An interface that connects a PCI controller to a motherboard.
— PCI-E (PCI Express). An interface that is actually a modern standard for motherboards and peripherals connected to them, including PCI controllers. It is the heir to PCI-E, noticeably surpasses it both in terms of data transfer speed and additional functionality. Note that "motherboards" and peripherals for them can use a different number of PCI-E lines — for controllers, in particular, options
1x,
2x,
4x and
8x are relevant. At the same time, the first three values are found among expansion cards, but 8 PCI-E lanes are used mainly in RAID controllers (see "Type"). Also note that more lines means not only higher speed, but also a larger connector size. As a result, a board with a smaller number of lines can be connected to a slot with numerous channels (for example, a 1x board in a 4x connector), but not vice versa. As for bandwidth, it depends on the PCI-E version and is slightly less than 1 GB / s per line for PCI-E 3.0 and slightly less than 2 GB / s per line for PCI-E 4.0.
— PCI. Due to the advent of the more advanced PCI-E standard, this interface is now considered obsolete. However, it provides data transfer rates up to 533 Mbps, which is quite enough for tasks that do not involve the need to quickly transfer large amounts of information. Another
...advantage is that when connected to such a connector, faster PCI-E slots remain free, which can be useful for other system components. As a result, PCI connectors are still used in modern motherboards, and controllers with such a connection can also be found on the market.The number of standard slots on the rear panel that the controller occupies. This information is necessary in order to assess whether there is enough space in the case to install the board. Typically, controllers occupy
1,
2, or
3 slots.
This feature means that the controller board has a small height; and the height in this case is how much the board protrudes above the "motherboard" in which it is installed.
Low-
profile components are mainly designed for use in compact form factors where there is no room for full-sized boards. However, nothing prevents installing such a board in a larger case.
