How can I install a secondary hard drive on my PC?
How can I install a secondary hard drive on my PC?i have a maxtor hard as my primary currently and i have another 250gb hard from my previous pc ( where that pc had some virus issues ) …. So i want to know can i install that hard drive to my current pc without any data losses.I get WHY you want to save you’re old drive, but you need to be very careful of what you’re doing. If you had virus issues on your old computer, you’re very likely going to infect your new computer, even if you think you got rid of all those viruses/trojans,/malware/etc…Most antivirus programs can’t actually find or remove a lot of things commonly (but often incorrectly) called viruses. Some types malware, like pop up programs, aren’t looked for, but can hide in other programs. I’ve seen “clean” drives infect entire networks.Note: this answer assumes that “PC” means a traditional desktop type computer. This will not work for laptops, as they generally don’t have expansion ports or extra drive slots. In this case, you’re best to get an external USB HD case.So, as far as installing a secondary hard drive on your new PC, well, that’s easy enough. Most computers have dual SATA ports, but both are generally used in systems with a HDD and a DVD/CD drive. But, for a reasonably nominal price, you can purchase an expansion card that is easy to install, and can add more SATA drive ports.Amazon.com: IO Crest SI-PEX40061 2 Port SATA 6Gbps PCIe 2.0 x1 Non-Raid Controller Card: Computers & AccessoriesAmazon.com: StarTech.com 4x SATA Power Splitter Adapter Cable (PYO4SATA): Home Audio & TheaterBut, you’ll want to be perfectly assured that there are no viruses on your drive before you install it, lest you infect your new computer, which would be a big bummer.When you get your expansion card and power splitter, (with the power off) just open the case, install the card in your PCI-e slot, then restart your computer (with the case open), and let the computer recognize the new card and install the drivers. This may require a CD (which would come with the disk), or Windows may have what it needs.Turn off the computer, then slot the old HDD into an open bay (many cases have an extra 3.5″ bay). Connect up the power and data cables, then restart the computer. Once running, you should be able to see the old drive as a new drive letter.Close the case.Easy.Any questions or additional info, just comment.
How can I connect a laptop hard drive to a normal PC or to another laptop via USB?
A laptop hard drive uses the same interface as a desktop hard drive so you could just hook it up in the desktop like any other drive with a SATA cable and SATA power cable. But this option would be easier and work with other drives in the future too: StarTech USB3SSATAIDE USB 3.0 to SATA or IDE Hard Drive Adapter ConverterA laptop hard drive can get all the power it needs over the usb cable using one of those adapters. They come with an external power adapter through allowing this to work with desktop drives that require more power as well. I have 2 of theses and use them constantly.
How do I install 2 hard drives in my Asus g50v laptop?
Hey there I was looking for some help installing a second hard drive in my laptop. I bought a new 500gb hard drive which I installed windows 7 on and now use as my main drive and I want to use my old hard drive as my secondary drive for extra space for pictures, music, etc. The problem I have is Windows doesn't seem to detect my second hard drive. I've checked My Computer, the disk management tool, etc. But it does show up in the BIOS, I can see both drives there. So what can I do? Does the old one need to be formatted? Any help would be much appreciated.
If I install everything on a second hard drive, can I reformat the primary hard drive? Will the programs on the secondary hard drive still work?
The two other answers simply aren’t right. The short answer is, maybe.From your computer’s perspective there is one special drive, one first love, one who is different from all the rest…and that is your boot drive. This contains at least enough of your OS to start the boot process ie. you can have an OS span multiple drives (impossible for Windows unless you use RAID which is cheating) but one drive starts the process off.Once you are booted your PC is happy. It doesn’t give a fig about which drive you actually use to store data (including programs) so long as it’s accessible when needed. Except for OS data including ‘how/where’ a program is installed — that goes on the boot drive thank-you-very-much.You can have two drives with nothing but OS on the boot and everything else on the other. Or have it all on one drive…and everything in between. You can screw around with any drive and it’ll still boot though data or programs stored there aren’t available. Screw with the boot drive and you’re looking at a ‘restore factory defaults’ or full reinstall of something.The ‘maybe’ comes in here. Given your scenario say you reinstall your OS in some way. Now it boots but there are no icons for anything but default OS stuff because this install doesn’t have the ‘how/where’ another had. You can manually create an icon to a program on the second drive and try running it. Some will recreate the needed registry entries and return to life. Some won’t.World of Warcraft recreates. Installing Steam games on a separate drive, reinstalling, and then telling Steam again to store games on that same drive/directory works great, no loss of data or progress. These are just two I can personally validate. Your mileage may vary.So if you blow up the boot drive as you describe all the programs on the second drive are orphans. Some will respond to love and hug you and some will curse you. Just run them to find out which…PS. If you take that second drive to another computer running a compatible OS you’re in the same scenario; they may or not run...but they should be consistent.
Can a second hard drive be installed into the HP Pavilion Slimline S5550Z?
Here is manual for your computer. http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c01949721.pdf Looking at illustrations it is hard to tell if there is room for another. Open it up and look. It has 4 SATA ports. Look here for MOBO info http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c02458055&tmp_track_link=ot_faqs/top_issues/en_us/c02458055/loc:2&cc=us&dlc=en&lang=en&lc=en&product=4242372#N470 As for drives either a standard desktop 3.5 in drive or a 2.5 in laptop will work with adapter. I have a desktop with a 2.5 in laptop drive installed with an adapter.
How large of my hard drive should D: drive be on a Vista laptop?
There is no requirement to have a partition for a "D Drive". However, some people believe that your data may be safer on a separate partition. But if a hard drive fails, you usually lose everything. So, the best move is to install a second hard drive if you want that configuration. It seems that you don't care to have that configuration, but there is no simple and free method to change the partitions of your hard drive while leaving your files and OS intact. If you want to do this, there is a product called Partition Magic and it has been around for a long time. It is a Symantec product and has been discontinued, but it still works. The most recent version is v8 and it runs about $69.99 where I've seen it. There are several other products on the market, but this is the only one that I've ever used. As far as making your re-install disks...you can't. Unless you purchased them in soft copy as a .iso. That process is pretty simple. Otherwise you need to get the discs from the computer manufacturer or purchase a new OS from a retail store. If you require further assistance or information, I can be reached on crossloop.com. http://www.crossloop.com/benhunsaker
1 TB 5400 or 750 GB 7200 for secondary hard drive?
Go with the 1TB 5400 for the seondary/data drive if you've got lots of movies/music and other large files. The extra space is likely to be more valuable than the speed, and the lower rpm drive runs cooler, too. For laptops, minimizing heat is a big consideration. Applications loaded to the HDD will take longer to launch, so if you're planning to load a lot of programs I might lean towards the 7200rpm 750GB and just get an external drive later. But the difference between the 7200 and 5400 rpm drives is still minimal, it's not night and day like the difference between an HDD and SSD. Make sure you've got plenty of RAM and don't use your SSD for the Windows paging file or temporary file storage. The write cycle limit is a real restriction of the technology, so things like that will shorten the liifespan of your SSD.
Can I install games into my D drive?
Yep. You can install to any drive letter you want. The C: drive is only important because it's where the system files are and most programs are installed
Alienware M14x Second Hard drive Hang?
You have covered most if not all the every day problems. I wish you would have run SMART on that hard drive and a program called auto clave on UBD utility disk. Microsoft answer desk is free, give it a try and you will like it. http://www.answerdesk.com/ This is new and very good... Hey, I enjoyed your question, I have worked as a technician most of my life, I hope I have helped you... Good luck... CompTIA A+ Certified Computer Professional