Hard Drive Questions

[Klander Brigade]

So here's the deal. Got a Seagate Barracuda 300GB SATA for Christmas, no IDE cables, power cables, or instructions. (<--Thank you zipzoomfly). I'm gonna be using it as a plain old storage drive, no OS, in my Dell 4600. So, if I'm gonna do this, what should the primary/slave deal be and what cables do I need to buy? I have one CDRW/DVD-ROM drive if that helps. Excuse my little hardware knowledge. I've been checking our instructions and guides online, or should I just take it to the guy and have him put it in there so I don't totally screw things up?

EDIT: And what's the deal with the jumper? Does that determine slave/master? And is the jumper the same thing as the pin?

[Homicidal_Klown V2.0]

Put the jumped in the slave setting if you're going to be using it for storage.

Install it yourself, it's simple and you wont get overcharged for something you can easily do in 2 minutes yourself.

Okay, to answer all your other questions, this (http://www.seagate.com/support/kb/disc/howto/sata_install_tshoot.html) should tell you everything you need to know.

[Zakath]

(<--Thank you zipzoomfly).
Don't blame them, instead tell the person who bought it for you to get the version that says 'Retail' not 'OEM' next time.

[Klander Brigade]

Don't blame them, instead tell the person who bought it for you to get the version that says 'Retail' not 'OEM' next time.

It was actually my fault, I looked over the "bare drive" part. My bad. Saves a couple bucks though, or so they say. Money I'll spend on cables elsewhere. Thanks for the info.

[Maggot Dream]

I just went through this myself. You should have all the necessary cables already inside your computer (I did, and your PC is identical to mine). I did need to buy an extension for the power cables, but those cost about $3. As for the jumper, I took the jumpers off both of my drives and it orks fine. Took a while for me to get everything set up and working, but it should work.

[Brendan]

just curious, how much did it cost?

[Homicidal_Klown V2.0]

just curious, how much did it cost?
They cost about £100 new.

[JohnnySixGuns]

External hard drives are a viable solution these days that can help you avoid all these headaches in the future. With USB 2 they are virtually just as fast as internals and prices have really come down. You can easily find a 250 gig external for under $150 these days. And while that is still more then a 250 gig internal will cost you, it's still a pretty good deal. And they are very conveniant, also. I've had one for several months and don't regret getting it over an internal at all.

[Klander Brigade]

I just went through this myself. You should have all the necessary cables already inside your computer (I did, and your PC is identical to mine). I did need to buy an extension for the power cables, but those cost about $3. As for the jumper, I took the jumpers off both of my drives and it orks fine. Took a while for me to get everything set up and working, but it should work.

Thanks, that helps a lot. I'll open up my case and take a look. I was looking through the Dell manual, and it says to put in a new hd, you have to move the old one to another slot? Is this true, because the times I've looked in there, I've noticed the 3.5 bays are pretty tight in the corner. I might be wrong.

[Anglachel]

Maddox!!!!!!!!!!!!

owned by caps filter

[JohnnySixGuns]

Thanks, that helps a lot. I'll open up my case and take a look. I was looking through the Dell manual, and it says to put in a new hd, you have to move the old one to another slot? Is this true?
Yes, it is true. On the 4600 the HD is placed behind the open slot for a new one. So you must remove the old one first to access the slot for the new one. Although I don't think you have to move the old one to the new slot, you do have to remove it to install the new one. I have a 4600. That's one of the reasons I went with an external. Removing HD's, although relatively cut and dry, makes me wary when they are packed with data. Back up your files and good luck.

[Maggot Dream]

Thanks, that helps a lot. I'll open up my case and take a look. I was looking through the Dell manual, and it says to put in a new hd, you have to move the old one to another slot? Is this true, because the times I've looked in there, I've noticed the 3.5 bays are pretty tight in the corner. I might be wrong.
Yeah, you need to take out the old one first before you can install the new one. You have to be able to take out the additional bracket. You don't actually need to move the old hard drive permanently, you just need to take it out while you install the new one. Also, you might need a couple more screws, I was short by two. I just pulled a couple off my parents' old computer.

[Let's Chop Cats!]

I just purchased that harddrive earlier today.

[CarnageFairy]

I had a similar problem. Got a SATA Maxtor DiamondMax 250Gb for christmas, wasn't sure how to format/partition it since it wasn't showing up in My Computer but was visible in BIOS and Device Manager. I just formatted it through Alcohol 120%.

[Maggot Dream]

Seagate actually has a decent program that sets up the hard drive automatically. You don't have to worry about using the Disk Manager in Windows, Seagate's program sets it all up nicely. Unfortunately, their description of what to do with the jumper is a bit vague, but I figured it out after playing around with it for a while.

[Klander Brigade]

Seagate actually has a decent program that sets up the hard drive automatically. You don't have to worry about using the Disk Manager in Windows, Seagate's program sets it all up nicely. Unfortunately, their description of what to do with the jumper is a bit vague, but I figured it out after playing around with it for a while.

I downloaded that program that walks you through... but what exactly do I do with the jumper?

[Phalanx]

Don't blame them, instead tell the person who bought it for you to get the version that says 'Retail' not 'OEM' next time.

why pay more for nothing?

[Klander Brigade]

why pay more for nothing?

I think with regular retail, it includes cables, screws, instructions, etc. Not positive on that though.

[Pariah]

SATA Drives don't use IDE cables. They use a different kind of cable and different type of connector.

Does your hard disk have both IDE and SATA connectors? If so, do you have an SATA connector on your motherboard? If not, do you have an SATA controller card?

[Ephemeral]

I just bought 2 200GBs. :cool:

And 2GB of ram. :cool:

[Homicidal_Klown V2.0]

I just bought 2 200GBs. :cool:

And 2GB of ram. :cool:
For my birthday?

Oh Jeff! You shouldn't have!

[JohnXDoe]

I swear I'm going to stick to externals. What a pain. Well, maybe that's not 100% true, of course. But mine is working great. I have the exact same model computer as the TS, and I wasn't going to go through all this. Whatever it is? But anyway, just having to remove my HD to install another was enough for me to go external. Bleh.

[Pariah]

I swear I'm going to stick to externals. What a pain. Well, maybe that's not 100% true, of course. But mine is working great. I have the exact same model computer as the TS, and I wasn't going to go through all this. Whatever it is? But anyway, just having to remove my HD to install another was enough for me to go external. Bleh.

Do you buy externals, or do you buy internals and an external bay?

The latter is cheaper and works just as well.

[JohnXDoe]

Do you buy externals, or do you buy internals and an external bay? The latter is cheaper and works just as well.
Yeah well, that's the thing. This is my first one. So I didn't realize it when I purchased it. I thought I heard of it and I saw some cases, but didn't look any further into it because the one I got was 80 gigs (kinda small, but will suit my needs for the next couple of years, at least) and only $66.00. But next time around that will probably be the way I'll go.

[Teh Secksi]

So are the externals interchangeable between different computers?

[JohnXDoe]

So are the externals interchangeable between different computers?
Yeah. The other night I unplugged it and went downstairs and gave my neighbor a bunch of music. They're hot swappable, too. So you don't have to turn off your computer or the other one to get them up and running. Just plug 'em in and power 'em up.

[Pariah]

Yeah. The other night I unplugged it and went downstairs and gave my neighbor a bunch of music. They're hot swappable, too. So you don't have to turn off your computer or the other one to get them up and running. Just plug 'em in and power 'em up.

Ahh... The beauty of USB.

[JohnXDoe]

Ahh... The beauty of USB.
Yeah, it's pretty sweet. I had heard that externals were too slow, but I think that's kind of old school thinking. USB2 works great. It's about 40 times faster retrieving/sending data then USB1. Which I believe puts it at virtually the same level as an internal, if not exactly. I've been impressed so far. And apparently quality and reliabilty has improved, too.

[Phalanx]

if you guys think USB is fast, you should see SCSI hard drives

[JohnXDoe]

if you guys think USB is fast, you should see SCSI hard drives
Please, do tell more.

[Phalanx]

15,000 rpm hard drives :thumb:

[JohnXDoe]

15,000 rpm hard drives :thumb:
Well that's getting way out there, now. I haven't seen an external above 7200rpm. Why this is, I don't know? Heat issues, perhaps? And my internal is 7200 anyway, so it's all good. The main thing is still the USB2 when it comes to externals, though. Because that's like the highway the data is traveling down. So no matter how fast the HD itself is working, I would think if it weren't for USB2 it wouldn't make much difference.

[Phalanx]

Well that's getting way out there, now. I haven't seen an external above 7200rpm. Why this is, I don't know? Heat issues, perhaps? And my internal is 7200 anyway, so it's all good. The main thing is still the USB2 when it comes to externals, though. Because that's like the highway the data is traveling down. So no matter how fast the HD itself is working, I would think if it weren't for USB2 it wouldn't make much difference.

its probably due to the bottlenecks that USB provide, theres no point in making the disc spin faster if the data can only get to the computer and back so fast if you know what I mean.

I'm surprised people don't use Firewire Hard Disks more often, they're pretty quick!

[Pariah]

I don't have a Firewire connector on my computer. :(

[Phalanx]

I don't have a Firewire connector on my computer. :(

then you're living in the past :P

[JohnXDoe]

its probably due to the bottlenecks that USB provide, theres no point in making the disc spin faster if the data can only get to the computer and back so fast if you know what I mean.

I'm surprised people don't use Firewire Hard Disks more often, they're pretty quick!
480mbps isn't fast enough? I really don't have a reference for it except to say I've read that's plenty fast to handle just about anything.

[Phalanx]

meh, that's nothing compared to the 80 megabytes a second SCSI does :P

[JohnXDoe]

meh, that's nothing compared to the 80 megabytes a second SCSI does :P
Do you think what I got was a good choice for a computer like mine? What would of been my other options this time around? I have no firewire port and it's a Dimension 4600. Here's what I got:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822154623

[Phalanx]

Do you think what I got was a good choice for a computer like mine? What would of been my other options this time around? I have no firewire port and it's a Dimension 4600. Here's what I got:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822154623

you're really asking the wrong guy, I never use external hard drives simply because my 160gb SATA HDD is fine for me, but thats a great price for it and it has all the specs of an internal hard drive.

I was sorta semi joking on the Firewire port thing, I have one but I never use it, Imacs are more popular with Firewire ports since alot of compatible cameras and iPods use Firewire

:thumb:

[JohnXDoe]

^^You disappoint me, Phalanx. :p

[Zakath]

I have a very lonely 250GB Seagate HD just sitting on my desk. :upset:

[Phalanx]

^^You disappoint me, Phalanx. :p

you probably use the external to backup explicit images :smoke:

[JohnnySixGuns]

you probably use the external to backup explicit images
I can't speak for anyone else, but mine comes in very handy for that. Among other things.

[Teh Secksi]

megabits, megabytes.... How how many megabits would one megabyte be? :confused:

[Pariah]

megabits, megabytes.... How how many megabits would one megabyte be? :confused:

8 bits = 1 byte

[Pariah]

then you're living in the past :P

I only have USB 1.1. :(

[Teh Secksi]

8 bits = 1 byte
Thank you.

[JohnXDoe]

I only have USB 1.1. :(
hahaha. Slow poke. Go talk to Meagan about that, jimmy! :smash:

[Teh Secksi]

Now thats a Megabash haha :lol:

:upset:

[Pariah]

hahaha. Slow poke. Go talk to Meagan about that, jimmy! :smash:

My brother has a P4 motherboard and CPU he still has to send me.

Also, all I have conntected to the USB are my webcam and a controller.

[Let's Chop Cats!]

It's all about buying a 300 gig internal and enclosure for under 150.

[Ephemeral]

For my birthday?

Oh Jeff! You shouldn't have!
:-*

Check your mailbox, baby.

[JohnXDoe]

:-*

Check your mailbox, baby.
I thought I was your baby, fagwads. :confused:

[Maggot Dream]

I downloaded that program that walks you through... but what exactly do I do with the jumper?
I have the jumpers removed from both hard drives, the original one and the new one. That works fine for me. You may get an error (Primary Master Drive 1 not found, etc.), but I think removing the jumpers should work. If not, get the software from Seagate, the one that creates a diskette worked well for me.

[Brendan]

Well that's getting way out there, now. I haven't seen an external above 7200rpm. Why this is, I don't know?

Only servers use harddrives faster then 7200 rpm.

I have a very lonely 250GB Seagate HD just sitting on my desk. :upset:

internal or external?

[Let's Chop Cats!]

Only servers use harddrives faster then 7200 rpm.Or those who want bleeding edge proformance.

[Brendan]

Or those who want bleeding edge proformance.


really?! i havent seen a consumer harddrive that isnt over 7200 yet (not that ive looked)

[Let's Chop Cats!]

Check Alienware's site, they're an option in their gaming setups.

[Maggot Dream]

Check Alienware's site, they're an option in their gaming setups.
Alienware's kind of a ripoff though. They make good systems, but they're overpriced. I'd rather build my own computer than pay outrageous amounts to have them send me one. They do look pretty cool though. I'd think about it if I could even come close to affording one.

[Ephemeral]

I thought I was your baby, fagwads. :confused:
:angry:

Not when you call me 'fagnads' of 'fagwads'.

I got a new girl, and her name is Stu. :mad:



i still l u anyways.

[Homicidal_Klown V2.0]

:angry:

Not when you call me 'fagnads' of 'fagwads'.

I got a new girl, and her name is Stu. :mad:



i still l u anyways.
>: (

[Zakath]

internal or external?
Internal

[Klander Brigade]

SATA Drives don't use IDE cables. They use a different kind of cable and different type of connector.

Does your hard disk have both IDE and SATA connectors? If so, do you have an SATA connector on your motherboard? If not, do you have an SATA controller card?

Not really sure on that. I know, by looking in the manual I have a Serial ATA hard drive, and I saw some other stuff that said Serial ATA, so I'm guessing I've got that stuff. I'll figure out what I have, maybe take a picture of the guts of the computer, take it to Staples or a computer repair store, and get what I need.

[Klander Brigade]

I checked my comp on the insides. It turns out my regular HD is a IDE (might be Ultra IDE) Maxtor Apollo. The new HD I got for christmas is a SATA. I checked the diagrams in the manual and it says I have 2 Serial ATA connectors. What else will I need? (300GB Seagate Baracuda HD came with no cables, etc. Computer is a Dell 4600)

[ChodaBoy]

SATA cables, spare power connector. I think its Molex