IODD 2531_Secure HDD Enclosure_Silver_Made in Korea

There is no manual included in the box and the manual available online wasn't very helpful for me. I also purchased a SanDisk SSD Plus  SanDisk Internal SSD 120GB 2.5-Inch SDSSDA-120G-G25  when I ordered the IODD 2531 for use with the IODD.The first challenge I had was I couldn't figure out how to open the case to install the drive. I eventually found a manual in Korean that had some helpful pictures (the English manual I found was for the 2541 and drive installation works differently for it. I am attaching a clip from the manual to help you out.I used the spacer that was included with the SanDisk to minimize the stress put on the SATA connector because the drive is not screwed in and is only supported by the connector and the sides of the case.The second problem I had was with formatting the drive. The English Manual for the 2541 offers instructions for how to format in Windows and suggests NTFS. OS X doesn't have good (any?) support for NTFS. Fortunately the drive works just fine with FAT or ExFAT. I chose ExFAT because it allows for files larger than 2GB (I suggest you do the same, DVD images are often over 2GB). There also is not any support for GUID Partition Table (GPT), the preferred partitioning scheme for OS X, so use Master Boot Record (MBR) or you will get "1st Partition: EE". Here are the steps (for El Capitain, your interface may be slightly different):1) Connect IODD with the provided cable2) Open Disk Utility3) Click on the entry on the left that is named something like "iODD External HDD Media"4) Click Erase5) Set Format: ExFAT6) Set Scheme: GUID Partition Map7) Enter a name for the Disk (you will see this name in the Finder when connected)8) Click Erase9) ProfitWhen I was trying to get all of this to work I updated the firmware with VMWare and a Windows image. It worked but I was scared that I bricked the device at one point. I'm not sure I would risk it again.

Every tech should have one. Easily the best interface among the small market of external storage with CD/DVD simulators. Mounts ISO's like a champ and the ability to write protect it makes it invaluable when cleaning infections. Lets you carry a huge collection of ISO's and other files in one easy to handle package.

Works exactly as advertised, very easy to operate. I used it with an SSD drive. This product is very useful for installing certain linux distros and especially those such as pfsense, smoothwall, or other BSD related distros that require cd rom installation.