Sabrent Support

EC-DFLT 4096-byte sector update

This update makes your EC-DFLT docking station present drives to the computer using 4096-byte logical sectors, the way earlier units did. Use it to read a drive whose data was written while it was connected to an older dock. Please read the warning below before you begin.

Important: do not tick Partition, Format or R/W Test

In the Execution Setting panel on the left of the tool, Partition, Format and R/WTest must all be unticked. Partition and Format are already unticked when the tool opens. R/WTest is ticked by default and you must untick it, which is step 3 below.

If your drive has data on it and any of those boxes is ticked, that data will be damaged or erased. The tool does not ask you to confirm and it cannot be undone.

This update itself does not require the drive to be formatted, and the manufacturer has confirmed that data is not expected to be lost. Even so, please back up anything important on the drive before you start.

Is this the right update for you?

This package changes the dock in one direction only: to 4096-byte sectors. Use it when your data was written while the drive was connected to an older EC-DFLT, and your current dock now shows the drive at the wrong size, with an invalid partition table, or as a protective partition with no drive letter. It also applies if you are working with 4Kn drives that the dock no longer handles the way it used to.

If you need the opposite, that is, your dock is reporting 4096 bytes and an ordinary drive will not mount behind it, do not use this package. Reply to us and we will send you the 512-byte version instead.

You can check what your dock is doing today. With the dock connected, open Windows PowerShell and run:

Get-Disk | Select-Object Number, FriendlyName, LogicalSectorSize, PhysicalSectorSize

Find your dock in the list and read LogicalSectorSize. If it says 512 and your data was written behind an older dock, this update applies. Run the same command after the update and it should say 4096.

Before you begin

You need a Windows 10 or Windows 11 PC. It does not work on Windows XP, and there is no macOS or Linux version.
Unzip the whole folder first and keep the files together. The tool reads its settings from the JMMassProd.ini file next to it. If you move or copy the program somewhere else on its own, it will not apply the 4096-byte setting. Do not run it from inside the zip.
Unplug any other USB drives, memory sticks or card readers, so the docking station is the only USB storage device connected. This avoids updating the wrong device.
Connect the docking station directly to a USB port on the computer, not through a hub.
Keep the docking station powered and connected for the whole process. It takes under a minute.
Back up your data first.

The settings you will enter

Steps 4 to 6 ask you to type these values over whatever the tool shows when it opens:

Field	Value
Password (when prompted)	jmicron
VID	152D
PID	A578
Standby Timer (Sec.)	10
HDD.String	SABRENT
Partition / Format / R/WTest	all unticked
Firmware file to load	JMS578_PPE_v124.01.00.02.bin

Step by step

Open the unzipped folder and double-click JMMassProd2_v1_16_14_21.exe.

Run it from inside the unzipped folder, alongside JMMassProd.ini and the .bin firmware file. If Windows shows a security prompt, choose to run the program.
Tick RD Version in the lower left corner, then type jmicron in lower case into the password box that appears and click OK.
Untick R/WTest in the Execution Setting panel. It is ticked when the tool opens. Leaving it on writes test data to your drive.
Tick the boxes circled in the screenshot: EEPROM Update, Firmware Update, the two small boxes beside VID and PID, Map to HDD String and Auto Increase.

Your screen should end up looking like this: Partition, Format and R/WTest all unticked.
Set PID to A578 and Standby Timer (Sec.) to 10, typing over whatever is already there.
Type SABRENT into the HDD.String box, replacing anything already in it.
Click Load F/W File, select JMS578_PPE_v124.01.00.02.bin from the folder you unzipped, and click Open.

The path field next to the button then shows the file you picked.
Check one last time that Partition, Format and R/WTest are all still unticked, then click START.
Wait for it to finish. When it is done, the F/W and EEPROM columns both read Pass and the large box near the bottom right reads Pass.

That is the update complete. Unplug the docking station, plug it back in, and Windows will detect it again. Your drive should now mount normally.

If Windows offers to format the drive afterwards, click Cancel. This update does not require a format, so a format prompt means something else is wrong. Do not format the drive. Reply to us instead and tell us what you see, and we will take it from there.

If something goes wrong

The tool shows no device, or the port list stays empty. Close the tool, unplug and reconnect the dock, then reopen the tool and click Refresh. Try a different USB port on the back of the computer.
The result says Fail. Do not unplug the dock while it is running. Click Reset, then repeat from step 7. If it fails a second time, stop and reply to us with a photo of the tool window.
The sector size did not change. The tool may not have read its settings file. Close it, make sure JMMassProd.ini is in the same folder as the program, open the program again from that folder, and repeat. Do not skip the EEPROM Update box in step 4, as the firmware on its own does not change the sector reporting.
The drive still does not appear afterwards. Reply to this email and tell us what Windows Disk Management shows for the drive, with a screenshot if you can. Do not reformat the drive if it holds data you need, as we may still be able to recover it.

If you are unsure at any point, stop and reply to us instead of guessing. We would much rather answer a question than help recover a drive afterwards.