Adding further hard drive - how to?!

[Pete Stockdale]

Hi,

Novice question.

I'd be glad of help in adding a further hard drive.

My question is - can I just attach the new hard drive to the ribbon that
goes from the existing hard drive to IDE1?

Further details are as follows:-

Abit BH6 motherboard

Intel Pentium 11 350 processor

Seagate Medallist pro 9.1 gb UDMA hard drive

Windows 98

CDRom and CDRW are connected by ribbon to IDE2

The Seagate hard drive connected to IDE1

Not too clued up on masters and slaves and the like - but I think the
existing hard drive is set up as a Master

I have in mind fitting a larger additional hard drive - something like a 60
or 80gb IBM Deskstar - this will be used solely for storage of files from
adjacent connected networked pc.

So my questions are:-

1. Can I just attach the new hard drive to the ribbon that goes from the
existing hard drive to IDE1?...and will my pc automatically recognise
it?...or will I need additional software to set up the additional hard
drive?

2.Will a hard drive such as the IBM Deskstar be compatible with my pc
system/existing hard drive?

3. Any other advice welcome.

Thanks,

Pete

 

[Rod Speed]

Novice question.

I'd be glad of help in adding a further hard drive.

My question is - can I just attach the new hard drive to
the ribbon that goes from the existing hard drive to IDE1?

Yes, but you do need to ensure that the
jumpering on the new drive is appropriate.

Further details are as follows:-

Abit BH6 motherboard

Intel Pentium 11 350 processor

Seagate Medallist pro 9.1 gb UDMA hard drive

Windows 98

CDRom and CDRW are connected by ribbon to IDE2

The Seagate hard drive connected to IDE1

Not too clued up on masters and slaves and the like -
but I think the existing hard drive is set up as a Master

Very likely. It might be setup for cable select.

You can check that using the proper model number that
should be displayed on the black bios screen at boot time at
http://www.seagate.com/support/disc/specs/family_medalist.html

I have in mind fitting a larger additional hard
drive - something like a 60 or 80gb IBM Deskstar

I wouldnt use a DeathStar myself, they arent called DeathStars for nothing.

- this will be used solely for storage of files
from adjacent connected networked pc.

So my questions are:-

1. Can I just attach the new hard drive to the ribbon
that goes from the existing hard drive to IDE1?...
Yes.

and will my pc automatically recognise it?...

Should do. You may need to set the drive type entry to AUTO.

You may well need to flash the motherboard
bios to allow it to handle drives over 32GB tho.

or will I need additional software to set up the additional hard drive?

Thats one way to get around the 32GB problem.

2.Will a hard drive such as the IBM Deskstar be
compatible with my pc system/existing hard drive?

Yes, apart from that potential 32GB problem.

3. Any other advice welcome.

Dont get a DeathStar. Get a Western Digital instead.

 

[Pete Stockdale]

Yes, but you do need to ensure that the
jumpering on the new drive is appropriate.









Very likely. It might be setup for cable select.

You can check that using the proper model number that
should be displayed on the black bios screen at boot time at
http://www.seagate.com/support/disc/specs/family_medalist.html


I wouldnt use a DeathStar myself, they arent called DeathStars for nothing.



Should do. You may need to set the drive type entry to AUTO.

You may well need to flash the motherboard
bios to allow it to handle drives over 32GB tho.


Thats one way to get around the 32GB problem.


Yes, apart from that potential 32GB problem.


Dont get a DeathStar. Get a Western Digital instead.

----------------------
Thanks, Rod...even more confused now

Yes, but you do need to ensure that the
jumpering on the new drive is appropriate.

I did here its best to use the newer, larger disc as the Master...but to
keep things simple I could retain the existing as Master and set the jumpers
on the new one as slave - do you agree that would be ok?

Very likely. It might be set-up for cable select.

No I think it is as Master I learned from the little diagram I found on the
back of the existing hard drive.
But there was some reference to cable select which I didn't understand -
what is "cable select"?

You can check that using the proper model number that
should be displayed on the black bios screen at boot time at
http://www.seagate.com/support/disc/specs/family_medalist.html

Couldn't see any reference to the model number on my screen at boot
time..but did see confirmation that its the Master.
And...frustratingly can't read the model number in the pc box and it would
be one hellova job to take it out to get a better view....and can't find an
obvious model having 9.1gb from the seagate lists, but, now have established
its the Master, perhaps I can do without that info?

I wouldn't use a DeathStar myself, they aren't called DeathStars for nothing.
Don't get a DeathStar. Get a Western Digital instead.

I'll bow to your knowledge on that one then...I'll look further afield than
IBM - I see that Western Digital do a reasonably priced 80gb.

Should do. You may need to set the drive type entry to AUTO.

Where do I do that?

You may well need to flash the motherboard
bios to allow it to handle drives over 32GB though.

Having nil experience of such things - is that difficult? Do you happen to
know a useful web address I could view how to do that?

That's one way to get around the 32GB problem.

Such software - would that come with the new hard drive or would I need to
d/l from the internet - or buy it from somewhere?

Questions...questions...sorry to lumber you....thanks in anticipation

Pete
-------------------

 

[RD]

But there was some reference to cable select which I didn't understand -
what is "cable select"?

First of all, be sure you disconnect the power plug before you mess around
inside the PC, and take not to cause any static electricity which can damage
circuit boards. Your computer instructions probably tells you how to ground
yourself and all that. With Cable Select one does not have to worry about
which drive is Master and which is Slave. The cable "selects" which is which.
And the way it does this is that the cable assumes that the drive at the end of
the cable is the Master and the drive attached mid-cable is the Slave.
However, Cable Select will only work in a system that supports that method and
only with the proper cable that allows it. With Cable Select, you jumper both
drives as "cable select" and let the ribbon cable decide which is which
according to the above. I *think* most new drives come with a Cable
Select-compatible cable (at least my new Western Digital did). Your new drive
should have detailed instructions with it, unless it is an OEM version or "bare
drive" instead of a retail kit. I'd recommend getting the retail kit; the
warranty is often longer and the instructions and hardware are all included.
(Western Dig. has a 3-year warranty in retail version only).

So to do it that way, you need to be sure your system and cable both support
cable select. Otherwise, the drive you want to be Master (i.e., the main
drive--in your case, the newer bigger one) you would jumper it as Master and
place it on the end of the cable, and jumper the other drive as "slave" and
place it on the mid-cable connector. Be sure you have the connectors lined up
in the correct fashion (look for notches, etc) so you don't damage one of the
pins. The last step is to re-connect the power connector (it too has to be
lined up in the correct fashion; it is usually keyed like a D-shape).

If your computer does not support larger drives and you can't upgrade (flash)
your bios to do so, then you may need get an ATA controller card like Promise
and hook the new drive cable to that instead of athe mother board. Do you have
a computer geek friend? He may can come over and help you since this is your
first drive install. But if you read all the directions carefully, you should
be able to do it. Also look online at the website for the drive manufacturer
you are considering. In their support section, they have installation
instructions you can review in advance, and articles on being sure your
computer can accomodate the drives.

Good luck.

Rob

 

[Rod Speed]

Yeah, can be a problem.

I did here its best to use the newer, larger disc as the Master...

Yes, generally it will be much faster than the old
drive, particularly given that old drive is so small.

but to keep things simple I could retain the existing
as Master and set the jumpers on the new one as
slave - do you agree that would be ok?

Yes, that will certainly work as long as the 32GB problem doesnt
arise. Main downside is that it wont be as fast as with the new
drive as the boot drive, but a lot easier to setup your way.

No I think it is as Master I learned from the little
diagram I found on the back of the existing hard drive.

Yeah, that was very common with that vintage of system.

But there was some reference to cable select
which I didn't understand - what is "cable select"?

Its just a different way of specifying which
drive is master and which drive is slave.

With cable select both drives are jumpered Cable Select and
the one on end of the ribbon cable becomes master and the
one on the middle connector become slave. And it needs to
be a cable select cable too, different to a normal one.

Dont worry about it, with an older system like yours,
it wont be using cable select unless its a Compaq.

Couldn't see any reference to the model number on my screen at boot
time..but did see confirmation that its the Master.

And...frustratingly can't read the model number in the pc box and it
would be one hellova job to take it out to get a better view....and can't
find an obvious model having 9.1gb from the seagate lists, but, now
have established its the Master, perhaps I can do without that info?

Yep, the only reason for datasheet was if you couldnt read
the label telling you the jumper config currently being used.

I'll bow to your knowledge on that one then...I'll look further afield
than IBM - I see that Western Digital do a reasonably priced 80gb.

Yeah, there isnt anything in it price wise.

Where do I do that?

Get into the bios settings by pressing Delete very early
on in the boot, with the black bios screen which usually
has something about the Del key to get into the bios.

Then in the drive table, just make sure
its shows AUTO. It likely will already.

Having nil experience of such things - is that difficult?

Its a bit tricky, and a bit dangerous, but its not that
hard. The most important thing is to ensure you
dont get a power failure while you are doing it.

Do you happen to know a useful web address I could view how to do that?

http://www.abit.com.tw/abitweb/webjsp/english/download_content.jsp?pTITLE=BH6&#Bios
has the bios for your motherboard, or
http://www.abit.com.tw/abitweb/webjsp/english/download_content.jsp?pTITLE=BH6+V1.1&#Bios
for a BH6 v1.1

You can see that support for drives over 32GB came with version NV and later.

The manual is right at the bottom of that page and
Appendix C spells out the detail of how to flash the bios.


The other approach if you're going to keep the new drive as a
slave is to list the drive type as NONE, and then let Win find the
drive when it boots. Thats a lot safer than flashing the bios, but
does prevent you from using the new drive as the faster boot drive.

Such software - would that come with the new hard drive

Nope, not usually.

or would I need to d/l from the internet

Yes, from the hard drive manufacturer's web site.

- or buy it from somewhere?

Nope.

I wouldnt go that route myself tho. Cleanest approach is to
flash the motherboard bios so that there isnt a problem with
drives over 32GB, but there is a small risk involved.

If you plan to go the simplest way, with the new drive
as slave, just set the drive type in the bios to NONE
for just that drive and let Win find it for itself.

Questions...questions...sorry to lumber you....

No problem, thats what these technical newsgroups are for.

thanks in anticipation

No probs, and you're welcome to ask as much
as you like more if anything is still unclear.

 

[Pete Stockdale]

Yeah, can be a problem.



Yes, generally it will be much faster than the old
drive, particularly given that old drive is so small.


Yes, that will certainly work as long as the 32GB problem doesnt
arise. Main downside is that it wont be as fast as with the new
drive as the boot drive, but a lot easier to setup your way.



Yeah, that was very common with that vintage of system.


Its just a different way of specifying which
drive is master and which drive is slave.

With cable select both drives are jumpered Cable Select and
the one on end of the ribbon cable becomes master and the
one on the middle connector become slave. And it needs to
be a cable select cable too, different to a normal one.

Dont worry about it, with an older system like yours,
it wont be using cable select unless its a Compaq.




Yep, the only reason for datasheet was if you couldnt read
the label telling you the jumper config currently being used.



Yeah, there isnt anything in it price wise.



Get into the bios settings by pressing Delete very early
on in the boot, with the black bios screen which usually
has something about the Del key to get into the bios.

Then in the drive table, just make sure
its shows AUTO. It likely will already.



Its a bit tricky, and a bit dangerous, but its not that
hard. The most important thing is to ensure you
dont get a power failure while you are doing it.

http://www.abit.com.tw/abitweb/webjsp/english/download_content.jsp?pTITLE=BH6&#Bios
has the bios for your motherboard, or
http://www.abit.com.tw/abitweb/webjsp/english/download_content.jsp?pTITLE=BH6+V1.1&#Bios
for a BH6 v1.1

You can see that support for drives over 32GB came with version NV and later.

The manual is right at the bottom of that page and
Appendix C spells out the detail of how to flash the bios.


The other approach if you're going to keep the new drive as a
slave is to list the drive type as NONE, and then let Win find the
drive when it boots. Thats a lot safer than flashing the bios, but
does prevent you from using the new drive as the faster boot drive.
drive?


Nope, not usually.


Yes, from the hard drive manufacturer's web site.


Nope.

I wouldnt go that route myself tho. Cleanest approach is to
flash the motherboard bios so that there isnt a problem with
drives over 32GB, but there is a small risk involved.

If you plan to go the simplest way, with the new drive
as slave, just set the drive type in the bios to NONE
for just that drive and let Win find it for itself.


No problem, thats what these technical newsgroups are for.


No probs, and you're welcome to ask as much
as you like more if anything is still unclear.