Technology0 min ago
External hard drive
11 Answers
How do I fit an external HDD to my PC
Answers
1 to 11 of 11
Best Answer
No best answer has yet been selected by robert'o. Once a best answer has been selected, it will be shown here.
For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.
Hi All
Thanks for your input, I do know that its possible with a usb connection, what I was actualy wanting to know is, as I have put two HDD's on one ISD ribbon and as 2 is the limit for an ISD ribbon, what bits do I need to fit a third HDD on a SATA cable, or will it be less costly to go the USB way, and again what bits will I need.
Thanks Robert.
Thanks for your input, I do know that its possible with a usb connection, what I was actualy wanting to know is, as I have put two HDD's on one ISD ribbon and as 2 is the limit for an ISD ribbon, what bits do I need to fit a third HDD on a SATA cable, or will it be less costly to go the USB way, and again what bits will I need.
Thanks Robert.
Do you already have a SATA motherboard and do you have space physically inside the case for another hard drive?
assuming you have one CD drive of some sort in your computer then you probably have one more spare IDE (not ISD) channel as the one the CD drive is on can support one more device, you may need to get the twin cable if only a single one is in the machine at the moment.
This would probably be your cheapest option, just get another IDE drive (and maybe the twin cable) and slave the drive onto the IDE2 channel which the CD is attached to currently.
assuming you have one CD drive of some sort in your computer then you probably have one more spare IDE (not ISD) channel as the one the CD drive is on can support one more device, you may need to get the twin cable if only a single one is in the machine at the moment.
This would probably be your cheapest option, just get another IDE drive (and maybe the twin cable) and slave the drive onto the IDE2 channel which the CD is attached to currently.
trouble with mixing CD and hdd is that the whole chanel will run at the speed of the cd
you can buy extra ide cards http://www.dabs.com/productview.aspx?Quicklinx =4M6C&SearchType=1&SearchTerms=ide+card&PageMo de=3&SearchKey=All&SearchMode=All&NavigationKe y=0
but if you don't already have a spare one ... your money would be better spent on an usb 2.0 card.
use it to back up and then clear space on your internal ones.
you can buy extra ide cards http://www.dabs.com/productview.aspx?Quicklinx =4M6C&SearchType=1&SearchTerms=ide+card&PageMo de=3&SearchKey=All&SearchMode=All&NavigationKe y=0
but if you don't already have a spare one ... your money would be better spent on an usb 2.0 card.
use it to back up and then clear space on your internal ones.
Hi all
Sorry Ethel I was in a rush when I thought of the question this morning, & again Chuck I was thinking IDE when I wrote ISD !!! LOL, anyway thanks for your help.
At the moment I have my Operating system on C drive with the folders I use daily and I use the slave for storage (photos & music etc) I have a spare 40gb hdd that I would like to use as a dedicated drive for my games and nothing else.
I'm not sure if my board will support SATA as I don't know what to look for : for conformation, its just that someone said SATA was faster, but as of your input an external usb drive is lookig good at the moment.
I have 4 unused usb ports to go at, so do I need to get another usb 2.0 card as suggester and if so, where would I find the power to bring it to life?
Regards Robert.
Sorry Ethel I was in a rush when I thought of the question this morning, & again Chuck I was thinking IDE when I wrote ISD !!! LOL, anyway thanks for your help.
At the moment I have my Operating system on C drive with the folders I use daily and I use the slave for storage (photos & music etc) I have a spare 40gb hdd that I would like to use as a dedicated drive for my games and nothing else.
I'm not sure if my board will support SATA as I don't know what to look for : for conformation, its just that someone said SATA was faster, but as of your input an external usb drive is lookig good at the moment.
I have 4 unused usb ports to go at, so do I need to get another usb 2.0 card as suggester and if so, where would I find the power to bring it to life?
Regards Robert.
Having knowing you have a spare drive you want to use, and what your using them for make a huge difference to the answers
ok if it spare and you have room in the case for the other 40gb drive then I would slave that to the master(c) drive on IDE1 if you are going to use it for games and then put the drive that is there currently for storage as a slave to the CD on IDE2, as AC is correct in saying, it will marginally effect speed being on same channel as the CD drive, but for a storage drive this isn't so critical as a gaming drive, I can wait an extra 1/4 second for my pictures to load.
ok if it spare and you have room in the case for the other 40gb drive then I would slave that to the master(c) drive on IDE1 if you are going to use it for games and then put the drive that is there currently for storage as a slave to the CD on IDE2, as AC is correct in saying, it will marginally effect speed being on same channel as the CD drive, but for a storage drive this isn't so critical as a gaming drive, I can wait an extra 1/4 second for my pictures to load.
Many thanks all,
Yes Chuck I will do as you suggest and swap the drives about I have the room inside the PC and I suppose that I'll be able to buy another (pin set?) to clip the drive to the CD drive ribbon which is long enough.
For interest I would still like to know how I would get power to a USB 2.0 card, as the local shop who built my PC dose not like to give out to much info to computer bluffs like me!!
Regards Robert..
Yes Chuck I will do as you suggest and swap the drives about I have the room inside the PC and I suppose that I'll be able to buy another (pin set?) to clip the drive to the CD drive ribbon which is long enough.
For interest I would still like to know how I would get power to a USB 2.0 card, as the local shop who built my PC dose not like to give out to much info to computer bluffs like me!!
Regards Robert..
bit of a freudian there .... but very apt ... I think
"computer bluffs" .... lol
applies to all of us.
if the ribbon only has 2 connectors ... you'll need to buy a new one - something on these lines
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewIte m&item=180216852257&tGUID=70165aa81150a0aad376 9126fff28e54
an extra USB2 card would take power from the isa socket you plug it into
but as you say you have 4 spare ... not a problem
(unless they are usb1.1 in which case ... updating to usb2 will give a big speed increase
"computer bluffs" .... lol
applies to all of us.
if the ribbon only has 2 connectors ... you'll need to buy a new one - something on these lines
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewIte m&item=180216852257&tGUID=70165aa81150a0aad376 9126fff28e54
an extra USB2 card would take power from the isa socket you plug it into
but as you say you have 4 spare ... not a problem
(unless they are usb1.1 in which case ... updating to usb2 will give a big speed increase
Many thanks AC, glad you appreciate the Comp Bluff line.
Between you all, you have increased my daily dose of PC knowledge and simpified my next project, again many thanks, I appreciate the help and friendliness of this site and like General pattern said ( or was it McArther) I'll be back.
Regards Robert.
Between you all, you have increased my daily dose of PC knowledge and simpified my next project, again many thanks, I appreciate the help and friendliness of this site and like General pattern said ( or was it McArther) I'll be back.
Regards Robert.
1 to 11 of 11
Latest Posts
Is The Use Of Idioms Dying Out?
How it Works2 mins ago
Crosswords2 mins ago
ChatterBank5 mins ago
Spectator N0 2653 By Cheesecracker
Crosswords6 mins ago
