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New Hard Drive - Clueless
So I have a 4600 that's a little more than one year old and now needs a new hard drive - Go Figure!
(I'll keep my opinion about this matter to myself) This will be my first repair job.
Can anyone tell me how difficult this will be to Uninstall the old one and Install the new one?
Is there any type of programming I need to do after it's installed?
I'm assuming we will loose all saved data that's on the PC now?
Does a hard drive fail due to viruses?
Finally, any helpful advice would be great.
Thank-You ALL!
MSL
290 Posts
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December 4th, 2004 23:00
Instructions for replacing the hard drive in a 4600 are here.
You will need to reinstall the operating system, drivers, and any programs.
If the drive has failed, yes. You can always try to install the old drive as a slave to see if you can recover any
A virus cannot make a hard drive fail mechanically.
Some general instruction.
BonoBoy
1 Message
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December 4th, 2004 23:00
It isn't too difficult to install a new hard drive- it's just a matter of having the confidence to do it!
Hard drives can fail for a lot of reasons and can do so very easily- but I have never heard of a hard drive becoming completly unusuable due to a virus. At worst- a format and reinstall usually does the trick!
Hope this helps you a little bit
Shadow84
18 Posts
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December 4th, 2004 23:00
If it is indeed dead then the data is most likely gone. There are ways to retrieve the data but it is beyond the scope of most users and is very expensive to have a third party try and rescue it.
As posted by BonoBoy, installing a new HD is fairly easy hardware swap. Just follow the owners manual re: opening the case and such( static electriciy is a concern).
After the new drive is in you'll have to install Windows from the Dell disc and the various hardware drivers for the chipset, graphics, sound, modem, etc. Then do a Windows update and/or install SP2. Finally, install your favorite programs. I'd suggest you search for a more detailed tutorial about this subject before you take the plunge. It is a valuable thing to know as sooner or later a system rebuild will be necessry to get your computer running like new. Good luck.
Harlacan
5 Posts
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December 5th, 2004 14:00
Shadow84
18 Posts
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December 5th, 2004 18:00
MSL had some excellent links for more info and a good suggestion for an attempt at rescuing the data on your failing drive. Maybe you can try and back up your data to a CD or external drive before you remove the old drive. Good luck.