replacing my hard drive

[jason]

I only have one hard drive bay in my computer. What all do I need to do? If I copy everything under the (C) folder, as far as files. And copy them to the new hard drive? I've never replaced my internal hard drive before.

Let me know, thanks.

[loughary]

Jason,

Depending on where you're buying the new hard drive from...it will probably come with software and instructions on how to setup the new drive and use the included software to copy all your files to the new drive. Typically you'll need to add the new drive as a "slave drive" and then run the software and it will copy all the files including your OS...then shut down system unplug the old drive change the new drive to master and you should be good to go. If the new drive you're installing didn't come with software most likely you can check the manufactures website and download the appropriate software needed.

[jason]

I've been looking on newegg for internal hard drives for my desktop. What does "OEM" stand for? All of their hard drives are "OEM". I know it's not from the original manufactor, but how much of a difference will that take effect on the hard drive and warranty.

Example:
Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

[Nelson37]

Yes, it is from the "Original Manufacturer", that's what the "O" and the "M" stand for, with the "E" meaning "Equipment".

What it really means is that the unit is not packaged for retail distribution.

Just copying the files won't cut it, you have to "clone" or "ghost" the drive. Make absolutely certain which drive is Source and which is Target before pressing the button.

You will, however, almost certainly benefit from NOT doing this. Format and re-install Windows on the new drive, then needed programs, and then copy over your data files. More work, but an almost certain performance benefitl.

Think of it like moving, it gives you an opportunity to clean house of all the crap you don't need.

[jason]

When I bought my computer they made a recovery disc, will that work with the new hard drive? Just reformat the new hard drive once I install it.

OEM - So it doesn't come with the SATA cable, mounting screws, and software? It basically just comes as is, which is the hard drive.

[Krispy Kritter]

All of the drive manufacturers have tools on their website for setting up and maintaining their HDD's. If you were to get a retail drive instead of the OEM version, you will get the tools on a CD, plus you will get the mounting screws and cable.

[jason]

So it's basically the same drive, it's just not in a retail box with the accessories.

[Krispy Kritter]

correct

[DB83]

When I bought my computer they made a recovery disc, will that work with the new hard drive? Just reformat the new hard drive once I install it.

OEM - So it doesn't come with the SATA cable, mounting screws, and software? It basically just comes as is, which is the hard drive.

Correct. OEM = bare drive only. Nothing else.

[jason]

Ok, thanks for the help!

[SLK001]

Correct. OEM = bare drive only. Nothing else.

Most of the time, they come packaged with a packet of desiccant, which are delicious. I usually munch on them while I am formating my new drive.

[jason]

That sounds pretty good.

[oldandinthe way]

Manufacturer's warranty policies sometimes differ for OEM product. Retaail warranty is usually from time of purchase. OEM drives warrantees may start when they ship to their original customer.

Sometimes the manufacturer won;t accept shipment of an oem drive from the end user. Check how warranty repairs are handed with your vendor.

[jason]

If I bought an internal OEM product. And bought an external enclosure to put it in. Would it need any software to enable the computer to read the usb drive?

[DB83]

If I bought an internal OEM product. And bought an external enclosure to put it in. Would it need any software to enable the computer to read the usb drive?

If the enclosure required a driver, that would probably come with the unit. USB devices are usually plug and play and standard USB external drives require no software.

[jason]

What does hot-swappable mean? In simple terms.

[DB83]

What does hot-swappable mean? In simple terms.

I believe it means that you can plug/un-plug the cable without turning off the PC and re-booting.

[Nelson37]

That is correct. All USB devices are supposed to be hot-swappable.

Internal devices are NOT hot-swappable as a general rule, special hardware (servers) is required. Generally, you can hot-remove but NOT hot-connect, as sparks will commence. Neither is recommended.

[jason]

Do you have to reboot the system every time, when using an internal drive as an external?

[piano632]

No, you don't have to reboot. That's what hot-swappable means. You can plug it in to USB while the computer is on and Windows will "find" it. It won't be as fast as an internal drive because it is limited by USB speed, but it's still fast enough.

Also, you didn't mention if you have an IDE or SATA interface drive. Make sure you get the correct interface on the new drive and an enclosure with the matching interface. Actually these external enclosures are quite nice for extra storage space or just plain backups. Just be sure to get a good one. Read the user reviews on Newegg. Just be aware the some people don't know what they are doing so there will always be a few negative comments on everything.

[Video Head]

Internal devices are NOT hot-swappable as a general rule, special hardware (servers) is required. Generally, you can hot-remove but NOT hot-connect, as sparks will commence. Neither is recommended.

For internal hotswappable drives you require a backplane. The drives are mounted in special enclosures. The enclosures slide into drive bays and engage the backplane. The backplane is a drive controller and connects to the mobo or SAN/NAS controller. Mostly used in servers and high-end workstations running RAID. Most are SCSI but IDE versions exist and work well too.

[jason]

All of my drives are SATA, they are the best.

[Video Head]

All of my drives are SATA, they are the best.

IDE hotswap backplane cages are available in SATA or PATA versions.

[Video Head]

FYI:

http://www.satasite.com/4-bay-hot-swap-raid-kit.htm

[piano632]

All of my drives are SATA, they are the best.

I thought you only had one drive bay ???
How are you accessing these other drives?

Anyway, I'm thinking of getting this CoolGear enclosure for myself, just because it has a temperature readout, eSATA connection and large fan:
http://www.cooldrives.com/colcal3saiih.html
Watch the video demo here to see how to put together an external enclosure and connect it. Only thing I'm not sure about is the mini-USB connector (instead of the full-size USB plug).

The Antec MX-1 enclosure is very nice too. I have one of these. They're better than they look, but I think they are limited to SATA I speed (not that there is a huge difference between SATA I & II speed in the real world).
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article728-page1.html

[BcSoceror55]

I thought you only had one drive bay ???
How are you accessing these other drives?

You can have multiple drive bays. But it all depends on your system.
For example: The have 4U server chassis that have 8 hotswap drives bays.
For a standard/home pc tower you can still have multple as well. For hotswap it all depends
on how many bays you have availble to put the hotswap enclosers in.Which normally fit in the same
size bay as a CD/DVD rom Personally I do not use the hotswap enclosers in
my home pc. But have the ability to have at least 5 if not 6 internal hard drives.
But when you get into more drives you start getting in to Raid cards as well because motherboards
will only support up to so X amount of Hard drives.
I Dont know if this helped at all.

[DarrellS]

My new MB only has one IDE connector (like almost all new boards) so I bought an external HD enclosure to get the data off three of my IDE drives from my old MB.

I got a Coolmax Series 311 at Fry's Electronics for $49 (it wasn't listed on their website but they had it in the store). It supports both Pata and Sata drives and comes with Firewire, USB2 and Sata connectors. The driver CD was missing but with Windows 2000 SP4, I didn't need it. With the USB2 cable hooked up, it found the drive right off and gave it large drive support and with the Firewire cable connected, I went into Computer Management and a screen popped up to activate the drive. You have to eject the device before turning it off and unplugging it.

Fry's has the Maxtor 500GB Sata for $89 right now. I can't really afford to spend any more money but I'm really tempted to go pick another 500GB Maxtor up for that price. I've got 6 Sata connectors on this board.

[DB83]

The OP seems to be confused with what he wants.

Firstly it was to replace his HDD >> I have yet to see a standard case with only one HDD bay. Are you sure you are not looking at the CD-ROM bay. The HDD bays are usually internally hidden.

Then why complicate matters with an external enclosure and just get a standard external drive

[jason]

It's cheaper to buy a bigger internal drive and put it in an external enclosure. And the drive itself is usually faster. Not to mention, internal drives come with a 3 year warranty, where as external drives only comes with a 1 year warranty.

That's why it's better to "complicate" things.

[jason]

Anyway, I'm thinking of getting this CoolGear enclosure for myself, just because it has a temperature readout, eSATA connection and large fan:
http://www.cooldrives.com/colcal3saiih.html
Watch the video demo here to see how to put together an external enclosure and connect it. Only thing I'm not sure about is the mini-USB connector (instead of the full-size USB plug).

Yeah, the enclosure looks awesome, but I don't trust the mini-USB connector.