What is the difference between AHCI and IDE?

The main difference between AHCI and IDE is that AHCI is a newer interface for transferring data between system memory and SATA storage media while IDE is an older interface used for transferring data between computer and drive. storage.

Although they are used interchangeably, there is a difference between AHCI and IDE. IDE is an older interface for connecting storage devices to a computer’s system bus. Also, their cables are bulkier and more expensive. Also, it does not provide much data transfer speed. On the other hand, AHCI is a new interface to exchange data between device and storage device supporting SATA.

Key Areas Covered

1. What is IDE
     – Definition, Functionality
2. What is SATA
     – Definition, Functionality
3. What is AHCI?
     – Definition, Functionality
4. What is the difference between AHCI and IDE?
     – Comparison of key differences

Key terms

AHCI, IDE, Parallel ATA, SATA, Storage

What is IDE

IDE stands for Integrated Drive Electronics . It is also called Parallel ATA . It is an interface based on IBM PC Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) 16 but bus standard. It is an interface between the computer bus and disk storage units. It is a parallel connector and requires all parallel signals to arrive at the same time. On the other hand, IDE does not provide high speed data transfer.

what is sata

SATA stands for Serial Advanced Technology Accessory. It is also called Serial ATA. It is a computer bus interface used to transfer data between the computer bus and storage devices such as hard drives, optical drives, and solid-state drives. It’s a serial connector, and it’s more advanced than the IDE. It is economical and reduces the size of the cable. Most importantly, it enables faster data transfer at a higher signaling rate. SATA has replaced IDE in many desktop and laptop computers.

What is AHCI?

AHCI stands for Advanced Host Controller Interface . Allows the device to exchange data between system memory and SATA storage media. Most motherboards have AHCI enabled by default. Requires switching to AHCI before installing the operating system. It is compatible with operating systems like Windows, Linux, OpenBSD, NetBSD, FreeBSD, etc.

AHCI provides multiple advantages. It supports newer technologies like native command queuing. Also, it supports hot plugging, which means adding or removing the component while the computer is running. It’s also faster than the IDE.

Difference Between AHCI and IDE

Definition

AHCI is a technical standard defined by Intel that specifies the operation of Serial ATA (SATA) host controllers in a non-implementation-specific manner. IDE is a standard interface for connecting storage devices such as hard drives, floppy disks, and optical drives in computers.

Long way

Also, AHCI stands for Advanced Host Controller Interface while IDE stands for Integrated Drive Electronics.

Features

AHCI supports new features such as native command queuing and hot-plug hard drives. IDE does not support native command queue drives and hot-plug hard drives, but it does support older devices. This is a big difference between AHCI and IDE.

Speed

Another difference between AHCI and IDE is that AHCI works faster than IDE.

Operating system

AHCI is supported on Windows Vista and the latest versions of Windows, Linux, OpenBSD, NetBSD, FreeBSD, OS Z, eComStation, and Solaris 10. The IDE is supported on most operating systems.

conclusion

The difference between AHCI and IDE is that AHCI is a newer interface for transferring data between system memory and SATA storage media while IDE is an older interface used for transferring data between computer and storage drive. In short, AHCI is much faster than IDE.

Reference:

1. “Advanced Host Controller Interface.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, September 17, 2018, Available here.
2. “Serial ATA.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, August 26, 2018, Available here.

Courtesy image:

1. “IDE vs SATA” By husin.sani (CC BY 2.0) via Flickr