DECIDING ON A NEW HARD DRIVE
Installing a new hard drive is a pretty simple task and the actual install only takes a few minutes to complete. The first thing to be done in this process is purchase the new hard drive and make sure that it is compatible with your system this can be done by consulting your motherboard manual and your operating systems guidelines on what hard drives are compatible. You then must decide what storage capacity your new drive must have and any other factors including price you feel you should be taken into consideration when making the purchase.
PREPARING FOR THE INSTALL
Once you have purchased your new hard drive it is time to prepare for the install. I recommend first installing any software that came with your drive. Once this is accomplished it is time to think about safety. First power off the machine (I also recommend unplugging the tower from the power source.) Now remove the cover so that you can access the inside of your system. Usually it only takes the removal of a few screws and then lifting off the side panel to open the unit, however some machines differ from this rule and you may even need to remove a front portion in order to open the case. Either way once the case is open attach your antistatic bracelet if you have one if not continuously touch the metal outside edges of the case to expel any built up static electricity. This will prevent any sensitive components inside your machine from being damaged.
SETTING JUMPERS (Only for IDE)
Basically setting jumpers is how you configure the drive you are about to install. It is used to document and set the drive to its proper settings, for instance if the new drive you are going to install will be the only device on its IDE channel then it needs to be set to single-drive configuration. For a drive that is the first of two it will need to be set as the master of the IDE channel, and for a drive that is second on the channel it will need to be configured as the slave. Most often diagrams of the jumper settings will be included on the top of the hard drive case. If not you can find this information in the documentation accompanying your new drive. Once you understand how to set the jumpers you can grab a pair of needle nose pliers and set the jumpers for the configuration of your drive.
INSTALLING THE NEW DRIVE
First look for an open drive bay usually these bays are located at the front of the tower. If you are replacing an existing hard drive then it is probably best to insert your new hard drive in the bay that your old drive is currently occupying. Unscrewing a few screws and removing the old drive will allow you to access the bay to insert the new drive. However if you are planning to add the new drive while still retaining the old one it is a good practice to keep an open bay between the two hard drives. The actual mounting of the hard drive differs from case to case some bays are removable and you can remove these and then insert the drive for others the bays are stationary and require you to mount the drive inside the case. Either way the process is not difficult whether you have removed the bay from the enclosure or not the rest of the process is still the same and that is insert the hard drive in the bay being careful to line up the screw holes and then insert the screws. Once the screws are snuggly in place it is time to replace the bay if you previously removed it.
CONNECTING THE CABLES
From here we want to connect the cables. Depending on the type of drive used you are going to need to attach either an IDE cable or a SATA Cable to your new hard drive. If you are using IDE and replacing an existing hard drive all that is to be done is connect the Cable your old hard drive was using to your new one. However if you are adding a new hard drive while retaining the existing one you can either connect both drives to one cable or to separate cables. For performance reasons I suggest using two separate cables if possible. The primary IDE cable (most likely the one you were already using) should be connected to the fastest drive and the secondary cable should be connected to the slower drive. From this point ensure that the cables are connected properly to the connectors on the mother board if using IDE cables these are big black connectors and pretty hard to miss. Refer to the Drive and mother board manuals for locating these connectors if you are unsure about their location.
AFTER THE INSTALL
Now that the hard work is done the only thing left to do is close back up your system, plug it in, and turn it on to verify that the new hard drive is working properly.
That’s it you’re all done, not so hard after all right!
