| LudeDude19 |
alright i have an 80gig harddrive and i want to upgrade, i wasthinking of getting an external hard drive but i think i'll hold off on that for a bit, so can i just get like another 80gig hard drive or so and add it to my computer? how do i tell if i can do this? and how do i tell what kind i need? (IDE, seriel ata, scsi?)
thanks |
|
|
| sparkycivic |
your computer should say at first what drives it detected(first 30 seconds). *HINT* the PAUSE button is your friend here, and will help you go read all that geeky data before it disappears, otherwise, use your "device manager" to tell you about what drives/technology is in it. it's probably IDE if it's older than a few months. do you want a new drive for the main one or just to add storage for a massive media collection? doubtless, you CAN add at least one more drive to your computer... adding is a lot simpler than swapping the main one to new, because you'd have to transfer the operating system and all the crap it's got now to the new one before it will run.
PM sent<-- |
|
|
| Z3r03rr0r |
| you may also have a system with both IDE and SATA, adding drives depends on physical space in your comp as well |
|
|
| LudeDude19 |
| ok under device manager > IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers...it says primary secondarey etc...does that help? |
|
|
| Orzel |
| If you have a slot on top of your existing HD, that isnt a CD ROM slot your set. |
|
|
| scooby_dooby |
you can add one as long as you don't have some little mini-tower. as long as there's room to stick another one in there.
just get PATA, you will save yourself some headaches, don't worry about SATA.
The bext deal right now is probably for the 120-160GB HDD as far as GB/dollar goes. |
|
|
| BananaBoy |
Before you even get any farther, take a look inside the case and and make sure you have a space for this new drive. 3.5 or 5.25 will do just fine. If you only have a 5.25, you will need to pick up some adaptor brackets. Try to space out the drives to help heat loss.
<hint> you can take a look at you mobo for that AGP slot <other thread>
From the other thread it, your mobo has Serial ATA plugs. Personaly, I prefer SATA drives, there fast and quickly becoming the new standard. But it really you choice.
Now I'll let the pro's take over Read This!
Good Luck :thumbup: |
|
|
| scooby_dooby |
If you get SATA, just be prepared for a PITA when installing windows.
SATA requires extra drivers on floppy to be loaded before running windows install or windows won't detect the HDD.
Also, if you buy seagate it will not connect to the normal power plugs, so make sure to buy an adapter before leaving the store because it does not come with the HDD.
on the plus side, the cables are much smaller and easier to plug in! |
|
|
| BananaBoy |
| Good point about the Power plugs, only the newer power supplies have the new SATA plugs. |
|
|
|
