Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
In addition to a drive bay for an additional drive, you'll also need an available power
plug for it. Parallel ATA (PATA) drives use a standard 4-pin
Molex connector
like the
one shown in Figure 7.2. Most Serial ATA (SATA) drives use a special power connector
designed specifi cally for them, like the one shown in Figure 7.3. (Some use a traditional
Molex connector, so that's another shopping factor to consider.) Make sure you have an
available power connector inside the PC for the drive type you want.
FIGURE 7.2
Molex power connector for a PATA drive
FIGURE 7.3
SATA power connector for a SATA drive
You'll also need to connect the drive to the motherboard. If you're replacing an existing
drive, you can use the same connector the old one used. However, if you're adding a new
hard drive, you'll need an available PATA or SATA connector.
If you're adding a PATA drive, your system probably has two PATA connectors on the
motherboard (see Figure 7.4), and each one can support a cable that can have up to two
drives on it. Therefore, you'll need to count the number of PATA devices you already have
and make sure it's fewer than four. Otherwise, you need to remove one of the existing drives,
install an expansion card that supports more PATA drives, or choose a SATA drive instead.
