of Apple Computer.
All other third party brands and names are the property of their respective
owners.
Page 1 / Chapter 1 - Introduction
Taurus S2
User Guide
Detailed View
Front View
1. ON/OFF switch (blue when ON)
2. LED indication
To turn on the
power, press the
ON/OFF switch for
3 seconds and
release it. To turn it
off, press the
3. Ventilation holes
1
2
ON/OFF switch,
hold it for 5 seconds
and then release it
again.
3
LED Indication
LED HDD Status
• OFF = Power off or no HDD connected
The Error LED will
only light up for
• Green = HDD connected and ready
HDD1 CN2
• Red flashing quickly = Data access or
errors when using
the SAFE mode.
rebuilding
• Red and green flashing in intervals = Error
• OFF = Power off or no HDD connected
• Green = HDD connected and ready
HDD2 CN1
• Red flashing quickly = Data access or
rebuilding
• Red and green flashing in intervals = Error
• OFF = Power off or everything is working
as expected
Error N/A
• Amber = Error in RAID 1 mode, one of the
drives can not be found
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Taurus S2
User Guide
Rear View
1. Slot for security lock
2. Smart fan for ventilation
3. Set button for RAID mode
4. RAID selector switch
5. eSATA port
6. USB 2.0 port
For RAID 0 & 1, two
hard drives of
7. Power receptacle
identical capacity
are recommended.
If the capacity is
different, the total
amount of the
2
1
3
space that can be
used will depend on
the drive with the
smallest capacity.
4
6
7
5
RAID Selector Switch
To change the RAID mode, first turn the selector switch and
then press the Set button to confirm the new setting.
Changing the RAID
setup will require
you to re-format the
drive. Make sure
you backup all data
before doing so.
No. Mode Explanation
This mode is known as JBOD, the two drives
0
1
2
3
BIG
show up as one large single volume.
Non- The drives will show up as two independent
RAID drives.
This mode is using RAID 0 striping, ideal
FAST
where speed is the primary objective.
This mode is using RAID 1 mirroring, creating
SAFE
an exact copy of all data for safety.
Smart Fan
The smart fan automatically regulates the fan speed according
to the internal temperature. It will turn on at 45 degrees Celsius
using low speed and increase the speed every 5 degrees until
reaching 60 degrees. Above that it will always use high speed.
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Taurus S2
User Guide
System Requirements
PC Requirements
• Minimum Intel Pentium III CPU 500MHz, 128MB RAM
• eSATA equipped PC; Windows 2000/XP/Vista
• USB 2.0 (USB 1.1) equipped PC; Windows 2000/XP/Vista
• eSATA Plug and Play support required for host card driver
Mac Requirements
• Minimum Apple G4 processor, 128MB RAM
• eSATA equipped Mac; Mac OS 10.3 or above
• USB 2.0 (USB 1.1) equipped Mac; Mac OS 10.2 or above
• eSATA Plug and Play support required for host card driver
Package Contents
• Taurus S2 (no HDD included)
• External Power Adapter;
Input 100-240V, Output +12V/3A, +5V/4.2A
• Power Cord
Package Content
may vary,
depending on
vendor & version.
• Interface Cables
• Manual
About Data Backup
To protect your files and help prevent the loss of your data, we
strongly recommend that you keep two copies of your data, one
copy on your Taurus and a second copy either on your internal
drive or another storage media such as CD, DVD, Tape or an
additional external drive.
Any loss or corruption of data while using the Taurus is the sole
responsibility of the user, and under no circumstances will the
manufacturer be held liable for compensation or the recovery of
this data.
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Taurus S2
User Guide
Chapter 2 - Hard Drive Assembly
1. Remove the four screws at the bottom of the case.
Your unit may come
with a pre-installed
hard drive. Before
opening such an
enclosure, please
read the warranty
from your vendor
carefully, as this
could void your
warranty.
2. Push the inner enclosure out, and remove the outer chassis.
The aluminium
stand does not
have to be removed
for drive assembly.
3. Install the first hard drive and mount it with two screws on
each side.
For RAID 0 and
RAID 1, drives with
identical capacities
are recommended.
Do not bend the
thermal sensor!
4. Attach the thermal probe with the tape provided to the first
HDD. Choose a place in between the two drives but without
damaging the probe when installing the second drive.
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User Guide
5. Install the second hard drive and mount it with two screws
on each side.
Be careful not to
damage any cables
or components, and
make sure the
cables are
connected firmly.
6. Connect the SATA and power cables to your hard drives. Be
careful not to damage any components and confirm that the
cables are connected firmly.
The LED indication
for HDD1 is
7. Slide the inner enclosure back into the outer chassis.
referring to the hard
drive connected to
CN2, where HDD2
is referring to CN1.
8. Fasten the four screws to finish the assembly.
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User Guide
Chapter 3 - System Set Up
Connection to your Computer
Only one interface
can be used at any
given time.
A few precautions when using your external storage enclosure:
• Check the cables for visible damage before turning it on
• Do not expose the product to water or humid conditions
• Do not cover the enclosure’s ventilation holes
Hard Disk Mode
Always connect the
power adapter to
your device before
you plug it into the
wall socket.
When using your Taurus, the eSATA connection always has the
priority. To use the USB connection, make sure to disconnect
the eSATA cable.
When not in use, turn off the power. For the hard drives to go
into stand-by with the Operating System, we recommend using
SATA II hard drives.
RAID Setup
Changing the RAID
setup will require
you to re-format the
drives. Make sure
you backup all data
before doing so!
Non-RAID: The drives will show up as two independent drives.
Use this if you have only installed one drive or two different
drives (not the same capacity and brand).
BIG: The two drives show up as one large single volume. This
mode is also known as JBOD. Spanning is an array (not RAID)
that is written sequentially across the two drives. By itself, it
does not provide any performance or redundancy benefits. Use
this if you have installed two different drives and prefer them to
appear as one large drive.
FAST: Used where speed is the primary objective, RAID 0
striping is not redundant. This form of array splits each piece of
data across both of the drives in segments; since data is written
without any form of parity data-checking, it allows for the fastest
data transfer of the other modes. However, if one drive
becomes damaged, the whole array can become corrupted.
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SAFE: This mode requires 2 identical drives to implement,
otherwise the total amount of the space that can be used will
depend on the drive with the smallest capacity. RAID 1 creates
an exact copy or mirror of a set of data on the second drive.
The data can be
accessed even
during the rebuild
process.
This is useful when reliability and backup are more important
than data capacity. The available capacity to the user will only
be as large as a single drive but when one of the hard drives
fails, it can be replaced and the data rebuilt automatically.
The Taurus enclosure has an Error LED indication at the front
to show when one of the drives can not be accessed anymore.
When a drive fails, the corresponding LED will flash red and
green in intervals. To replace the faulty drive, do the following:
The HDD LEDs will
flash red during the
rebuild process,.
1. Turn off the Taurus and remove both the power supply and
the interface cable.
2. Open the enclosure and replace the faulty hard drive. If
HDD1 is defective, remove it, connect the second HDD to
HDD1 and then install a new HDD at HDD2. If HDD2 is
defective, replace the drive with a new HDD.
3. Finish the assembly and connect the power supply.
4. Turn the power ON and let it rebuild the data. It will
automatically copy all the data from HDD1 to HDD2 to
create a backup.
5. The HDD LED will flash red just like during data access as
long as the data is being rebuilt. This process will take
several hours, depending on the capacity of your hard
drives.
6. When all the data is backed up, the LEDs will turn green.
Note: The LED indication for HDD1 is referring to the hard drive
connected to CN2, which is the main drive. The LED at HDD2
is referring to the backup drive at CN1.
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Installation on a PC
Before connecting the device, setup the RAID mode using the
selector switch at the back of the enclosure.
If the system
doesn’t recognise
the drive, turn on
the power first,
before connecting
the interface cable
or connect the
If the drives have been pre-installed and setup already, you do
not need to change anything, unless you prefer a different
setup.
• Turn on your Computer and start Windows.
• Connect the Taurus and turn it on.
device before
• Let Windows search and install the driver automatically.
• Open “My Computer” to see your external hard drive.
booting your
Operating System.
Note: For more info about formatting, see “Partitioning &
Formatting”.
Remove Procedure
For the safe removal of your drive and to assure that no data is
lost, always follow the correct unplug procedure. Otherwise, an
error message will appear.
• Click on the taskbar icon for external hardware
• Choose your external hard drive and confirm to remove it
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Installation on a Macintosh
Before connecting the device, setup the RAID mode using the
selector switch at the back of the enclosure.
If the system
doesn’t recognise
the drive, turn on
the power first,
before connecting
the interface cable
or connect the
If the drives have been pre-installed and setup already, you do
not need to change anything, unless you prefer a different
setup.
• Turn on your computer and start Mac OS.
• Connect the Taurus and turn it on.
device before
• No driver installation required.
booting your
• The external drive will mount and show up on your desktop.
Operating System.
Note: For more info about formatting, see “Partitioning &
Formatting”.
Remove Procedure
For the safe removal of your drive and to assure that no data is
lost, always follow the correct unplug procedure.
• Drag the external hard drive icon into the trash bin
• Turn off your device
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Partitioning & Formatting
Be aware that this will destroy all your existing data on the drive,
so make sure you have a backup! This step is usually only
required the first time you install a factory new hard drive, if you
change the RAID mode or want to erase all data on your drive.
If the drive does not
appear, make sure
the drivers are
installed properly
and the power is on.
PC running Windows
For Windows, use the disk management program:
• Right click on “My Computer” and choose “Manage”
• Select “Disk Management”
• Choose the drive you want to format and right click on it for
further commands (Choose New Partition)
• Follow the Partition Wizard to setup the drive
Mac OS can not
write to NTFS
formatted drives. To
use your device on
both platforms, we
recommend using
FAT32.
When using the BIG,
FAST or SAFE
mode, only one
volume will be
visible instead of
two separate drives.
For Win2000, WinXP and Windows Vista, we recommend
formatting the drive using the NTFS file system.
If you are using the FAT32 file system to format the drive on
Win2000, WinXP or Windows Vista, the biggest single partition
you can create will be 32GB. To create larger partitions, you
need to use a 3rd party application or change to NTFS format.
To access volumes
over 2TB, a 64 bit
Operating System
is required.
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Mac OS
For Mac OS X, use the disk utility to format and create
partitions on your external disk.
If the drive does not
appear on the
• Select “Disk Utility” in the utilities folder
• Choose your external drive and format it according to your
requirements
desktop, make sure
there are no
extension conflicts
and the power is
turned on!
When using the BIG,
FAST or SAFE
mode, only one
volume will be
visible instead of
two separate drives.
For Mac OS X, we recommend formatting the drive using the
native Mac file system HFS+ also known as Mac OS Extended.
If you want to use your drive on a PC running Microsoft
Windows as well as on your Mac, we recommend you to use
the FAT32 file system. On your Mac, select MS-DOS when
formatting it. Note: The file size for a single file on FAT32 is
limited to 4GB.
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Chapter 4 - Appendix
Technical Questions
Please read your
warranty carefully,
as this may vary
between different
vendors!
For RMA and other questions, please contact your vendor or
check out their online support area!
FAQ
Q: What file system should I choose to format my drive?
A: This will depend on how you want to use the drive but in
general, here is what we recommend:
• Windows 2000/XP/Vista Æ NTFS
• Mac OS X Æ HFS+ (Mac OS Extended)
• To use it on both PC and Mac Æ FAT32
About this Manual
This manual covers the Taurus S2 model. Firmware, images
and descriptions may slightly vary between this manual and the
actual product you have.
© Copyright 2008 by Macpower & Tytech Technology Co., Ltd. all Rights Reserved
The information contained in this manual is believed to be accurate and reliable. Macpower & Tytech
Technology assumes no responsibility for any errors contained in this manual. Macpower & Tytech
Technology reserves the right to make changes in the specifications and/or design of this product without
prior notice. The diagrams contained in this manual may also not fully represent the product that you are
using and are there for illustration purposes only. Macpower & Tytech Technology assumes no responsibility
for any differences between the product mentioned in this manual and the product you may have.
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