Connecting a second hard drive to the motherboard. Permanent connection of the IDE hard drive to the motherboard. Guide for IDE hard drives: universal USB port

A hard disk is a solid-state drive, which is so called in contrast to a floppy disk, which has not been used by users for a long time. The operation of connecting a hard drive is not so complicated and in many cases the user can do everything independently, without contacting computer specialists.

In what cases do you have to connect hard drives?

When upgrading, you replace the old drive with a more powerful and larger one.
To expand disk memory. For example, to place computer games and some applications on a separate hard drive.
During repair - replacing a failed drive with a functional one.
To read large amounts of previously recorded information.

Basic provisions

If a system unit with an IDE interface has more than one hard drive, then one of them on the bus is designated as the main one, and the second as the auxiliary one. The first one is called Master, and the other one is called Slave. Such a division is required so that when loading the operating system after turning on, the computer knows exactly which disk is the boot one.

In all cases, you can set the boot sequence from drives using the BIOS settings. And in IDE this is done by installing jumpers on the disk enclosures according to the diagram shown on the enclosure.

By type of interface, hard drives differ between IDE – the old model and SATA – in all new computers. If you have an older model of system unit and you are going to connect a new hard drive with a SATA interface, you will need to purchase a special adapter.

Junk

It happens that you pick up this old thing and can’t figure out what to connect and where. The old IDE interface (1986) is attached to a parallel cable. Usually there are either 2 or 4 connectors on the motherboard. Always an even number, because the Master/Slave rule works. Settings can be specified using jumpers (example):

Master – the presence of a jumper between the leftmost contacts (7 and 8) of the control connector.
Slave – absence of any jumpers.

The specified configuration may vary depending on the manufacturer, as well as the set of permissible functions specified by the connector. The IDE interface made it possible to conveniently connect a hard drive and a CD drive to the computer at the same time. This was enough for most users. The disadvantage of the parallel interface was the low transfer speed. IDE is otherwise referred to among professionals as parallel ATA or ATA-1. The transfer speed of such devices does not exceed 133 Mbit/s (for ATA-7). With the introduction of the serial SATA interface in 2003, the aging information transfer protocol began to be called parallel PATA.

The name ATA-1 was assigned to the IDE interface in 1994 when it was recognized by the ANSI organization. Formally, it was an extension of the 16-bit ISA bus (predecessor of PCI). It is curious that in the modern world there is a tendency to use video card interfaces to create ports for connecting hard drives. This was followed by accelerated ATA-2 and packet ATAPI. The IDE interface has not been officially supported since December 2013. Connecting such a hard drive to a new motherboard is only possible with an expansion card.

Using such devices, you can perform the exact opposite function: install previous generation hard drives on new motherboards. So, for example, on the old A7N8X-X there are only two IDE ports, but there are 5 PCI 2.2 slots for expansion cards. The universal adapter is just right for this case. And you can install a modern hard drive up to SATA3, but its operating speed will, of course, be several times lower than the maximum.

Hard drives for standard IDE interfaces are probably already mostly out of order. And there are not so many of them left in the world. It remains to add to this that the configuration of ATA devices can be changed using jumpers, and the explanatory drawing is located directly on the device body. Unscrupulous suppliers sometimes keep jumpers for themselves, and not every configuration in this case can be carried out by the user. There are usually not enough jumpers.

Today there is a new trend: traditional PCI cards, which were supplanted for some time by PCI Express cards, are reappearing on motherboards. This means that the “old” one can now be connected to a modern system unit using an adapter.

SATA drives

Experts generally distinguish three generations of SATA. The gradation is based on the speed of information transmission:

SATA – 1.5 Gbit/s.
SATA2 – 3 Gbit/s.
SATA3 – 6 Gbit/s.

A standard SATA drive has two connectors, one of which is used for power supply, and the second serves as a data transfer cable. It is not recommended to swap hard drives by connecting them to different SATA ports. The plugs have keys that prevent incorrect connection of the connector.

Sometimes the hard drive can contain useful information that any advanced user can understand. But sometimes the designation tends to be so ornate that only a true professional can comprehend it. As, for example, in this case.

There is information about the brand, serial number, technical data and even measures of disk capacity. But its interface remains unknown. This is important when choosing hardware for a computer with limited capabilities. If the disk had a SATA3 interface, then it is useless to install one in an old system unit. There are many other similar examples. Let's say in advance that this drive has a SATA 2.6 interface. Consequently, its information exchange rate limit is 3 Mbit/s.

If information about the HDD interface type is available

How to tell the difference? First, you can look at the body. Here is an image of an old disk that supports two speeds, therefore, it is a SATA2 device.

When removed from the system unit, it was equipped with a jumper that reduced the speed.

The jumper was immediately removed, therefore, the device will now function twice as fast. On the SATA 2.0 bus of the GA-H61M-D2-B3 motherboard.

This once again suggests that it is not enough to buy a system unit; you also need to study its entire device in general and hard drives in particular. The drives inside were paired using a special hanging frame.

This achieves better maintainability of the structure. Both hard drives were quickly removed from the case. An alternative is to install it in a bay, where the housing is secured with screws on both sides, and two side covers must be removed for removal. Which is not very convenient, considering that each of them usually jams. It is rare to find system unit cases where the sidewalls are removed using simple methods.

If HDD interface data is missing

Sometimes the hard drive may not have data transfer speed information. In this case, you can, of course, stock up on AIDA, but it’s even easier to look up the information on the Internet. The brand of the drive is determined by the price list or the appearance of the case.

Let's say we have WD5000AAJS in our hands. Only one thing is known - at lunchtime he will be a hundred years old. Therefore, you need to familiarize yourself with historical information on the Internet. Since models are constantly updated, you need to enter the code followed by a dash - 00YFA0. The search engine quickly provided an answer, and now there is every reason to claim that the channel bandwidth is 3 Gbit/s (SATA 2.5 generation).

We have already discussed above how to connect such equipment to an outdated motherboard that does not have a SATA interface. So let's move on to new products.

Connecting SATA to exSATA bus

When engineers approached the problem of increasing SATA speeds to 12 Gbit/s and higher, it turned out that this was not economically viable. Energy efficiency drops sharply while prices rise. Someone noticed that the PCI Express graphics card bus works at high speeds without problems, and then it was decided to make some kind of hybrid between it and the now obsolete SATA. To do this, the connector was divided into two parts:

Specific. Small port on the side.
Standard. Two ports for SATA0 connection.

The figure shows a dual exSATA port. This can include 4 hard drives with a SATA interface, or 2 exSATA, or 1 exSATA and 2 SATA. Below is an example of connecting two SATA drives to one exSATA port.

Due to its large size, covering three exSATA slots at once, the plug is called a hub among professionals. You need to start by checking the BIOS. It turned out that some motherboards can turn off SATA support, completely switching to Express, which supports speeds of up to 16 Gbps.

At the same time, you can look at the BIOS capabilities regarding RAID arrays. Let us remember that in the latter case, several hard drives can duplicate their information for reliability, or turn on alternately, which significantly increases the speed of operation. The size of the article does not allow us to speak in more detail on this topic.

The selected AHCI mode is the default mode for most systems. It provides maximum compatibility with older equipment in a completely transparent manner for the user. To safely hot-plug drives, it is recommended to set the appropriate option in the BIOS settings.

When installing a new operating system, the sequence for connecting bootable media is specified. The hard drive is not put in first place. Instead, leadership is given to a flash drive or DVD drive.

Before connecting

How to connect an IDE hard drive

On the motherboard, the IDE connector is visible from afar. You can recognize it by its characteristic slot with many contacts and a key located approximately in the center of the block.

A splitter cable is usually hung on each port, so that a master and a servant are on the channel at the same time.

Before connecting a drive, you need to correctly configure the jumpers on its case - Slave or Master. There will definitely be a diagram on the case on how to do this.

For drives from different manufacturers, the order in which jumpers are inserted will be unique (they seem to be competing in this). The disk must be a bus master, otherwise the operating system cannot be started from it (No IDE Master detected). Therefore, it is necessary to set the slave jumper on the CD drive.

After setting the jumpers, insert the hard drive into a suitable cage and secure it with four screws on both sides. Connect the single data cable connector to the corresponding header on the motherboard. Connect the power cables. The order doesn't matter here.

Now you can close the system unit covers and connect the computer. The system itself should detect new connections and configure everything. The user will only have to confirm operations in the Add New Equipment Wizard.

If the system is confused about where the Master is and where the Slave is, then you need to make assignments in the BIOS. Immediately after turning on the power, press the F2 or Del key repeatedly (in different ways) to open the BIOS settings. Find the interface for describing the order of boot devices, set the parameters. The first is the CD drive from which the system is installed. Save the settings using the F10 key. After this, the operating system will begin loading.

How to connect a SATA hard drive to an old motherboard

To connect a SATA hard drive, use a PCI bus adapter. It may have one or another number of ports; accordingly, several hard drives are installed.

Insert the card into the slot, connect the hard drive, place it in the bay and secure it with screws on both sides - two or four screws in total. It is advisable to choose the location of the modules inside the system unit in such a way that, if possible, there is enough free space between them to ensure ventilation. Otherwise, if the computer overheats, it will automatically turn off.

Now connect the power cable to the hard drive. If the power supply is an old model for IDE, you will need an adapter to connect SATA. Now you can connect the data cable to the hard drive. After the system boots, you should install the driver from the included DVD, and the new drive will become visible through Explorer.

Sometimes there is no other drive other than SATA. And then you need to install Windows again via a PCI adapter. The bootloader will not see the drive, but will give you the opportunity to find it manually. This is where you will need to find the required driver for the current operating system on the DVD. The installer will then notice the disk and you can create partitions for the new operating system. This is absolutely accurate, because the authors installed the “seven” in this way on an old system unit.

USB 3.0 external hard drive

The serial interface has become so fast (up to 5 Gbps) that external hard drives using USB 3.0 are now available. The motherboard usually has 20-pin sockets, in addition, some of the ports are located on the rear wall. But if you plan to install an operating system on the hard drive, it makes sense to place it inside the system unit. Adapters from 20-pin to microUSB 3.0 typeB are usually not found, but you can use intermediate adapters for docking.

The time has come when one hard drive in a computer is no longer enough. More and more users decide to connect a second HDD to their PC, but not everyone knows how to do it correctly themselves to avoid mistakes. In fact, the procedure for adding a second disk is simple and does not require special skills. It is not even necessary to mount a hard drive - it can be connected as an external device if there is a free USB port.

Options for connecting a second hard drive are as simple as possible:

Connecting the HDD to the computer system unit.
Suitable for owners of regular desktop PCs who do not want to have external connected devices.
Connecting a hard drive as an external drive.
The easiest way to connect a HDD, and the only one possible for a laptop owner.

Option 1. Installation in the system unit

HDD type determination

Before connecting, you need to determine the type of interface the hard drive works with - SATA or IDE. Almost all modern computers are equipped with a SATA interface, so it is best if the hard drive is of the same type. The IDE bus is considered obsolete and may simply not be present on the motherboard. Therefore, connecting such a drive may cause some difficulties.

The easiest way to recognize the standard is by contacts. This is what they look like on SATA drives:

And this is how the IDE does it:

Connecting a second SATA drive in the system unit

The process of connecting a disk is very easy and takes place in several stages:

Boot priority for SATA drives

The motherboard usually has 4 connectors for connecting SATA drives. They are designated as SATA0 - the first, SATA1 - the second, etc. The priority of the hard drive is directly related to the numbering of the connector. If you need to manually set the priority, you will need to go into the BIOS. Depending on the BIOS type, the interface and controls will be different.

In older versions, go to the section Advanced BIOS Features and work with the parameters First Boot Device And Second Boot Device. In new BIOS versions, look for the section Boot or Boot Sequence and parameter 1st/2nd Boot Priority.

Connecting a second IDE drive

In rare cases, there is a need to install a disk with an outdated IDE interface. In this case, the connection process will be slightly different.

Connecting a second IDE drive to the first SATA drive

When you need to connect an IDE drive to an already working SATA HDD, use a special IDE-SATA adapter.

The connection diagram is as follows:

The jumper on the adapter is set to Master mode.
The IDE plug connects to the hard drive itself.
The red SATA cable is connected on one side to the adapter, and the other to the motherboard.
The power cable is connected on one side to the adapter, and on the other to the power supply.

You may need to purchase a 4-pin to SATA adapter.

Initializing the disk in the OS

In both cases, after connecting, the system may not see the connected disk. This does not mean that you did something wrong; on the contrary, it is normal when the new HDD is not visible in the system. The hard drive must be initialized before it can be used. Read about how this is done in our other article.

Option 2. Connecting an external hard drive

Often users choose to connect an external HDD. This is much simpler and more convenient if some files stored on the disk are sometimes needed outside the home. And in the situation with laptops, this method will be especially relevant, since there is no separate slot for a second HDD.

An external hard drive is connected via USB in exactly the same way as another device with the same interface (flash drive, mouse, keyboard).

A hard drive designed for installation in the system unit can also be connected via USB. To do this, you need to use either an adapter/adapter or a special external case for the hard drive. The essence of the operation of such devices is similar - the required voltage is supplied to the HDD through the adapter, and the connection to the PC is made via USB. Hard drives of different form factors have their own cables, so when purchasing you should always pay attention to the standard that specifies the overall dimensions of your HDD.

If you decide to connect the drive using the second method, then literally follow 2 rules: do not neglect to safely remove the device and do not disconnect the drive while working with the PC to avoid errors.

We talked about ways to connect a second hard drive to a computer or laptop. As you can see, there is nothing complicated in this procedure and it is absolutely not necessary to use the services of computer specialists.

Not many people know how to connect a hard drive from a computer to a laptop via USB or directly. The need to make an external drive from an HDD may arise for a number of reasons: you need to restore an old device and the information stored on it, copy a large amount of data, or use the internal one as an external drive.

The first step is to remove the hard drive from the PC case yourself. It's easy to do:

unplug the cord from the outlet;
turn off the computer's power supply;
remove the side cover of the housing;
disconnect the wires from the motherboard and from the HDD;
unscrew the bolts that hold the drive in the socket;
remove the disc.

Do not remove the device yourself if you do not have the skills to assemble and disassemble a computer. It is better to entrust the solution to the problem of how to connect a hard drive from a computer to a laptop to a professional. If a disk is damaged, it will be difficult to “cure” bad sectors and restore information.

Connecting to a computer via USB

The question of how to connect a HDD to a laptop via USB is relevant for those who have switched from using a desktop PC to its portable version.

Connecting a hard drive to a laptop is difficult; it is much easier to connect the drive to a PC via a regular cable. However, having an understanding of the structure of personal computers and their mobile version, it will not be difficult to figure out how to make an external hard drive. Thus, you will save on purchasing an expensive portable analogue.

First of all, you should think about how to make the internal hard drive external and connect your laptop PC to it. You will need a special box and a wire designed to connect the two devices. The box or pocket is selected depending on the interface: IDE or SATA. The cable used for connection comes in several types. The most convenient is SATA/IDE USB. With this method, one end of the wire should be inserted into the drive connector, and the other should be connected to a port on the laptop.

Check out your DIY removable drive. First, turn off the laptop, plug the USB output into the connector, press the power button and go to the BIOS settings. If the laptop does not recognize the hard drive, check whether the cable is tightly pressed to the port, then you can connect it again to the computer via USB.

It happens that instead of an HDD, a solid-state drive is installed in the case. This storage device also has USB output cables, so connecting the SSD is not difficult.

How to connect a hard drive to a laptop via the motherboard

In addition to what is described above, there are several other ways to connect a hard drive to a laptop. How to connect a hard drive to a laptop without a USB cable? Below is a detailed description.

Modern HDDs tend to become more compact every year, so they can be installed in a laptop case. This is convenient when the “native” hard drive is broken or faulty, and you have an extra one from an old PC on hand. The adapter for the board is cheaper than the USB analogue.

This method is more complicated than how to connect a HDD via USB. You will need to spend more time; you will have to disassemble not only the computer case, but also the portable device.

You need to disassemble a mobile PC in steps:

Disconnect from power.
Remove the battery.
Unscrew the bolts securing the top cover and carefully remove without damaging the fasteners.
Disconnect the keyboard cables from the board and remove it.
Unscrew the bolts on the board and carefully remove it, after disconnecting the cables, hard drive and other components.

After this, connect one end of the adapter to the board and the other to the device. Reassemble the laptop using the reverse algorithm and insert the disk into the desired compartment. If the dimensions of the device exceed the dimensions of the socket or additional memory is needed, then you can, by analogy with the method of connecting a hard drive via USB, make an external hard drive out of it.

The general scheme is described above; in practice, each laptop computer model is unique.

Is it possible to deal with the question of how to connect a hard drive to a computer yourself without experience in repairing equipment? The answer is no! A sudden movement or an incorrectly screwed bolt can break one of the connecting cables. Subsequent repairs can cost you many times more.

Knowing the structural features of a desktop and portable PC, you can solve the problem of how to connect a hard drive from a laptop to a computer or vice versa, and how to convert an old HDD into a portable one. These skills will help you save time and money. Another advantage is that you can create a unique style for your drive: choose or order a case with an individual pattern or an interesting shape, choose a case or pouch of the right size.

Not long ago I decided to get a hard drive, since Windows 7 takes up a lot of backup space.
Plus, I save a lot of things on the computer, buy various training courses, and all this also weighs a lot.
From the entire assortment, we chose a WD sata hard drive, using the example of which we will later look at connecting the hard drive, as well as formatting it.

What is the difficulty of connecting?

Many people have a desire to be scared because they have already made mistakes before, remembering which we evaluate how well we cope with current tasks.
However, if you remember, we had cases when everything worked out, and we will focus on them.

In terms of hard drive connection technology, we will consider two options - connecting via an adapter and using a cable.
Since there are no jumpers, the pairing process itself will consist of connecting the data cable and the power cable.
Then we will need to format the hard drive so that it becomes visible in windows.

Connecting an external hard drive

Reasons for mounting a hard drive in an external enclosure:
— if you only need file storage;
— the power supply is low-power, and the hard drive also requires power.

4. Connect the hard drive to the computer to load Windows and format it using the Disk Management utility.

5. Boot the computer, go to “control panel” / “System and Security” / “Administration” / “Computer Management” and select “Disk Management” from the menu.

6. Having selected a new hard drive in the list, we re-create one logical drive and format everything to NTFS.

*click on the picture to view the full image.
(Figure 4)

If your external hard drive is not detected, format it as described above or in another way.

7. Turn off the computer, take out the hard drive and assemble it in the external case.
There is no need to install drivers for the external HDD enclosure unless you have Windows 98.

8. Connect to the computer and check operation.

After reading the article, you have enough information to decide which sata HDD connection method you choose, external or internal connection.
You can also choose an external hard drive case with or without a fan, although the choice is usually determined by the intensity and duration of use of the external hard drive and, of course, the amount available.

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Sometimes, in order to repair and restore a hard drive or to transfer information from it to another device, it becomes necessary to connect the hard drive from one computer to another. However, this is not always possible. We propose to consider the most common situations and ways to solve them.

A hard drive from one PC fits perfectly into another PC.

To connect it, we need to remove it and connect it where we need it. The problem is not obvious. But! Many users do not know what their illiterate actions can lead to.

In order to remove the HDD from the PC system unit or from a laptop, you need to DISCONNECT it. No devices other than USB and memory cards (MemoryStick, SD, MicroSD and others) can be disconnected from the computer without turning off the power. You can read more about safety rules in this article. Read how to properly disconnect your PC from the power supply.

After turning off the power to your PC or laptop (you also need to remove the battery from the laptop), you can begin disassembling. Remove the side cover of the system unit (or the bottom cover of the laptop), carefully disconnect the cables, while remembering their location. After this, unscrew the screws securing the hard drive to the case and remove it. You need to connect the hard drive to another PC in the reverse order, after disconnecting it from power.

Remember: manipulations with the internal devices of a computer while simultaneously supplying electric current can lead to the most dire consequences: a power surge and, as a result, failure of the HDD or PC as a whole, or even electric shock to the would-be master. Be careful, do not endanger yourself and your computer!

The hard drive of one PC does not fit into another

There's a catch, isn't there? The fact is that modern operating systems practically block user access to the HDD. Or rather, you can record, erase, and read information in full. But, for example, it is not always possible to format a hard drive. However, often this is simply necessary. For example, when you try to install another operating system on it. This problem is especially acute with laptops, since they cannot be connected to a PC due to different hardware configurations, and two hard drives cannot be connected to another laptop.

method one:

There is one clever way to solve this problem. If you are the happy owner of an external hard drive in a collapsible case, then you have the opportunity to replace the hard drive in it. To do this, you need the technical characteristics of your HDD to match the disk in the “box”. If the disk size, operating voltage and connection type are the same, then remove the hard disk from the PC as described in the first case. Then open the casing of the external drive, disconnect all the cables from it, and remove it. In its place, insert your hard drive from the PC and close the “box”. It's simple! Now you can connect your hard drive to any computer via a USB port, just like a regular removable drive.

But what to do if the hard drive from your PC or laptop does not fit into another computer or there is no way to “make” a removable drive out of it? It's not all so sad! There is an exit.

method two:

In one store selling openly Chinese electronics and computer equipment, I managed to buy a HDD/USB adapter that allows you to connect a hard drive via USB. To be honest, I myself didn’t know that such things existed. This device consists of three parts:

the device itself, which is a housing the size of a cigarette pack
USB cable tightly connected to the adapter body. The cable has two USB plugs, I’ll explain why later
power supply for output voltage 5/12 V.

I should immediately note that this adapter is universal and makes it possible to connect via USB hard drives of any existing standard SATA 2.5/3.5/5.25, IDE 2.5/3.5/5.25.

USEFUL:

Now let's talk about the connection method:

for SATA drives Everything is simple: insert the appropriate connector of the adapter into the hard drive socket, connect the adapter to the computer using a black USB cable and turn on the adapter with the switch at the end of the case. From now on, you can work with your SATA HDD as with a regular external drive or as a flash drive;
for IDE 2.5 drives everything is the same, you just need to additionally connect the red USB cable to the computer. It will provide power to your HDD;
for disks from PCs of the old IDE 3.5 format and the very ancient IDE 5.25 instead of the red USB cable, you need to connect the power supply to the adapter and plug it into the network. I remind you that all manipulations for connecting drives must be carried out BEFORE applying current, that is, first connect everything, then plug it into the outlet, and then turn on the power button on the adapter body. Switch off in reverse order.

ON A NOTE:

A very useful thing, it has helped me out more than once at home and when working with clients, when I was doing private repairs and setting up computers. This device cost me 700 rubles in 2014 at the dollar exchange rate of 35 rubles per dollar, that is, $20. This is in a retail store in a small county town. I think that such a thing can be found in online stores for much less, and from the Chinese themselves at online auctions - for pennies. Please write about prices, other similar devices and your experience of using these devices in the comments.