Device Side Data's FC5025 USB 5.25" floppy controller plugs into any computer's USB port and enables you to attach a 5.25" floppy drive. Even if your computer has no built-in floppy controller, the FC5025 lets you read those old disks. And it's not just for IBM PC disks – it also understands formats used by Apple, Atari, Commodore and TI, among others.

Requirements

The FC5025 connects to any computer's USB 2.0 or USB 1.1 port. Compatible software is required; see below for system requirements for the included software.

The FC5025 is USB powered. Power from USB runs only the FC5025 itself; you must supply power to the drive mechanism separately, such as from your computer's power supply.

The FC5025 is sold as a controller board only without a drive mechanism. It has been tested to work well with the TEAC FD-55GFR drive and should also work with most other 5.25" drives.

Limitations

The FC5025 is read-only. It cannot write to floppies.
The FC5025 may be unable to read disks that are damaged or copy-protected.
The FC5025 is intended for 5.25" disks only, not 3.5" or 8" disks.
The FC5025 may be unable to read the second side of "flippy" disks, depending on the drive it is attached to (more information on flippy disks here).
The included software works on Linux, Mac OS X and 32-bit Windows. It does not run on 64-bit Windows.

Included Software

The FC5025 includes a graphical Disk Image and Browse tool for Linux, Mac OS X and Windows. This program allows you to make an image copy of an inserted floppy, suitable for use under emulators or for archival use. On some but not all types of disks, the Disk Image and Browse tool can also display a file listing and copy individual files from the disk. Screenshots of the Disk Image and Browse tool are available.

Command line image and browse tools are also included for Linux and Mac OS X.

The included software has been tested on the following platforms:

Linux x86 2.6.24 (other versions should work also)
Mac OS X PPC 10.4.11 (later versions of Mac OS X should work also)
Windows XP SP3 32-bit (other versions of 32-bit Windows - 98SE or later - should work also)

Untested platforms are not guaranteed to work.

As of February 2010, the included software supports the following types of disk:

Apple DOS 3.2 (13-sector)
Apple DOS 3.3 (16-sector)
Apple ProDOS
Atari 810
Commodore 1541
MS-DOS
North Star MDS-A-D
TI-99/4A

Filesystem browse capability exists for ProDOS and MS-DOS disks.

In the future, additional platforms and disk formats may become supported through software updates or third-party software.

Specifications

Form factor	Printed circuit board
Dimensions	3.9"x1.3" (approx. 99mmx33mm) Mounts in HDD bay
Host interface	USB 2.0 full-speed 12Mbps, USB 1.1 compatible
Drive interface	34 pin
Drive compatibility	TEAC FD-55GFR or equivalent
Number of drives supported	One per FC5025
Power requirements	FC5025: <100mA Drive mechanism must be powered separately No power sequencing requirements
Connectors	USB type B, 34-pin dual-row header
Disk transfer rates	GCR: 167kbps-333kbps (Apple), 167kbps-370kbps (Commodore) FM: 56kbps-250kbps MFM: 250kbps, 300kbps, 500kbps
Write support	None - read-only controller
Command set	Vendor specific (see developer documentation)
Data transfer method	FC5025 locates desired sector, performs clock recovery and sends all clock and data bits to host Host discards clock bits and verifies checksum
Hardware requirements	USB 1.1 or 2.0 compliant host 5.25" floppy drive (not included - customer provided)

Specifications are subject to change without notice.