I'm considering buying a few writeblockers to upgrade our lab, and just wondered if anyone has any views on whether there's anything better in terms of performance/value/reliability (or features - at a comparable price) than the Tableau T35u.
Primarily talking about SATA write-blockers in this instance (or SATA+other).
I've always been a fan of Tableau devices. A couple of years ago, I tested the WiebeTech / CRU Ultradock writeblockers (I believe it was the V5). It worked well, but one thing I did not like was that when acquiring a drive using the writeblocker, the drive serial number recorded in the acquisition log file was the serial number of the writeblocker, not of the source drive.
As I said, that was a couple of years ago and maybe it has been fixed since.
Otherwise, I've only used Tableau devices.
PM
If I remember correctly, it was the Ultradock 5.
ok many thanks
The T35u is fine but I have had problems with the USB 3 connection dropping out when trying to image SATA disks with problematic sectors. I've found that if there are multiple read errors from a SATA disk the USB3 connection gets reset and the acquisition fails. With SATA disks I prefer a SATA connection also from the Forensic Bridge to the computers motherboard. I use and would recommend the WeibeTech Forensic Labdock U5 for that reason alone.
The T35u is fine but I have had problems with the USB 3 connection dropping out when trying to image SATA disks with problematic sectors. I've found that if there are multiple read errors from a SATA disk the USB3 connection gets reset and the acquisition fails. With SATA disks I prefer a SATA connection also from the Forensic Bridge to the computers motherboard. I use and would recommend the WeibeTech Forensic Labdock U5 for that reason alone.
Interesting you say that.
I've never been entirely confident in USB myself, having the occasional dropout, or difficulty with it, on various machines over the years.
I do prefer having a blocker you can move from machine to machine, or take with you, but a direct sata host connection would be nice. More food for thought!
Perhaps a couple of these and 1 Tableau for versatility 😉
Alternative write blocker options:
1) PC-3000 Portable - https://www.acelaboratory.com/pc-3000-portable-iii-systems.php#digital_forensics
Cons:
- Pricey – But, what you pay is what you get
Pros:
- Portable – Standalone + connected to a PC/Laptop
- Fast – up to 490 MB/s
- Can be used for forensic imaging + firmware repairs on: SATA/PATA/USB HDD, SATA/PCIe (M.2 NVMe/AHCI, Apple SSD, PCIe x16) SSD, RAID, logically damaged USB Flash drives, SD/mSD cards.
- Image devices with bad sectors or other read issues.
- Reports - View, save and print reports on the condition of the devices etc.
- Multi-device – clone up to three drives simultaneously
- Excellent support
2) SAFE Block - https://www.forensicsoft.com/products/safe-block
Pros:
- Affordable
- Portable – Using Windows 10 to go USB drive
Cons:
- Licence dedicated to one device
- Initial setup - But, can be very useful in some scenarios, e.g. built-in SSD’s using a bootable USB drive.
