Newbie question on HDD choices.

[on3lonestar]

I have a IBM T42 thinkpad. This is the 2nd time I have purchased an
internal notebook HDD and it hasn't been detected by my *bios*.

I have a toshiba 4026GAX 40GB one that came with the laptop. It works
just fine. I need to upgrade to a larger one. I just tried a *toshiba*
1032GAX 100GB one (same manufacturer, everything.. except a larger
capacity) and that doesnt get detected at all. Any idea what I could be
doing wrong? (I am not using any jumpers or anything.. just taking the
drive and inserting it in the slot - master config. The original one
that works also doesnt have any jumpers. The latter however does have
this metal+plastic attachment that helps to keep in place in the laptop
- I dont think that has got anything to do with the detection right?)

My other option is a USB HDD. I have some concerns though:

- Do the access and transfer speeds of USB HDD really compare well with
the internal HDDs? I have a 1.7Ghz Pentium with 512MB RAM. I plan to
install a WinXP Pro on the USB drive and do some driver development on
it. Will that be significantly slower than with my internal HDD?
- So I can use the bios to choose the drive to boot from (internal
versus USB) and then the MBR to choose which partition on the HDD to
boot from right?

Any caveats about the USB drives in general? If the speeds are good, it
sounds like a good way to use my internal HDD and the USB one in
parallel!

Thanks a lot in advance!

 

[Anna]

I have a IBM T42 thinkpad. This is the 2nd time I have purchased an
internal notebook HDD and it hasn't been detected by my *bios*.

I have a toshiba 4026GAX 40GB one that came with the laptop. It works
just fine. I need to upgrade to a larger one. I just tried a *toshiba*
1032GAX 100GB one (same manufacturer, everything.. except a larger
capacity) and that doesnt get detected at all. Any idea what I could be
doing wrong? (I am not using any jumpers or anything.. just taking the
drive and inserting it in the slot - master config. The original one
that works also doesnt have any jumpers. The latter however does have
this metal+plastic attachment that helps to keep in place in the laptop
- I dont think that has got anything to do with the detection right?)

My other option is a USB HDD. I have some concerns though:

- Do the access and transfer speeds of USB HDD really compare well with
the internal HDDs? I have a 1.7Ghz Pentium with 512MB RAM. I plan to
install a WinXP Pro on the USB drive and do some driver development on
it. Will that be significantly slower than with my internal HDD?
- So I can use the bios to choose the drive to boot from (internal
versus USB) and then the MBR to choose which partition on the HDD to
boot from right?

Any caveats about the USB drives in general? If the speeds are good, it
sounds like a good way to use my internal HDD and the USB one in
parallel!

Thanks a lot in advance!

First of all, with respect to the non-detection problem re the HD you're
trying to install in your laptop...

The HD installation process involving a laptop/notebook can sometimes be
tricky business depending upon the make & model of the machine. Hopefully
you can get your hands (or your eyes!) on a IBM service manual or user guide
for your specific notebook which (hopefully) has detailed instructions re
the installation procedure so as to ensure you're properly installing the
drive.

With respect to your query re a USB external HD...

They are quite useful for backup/storage uses. While their data transfer
speed is considerably slower than that of an internal HD, you're obviously
not working with the USB device in the same intensive manner that you would
with your day-to-day working HD. Presumably you'll be using the external
device for moving/copying files & folders between the laptop and the
external device, so unless you have some unusual requirements I wouldn't
think that the slower rate of data transfer for the external USB device
would be a significant negative.

When you speak of booting from an external USB HD I assume you're referring
to a situation where you would be using a disk imaging program to clone the
contents of your laptop's internal HD to a USBEHD so that the OS would be
contained on the USBEHD. While you can do this, and it's a valuable backup
tool in my opinion, understand that the USBEHD will *not* be bootable. There
have been reports that this or that hack can overcome this limitation but
we've never been able to boot from a USBEHD involving the XP OS. Similarly,
to the best of my knowledge, you cannot *directly* install the XP OS onto a
USBEHD.

In summary - the USB external HD is a useful piece of supplemental
equipment, especially where a laptop/notebook is involved.
Anna

 

[on3lonestar]

Thanks Anna,

It seems the IBM Thinkpads are not compatible with all HDD
manufacturers/configurations. They ship a Toshiba for the 40GB HDD,
while a Travelstar one for 80GB. I have ordered one from their site
which they claim works with the Txx series. I will returning my Toshiba
100GB now.

The reason why a USB HDD wont do for me is that I need to install WinXP
etc on it and run it from there. Many people have reported that this
doesn't work well as of now. Also, I don't want to risk a slower
performing OS.

Thanks for your reply!

 

[Rod Speed]

(e-mail address removed) wrote

It seems the IBM Thinkpads are not compatible
with all HDD manufacturers/configurations.

VERY unlikely, and if they werent, there
would be plenty of comments on that.

They ship a Toshiba for the 40GB HDD, while a Travelstar one for
80GB. I have ordered one from their site which they claim works
with the Txx series. I will returning my Toshiba 100GB now.

Its much more likely that it just needs to
be prepared properly for the T42 to see it.