[joshy5674]

Hi, I am new here and would like to learn how to use two hard drives in the same computer. I have an old computer and would like to help it cope with a few things.I find there is never enough space left on my primary driver, where it is small and old.

[ScottGem]

Depending on how old the computer is it may not pay to put anymore money in it. It also may not accept most of the drives currently available which will make it hard to find another drive.

If you can find a compatible drive, it will install with a drive letter and you use it like any drive.

[Ochee]

First you need to know if there is room for the 2nd drive. If the case is old enough it may not have a bay for a second drive. If that's the case then you should consider just upgrading the entire PC. If there is a bay for it then you must make the hard drive with your OS (the small drive) the master and make the second drive a slave. Newer computers can use what is called cable select to automatically determine which drive has the OS on it, but you should make the changes to the jumpers. Check the small hard drive's jumper settings. Its on the back of the drive next to the where the IDE cable plugs into it. All hard drives are marked different, but there should be a key on the top of the drive or marked right above the jumper pins. M = Master, S = Slave and CS = Cable Select. You will also need to make sure that the IDE cable has two heads to plug into each of the drives. Which leads to the next problem of 40 pin and 80 pin. If the drive is old enough then it may be using a 40 pin IDE cable. You do not want to hook a new hard drive that needs an 80 pin cable to a 40 pin. The heads at the board and the drives are the same, so just get an 80 pin cable and it should work on the old hard drive too. Another problem with older computers is that the BIOS of the Motherboard may not see larger drives so if you are going to put a second drive in, do not make that second drive bigger than an 80GB. Also you may have to go into the BIOS to turn on the second Primary IDE channel. There are a lot of things that you have to consider and if you don't know how to do it, it may be best to let a professional evaluate the computer and make the best recommendation.