Installing Hard Disk?

[sphelan]

Typical!

I bought two Seagate Barracuda 500GB HDs today for the PC. Took them home, opened the PC and I find there are no leads to connect the HDs.

The HDs came just wrapped in plastic antistatic. No box. No cables. I bought them in a main street computer shop. Is it normal that they come like this?

Should the PC have cables to connect more HDs or is it normal that I now have to go and buy these?

[saxman]

It is quite possible to purchase hard discs from good suppliers and end up with no cables. Such drives are usually sold as OEM version - but they are not like the OEM software scam. Many suppliers stock OEM version hard discs that have no cables.
Most PCs will not have enough cables included to connect the maximum number of discs. So yes, I see it as normal to sometimes have to buy cables.
Cables are cheap and should be available from PC World, Maplin etc.
What is the model number of your Seagate Barracuda discs?

[sphelan]

Originally Posted by saxman

It is quite possible to purchase hard discs from good suppliers and end up with no cables. Such drives are usually sold as OEM version - but they are not like the OEM software scam. Many suppliers stock OEM version hard discs that have no cables.
Most PCs will not have enough cables included to connect the maximum number of discs. So yes, I see it as normal to sometimes have to buy cables.
Cables are cheap and should be available from PC World, Maplin etc.
What is the model number of your Seagate Barracuda discs?

Don't go anywhere saxman please...

[sphelan]

Updated with more info...

Here is what I've got (I'm giving lots of info as I don't know what's important and what not):

• The 2 HDs are Seagate Barracuda ST3500320AS (B) 7200.11 500GB.
• The PC is a HP pavilion a6338 es.
• The existing HD is a Western Digital WD320AAJS 65VWAO.
• On the mother board there are 6 SATA inserts SATA0 through to SATA5 each of a different colour - Black, grey, red, blue, blue, orange (don't know if this is important or not)
• The existing HD is connected to SATA0 and the DVD to SATA1 with red cables.
• There are various connecters on the cable bundles - they are white and labelled P2,3,4,5,6 (each has 4 input pins).

I have been searching Internet, Seagate and HP websites. I thought this was just plug and play but it appears not.

The Seagate website tells me cables are sold separately.

What I am reading is that I may need ATA serie interface cables, power cable and possibly adaptor (depending on the PC). I am looking at terms like "master" and "slave" and am getting mighty confused!

I have opened the PC for the first time...there is 1 HD and a pile of cables. I can see the HD connected to the mother board and also going to what must be the power supply. I don't see any other cables - power or otherwise which will connect to the new HDs. So I will have to buy them.

Do I connect the new HDs to the existing one? Not sure how!
Do I need a power adaptor? How do I know?
Do I connect the two new HDs to the existing one?
Do I need to open the power supply to connect the new ones?

HELP!!!

[sphelan]

And an antistatic wristband???

[saxman]

Do I connect the new HDs to the existing one? Not sure how!
No, they connect to the empty SATA slots on your PC motherboard. So this is good news so far, your motherboard has available empty SATA slots.

Do I need a power adaptor? How do I know?
SATA discs require a completely different power connector to the good old discs we all used to use. The old style power connector is the white power connector with four round pins. The SATA power connector is more likely to be black and it is thinner ( see attached SATA_power_cable.jpg ).
If your PC power supply has two of these connectors spare then you do not need a power adaptor. If your PC power supply does not have spare SATA power connectors then you can use an SATA power adaptor that connects to that old style white power connector I mentioned earlier. See attached sata-power-adaptor.jpg

Do I connect the two new HDs to the existing one?
No. You connect them independently to their own empty SATA slots on the PC motherboard.

Do I need to open the power supply to connect the new ones?
No, you should never have to open a PC power supply. You either have enough SATA power connectors coming out or you don't. If you don't then refer to SATA power adaptor mentioned above.

And an antistatic wristband???
A wristband is great if you have one handy, but not totally necessary. Static electricity can kill electronic components but you can take simple precautions to mininmise any danger. You would be very unlucky to damage your new hard discs with static damage but don't invite danger by; sliding across a carpet that tends to give you those static shocks on you finger tips when you touch a metal door handle, brushing your long shiny hair, playing with or even picking up a plastic bag. The plastic bags that hard discs and other electronic components come in are special ESD (Electro Static Discharge) proof bags. Don't expose you hands or the devices to normal plastic bags.

1. The use of an anti-static wrist strap is the ideal way to prevent damage, these can be purchased from your high street computer shop. They simply plug into a wall socket (switched off) or attach to an unpainted metal part of the computer casework.
2. Do not attempt to carry out any PC internal upgrades with the power cable plugged in. If you do not have access to an anti-static wrist strap, then some precautions maybe taken to reduce the risk of ESD damage.
1. Remove monitor, unplug monitor mains cable and then the signal cable from the PC.
2. Disconnect any other mains powered peripheral that is connected to the PC (e.g. Printer parallel cable, Scanner USB cable, etc).
3. Remove mains lead from PC or unplug PC.
4. Remove lid of PC.
5. Locate SATA socket.
6. Touch PC chassis with one hand and the new SATA drive (inside packaging) with the other.
7. Remove SATA drive and hold by edges.
8. Touch PC chassis with one hand briefly.
9. You may now use both hands to fully insert the new SATA drive.

These precautions will only reduce the risk of ESD damage, but will not eliminate the risk completely.

3. Keep any components that are not fitted to the computer, in the special ESD bags that the component is supplied in. Only remove the component from the ESD bag when you are ready to fit it, and place the replaced component into the ESD bag as soon as its removed from the computer.

SATA0 through to SATA5 each of a different colour - Black, grey, red, blue, blue, orange (don't know if this is important or not)
The various colours are just trying to be user friendly - simply there to try to help you work out what cable is connected to what device.

What I am reading is that I may need ATA serie interface cables, power cable and possibly adaptor (depending on the PC). I am looking at terms like "master" and "slave" and am getting mighty confused!
Forget anything you read about ATA series or IDE and forget anything you read about master/slave etc. Your new discs are SATA and have nothing to do with the old ATA/IDE series that required discs/CD/DVD to be set as either master or slave.

[sphelan]

Saxman...I LOVE YOU MAN!!!
(first profession of love on DVForums?)

Thanks a million.

I have been looking at some tutorials on the Seagate website and I see the cables and connectors you are talking about.

Unfortuantely I won't get to buy the cables until Monday morning...but now it looks as easy as pie!

Thanks again, mate for all those details and for taking the time. It's VERY much appreciated.

[saxman]

Originally Posted by sphelan

(first profession of love on DVForums?)

Not according to IABP
Equal Rights for All Members

Anyway, no problem, and I am glad it now seems 'easy as pie' because once you have got hold of the correct cables installing SATA discs should be quite easy.

[sphelan]

Beaten to the post again!!!

Looking forward to Monday morning...will keep you posted...hopefully to just confirm that all goes acording to plan.

[sphelan]

Wow...stickied too!!

Glad my learning curve and problems are seen as useful to others!

[sureno]

Bravo saxman, very detailed and accurate post i remember when i built my first PC, very steep learning curve for me

[ecc83]

Can I add to this thread as I fear I was seriously misinformed.

I (thought) needed a new C drive for this pc, xp pro p4. Maplin tech' told me I MUST fit an IDE drive if I am to retain my other 160G IDE hdd.

A few replies on the web said this was not quite true but Windows "defaults" to IDE and so in the event of a crash things could be sticky?

I bought an IDE. A week or so later I spoke to the guy who sold me the parts for the pc and he said it was all bollocks! I had 2 SATA headers and a new SATA drive would have been cheaper and much faster!

Dave.

[saxman]

Originally Posted by ecc83

Can I add to this thread as I fear I was seriously misinformed. Dave.

I (thought) needed a new C drive for this pc, xp pro p4. Maplin tech' told me I MUST fit an IDE drive if I am to retain my other 160G IDE hdd.
If your PC has both IDE and SATA capability you have the choice of adding an IDE or SATA, depending on available slots, connections.

A few replies on the web said this was not quite true but Windows "defaults" to IDE and so in the event of a crash things could be sticky?
That sounds a bit like scaremongering folklore to me! You set your PC BIOS to boot by default from whichever device you want. Typically you also set a sequence of boot devices. ie, try to boot from CD first but if there is no bootable CD then boot from default hard disk which can of course be SATA. I run SATA disks and Windows and I see no potential problem whatsoever.

I bought an IDE. A week or so later I spoke to the guy who sold me the parts for the pc and he said it was all bollocks! I had 2 SATA headers and a new SATA drive would have been cheaper and much faster!

Sounds to me like someone finally told you some truth!

[ecc83]

"Sounds to me like someone finally told you some truth!"

FORK!
Dave.

[sphelan]

Well got the cables and screws I needed today (Photo 1) and went about installing the new HDs (photo 2).

I opened up the PC (Photo 3) and located the HD mounting rack (Photo 4) which I then unscrewed and removed.

I connected the necessary cables – power cable and interface cable - to the new HD (Photo 5) and then mounted the HD in the mounting rack (Photo 6). On sliding it in, I realised that there is only room for two HDs including the existing one. From the PC documentation, I thought I had space for two additional HDs, i.e. in addition to the existing. Looks like I bought one HD too many!

Then I fixed the HD holder in place (Photo 7).

Next I located the SATA connections on the mother board (Photo 8) and connected the other end of the lead coming from the new HD (Photo 9) to the SATA2 input.

Then I connected the power lead from the new HD to one of the white sockets coming from the power supply (Photo 10).

Then it was just a matter of putting the cover back on the PC and connecting all the leads.

Final step: Format the HD and that’s it. As simple as pie in the end.

Thanks to all who enlightened me on the journey. Hope this is useful for others embarking on the same trip.