Transcript
Jack Elliott
How to Remove a Hard Drive Many people are dependent on internal hard drives for data storage, but sometimes these hard drives fail from age, run out of space due to a large collection of files, or need to be transferred to another computer. Not knowing how to remove and replace a hard drive may not seem important, but by learning these 5 simple steps, your life won’t be turned upside down by attempting to fix a problem that you have no idea how to solve.
Materials:
Computer Screw Driver Anti‐Static Wrist Strap (optional) Anti‐Static Bag (optional)
Ant‐Static Bag
Precautions:
Anti‐Static Wrist Strap
Before attempting to remove the hard drive, backup your data by either an external hard drive, or through an online backup. Completely unplug the computer before removing the hard drive so that wires don’t activate and electrocute you. Reduce the Electrical Charge Risk (ESD) by wearing an anti‐static wrist strap. ESD can damage your software components if not prevented. While removing, label each cable as removed so that they can be rerouted properly after replacement. Once hard drive is removed, place in an anti‐static bag, because newly removed hard drives are sensitive to damage from moisture, dust, and electrical shock.
Step 1: Open Computer Case. All computers are made differently, but most computers can be opened with a screwdriver, or a push of a button.
Step 2: Locate Hard Drive. In the computer case, the hard drive is usually located in the front/bottom area. The hard drive is a small rectangular box that is the same size as a small book.
Hard Drive
Computer Case Step 3: Determine How the Hard Drive is Connected to the Computer. In order to remove the hard drive, you will need to either use a screw driver, or to push a simple lever to disconnect the hard drive from the computer tower.
Jack Elliott
Step 4: Unplug Cables from Hard Drive. Unplug the power connector from the hard drive first, then remove the IDE or SATA cable, which is adjacent to the power connector. Each hard drive will either have a SATA or IDE chord, but not both.
Power Connector IDE Cable
SATA Cable
Step 5: Remove Hard Drive. Gently remove the hard drive from the computer case, and place in the anti‐static bag if possible. If replacing hard drive with new hard drive, then retrace these steps and keep up with the many different screws and chords.
Hard Drive Replacement. When replacing a hard drive a crucial step is to find the type of Hard Drive you want. The first decision should be whether you want a HDD (Hard Drive Disk), or a SSD (Solid State Drive). HDD’s are cheaper and can hold more data, but are slower, louder, and become less effective over time. SSD’s are more expensive and less available, but are very quick, silent, and durable. Next you must decide how much data storage you want on the Hard Drive, which will correlate to the price. Once decided, you may easily install the hard drive by backtracking the steps above.
Hard Drive Disk (HDD)
Solid State Drive (SSD)
Jack Elliott
Bibliography:
How do I remove a computer hard drive? (n.d.). Retrieved December 13, 2015, from http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch001549.htm How to Remove a Hard Drive. (n.d.). Retrieved December 13, 2015, from http://www.wikihow.com/Remove‐a‐Hard‐Drive How to Remove the Hard Drive from Dell Desktop computer. (n.d.). Retrieved December 17, 2015, from http://www.data‐r‐us.com/help/hard‐drive‐remove‐dell‐desktop.html Domingo, J. (n.d.). SSD vs. HDD: What's the Difference? Retrieved January 6, 2016, from http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2404258,00.asp Baxter, A. (n.d.). SSD vs HDD. Retrieved January 6, 2016, from http://www.storagereview.com/ssd_vs_hdd
