I need to install a 2nd hard drive.

  • Thread starter Thread starter Frank Martin
  • Start date Start date
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Frank Martin

I have WindowsXP pro.

And an "MSI 945P Neo" motherboard.

And a dual-core Intel LGA775 processor.

And a single HDD "WDC2500JD-00FYBO" .

Could someone point me in the right direction
to buy and install a new 2nd (ie extra) HDD
of about 100Gb capacity?

The power supply (300W max) is a "Task
International Inc. Model TK-930TX" Will this
cater for a new HDD?

What sort of cable do I require and where do
I plug it in?

Regards, Frank
 
In almost all cases, computers already have internal connections for a
second IDE hard drive. If you currently have a SATA drive, you will likely
need cables, but often those come with the drive. Most hard drives require
relatively little power.
 
If you would open the owner's manaul that surely came with your system and
if you would read it you would be surprised at all the information.
 
You Know Who ~ said:
In almost all cases, computers already have internal connections for a
second IDE hard drive. If you currently have a SATA drive, you will
likely need cables, but often those come with the drive. Most hard drives
require relatively little power.
Click to expand...


Frank:
You might want to consider another WD SATA HDD - the WWD2500KS model. I see
ZipZoomFly has it for $68 including free shipping - very reasonable indeed.
See http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=101220-12

Its disk capacity is 250 GB with a 16 MB cache. With these large-capacity
hard drives so relatively cheap these days I would recommend you spring for
this larger one rather than the 100 GB capacity you mentioned.

We've worked with a veritable slew of this particular model hard drive over
the past couple of years and they've proven to be very reliable.

Note this ZZF offering is for an OEM model - not a boxed version. So you'll
need a SATA data cable for connection of the drive to one of your
motherboard's SATA connectors. In case you're wondering, these OEM versions
are in no way inferior in terms of construction/performance to the same
retail, boxed versions. It's just that they arrive as a "bare" drive without
the data cable and installation leaflet.

Anyway it's one HDD you can consider. There are so many on the market these
days that you have a near-inexhaustible supply of different models &
capacities to choose from. You might want to peruse other offerings from ZZF
and Newegg (http:www.newegg.com) to get an idea of what's available. Just
stick with the SATA-II models which have a data interface of 3 GB/s rather
than the older SATA-I models with a data interface of 1.5 GB/s. Actually the
latter are fast disappearing from the marketplace. I prefer a model with a
16 MB cache rather than an 8 MB cache although many "experts" don't feel
this is an important difference in the "real-world".

Although you didn't mention the rest of the components in your PC, I'm
assuming it's more-or-less the "normal" array, including an optical drive,
maybe a floppy drive, a sound card, not an unusually high-powered graphics
card, etc. - in other words a relatively modest system. If that be the case
your present power supply should be adequate to handle another HDD.

Hmmm. I just noticed your final comment about what kind of cable you need
and "where do I plug it in?" You've no experience with getting inside your
computer case and installing and/or uninstalling various components? It's a
relatively simple process installing a SATA HDD but like everything else in
this business you have to know what you're about. Do you have a
knowledgeable friend/acquaintance who might lend any assistance here? That
would be the best course of action if you've never done this kind of
installation before.
Anna
 
If you would open the owner's manaul that surely came with your system and
if you would read it you would be surprised at all the information.
Click to expand...

A lot of people buy used computers, and they don't always come with
manuals. I recently bought a used computer and asked if it had any
open bays for hard drives. The seller, who put the computer together
himself, said it did, but they needed to be SATA drives. My old drive
was an IDE drive, so I thought I was out of luck. But when a friend
checked it out, there were two empty bays, one IDE and one SATA. Even
the guy who put it together didn't know what it had.

My previous computer came with nothing but a restore CD. Certainly no
manual.

I wouldn't expect many used computers to come with manuals.
 
Anna said:
"You Know Who ~" <[email protected]>
wrote in message



Frank:
You might want to consider another WD SATA
HDD - the WWD2500KS model. I see ZipZoomFly
has it for $68 including free shipping -
very reasonable indeed. See
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=101220-12

Its disk capacity is 250 GB with a 16 MB
cache. With these large-capacity hard
drives so relatively cheap these days I
would recommend you spring for this larger
one rather than the 100 GB capacity you
mentioned.

We've worked with a veritable slew of this
particular model hard drive over the past
couple of years and they've proven to be
very reliable.

Note this ZZF offering is for an OEM
model - not a boxed version. So you'll need
a SATA data cable for connection of the
drive to one of your motherboard's SATA
connectors. In case you're wondering, these
OEM versions are in no way inferior in
terms of construction/performance to the
same retail, boxed versions. It's just that
they arrive as a "bare" drive without the
data cable and installation leaflet.

Anyway it's one HDD you can consider. There
are so many on the market these days that
you have a near-inexhaustible supply of
different models & capacities to choose
from. You might want to peruse other
offerings from ZZF and Newegg
(http:www.newegg.com) to get an idea of
what's available. Just stick with the
SATA-II models which have a data interface
of 3 GB/s rather than the older SATA-I
models with a data interface of 1.5 GB/s.
Actually the latter are fast disappearing
from the marketplace. I prefer a model with
a 16 MB cache rather than an 8 MB cache
although many "experts" don't feel this is
an important difference in the
"real-world".

Although you didn't mention the rest of the
components in your PC, I'm assuming it's
more-or-less the "normal" array, including
an optical drive, maybe a floppy drive, a
sound card, not an unusually high-powered
graphics card, etc. - in other words a
relatively modest system. If that be the
case your present power supply should be
adequate to handle another HDD.

Hmmm. I just noticed your final comment
about what kind of cable you need and
"where do I plug it in?" You've no
experience with getting inside your
computer case and installing and/or
uninstalling various components? It's a
relatively simple process installing a SATA
HDD but like everything else in this
business you have to know what you're
about. Do you have a knowledgeable
friend/acquaintance who might lend any
assistance here? That would be the best
course of action if you've never done this
kind of installation before.
Anna
Click to expand...


Thank you all for the replies and I will
follow these up. It just occurred to me that
I might just ask the HDD vendor for help and
I'll take the box the computer came in.
Regards, Frank
 
Sorry - but I would not buy a used computer unless it came with all the
manuals. CDs, etc.
 
Sorry - but I would not buy a used computer unless it came with all the
manuals. CDs, etc.
Click to expand...


Most information can be found online, if you know where to look. I've
been happy with all of my used computers. Cheaper than a new computer
and better specs than the bare bones systems in the stores.
 
I have bought 3 computers new in the box and never opened any documentation, don't remember even using a restore disc. Most documentation I've seen has been pretty generic. I have found all the info I (or anyone else) needs to know in the computer! -hard drives, ram, processor, sound cards, optical drives and everything else stuffed inside the case can be changed/upgraded! SURELY the machine can tell you what is going on inside. Good advice you SURELY should be able to find online (you would be surprised). I am composing this post on a 3yo machine that I bought used with NO docs or disks, the computer told me everything about itself. I have many "Frankenstein" machines around here and can use anyone of them at any time. And yes there are frustrating times with proprietary hardware and such but there are workarounds. I am completely self taught, no correspondence course. What I do have is many years of trial and error (none fatal) on countless computers starting with win 3.1 Proving that a layperson can work on their own machine in spite of people ... Well maybe when you have a bit more experience working with computers you SURELY should be able to give an educated response to someones post!

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