I have a very old computer that I purchased used. It has only a 15gb hard drive in it. I have another hard drive that I'd like to install also. I have looked on a few sites and think I can install it correctly. My question is, how can I find out what kind of hard drive will work? Someone told me that my BIOS may not support a large hard drive since the computer is so old? I don't have any of the documentation from the computer since I bought it used. Please, if you answer, be very basic. I'm just learning about the inner workings of computers. I CAN switch out a CD drive for a DVD burner though! lol I'm very proud of myself! lol
Charli It depends on how old it is and what OS you are running. Anything running a fat32 file system (like win98se) will only see up to 137gb. If your hard drive is smaller your in the clear. If not then you may have some issues. You could install your second hard drive as a slave drive to see if the bios and OS you are running will see the whole drive. Try this simple guide: http://freepctech.com/pc/001/installing_ide_devices.shtml You can also try this for some guides that might explain a few things for you. http://www.karbosguide.com/ OR do a search on the web and find what you feel comfortable with using. Just remember it took a few years for the more knowledgeable folks here to acquire what they know through experience! Learning is a continuous process. Don't believe me read my sig and think about it!
Thanks so much, that website is going to be a huge help The computer is running xp, by the way. I found the IBM website that had the information I need, and I can put up to 137gb in the computer, which is good. I think I've read 3 dozen sites that explain how to install it as a second hard drive, so I'm going to try it now. Hopefully this works and I don't fry my whole computer! lol I have some more memory coming (computer only has 96mb memory) and that's my next project, which seems pretty straight forward once I figured out what kind of memory I needed. I think I just need to get another computer just to play around on, that way I don't screw up the one I use while I'm learning all this! Anyway, thanks for the help Charli
I did it! I now have 2 hard drives. I got the new one installed as the slave drive, I have it all up and running YAY me! lol Thanks again for your help
No problem charli and your welcome. This is the place to learn I know I have! Oh be sure you get a static wrist strap before doing your ram. They are cheap and keep you from losing your investment.
