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I have two power cables that I'm trying to use to hook up multiple hard drives in an Unraid system. Both look superficially like this:

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...with a 6-pin connector like this that goes into the power supply:

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...and three connectors like this that hook up to the hard drives:

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One cable works, the other doesn't. The difference seems to be exact form of the 6-pin connector that plugs into the power supply. The connector on the left is from the cable that works. The right does not.

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Each of these has slightly different pin shapes, and each has a different no-connect pin. I'm trying to buy another cable like the one on the left, but I have no idea what terminology to use to make the distinction I need to make. When I search online for cables like these, and when I look at the manuals for the drives or my power supply, I get no help, nothing that even suggests that the world acknowledges that these two incompatible forms for very similar looking cables is a matter of concern.

Any assistance clearing this up will be greatly appreciated.

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    The SATA power connector is standardized. The other end of the power cable can be whatever is needed to make a connection. This other end has absolutely no standards.
    – sawdust
    Commented May 1, 2023 at 5:02
  • Then how to I specify when buying a cable the configuration I need for the power supply end of the cable?
    – kshetline
    Commented May 1, 2023 at 5:04
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    The only safe solution is to buy cables made for the power supply, exact model only, directly from the manufacturer. cables can be incompatible amongst models of the same brand
    – Jaromanda X
    Commented May 1, 2023 at 6:17
  • The Apevia ATX-GX650W I purchased came with one power cable for powering three SATA devices. Not realizing these cables weren't standardized, and needing to power two more drives for my Unraid drive array, I tried to use a similar cable left over from another system. That obviously didn't work! On Apevia's website, although they sell other power cables, they apparently don't sell extra compatible 3-Sata power cables, or say anything about where you can get them. I'm settling for a SATA power cable that plugs into an available 4-pin Molex connector, rather than directly into the power supply.
    – kshetline
    Commented May 1, 2023 at 19:42

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