Small Computer System Interface
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The Small Computer System Interface (universally known by its acronym, SCSI) was a popular interface standard for high-speed devices (disks, tape drives, scanners, etc). It was composed of a set of standards for the various layers: physical signalling, commands, etc.
Over time, a variety of options were developed for many of these; e.g. the original standard was 8-bit parallel using single-ended signalling, but later versions used 16-bit with differential pairs, at a variety of speeds (mostly synchronous, but one was asynchronous). Even later, a high-speed serial version was developed; and ultimately, one which worked over TCP/IP (usually over an Ethernet).
SCSI Versions
| Name | Alternative Name | max. Devices | Bus Bandwidth MB/sec |
|---|---|---|---|
| SCSI | SCSI-1 | 8 | 5 |
| Fast(-Narrow) SCSI | (Narrow) SCSI-2 | 8 | 10 |
| Fast-Wide SCSI | (Wide) SCSI-2 | 16 | 20 |
| Ultra(-Wide) SCSI | (Wide) SCSI-3 | 16 | 40 |
