How to Add a New Hard Drive With Zero Frustration

So your computer is telling you that your hard drive is dangerously low on space. Yikes! I hear you. You have no idea how to start all over with a new hard drive. I'm here to tell you don't have to. You can add a second hard drive, move My Documents to the new drive and be back in business. Read my article and even a total newbie can look like a Geek. This is a zero frustration article so note that the early steps are critical.

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• hard drive
• flash light
• build date
• screw driver

1. Step 1
   
   hard drive

   Unplug your computer.
   Get a flashlight
   Take case side off.
   Look at the cable-end of the hard drive.
   Reference the photo in this step to help you.
   Determine if you have a SATA or PATA Drive.
   Computers built 2002 and later will probably have a SATA drive.
   Before 2002 you can expect a PATA drive (IDE or EDIE).
   There is cross-over some years so nothing is etched in stone, look carefully.

2. Step 2
   
   hard drive

   Once you know the drive type, you are ready to go to the store (online or local). Ask for or search for SATA or PATA.
   TIP: If you buy online and you choose a bare drive, you wont get any cables or screws. So if you don't have access to hard drive screws, power adapter, and cables, you will need to order those now as well or just buy a retail box hard drive. The retail box drive costs more but includes everything you need.

3. Step 3
   
   hard drive

   Now that your hard drive is in hand, let's put it in.
   Remove the drive from the package and layout the contents.
   You should have the drive, screws, data-cable, and power adapter.

4. Step 4
   
   hard drive

   PATA:
   Set the jumper on the PATA drive from master to slave. This computer already has a master so we are adding the new drive as a slave. Be sure to do this or the drive will not work.

5. Step 5
   
   hard drive

   SATA:
   SATA drives are nice! No Master/Slave jazz to worry about... right?
   Well sort of. Yes there is no master slave setting. But we still have a jumper! This jumper is needed to set the speed. 1.5Gbit/second or 3.0GB/second.
   If your computer was built 2003 or later, odds are it supports 3.0Gbit/second, if the computer was built 2001-2002 its very likely a 1.5Gbit/second. You can check your computer specifications to be sure but odds are you don't it anymore. So here is the no-frustration process to set the jumper right with out reading a manual. Set the jumper to 3.0Gbit. Plug in the drive's power cable and data cable. You can use any Open SATA socket on the motherboard. Lay the drive on the desk or work bench. Don't bother to screw it in place yet.
   
   Turn on your computer and watch the black boot screen. If you see a big DELL logo or other big logo, press the ESC (Escape) key to reveal the boot screen (POST). Watch for you new hard drive's brand name to be found and listed. If your drive is not shown, Turn off your computer. Pull the power plug and move the jumper to 1.5Gbit/second position. This setting will work on all computers but its the slower of the two so using 3.0Gbit/second is always more desirable. Turn on the computer again to be sure the drive is found. Once you see the drive appear at boot-up, turn off your PC and mount the drive using all 4 screws. Never use 2 screws as the drive can vibrate making extra noise. If you happen to have a screw-less system, install the new drive the same as the original drive.

6. Step 6

   Put on the computer's side panel.
   Plug everything in.
   Boot up your computer into Windows.

7. Step 7

   Once Windows is up, open my-computer or click Start - Computer.
   If you see your new drive, great! Try to save a file to the new drive. If the file saves to the new drive you are done.
   
   If the new drive is not seen in My-Computer, do not panic. The drive is fine. Read my article on how to setup a new hard drive in Windows 7, Vista, or XP, listed in the resources below.