Configuring the Internal Drives ... Step 11 of 21

Before configuring you must decide what type of drives and how many you want in your system. Unless you plan on using your PC for more involved applications such as networking then one drive should be sufficient. In fact with today s drive sizes like the LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Drive coming in at 500 GB one drive likely has more storage then you ll likely ever need. Then you will need to decide how to configure them to make them all work together.

If you simply must have two drives in your computer the motherboard has two IDE channels, each supporting two devices. So, if you want two hard drives, for example, you should have one be the master and the other be the slave . Have your main hard drive be your master and the other one will be your slave. If you will only have one hard drive, then you will configure it as the master , or on some drives, you would choose single .

Did You Know? A hard disk or hard drive (HD) is a non-volatile (computer memory that can retain the stored information even when not powered) storage device which stores digitally encoded data on rapidly rotating platters with magnetic surfaces. Strictly speaking, "drive" refers to a device that drives (removable) media, such as a tape drive or (floppy) disk drive, while a hard disk contains fixed (non-removable) media. However, in recent times, the hard disk has become more commonly known as the "hard drive."

The same procedure goes for your secondary IDE channel, where you will be running your DVD/CD drives and / or tape backups.

It is very easy configuring these drives. The jumper settings are usually printed on the top of the drive itself. On CD drives, the settings are described right above the jumper pins. If you cannot find the settings then refer to the manual. If the manual lets you down then try online for finding the specs. I usually have hard drives on a separate channel than the CD drives. If you have a second hard drive, set it as slave on IDE 1. Likewise, if you have a second CD drive, such as a CD-RW drive or a DVD, and then installs it as a slave on IDE 2.

Chuck Lunsford is an owner and developer of http://www.ccspartner.com/. He offers advice on how to get design and build your own personal computer. Visit his website and learn more about designing a computer for your personal use

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